Snakes on a roll

***I'd like to apologize for the lengthy delay in posting this latest blog. I know you're anxiously anticipating my latest words of wisdom, so I'm sorry to keep you waiting. But without any further ado, here it is. I hope you find it entertaining and/or interesting.

After starting the New Year with a 9-1 shellacking at the hands of the Pensacola Ice Flyers, things could only get better...and they did.

We hosted the new-look Augusta Riverhawks. The 'Hawks had been forced to make a few moves to fill out their roster after losing several key players to callups and injuries. Because of this, there were a lot of new faces wearing Riverhawks jerseys.

The Snakes had also added a new name to the roster...Tom Maldonado. Tom came here on the recommendation of the "Missouri Mafia" of Sam Bowles, Bret Tyler and Brett Hammond, as he was a teammate of theirs with the CHL's Missouri Mavericks. A lot of recruiting at this level of hockey is done via word of mouth, as evidenced by these guys and the "Canisius Connection" of Andrew Loewen, Peter MacDougall, and Dave Cianfrini. Since scouting at this level is almost nonexistent, coaches rely heavily on players using their connections to not only find players, but to judge how well they'll fit into the team. Team chemistry is as vital to a team's success as skill and effort, and with former teammates you already know that they can get along with some of your players. I've seen good players underperform because they didn't fit in well with their teammates, so it's important to know how well a player's character and personality will fit in with the rest of the team.

So, we know that Maldonado gets along well with several of our guys and fits in well with their style of play, and since word of mouth goes both ways, he knows that Columbus is a great place to play, with loyal, passionate fans and a good organization. So, welcome aboard, Tom!

The Snakes came out hitting and played pretty well in the first period, but there was no score until the Riverhawks netted a power-play goal at 16:41 of the period. Daryl Moore tied the game at 1-1 just 34 seconds later and that's where the score remained after one period. Maldonado took a nice bank-pass off the boards and fired home a one-timer from the point to give the Snakes a 2-1 lead. Lucas Labelle and Jordan Braid traded goals in the third and the Snakes were holding onto a 3-2 lead when it all came crashing down. While killing a 2-man disadvantage, the Riverhawks cleared the puck out of the zone and down the ice just as the first penalty was ending. Egor Mironov came out of the box behind the defense and had a clear line to the loose puck. Snakes goalie Andrew Loewen was all that stood between Mironov and the Snakes net. In a split-second decision, Andrew decided to charge the puck and try to beat Mironov to it so that he could clear it from danger. He hesitated just enough that Mironov beat him to the puck and managed to poke it just past Loewen's reach. Once he cleared Loewen's outstretched body, Mironov had an unobstructed lane to the Snakes goal for an easy tap-in to tie the game with just under 3 minutes left.

Some were quick to blame Loewzy for the misplay, but in reality it's a play he shouldn't have had to make. There's no way that puck should get behind our defense at the end of a 5-on-3 advantage like that. We were still up a man, and somebody should have been back to make sure the guy coming out of the box didn't beat us. That's why you'll hear goalies banging their sticks on the ice when a penalty is ending...to let the defense know that there's about to be a guy coming out behind them. One of them is supposed to drop back and cover the guy. In this case, nobody did. If Loewen stays in his net, it's a clean breakaway to one of their best players anyway. Loewzy did what most goalies would have done in the same situation. The only thing he might have done wrong was hesitating. If he takes half a second less to think about it and decide to go, he probably gets to the puck and clears it. But I guess we'll never know. As it stands, we're now in a tie game, heading for overtime.

The OT period could have gone either way, with big scoring chances at either end turned away by even bigger saves from each goalie. Either team could easily have scored 3 or 4 times in the extra frame. Then, just when it looked like we were headed for a shootout, one miscommunication turned into an odd-man rush and in the blink of an eye Branden Kosolofsky (of all people) buries the puck in the net with 7 seconds left in the overtime to claim the victory for the Riverhawks. What a heartbreaker! To come that close, and now with the new rules we don't even get a point for the effort, really hurts. I'm really not a big fan of that rule. It seems ridiculous that a team could play 65 minutes of hockey to a draw, then lose in a shootout and have nothing to show for it. But, I guess that's the way it goes...for this year, at least.

It's tough to be in the locker room after any loss, but especially after a loss like this one. To come so close, only to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, can be very disheartening. Everybody tries to make sense of it...not to assign blame, but to understand why. Many guys will blame themselves. Loewen will blame himself for not getting to that loose puck. Another guy might blame himself for fanning on a shot with an open net. Somebody else will blame himself for not picking up his guy in the overtime. In truth, none of them are right, but only because all of them are right. Any one of those breaks for or against us could have swayed the outcome of the game. We win as a team and we lose as a team. If one guy has an off-night, it's up to the others to pick up the slack. If the offense fails to produce, the defense has to tighten up and limit the goals against. If the defense gives up too many chances, the goalie has to be able to shut the door. If the goalie doesn't have his "A" game on any given night, the offense has to come up big to compensate. We fell short tonight. Now, it's time to get ready for the next game. You have to be able to put any loss behind you, because the next game is right around the corner.

With that in mind, we turned the page to Saturday's game. We didn't have time to dwell on the loss to Augusta, because Pensacola was coming to town. The Ice Flyers are one of the top teams in the league, so we know we have to play our best to beat them. There's no room for mistakes against a team like this...any mistakes can and will end up in the back of your net.

Both teams came out strong. The Flyers managed 11 shots on goal to the Snakes' 10, but Peter MacDougall scored the only goal of the period and we took a 1-0 lead into the locker room. From there, the defense took control and limited Pensacola to only 11 shots over the last 2 periods. Ian Vigier shut the door and a goal by Sam Bowles in the second and one by Orrin Hergott in the third rounded out the scoring in a 3-0 final.

The next week we ran into another ice shortage in the Civic Center. Occasionally, in their quest to turn a profit, the Civic Center management schedules events in there. This may help pay the bills, but it kinda cramps our style. It's hard to work on your game when you can't practice during the week. I'll be really glad when the new building opens up. But until then, no practice ice means we're heading for Louisiana early. We've actually been pretty lucky with our travel schedule this year. We haven't spent many nights on the road and none of our road trips have been longer than 3 games (and most haven't even been THAT long). But, in this instance, we headed out a day early. We left Wednesday night at midnight, which is nice because it means we spent most of the trip sleeping. We arrived in Lafayette at about 7am local time and headed to a truck stop for breakfast at the Country Pride restaurant. After breakfast, we headed over to the Cajundome for the first time. Last year, the Gators played at the Blackham Coliseum, a run-down old rodeo barn and generally a miserable place for a hockey game. The Cajundome is a definite improvement. It's the place the old Ice Gators played in their ECHL heyday. So, basically, the Gators went from having the worst facility in the league to having arguably the best.

We got to the rink and unloaded our gear to get ready for practice. We were lucky, in that the Gators had a game that night but it was against Mississippi (who came in day-of-game because they're only about 3 hours away). Since they weren't coming in until the evening, we were able to use their locker room to skate in the morning. Once we finished practicing, we packed up our gear and moved it into a storage room until after the game that night. We then headed off to the hotel to check in and get settled. A bunch of us went to the game that night to watch the Gators play the Surge. The Surge stormed out to a big 4-0 lead, then held off a late rally by the Gators to come away with a 5-2 win.

After the game, we headed down to the locker rooms to wait for Mississippi to clear out so we could move our gear in and hang it to dry for the next day's morning skate. While we were there we got to chat with former Snake Ryan McCarthy. It was nice to catch up with Macker. He said he's enjoying playing in Mississippi (What's not to like? They've been hovering around 1st place for most of the season), but he misses his friends in Columbus. I told him we miss him, too.

At last, the Surge had cleared out and those of us who had attended the game moved our gear in and hung it up in the visitors' locker room to dry. We headed back to the hotel and were back in our rooms by 11pm (or midnight Eastern time, 24 hours after our trek had begun).

We headed down to the Cajundome for the morning skate, then headed back to the hotel for lunch. Most of the guys beelined it over to the Italian pizzeria down the street. Their pasta seems to be the favorite pre-game meal of our guys. I prefer the Cajun kitchen a little further down the road. I don't get many chances to have real Cajun food, so I like to take advantage when I can.

I headed back to the rink after lunch to set up for the game. I had an unusually large number of skates to sharpen before the game. The ice is usually pretty soft down in the South, especially in a humid climate like Louisiana, so guys usually don't need their edges quite as sharp. Today, however, was another story. I sharpened 10 pairs of skates in the afternoon, along with 2 pairs in the morning. That's 2/3 of the team, which is a lot more than I usually have to do in one day.

The guys came out flying on their freshly sharpened skates, outshooting the Gators by a 13-8 margin. Unfortunately, only Daryl Moore could solve Gators goalie Archie Henderson. The Snakes could only muster 3 shots on goal in the second period (to the Gators' 11), but 2 of those shots (off the stick of Sam Bowles) eluded Henderson. The Gators netted 3 goals in the frame to tie the game at the intermission.

Jason Hill scored his second goal of the game early in the third and it started to feel like deja' vu all over again. It would have been easy for the guys to hang their heads and wait for the inevitable collapse at this point, but they battled back to tie the game on a goal from Jordan Braid, then notched a power-play marker from Bret Tyler to retake the lead. After that, it was all about Ian Vigier shutting the door. The Gators managed 13 shots in the third, but Hill's tally was the only one to get by Ian.

After the game, we boarded the bus and headed back to the hotel. I know that I've touted the virtues of the day trips, but there's something to be said for back-to-back games in the same city. It's nice to have a road game where you don't have to pack up and load the bus and head out of town right after the game...to be able to hang up the gear, hand over the laundry to the home Equipment Manager, and go to the hotel. Of course, it's even nicer when you don't have a game the next day and can go out and actually enjoy the city you're in, but that's another story. In this case, we went back to the hotel to get some rest for the next day's morning skate.

I headed down to the lobby the next morning for the continental breakfast. I think this hotel has the second best continental breakfast in the league (Mississippi gets the edge because they have an omelet bar). I finished my food and waited for my ride to the rink. I like to go in early to make sure the room is set up and ready to go when the guys get there. It's easier than trying to pass out laundry and practice jerseys while the guys are milling around the crowded locker room. Plus, getting there early allows me time to sharpen skates so that they're ready to go when the guys arrive. I like to be done with everything so that when the guys show up I'm available in case they need anything, rather than having to scramble to get it all done in time.

The guys finished the morning skate and we headed back to the hotel. The routine doesn't change much when you're on the road (I guess that's why they call it a "routine"). Morning skate, pre-game meal, pre-game nap, bus to the arena, team meeting, warmups, game. In between there are multitudes of personal rituals...some are just force of habit and getting into a comfort zone, but some are very superstitious (and some are downright weird). In any case, it's funny to see the guys go through them. You can almost set your watch by some of them.

We opened the scoring the same way we had closed out the scoring the night before...with a power play goal by Bret Tyler. This would be the only goal of the first period. Matt Kinnunen made it 2-0 midway through the second period. Ice Gators Captain Shawn McNeil beat Andrew Loewen on a penalty shot awarded after he was taken down on a breakaway. That was all the scoring in the second period, despite the Gators holding a 15-7 shot advantage. There was no scoring in the third until Orrin Hergott dented the twine at 12:09 into the frame. The 3-1 score held up until the Gators pulled their goalie for the last couple of minutes. Beau McLaughlin scored with the extra attacker, but his goal was bookended by two empty-netters for the Snakes for a final score of 5-2. Sweeping a series on the road makes the long bus ride home much more fun.

The next weekend we hosted the Fayetteville Fireantz and Louisiana Ice Gators. We were still riding the high of our 3-game winning streak. Friday night the boys came out flying, unleashing a barrage of 18 shots on goal in the first period (to just 8 Fireantz shots). Rookies Jordan Braid, Mitch Wall and Matt Kinnunen beat Fireantz goalie Travis Yonkman for a 3-0 lead after one period. Orrin Hergott and Antz forward Nathaniel Brooks traded goals in the second period, and we entered the third with a 4-1 lead. Defense took a break in the third as the teams combined to score 5 goals in a 7-minute span (3 for the Snakes and 2 for the Fireantz for a final score of 7-3).

Saturday's game started much the same way (after some opening-faceoff fireworks between Peter MacDougall and Gators forward Jason Hill)...with the Snakes dominating play and outshooting their opponent by a wide margin (18-9). The difference is that tonight's victim was Gators goalie Scott Darling and he only allowed one goal (to Orrin Hergott, which was countered by Ryan Howarth). Despite the one-sided action, the game was tied at one after one period. Kyle Lundale started off the second with an early goal, but it was countered 32 seconds later by CJ Tozzo. MacDougall and Jesse Cole added goals later in the period and we went into the third with a 4-2 lead. Shawn McNeil scored midway through the third and Jesse Cole countered a couple of minutes later. Matt Kinnunen added an empty-netter (after a couple of near-misses by other Snakes) to close out the scoring at 6-3.

So, the Snakes rebounded from their worst loss of the season and a heartbreaking OT loss by rattling off 5 straight victories (our longest winning streak of the season). Sometimes you have to hit rock bottom before you can start climbing to the top (Wow, that's deep. I should write that down. Oh, wait...I just did. Nevermind.). In any case, that's how we started the new year. Hopefully, it's a sign that we've turned a corner and are ready to start playing up to our potential more consistently. But, we'll see.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

The month of December was a busy one for the Cottonmouths...and a streaky one.

We started off the month by dropping back-to-back road games at Pensacola and Augusta.

The Pensacola game was a heartbreaker. Despite being outshot for 2 periods (by a wide margin), the Snakes were down only 2-1 thanks to a great effort by goalie Andrew Loewen. He kept the game close and we battled back in the 3rd to tie the game at 4 with just over a minute left in regulation, forcing overtime. Just 23 seconds into the overtime period Orrin Hergott took a tripping penalty while battling for a loose puck with Ice Flyers forward Matt Whitehead, resulting in a rare overtime power play. Whitehead buried a one-timer from the slot for the win.

The Augusta game was a weird one. We were outshot in the first period, but scored the only goal in the frame. We outshot the Hawks in each of the last 2 periods, but they scored the rest of the goals for a final score of 3-1. The whole team was in a kind of funk all night. We just never really got going. The loss pushed our losing streak to 3 games.

The following week was fairly easy. We started off the weekend with another visit to Pensacola. During the pre-game introductions I witnessed one of the funniest things I've ever seen in my life. The Ice Flyers' mascot, Maverick, was being introduced to the crowd and came tearing out onto the ice with all the lights out and spotlights weaving their way around the ice for dramatic effect. He launched into a hot lap around the rink. As he approached the center of the rink, I noticed that he was coming dangerously close to the carpet that had been rolled out to the center faceoff circle for the ceremonial puck drop. In what seemed to be slow motion, I began to extrapolate his trajectory in relation to the carpet and determined that he had taken a bad angle. I had just enough time to form the words "Oh, no!" in my head before he hit the carpet. His skates stopped cold, but the rest of him continued on its original path. He caught about 8 feet of air before hitting the freshly resurfaced ice and then careening on all fours into the boards right in front of our bench. As the linesmen helped him up, I noticed that his big bird head had spun around 180 degrees. The linesmen helped him pick up his flying helmet and goggles and spin his head back around and send him on his way. I was doubled over with laughter. And I'm pleased to report that Maverick was completely unhurt...except for a slightly bruised ego.

The game itself turned into a laugher as well, although it didn't start out that way. Goals by Chris Wilson and Tanner Shultz put the Ice Flyers up 2-0 in the first half of the first period. Daryl Moore answered to make it 2-1 going into the first intermission. Then it was time for the Jesse Cole Show. After complaining about nausea and bringing a plastic bag onto the bench in case he needed to puke, Colesy came out and scored a natural hat-trick in the second (the only 3 goals of the period) to give the Snakes a 4-2 lead after 2 periods. Daryl Moore and Chris Wilson traded goals in the third, then Andrew Loewen shut the door on the Flyers. Cole closed out the scoring with an ampty-netter (his 4th goal of the night) for a 6-3 final. Maybe Colesy should get sick more often.

The next night we were back home against the Huntsville Havoc. Somebody should have told us the game started at 7:30...we came out completely flat and limped out of the first period down 3-0. We managed to claw our way back with 2 goals in the third, but couldn't get the equalizer and lost 3-2.

We began the following weekend the way we had ended the previous weekend...with a home loss to Huntsville. The difference was that both teams started late this time. Our 7:30 game time was pushed back because Huntsville's bus broke down halfway to Columbus. By the time a replacement bus had picked them up, there was no way they were getting to town on time. It's no fun to get all your work done and get ready to go, then have to sit and twiddle your thumbs waiting for the other team to show up. They didn't get there until almost 9pm. After a quick warmup period (without the customary intermission afterward) the teams lined up and started the game about 2 hours late. Matt Kinnunen got the Snakes on the board with a power play goal 9:07 into the first period. Jordan Braid added another PP goal at 8:15 of the second. Stephen Margeson got the Havoc onto the board at 14:09, and Shaun Arvai tied the game at 2-2 three minutes later. Havoc goalie Mark Sibbald shut the door on the Snakes in the third and Margeson scored the game winner 16:29 into the third period. Ray Ortiz added an empty-netter to close out the scoring in a 4-2 Havoc win.

The next day we were off on a road trip, but first we had to clear out our locker room for the Disney show coming into the Civic Center. We had to have everything cleared out by 9am so they could clean and set the rooms, which meant that Tyler McCrea and myself had to pull an all-nighter. We did the usual post-game cleanup and put away routine, and I did my usual post-game laundry routine, but in addition I had to get the game jerseys and socks ready to pack, sharpen skates for the next day's game, and pack away all our extra stuff in the training room, in addition to trying to rotate the gloves and skates onto the glove dryer to try and dry them before morning. I managed to get about a one-hour nap in between loads of laundry, and we just managed to get the laundry, jerseys and socks passed out and the bags packed by the 9am deadline so we could load up the trailer for the road trip. On the plus side, I now had all my work done and had little more to do than wait for the bus to leave.

Daryl Moore scored the game's first goal 14:21 into a lackluster first period (for both squads). The announcer was still calling out the goal and assists when Branden Kosolofsky scored to tie the game at the 14:45 mark, and he was still announcing that goal when Neil Graham made it 2-1 twenty seconds later. Matt Auffrey notched a goal at 5:16 of the second to close out the scoring. The Snakes never mounted a significant threat after Moore's goal, only managing 26 total shots in the game.

After the Augusta game we got back on the bus and headed North to Fayetteville. We arrived at around 3am, unloaded and hung the gear at the Crown Coliseum, then headed to the hotel to get some sleep. I was exhausted. I had had about 3 hours of sleep in the last 2 nights, and I was in need of some catch-up. Hey...I need my beauty rest! I hit the rack and probably fell asleep at around 4am, with an 11am alarm so that I could meet Fireantz Equipment Manager Frank "Rizzo" Jury, an old friend, for lunch. I got up, showered and packed to head down to the rink. Rizzo picked me up and we stopped at Jersey Mike's to pick up lunch on the way to the rink. We had our lunch and swapped stories and soon it was time to start setting up the room for the game.

There's an old adage in sports..."Anything you say can and will be used against you". Okay, so I borrowed that from the Miranda rights speech, but it still applies. You never want to say anything about the team you're about to play that might give them extra motivation to beat you. This is why professional teams instruct players in what not to say in interviews. The last thing you want is to have one of your quotes in the paper stuck up on the other team's bulletin board. One example of this would be a statement such as "They are the worst team in the league." Tommy Stewart broke this cardinal rule when he intimated that the Columbus Cottonmouths were the worst team in the SPHL. The Snakes didn't take too kindly to this insult and took to the ice in ill humour. To put it another way, the boys had a bit of a snarl on. I like that. We play better when we play a little bit mean.

The teams traded goals in the first period, but not much else was going on. The action picked up in the second, however. After the Antz took a 2-goal lead early in the second, Jerome had some choice words for the boys. It seemed to fire them up as they came out banging. Then at the 7:01 mark, all hell broke loose. Snakes defenseman Jeff MacPhee started things off with a huge open-ice check on Antz forward Jason Hill. The Antz took exception to the hit, which left Hill sprawled on the ice momentarily. As the whistle blew to stop play, Anthony Perdicaro put a hit on MacPhee in front of the Antz bench. This afforded several Antz players the chance to take a shot at Mac. After Phil Sbrocchi took a whack at him, Lundale took a whack at Sbrocchi. Sbrocchi followed Lundale to the Snakes' bench and pinned him against the boards from behind. In the process of extricating himself, Lundy caught Sbrocchi with an elbow to the schnozola, drawing blood and the ire of Sbrocchi. The two defensemen squared off and dropped the gloves. There were no linesmen to break them up because they were already separating MacPhee and Perdicaro, who were already tangling at center ice. Then somewhere in the middle of all the chaos, Matt Kinnunen got into a fight with Jason Hill, who was suddenly feeling better, apparently. When the dust settled, 5 players were headed for an early shower. Kinnunen, Lundale, Hill and Sbrocchi got the gate for engaging in secondary altercations, and MacPhee got a match penalty for a head-butt during his fight with Perdicaro. In the middle of all this, Jerome and Fireantz coach Tommy Stewart exchanged pleasantries. Apparently Tommy thought that Jerome had sent MacPhee out to try and injure one of the Fireantz, and Jerome expressed his derision at Tommy's accusations.

The net result of all of this, apart from some extra ice time for everybody, was that the Snakes were all fired up now. The boys took control of the game, putting more shots on goal and more bodies into the boards. Jordan Braid scored at 13:11 to cut the lead down to one. Brett Hammond tied the game at 6:54 of the third period. After Nathaniel Brooks put the Antz back on top, Hammond tied the game once again at 11:54. Two minutes later, Sam Bowles scored the eventual game-winner. Andrew Loewen held the fort for the last 6 minutes to seal the win.

Heading into the holiday week, we were feeling pretty good about ourselves. The comeback win in Fayetteville had given us confidence and shown that we could battle back from an early deficit...not to mention proving that we could score more than 1 goal in a game.

We carried that with us into the next game against Augusta, jumping out to a 5-0 lead (with goals from 5 different Snakes) after 2 periods. This is the kind of balanced scoring we've been looking for all season. We've known all along that we don't have a big-name goal-scorer. What we've been hoping for is to have the ability to get goals from anywhere, from the first line to the third line to the defense. Unfortunately, our goal-scoring has been spotty, at best. But a night like this one gives me hope that things might come together the way we planned after all. We'll see.

Brent Clarke scored the Snakes 6th goal in the third period (from 6 different scorers), sandwiched between two Augusta goals, for a 6-2 final score. We were able to celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas morning on the heels of back-to-back wins. On Christmas day, we were back on the ice in the afternoon for an optional practice to help get ready for our game the next day. The SPHL schedule-makers, in their impotent wisdom, chose to give us a 4pm game in Fayetteville (a 7-hour bus ride away) on December 26th, or Boxing Day, as it's called by our Canadian neighbors (a reference to throwing away boxes and boxing up gifts to return, not fighting in a ring).

This was one of those trips that we had all been dreading since our travel plans were announced. Not only were we travelling on the day after Christmas, but a 4pm start time and 7-hour bus ride dictated that we would need to leave at about 6am to arrive in Fayetteville by about 2pm (with an hour to eat on the way). But we were additionally blessed with a rare Georgia White Christmas. A nice snowfall on Christmas day meant we would likely see ice and slush on the roads for a good portion of the trip. Because of this, we pushed our departure time up to 5:30am. Wonderful! What a great way to start the day...get up, head to the rink, pack the gear, load the bus and get on board. Needless to say, most of the guys headed straight for their bunks. The roads were pretty bad in Northern Georgia, and at one point we were slowed down to about 40 miles an hour, but Tex got us through. We stopped just outside of Augusta for lunch (Breakfast? Brunch? Whatever), but about the only place we could find open was a Cracker Barrel. It wasn't ideal, but it would have to do (Don't get me wrong...I love the Barrel. But it's probably not the best food for athletes on a gameday.). We got in without too much of a delay and ate and got back on the road. We pulled into the parking lot at the Crown Coliseum almost at 2pm on the dot (Great job, Tex!) and quickly unloaded and got out of the cold. Once inside, it was business as usual as we prepared for the rematch.

Usually, when you have a bunch of fights against a team and then play them again a few days later, there's an expectation that the animosity will carry over from the previous game. This almost never happens, but still that feeling of anticipation is there. Today is no different. We expect a bloodbath, but it never comes. In fact, there weren't very many penalties (and only one fight, between Sbrocchi and Mitch Wall).

Instead, there was a game that was basically 2 halves. The first half was dominated by the Fireantz (after an early goal by Jesse Cole at 1:11 of the first), but once again Andrew Loewen kept us close. At the midway point, the Fireantz held a 2-1 lead. The Snakes came to life in the second half of the 2nd period and took a 3-2 lead on goals by Matt Kinnunen and Jeff MacPhee. Jesse Cole again started things early, scoring a power-play goal just 50 seconds into the third. Fireantz forward Mark Versteeg-Lytwyn scored to close the gap halfway through the third, but the Snakes played some good team defense to limit their chances to a few and their goals to zero over the last 10 minutes. It seems we finally figured out that their whole offense revolves around the breakaway pass. They like to sneak a guy away from the pack behind the defense and hit him with that long stretch pass to send him on a breakaway. Time and time again they tried it, and time and time again the Snakes were there to stifle it. It was a thing of beauty to watch and you could see that the Antz forwards were getting more and more frustrated as the game wore on. We held on for a 4-3 victory and boarded the bus for home. Our longest week of the year was just beginning.

We got back to Columbus at about 3am, with the Louisiana Ice Gators arriving from Mississippi shortly after us. Normally we wouldn't practice on a day where we had bussed overnight to get back home after a game, but with our next game hot on Monday's heels, we had to get on the ice. We had a 1pm practice, immediately preceded by the Ice Gators (who arrived in Columbus without their new coach, who met them in Columbus). Both teams had a short practice to get ready for the next day's game.

The Gators took the ice for Tuesday night's game with their new coach behind the bench for the first time. He obviously didn't have a lot of time to prepare them. He didn't have any time to work on systems, or even determine which players work best together. They seemed to want to do well for their new coach, but just didn't have much direction and just weren't able to end their now 11-game losing streak. The Snakes won the game 3-1, in large part due to the 3-point effort of Daryl Moore (2G, 1A). Ian Vigier stopped 28 of 29 shots for the win.

After another abbreviated practice day, the Snakes boarded the bus again and headed down the road to Pensacola. The Ice Flyers took a lead in the first 2 minutes of the first period, then added to it in the first 2 minutes of the second. The Snakes tied the score with 2 late goals in the second, but Brett Liscomb and Erik Stoyanovich restored the Flyers' 2-goal lead in the third. Sam Bowles closed the gap late in the third, but the Snakes fell on the short end of a 4-3 final, snapping a season-high 5-game winning streak.

On New Year's Eve, the Snakes returned home to face the Gators once again. Despite having a couple of games under their belt with their new coach, the Gators still couldn't muster much consistent pressure on the Snakes, who strolled to a 3-0 win (their first shutout of the season and Ian Vigier's first in 2+ seasons).

On New Year's Day, the Snakes seemed to be showing the effects of the long week. The Flyers stormed out to a 5-0 lead after 1 period, an 8-0 lead after 2, and withstood our 1-goal comeback for a 9-1 victory. We just didn't have anything left in the tank for that final game of the week, and it showed. Pensacola dominated every aspect of the game, from beginning to end. The only consolation in a 9-1 loss is that it still only counts as one loss in the standings.

In an attempt to take something positive from such a horrible game, at least we managed to win 6 of our last 8 games, including a 4-game winning streak. We got through our longest, most difficult stretch of the season with a 4-2 record and could look forward to getting back some key injured players heading into the new year. All in all, things are looking up. I just hope we can keep it going.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello, Readers. I promised in my last blog (which, admittedly, was posted a couple days later than I had planned) to try and get caught up. Now that we're through the holiday week, I might actually be able to do just that.

In the holiday tradition of expressing thanks, I would like to thank all of those who have been reading my blog, and especially those who have given me feedback. If it weren't for you people reading it and enjoying it, there wouldn't be much point in writing it...and I've enjoyed writing it.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to once again thank all the guys that help me out at the rink. Flip, Barney, Shooter, Ryno, Tyler and Bubba make it possible for me to do the best job I can to take care of our guys. All of them have gone above and beyond the call of duty at some point, sometimes spending the night at the rink to meet an incoming team or help set up for a morning game (as Bubba did before the Kids' Day game this season). I consider myself very fortunate to have them here to help. Words can't possibly express how much I appreciate their efforts. Thanks, guys!

I'd also like to thank the Cottonmouths organization as a whole. I've worked for a lot of hockey organizations, but none has been to me as this one. Everybody gets along very well and is always willing to go out of their way to help each other out. I know it sounds cliche' to throw the word "family" around to describe people with whom you're not related, but it really does apply here. From the top to the bottom, everyone really is as close as family. And for those of us who are far from our native homes and our nuclear families, that really means a lot. Thanks to all of you.

Now that that's taken care of, we can dive right into the games from the Thanksgiving weekend. We kicked the weekend off by kicking the hell out of the Augusta Riverhawks. We owed them one after the way they treated us last week when we went there. Not only did they win the game, but they took a few liberties with our guys. They are a very yappy team. I'm surprised any of them can keep their mouthguards in when their lips are always flapping. They have several of the softest guys who talk the most crap I've ever heard. I hate guys like that. They chirp and chirp, but won't back it up. You try to fight them, but they just turtle. It's very frustrating.

But tonight was our night. Kyle Lundale opened the scoring with a couple of minutes left in a very evenly played first period, and the Snakes closed the frame with a 1-0 lead. For the second game in a row we came alive in the second, with Sammy scoring at about the midway point and Daryl Moore adding two late goals to give the Snakes a 4-0 lead. Greg Holt broke up the shutout in the last 2 minutes, but the game was already decided. It was one of the few total effort games we've had this season where everything seemed to be working as it should. We outplayed, outworked, outhit, outshot and (most importantly) outscored the Hawks. It was nice to get a win like that at home. And, to quote "Major League" Indians Manager Lou Brown, "We win one tomorrow...that's called a winning streak. It HAS happened before."

The next day we were back on the bus, heading for Knoxville. We've had bad luck in this barn in recent years (I think we've only won 2 games in Knoxville since I came to Columbus), but we won the last time we were here. We rolled into Knoxvegas feeling pretty good about ourselves. We were in for a tough game, though. The Ice Bears certainly weren't going to make it easy on us. But then, they never do. David Segal and Matt Kinnunen started things off with a bang, dropping the mitts and mixing it up off the opening faceoff. Kinner didn't do as well this time as he did the first time he fought Segal, but he did all right. Segal is a tough customer and Kinner held his own. After that, it was down to business. The Snakes got on the board just a couple of minutes into the game on a goal by Brent Clarke. Emery Olauson countered for the Bears a couple of minutes later. Each team had several good scoring opportunities, but the goalies were equal to the task and the score remained tied at one apiece after one.

The second period saw more of the same. After a few rushes back and forth, Bears Captain Mike Bulawka was awarded a penalty shot at 3:43 of the second. We were almost relieved that it was awarded to him. Not to take anything away from Bulawka, but there are a few guys on that team that we would be more afraid of in that situation. Vigier stood his ground and made the save, keeping the tie intact. Once again, the Snakes seized the momentum in the second and outshot and outchanced the Bears but again it was Olauson that found the back of the net late in the second. Ice Bears goalie Bryan Hince earned his paycheck, turning away 13 shots to preserve the Bears' lead going into the third.

Though Knoxville had the better of the chances in the third, Vigier held the fort so that Matt Kinnunen could tie the game for the Snakes. The teams continued to battle down to the wire when something unprecedented happened. Ice Bear Mike Bulawka was awarded another penalty shot with 7 seconds remaining in the third. I'm not sure I've ever seen a game in which 2 penalty shots were awarded...and I'm quite certain I've never seen 2 penalty shots awarded to the same player in the same game. I don't believe this has ever happened before. With the game on the line, Vigier once again closed the door and forced overtime.

Columbus registered the only 3 shots of the overtime period, but couldn't get one past Hince. Sam Bowles and Orrin Hergott scored in the shootout to outweigh Chris Bratina with the Bears' lone shootout goal, securing the victory for the Snakes. Hergott gets credited with the game-winning goal because his shootout goal was the deciding factor, but he couldn't have done it without Bowles...or Vigier, for that matter.

Three in a row! Another big win for the Snakes. That sure makes the bus ride home seem a lot shorter. We get back to the Snakepit and drop off the gear and the guys head home to get some rest before yet another big game...this one against the Mississippi Surge.

We've had trouble with the Surge all season (and most of last season). They're a good team, to be sure, but I don't think they're as good as we've made them look at times. They started quickly, scoring just a minute into the game. The Snakes came alive and played the Surge pretty even for the rest of the period, with the teams exchanging goals midway through the frame.

There was a bizarre incident early in the second period. Orrin Hergott was given a fighting major, even though he never dropped his gloves. He collided with Surge forward Jason Beeman as they were both going after a loose puck. Beeman gave Orrin an elbow, and Orrin responded with a gloved punch. Beeman took exception and jumped Orrin, who was caught completely by surprise. Beeman had the gloves off, pummeling Orrin as he covered up. Somehow, the referee saw this as a fair fight and gave Orrin and Beeman coincidental fighting majors. That's odd, considering Orrin never dropped his gloves or stick and never threw a punch except for the one he threw with his gloves still on. This "fight" seemed to ignite the Snakes. Sam Bowles tied the game at 2 on a power play just a couple of minutes later. But the momentum didn't last. Jeff Grant scored on a power play a few minutes later to regain the lead for good. Beeman added a goal late in the third and Matt Zultek added an empty-net goal to close out the scoring with a final score of 5-2. The streak was over. But it was fun while it lasted.

That closed out our holiday week. The winning streak was fun, but as the saying goes you're only as good as your last game. And we ended the weekend with a loss. So we had to carry that with us into the next weekend.

Snakes wreak Havoc

I know, I know. I'm a couple of weeks behind. Well, I'm going to try and play a little catch up. Here goes.

After splitting the home-and-home series with Mississippi, we were feeling pretty good about ourselves. Although Mississippi isn't quite as good as they were last year, they're still one of the better teams in the league. To be able to notch a win against them is a sign that things are looking up...or so we thought.

After another short practice week (to accomodate the Jason Aldean concert), we boarded the bus Friday afternoon for our first trip to Augusta. I was looking forward to it, having never been there before. I had heard very little about the James Brown Arena, and none of it was flattering. Upon our arrival, I thought that I might have been misinformed. It didn't look much different from any other aging hockey arena. It could use a face-lift, but didn't look terrible. We made our way inside and found our way to the visiting locker room. I began looking for the rest of it. It's a tiny, tiny room. It's basically a walk-in closet. There is another, even smaller room adjoining that was set up as a training room, with a little entryway that became the Coach's office. My equipment room was the hallway outside (not an uncommon setup in the minor leagues). We made do the best we could and set about the task of getting ready to play the game. I put out gum, stick wax and pledge (to clean the visors) for the guys, then set up the sharpener and got to work. Ordinarily, I like to have all my sharpening done beforehand on a trip like this, but a couple of guys neglected to put their numbers on the board so they had to ask me to sharpen them here.

As I was doing the skates, a couple of the linesmen (whose room is right next to ours) asked me to sharpen their skates as well. So my day just got a little busier. It's generally considered the home team's responsibility to take care of the officials, but since I was right there and the home team was on the other side of the arena, they asked me instead. It's only a minor inconvenience, and I don't mind helping them out. One of the guys asked for a 1/2" hollow (pretty standard), and I said that wasn't a problem because the wheel was already set up to do that. The other guy asked for a 9/16" hollow (which is kind of a pain, because the marks on the diamond quill only register 8ths of an inch, so to do 16ths of an inch you have to estimate halfway between two lines). I was a little put off that he asked for that hollow when I just mentioned that it was easier to do 1/2" (that extra 1/16" is fairly negligible). As soon as he disappeared down the hall, I went ahead and did both pairs of skates at the same 1/2" hollow. They both thanked me for the great sharpening.

We came out flat and never seemed to really get going, only managing 11 shots on goal in the first two periods. Somehow we managed to hang onto a 1-1 tie heading into the third. The Riverhawks came alive in the third, unleashing a 3-goal barrage to take control of the game. A late goal by Jesse Cole was offset by an empty-net goal for a final score of 5-2.

I wasn't really impressed by the Riverhawks. I know it sounds weird to say that after they beat us so handily, but they really don't bring much to the table except that they work hard. On this night we were less impressive, so their hard work was enough to beat us.

We rode the bus back home for a game the next night against Huntsville. Saturday's game was the middle game in a triple-header. The Civic Center was hosting a weekend of hockey, featuring the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, Clemson and Alabama hockey teams in what was billed as a "College Hockey Clash". Our game was sandwiched between the Alabama/Clemson game at 2pm (I must admit I was rooting for Alabama because of their uniforms, which are almost exactly like my hometown Phoenix Coyotes' jerseys) and the 8pm Georgia/Georgia Tech game. Our 5pm start time was earlier than our usual 7:30pm start, which meant a short turnaround after our arrival from Augusta.

To complicate matters further, we had to set up the locker rooms for the "College Hockey Clash". Instead of our usual one visiting team, we now had 5 visiting teams to set up for. Since there are not enough rooms to accomodate this many teams, we had to do a bit of juggling to take care of everybody. We started off with Alabama in the old NBDL locker room and Clemson in locker room 2 (which is normally used by the visiting team, but for this game they were limited to locker room 1). Then, after their game, both teams moved their gear into adjacent storage rooms to free up the dressing rooms for Georgia and Georgia Tech. Then, after our game, we moved Alabama into locker room 4 (which is normally half of our dressing room) and Clemson into locker room 1 for their games on Sunday. In addition to our regular setup, we had to make sure that each team had water and Gatorade in their rooms for their games and water on their benches. This meant a lot of extra work for Hannah (who usually takes care of that for us and for the visitors) and for Barney, Tyler and Bubba (who put in a ton of extra effort to make things go smoothly for everybody involved).

Thanks in large part to their efforts, the weekend went off smoothly and by all accounts the event was a rousing success. Tyler even got to make his debut as Mike Vee's color commentator for the radio broadcast of Sunday's second game of the day, which matched up Alabama and Georgia. Tyler got a chance to combine his knowledge of hockey and his gift for gab into a possible career path. Who knows? Maybe one day he'll be broadcasting Atlanta Thrashers games. Then I'll be able to say I heard him broadcast his first game back in the day. We'll see.

The marquee matchup of the weekend was the Cottonmouths' game against the Huntsville Havoc. Everything else aside, this game was huge for us. The Havoc are the defending champs and early front-runners in the league again this season, and we've been struggling to get on some kind of a roll. We haven't won consecutive games all season, but we've shown signs of brilliance at times. Our biggest problem is that we've been inconsistent all season. It's the one thing that we've done consistently. We knew we would need our best effort to beat the Havoc.

Fortunately, that's exactly what we gave them. We played a good, hard, physical game. We outshot the Havoc (a seeming rarity for us) and matched them stride for stride the entire game. Do I sound like the Herb Brooks speech from Miracle? Tonight, we skate with them...we stay with them...and we shut them down, because we CAN! That's pretty much how it went. And no, I'm not comparing our victory to the Miracle on ice of 1980. This win was huge, but not that huge.

We came out hard and dominated the game early...every aspect of it. We outhit them. We outskated them. We outshot them (to the tune of a 14-7 margin). We outworked them. Matt Kinnunen's hard work paid off when he scored 5:25 into the game with an extra attacker on a delayed penalty. This gave us something we've rarely seen this season...an early lead. We maintained the dominant play throughout the period and headed into the second with a 1-0 lead.

The second period, which has been our Achilles' heel all season, saw our strong play continue. We got outshot 11-8, but limited their good scoring chances (and when they did get chances, Vigier was there to shut the door). Jesse Cole scored a power play goal 13:33 into the frame to add to our lead, but Huntsville forward Stephen Margeson offset that with a goal of his own at 17:44, pulling the Havoc back to within one goal.

The teams parried and thrusted their way through the third, managing several quality scoring chances for each side despite a 9-8 shot count in favor of the Snakes. Both goalies stood strong and kept the period scoreless until Cole added an empty-netter with 2 seconds remaining for a 3-1 final score. It was an atypically low-scoring affair, but an exciting game nonetheless. Were it not for the goalies, this game could easily have ended 6-5 for either team.

It's always nice to end your week with a win. It's even better when you end the week with a win at home. And few things are better than ending the week with a hard-earned win at home against the best team in the league. Let's hope this is a sign of things to come.

Fallen Comrades

The Cottonmouths family suffered two losses over the past couple of weeks. After receiving word that former Cottonmouth Connor MacDonald was killed by a car over Halloween weekend, it was learned yesterday that another former Cottonmouth, Paul Lynch, was found dead at his home yesterday morning. Details of Lynch's death were not known, but we do know he was a young man in good health. Both men were taken from us far too soon.

Connor left the Cottonmouths before I came to Columbus, so I never worked with him. I remember him as the feisty, young scrapper from the Jacksonville Barracudas who dropped the gloves with Dan Leslie every time we played the 'Cudas that year. He was the kind of guy who played the game the way it's supposed to be played. He gave his all every shift of every game. He was a tough competitor who would do whatever it took to win. From all accounts, that was the way he lived his life. He was as kind and generous off the ice as he was tenacious on it. I don't think anybody had an unkind word to say about him.

Paul was with the Cottonmouths only briefly during my first season here. He was here for training camp and played a couple of games at the start of the 2007-08 season before being waived. He got picked up by the Knoxville IceBears and was a regular on their Championship-winning team that season. I didn't know much about him except that he had been out of hockey for a couple of years before coming to the SPHL to resume his career. But he always treated me with respect as he did everyone else around him. He was a good guy.

There's an expression in hockey-"Once a teammate, always a teammate". Hockey is a small world. Your best friend one season might be your sworn mortal enemy the next...on the ice. Once the final buzzer sounds, he's your best friend once again. Because of this maxim, the hockey community is extraordinarily close. Even though I didn't know Connor or Paul very well, I still feel a sense of loss at their passing. But more than that, I feel empathy for their friends and family who now must try to fill the void in their lives. My condolences to all of you.

Souvenirs

Well, it's been a busy week but I finally have a chance to post my new blog. Last weekend we had a home-and-home series against the Mississippi Surge, starting with an early travel/practice day on Friday. The Cheerleading championships took over the Civic Center, so we had to seek ice time elsewhere. We left at 8am Friday and arrived at the Coast Coliseum in Biloxi right around noon. We unloaded the bus and practiced, then moved our gear into the green room to dry out for the next day. We couldn't get into the visitors' locker room because the Fayetteville Fireantz were in town for a game against the Surge Friday night.

(Special thanks to Matt Broyles, Eric Hufnagel and the Surge staff for accomodating us and setting up for our practice when they were already busy enough setting up for their own game)

After practice, we got back on the bus and headed to the hotel. We made arrangements for those who wanted to watch the game to meet up and take the bus over after dinner, then went off to our rooms. We went to dinner at Salute', the Italian restaurant next to the hotel (there aren't many options within walking distance of the hotel), then headed to the game. I usually like to watch a Hockey game when I'm not working it, but this was one of the most boring games I've ever watched. There was very little excitement, unless you're a Surge fan who likes watching the red light go on behind the opposing goalie. We left before the game was over and headed back to the hotel.

We got up on Saturday morning and headed down to the breakfast area in the hotel. They have a really good breakfast here with an omelet bar. It's nice to get a good meal to start the day right...especially on a game day. We went down to the rink and moved into the visitors' room to set up for the morning skate. After a light skate, we headed back to the hotel for a team lunch. They put out a pretty good spread here for the pre-game meal also. After lunch, most of the guys headed to their rooms for a pre-game nap. I went upstairs and packed my bag to head back down to the rink. I like to get there early to set up the room and take care of a few details to get ready for the game. On this particular day, I had to sew a couple of namebars onto jerseys for the new guys, Peter MacDougall and Jeff MacPhee. Then, once the room is game-ready, it's time to sharpen. On a typical day I might sharpen as many as 8 or 10 pairs of skates, but most game days it's fewer than that. Down here in the South, the ice isn't as hard as it is in colder climates so guys don't need their edges quite as sharp.

We got off to a good start, scoring the first goal of the game just 2 1/2 minutes into the game. The lead didn't last, however, as our old friend Ryan McCarthy tied the score just 10 seconds later with a hard-working, jamming-the-net type of goal that we're used to seeing from Macker. There were some fireworks after the goals. Snakes forward/defenseman Peter MacDougall fought Surge forward Jason Beeman, and on the ensuing faceoff Snakes defenseman Kyle Lundale fought Surge forward Chris Chambers (not to be confused with River Phoenix's character in "Stand By Me"). This was a measure of payback for Chambers, as he was the guy that Lundy obliterated with a body-check in a previous game in Mississippi. Chambers has been on the IR since that hit and made no secret of his desire for retribution. It wasn't much of a fight, basically amounting to a slap-fight followed by a wrestling takedown. The Surge added a goal to make it 2-1 for the bad guys, but the highlight of the first period came in the last minute. Following a rush into the Snakes zone, Surge forward Michael Richard came in late with an extra whack. Lundy took exception and gave Richard a shove, which sent him flying as if he'd been shot out of a cannon. Surge forward Matt Zultek jumped on Lundy and started pummeling him. I'm not sure Lundy even had a chance to get his gloves off.

During the melee, Surge goalie Mike Brown apparently felt left out when Vigier tried to pull Zultek off Lundy's back. Brown skated to the blue line (crossing the blue line during a fight is a big no-no) and motioned to Vig, pointing his stick at the blue line as if to say "You better not step across this line". Vigier looked at him, looked at the bench and kind of smiled. He turned away as if he was declining the invitation, but he subtly began undoing the strap on his catch glove. Once it was loosened, he flung it to the ice, followed by his blocker, and took off down the ice. I was pumped! I love a good goalie fight! Unfortunately, this wasn't one.

Vig skated all the way down to the far blue line to meet Brown. It did not go his way. Brown was clearly the more experienced fighter. He tied up Vigier and began throwing bombs. He didn't land them all, but he did land at least a couple. He knocked Vigier off balance and got him down on the ice. Brown continued to throw punches, with no linesmen available to break them up. Vigier got back up somehow and tried to continue the fight, with both goalies tugging on each other's jerseys. Brown pulled the old schoolyard trick and let go of Vigier's jersey, causing Vigier to fall tail-over-teakettle onto the ice. It was not pretty...but it was pretty funny. Vigier got up, dusted himself off, and skated to the bench...laughing the whole way. I guess at that point there's nothing else you can do. There was a long delay while the ref sorted out the penalties (which resulted in Zultek, Brown and Vigier being tossed from the game). When the dust settled, we came out on the positive side of the ledger-their best offensive player and the league's #1 goalie were out for the rest of the game. This seemed to be just the break we needed. We felt pretty confident heading into the second period. Unfortunately, we couldn't take advantage, only managing 14 shots on goal over the last two periods and none into the back of the net. The final result was a 3-1 loss (with an empty-netter).

We boarded the bus and headed home, knowing we would have to meet the same team the next day in Columbus at 4pm. We would have to bring a lot more to the table if we were going to change our fortune. We got in at around 3:30am and the guys headed home to get some rest. I stayed at the rink to do the laundry and get ready for the game. I managed to get a couple of hours' sleep on the locker room couch in between loads of laundry, then got up and continued my game prep. I rotated skates and gloves on and off the dryer to get them ready for the game (most guys don't mind damp gear because they wear clothing underneath it, but they HATE wet skates and gloves). Between the game set-up, laundry and drying gear I kept pretty busy for most of the day. Barney had made the trip with us and stayed to help set things up for the day's games, getting the visitors dressing room and the referees room set up before settling in for a nap on the training table. We were pretty tired, but it's worth it to get everything done and ready for the game.

The effort paid off with a better effort from the players (not that I'm taking credit for it). We came out hitting and controlled the play for most of the game. We dominated every aspect of the first period except the shots on goal. We only managed 8 in the period, but somehow Matt Kinnunen, Jesse Cole and Orrin Hergott slipped 3 of those past Brown and we left the first with a 3-0 lead. The second period, which his been our kryptonite this season, reared its ugly head once again. Mississippi scored twice in the frame to cut the lead to 3-2 entering the third period.

The Surge scored again five minutes into the third to tie the game, and it looked like it was happening to us again. Once you establish a history of late collapses, it's almost impossible to avoid being consumed by it. Each time it happens it becomes harder to break the cycle. It gets into your head and you see it coming and get so knotted up you end up making a mistake. It almost becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. You imagine it happening and you end up making it happen. But, again, it's hard to break that pattern.

This was our night. I don't know how we did it, but we broke the hex. Peter MacDougall connected on a power play midway through the third period to restore the lead to the Snakes, then Bret Tyler added an insurance goal three minutes later to secure the victory.

This was a big night for one of my favorite parts of the game. It's a tradition in hockey that whenever somebody reaches a milestone you save the puck to remember the feat. First goal, first win, hat trick, 100th goal...any important milestone results in a souvenir puck. This game was a rarity...there were three significant milestones celebrated. Peter MacDougall's power play tally, in addition to being the game-winner, also happened to be his first professional goal. An alert teammate retrieved the puck and tossed it to me. At the end of the game Ian Vigier skated the length of the ice to retrieve the game puck to commemorate Andrew Loewen's first professional win. There was another, less obvious accomplishment that was worthy of recognition. With his goal in the first period, a fight in the second period and an assist on MacDougall's game-winner Matt Kinnunen accomplished what is known as a "Gordie Howe Hat Trick". With three souvenir pucks I had my work cut out for me. Over my whole career I have had the honor of presenting these pucks to their recipients after the games, and it's one of my favorite parts of the job. I put a strip of tape around the edges of the puck and write the player's number, the date, the opponent and the milestone. I love to see the look on a player's face when I present him with his souvenir (see photo above).

This was a big win for us. Mississippi is one of the better teams in the league, and if we're going to accomplish anything we have to be able to win games against them. This game helped show us that we can do that. Now we just have to come up with this type of effort consistently. In any case, it's a great way to end the week.

"It's Not As Bad As It Looks"

The old adage has seldom held truer..."It's not as bad as it looks". We lost 2 of our 3 games this weekend, but we could have-no, strike that-SHOULD have won 2 out of 3.

Our first game of the week was the dreaded school day game. It's not dreaded because of the kids (4,000 or so screaming kids make for a great atmosphere for the players), but rather because of the 10am start time. Hockey players are creatures of habit (most athletes are, really), so a 10am game plays havoc with their game-day routine. At 10am on a game-day hockey players are usually taking the ice for their morning skate, a light skate just to get the legs moving and get the lactic acid out. This is followed by a mid-day meal, and usually an afternoon nap or just some quiet relaxation to get physically and mentally ready for the game. To simulate this timetable for a 10am start, players would have to have a skate at about 1am, followed by a pre-game meal at about 3am (maybe at Waffle House?). Instead, guys are waking up at 6am, having a light breakfast, then heading off to the rink to arrive at 8am. It throws the whole day off kilter (although it IS nice to be off in the mid-afternoon).

Many of you will remember our school-day slugfest from last season (I'm sure the kids haven't forgotten). Historically, those day games tend to end up in bloodbaths. Hockey players tend to be grumpy when you disturb their routine. Well, this year was the exception. Aside from a first period fight between Snakes defenseman Brody Malek and Fireantz defenseman Dan McNeill there wasn't much in the way of fisticuffs. The game wasn't even really that physical. The Snakes outskated, outshot and generally outplayed the Fireantz in the first, putting 20 shots on goal to the Antz' 4, but left the first period with a 2-2 tie thanks to a pair of goals from Orrin Hergott and Sam Bowles. Hergott and Bowles scored in the second period also, sandwiched around a goal by the Fireantz' Rob Sich, and entered the 3rd period with a 4-3 lead. The Snakes spent the 3rd period trying to sit on their one-goal lead and almost managed to do so...until the last 1:01 of regulation. Sich found the back of the net in the 58th minute to tie the game and send it into overtime. He then set up Chris Leveille for the Game Winner with 1.2 seconds left on the clock (in truth, I looked up after the puck went in and there was 2 seconds and change left on the clock...not that that matters).

This game hurt because it was one that we should have won. They didn't throw anything at us that we didn't prepare for. All the damage they did came from the usual suspects...their top line of Sich, Leveille and Mark Versteeg-Lytwyn. When one of your keys to the game is to concentrate on stopping the top line, letting them score 5 goals is not acceptable. The bottom line is we had them down, then let them up off the mat. We didn't have the killer instinct. We played the whole 3rd period to protect a one-goal lead. You can't do that. You have to keep playing the way you did when you built up the lead. As soon as you back off to try and protect a lead, you give the other team time and space to keep coming at you, which is exactly what they did. It's frustrating when that happens.

After the morning game, we prepared for a game Friday night in Huntsville. We skated at home in the morning, then boarded the bus to head Northwest. In the past we've left earlier, then stopped for lunch in Pelham on the way. We usually arrived very early and had a couple of hours to sit around and twiddle our thumbs before the game. This trip we timed it out better and arrived right around 5:30 for a 7:30 game, which basically gave us time to set up and play the game. I usually prefer it that way, but this time with us skating before we left I didn't have time to sharpen skates before we left so I had to scramble to get them done after we arrived. It did keep me busy though, so I can't complain.

We didn't play a particularly bad game in Huntsville...we just didn't play a particularly good game. We only gave up two goals, one by Mike Carter in the first and one by Ray Ortiz in the third. The Carter goal was just a spectacular end-to-end rush. He picked up the puck in his own zone and proceeded to walk around our whole team. I actually think he beat at least one guy twice. The Ortiz goal was the definition of a garbage goal...he tried to make a pass to the front of our net and I think it hit the defender in the shoulder and deflected past Vigier. But, even though it's entirely possible to win games in this league giving up only two goals, it's not possible to win games in any league if you don't score any goals. We didn't have many scoring chances, and didn't even have many shots. We were outshot 15-8 in the first period, 10-3 in the second (3 shots? 3 shots?!?), and 11-9 in the third. True, we were playing the best team in the league, but you can't score goals if you're generating that few offensive opportunities.

After Friday's game we headed for Knoxville, in desperate need of a win. The Knoxville Civic Coliseum is not a good place to go in search of a win. They're hard to come by if you're the visiting team. In my three plus seasons in Columbus, we've won exactly one game in Knoxville each season. That's right...three previous seasons with Columbus, three wins in Knoxville. But luckily we caught Knoxville at the right time. They had just lost their last 2 games against the Augusta Riverhawks, so either they were ripe for defeat or they would be pissed off about the 2 losses and take their anger out on us. Either way, this one had the potential to get ugly.

It started to look that way immediately. Off the opening faceoff, Knoxville's David Segal squared off against Snakes forward Matt Kinnunen. Young Matt held his own against a tough opponent, and both skaters watched the next 5 minutes from the box. Less than 3 minutes later, Cody Straker took an Ice Bear into the boards. Bears forward Mike Bulawka took exception and squared off against Straker. The pair dropped their gloves, but no punches were thrown. They were each whistled for Roughing, in addition to Straker's Boarding penalty. When the dust settled, the Snakes got down to playing some pretty good hockey. They outshot, outskated and outhit the Bears and controlled the play for the majority of the period. Bears goalie Andrew Gallant managed to keep his finger in the dyke until the final 8 seconds of the first period, when Jesse Cole finally lit the lamp on a Snakes power play.

Mitch Wall scored on another power play 1:37 into the second period for his first professional goal. Bears Captain Mike Bulawka cut the lead in half midway through the period when he banged home a rebound off a faceoff in the Snakes defensive zone. Sam Bowles put the Snakes back ahead by two at 13:47, then assisted on Mitch Wall's second goal 25 seconds later.

Gallant was replaced at the start of the third period by backup Brian Hince. The Bears battled hard to cut the lead but were turned back by the Snakes defense and goalie Ian Vigier. Matt Kinnunen scored the only goal of the period and the Snakes held on for a 5-1 win. It was a huge monkey off our backs to finally put one in the win column on the road, and to do it in that building just made it that much sweeter. It certainly made the bus ride home a lot more fun.