Friday victory builds no momentum for Icedogs

Published on November 4, 2004 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Bozeman Icedogs News Release


If at first you don't succeed, be glad you get another chance the following week. After starting last weekend off in promising fashion with a 7-4 win over the visiting Fairbanks Ice Dogs on Friday, the Bozeman ICEDOGS headed into Billings for a two-game series against the Bulls, only to drop both games and finish the weekend 1-2.

Saturday's game was a 2-1 loss followed by a 3-1 loss on Sunday.

This weekend the ICEDOGS will get a chance at revenge as the Bulls swing by the Valley Ice Garden on November 5 for a rematch, followed by another game against Fairbanks on Saturday.

"Last Saturday was frustrating," said ICEDOGS' head coach John LaFontaine. "Had we taken the two games in Billings, we'd be sitting here talking about how we're 8-3, and we'd have a lot of positives." LaFontaine said. "Instead, we didn't capitalize on the situation and those two losses definitely set us back."

LaFontaine says that his team's biggest problems lie in their inconsistency and inability to maintain a tight defense. These two factors don't bode well for the ICEDOGS' chances against a Billings team that prides itself on size and strength. "With teams like Billings you have to focus on beating them along the boards," said LaFontaine. "That's always our focus in practice, getting our guys to play with grit."

Despite the ICEDOGS shortcomings on size, LaFontaine says that his team will see a lot of success if they start using their own assets - speed and smart play. "We have a fast team and we need to start beating the bigger teams with our speed," he said.

With hope that his team can put those elements together for a full 60 minutes, LaFontaine thinks the outcome of this weekend's game against Billings at the Valley Ice Garden will be much different. "Were a better team than how we played last weekend, and we'll be looking to prove it next Saturday," he said.

Last Friday, the ICEDOGS looked like a team ready to steamroll through the rest of the weekend, scoring early and often against a road-weary Fairbanks team that has been playing well of late. Showing the same depth that made them a success at the NAHL showcase in Minnesota, Bozeman got goals from six different players in the win. Forward Mike McMillan led the effort with two goals and an assist.

"Fairbanks is a legitimate team, and I think we were catching them in the middle of a long road trip," said LaFontaine. "Regardless, there were a lot of positives for us to take out of that game."

Saturday's game in Billings wasn't as easy to swallow. The game featured 50 minutes worth of penalties from both teams. Billings jumped out to an early lead with an Anthony Cosmano goal less then two minutes into the game, and the Bulls held the lead until late in the second period when the ICEDOGS' Filip Macejka scored a power-play goal to tie things up. However, as the penalties started piling up, the ICEDOGS found themselves on the defensive for the rest of the game and were unable to stage any attempt at taking the lead. Cosmano added another goal late in the game on a power-play to give Billings the win. ICEDOGS goaltender Matt Cleveland stopped 43 of 45 shots in the loss.

Although he refused to lay blame on anyone but his team, Lafontaine still felt the officiating played a role in the outcome. "There was no flow to that game, and that really hurt us," he said.

Sunday's game wasn't any kinder to the ICEDOGS, who gave up a number of odd-man rushes in the 3-1 loss. "We had trouble holding the blue line and the forwards weren't bailing out the defense much," LaFontaine said.

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North American Hockey League Stories from November 4, 2004


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