Sports stats



Ice Bats Ready for Season Opener

October 21, 2006 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Austin Ice Bats News Release


THIS WEEK:

Sat., Oct. 21st, 7:30pm, vs. Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs, at Chaparral Ice Arena, Austin, Texas

Setting the Stage: The Austin Ice Bats of the Central Hockey League open their 11th season this Saturday against the defending Northern Conference champion Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs. The Ice Bats begin 2006-2007 play at all-new Chaparral Ice Arena, located on I-35 between Howard Lane and Wells Branch Parkway.

A 34-27-3 record last season, including a 24-10-1 record over the season's final half, wasn't quite good enough, as the Ice Bats missed the postseason by one point on the final day of the season. This season, Coach Bill McDonald's team looks for a faster start while enjoying what is sure to be one of the league's top home ice advantages.

A look back: The Ice Bats finished 2-2 in preseason play, winning both home games at Chaparral Ice Arena. After a 5-3 loss to Laredo last Thursday at College Station, the Ice Bats bounced back for a 7-2 home thrashing of the Bucks on Friday. Winger Henry Kuster led the way with a hat trick.

The Ice Bats opened up a 3-0 first period lead on a shorthanded breakaway by Aaron Davis and even strength goals from Kuster and Julian Smith. Laredo's first score came quickly in the second, but the Bats sprinted away with three more goals in the period, power play scores from Kuster and Mike Tucciarone, and a John McNabb goal. Kuster completed the hat trick shorthanded midway through the third.

Almost lost amongst the offensive fireworks, rookie goaltender Kevin Couture stopped 43 of 45 opposition shots.

Last Saturday, winger John McNabb's goal 3:41 into overtime pushed the Ice Bats past Corpus Christi, 4-3 in preseason play. After a scoreless first period, the Rayz opened scoring on a Derrick McIver goal in the second period. The Ice Bats came back to take the lead with goals less than a minute apart, a Mike Possin power play goal and a Tim Earl score.

Austin forward Brandon Doria stretched the lead to 3-1 midway through the third period, but the Rayz then got going, scoring a pair of goals in the final 70 seconds of regulation. Corpus winger Vin Hellemeyer tied the score on a power play goal with 16 seconds left.

But in overtime, McNabb fired a wicked shot from a sharp angle on the right wing off the post and past Rayz goalie Brent Zelenewich to provide the winner.

Austin goalie Miguel Beaudry made 42 stops for the win, as the Rayz outshot the Bats, 45-26. But the Bats were better on specialty teams, scoring twice on four power play attempts, while limiting Corpus Christi to one goal on eight chances.

Sunday, Corpus Christi forward Justin Quenneville scored a hat trick as the Rayz downed the Ice Bats, 5-2. The weary Ice Bats played their fourth game in as many days, after agreeing to replace Rio Grande Valley on Corpus Christi's preseason schedule.

Quenneville scored his first goal of the night 51 seconds into the game, and the Rayz' Connor Hughes tallied just 27 seconds later to give Corpus an early 2-0 lead. The Rayz then increased their lead to 3-0 two minutes into the second period on Quenneville's second goal of the game.

The Ice Bats got on the scoreboard at 3:19 when Aaron Davis slid a backhand past Brent Zelenewich, but Corpus Christi pulled away in the second half of the game. Quenneville completed his hat trick with a shorthanded goal in the second.

Forward Chris Affinati scored the other Ice Bats goal, but the Ice Bats were outshot 47-18 for the contest.

Season Outlook: This season's version of the Ice Bats appears to be deeper and better skilled than that of a year ago. Joining top returnees John McNabb and Aaron Davis is veteran winger Henry Kuster, a threat to score from anywhere on the ice. Kuster, as well as forward Mike Possin, were obtained in separate off-season trades with Tulsa. Add in returning forward Julian Smith and newcomer Jordan Bianchin, and the Ice Bats have plenty of depth up front.

The defensive corps will be headed by veteran player-assistant coach Terry Virtue, who has played the bulk of a 15-year pro career in the American Hockey League, and also spent some time in the NHL. Virtue's leadership will be key on and off the ice. The rest of the blue line is largely new, with J.F. Picard the other veteran among the group.

In net, the Ice Bats are strong, with Miguel Beaudry returning after posting a 12-8-1 record and 2.83 GAA in Ice Bats colors a year ago. Second-year netminder Andrew Martin and rookie Kevin Couture have been engaged in a pitched battle for what would appear to be the backup spot.

Roster Flights:

Departures: With 25 players reporting to camp, Coach Bill McDonald had to make some tough decisions to pare his roster for Saturday's season opener. Especially tough were decisions among the goaltending and forward ranks. For the time being, the Ice Bats will carry their normal roster limit of 18, as well as two "taxi squad" players, as allowed by the CHL because of initial problems gaining immigration clearance for CHL players.

On the heels of training camp came the roster cuts. Released on Tuesday were defensemen Damir Brujic and Jason Reimers, and forward Dennis Morrison. The final cuts on Wednesday included forwards Chris Affinati and Derek Seal.

A Little "C and A": Coach Bill McDonald has chosen the team captains for this season. Veteran winger Henry Kuster will serve as captain, while forwards John McNabb and Julian Smith were named alternate captains.

Potential Bite Victims: Perennial Cup contender Bossier-Shreveport made it all the way to the President's Cup Finals last season, losing once again to Laredo. With a 41-15-8 regular season record, the Mudbugs waltzed away from the rest of a weak Northeast Division, winning the division title by 37 points.

Last year's CHL Most Outstanding Goaltender, Ken Carroll (20-7-4, 2.31 GAA) returns. Forward Forbes MacPherson is also back after a year absence, joined by his highly touted rookie twin cousins Rob and Brian Sutherland. And veteran forward Dan Wildfong is back as the man all opponents love to hate, stirring the pot while contributing offensively in all areas.

The Mudbugs opened their season with a 5-3 loss at Oklahoma City Friday.

The Series: The Ice Bats are 15-18-8 lifetime against Bossier-Shreveport, but won two of three games against the Mudbugs last season.

Comments From the Coach:

On Training Camp: "We had a very competitive training camp, as I thought going in. The toughest decision came down to goaltending, as we had three different goalies play outstanding three games in a row. I thought Andrew Martin was good in the loss at College Station, and everyone saw what Kevin Couture did Friday. Then Beaudry jumps out of a car and stands on his head against Corpus. We knew what we're getting in Beaudry, but deciding between the other two has been very, very tough. Both are great kids and great goalies."

"The forward spots were highly competitive too. There's some guys that can play in this league that we had to let go. As long as I've been doing it, I still feel bad when I have to tell a kid who can probably play in the league that I just don't have room for him. Our defense is where I'll do some tinkering, as I think we can still upgrade there."

Season Outlook: "I believe we're blessed with a lot of speed up front and more depth in the lines than before. We have two very capable offensive lines that I can mix and match with. Taking advantage of the changes in the rules and the atmosphere created by our new rink, I think we can be really aggressive, more so than in years past."

"We'll have a definite home ice advantage. I don't think opponents will enjoy coming and playing here. I told the guys that this is our home and we will defend it, and they've bought into that. As loud as it's going to be, it'll be a hard building for opponents to play in."

Cave, Sweet Cave: 209-97-22 in ten years of play at the Travis County Expo Center, the Ice Bats begin a new era at Chaparral Ice Arena, located on I-35 between Howard Lane and Wells Branch Parkway. In addition to providing tickets through the Ice Bats office at 927-PUCK, the Bats are for the first time utilizing Front Gate Tickets as the team's ticket outlet. Fans may conveniently purchase tickets at any Front Gate Tickets location, including Stubbs BBQ, Waterloo Records and Encore Video & CD.

Fans may order on-line through the Ice Bats website at www.icebats.com. Phone orders may be placed by calling (512) 927-PUCK, or 1-888-512-SHOW. Individual game tickets range in price from $15 to $35, depending on section, with discounted rates for groups of 15 or more. Fans may call the Ice Bats ticket office at (512) 927-PUCK, or log onto the team's website at www.icebats.com for more information.

In the Air: Once again, all Ice Bats away games will be broadcast on ESPN Radio, 1530 on the AM dial. The station will broadcast all road games during the 2006-07 regular season and CHL Playoffs. The games will also be available on-line, through the station website at www.espnaustin.com. Ice Bats VP of Broadcasting, Media/PR Glen Norman will handle play-by-play duties for a ninth straight season.

Bats in Cyberspace: Bats fans can learn the latest about their team by logging on to www.icebats.com. Home or away, Bats fans can also follow the action with real-time scoring on the website, courtesy of Pointstreak.com. Fans will be able to access a game box score in real-time, as well as those of all other CHL games being played.

• Discuss this story on the Central Hockey League message board...

Central Hockey League Stories from October 21, 2006


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Austin Ice Bats Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central