No Place Like Home for 2006

Published on January 3, 2006 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Austin Ice Bats News Release


Setting the Stage: The Austin Ice Bats of the Central Hockey League are 10-17-2 on their 10th-Anniversary 2005-06 season. After winning six out of eight games, the Ice Bats struggled with injuries and road fatigue during the final three weeks of the calendar year, finishing just 1-7-2 over their last ten games of 2005.

However, the fourth-place Ice Bats remain just three points behind Corpus Christi in the Southeast Division race. And this Friday's game at Rio Grande Valley will wrap up a stretch of eight games out of ten played away from home. The Bats will then play eight of their remaining 11 January games at home, starting with contests this Saturday against Laredo and Sunday against the Killer Bees.

A look back: If the Ice Bats are ever handed champagne bottled in 2005, they'll gladly exchange it for a different vintage. The Bats lost all three games last week to finish the calendar year. Last Wednesday, the Ice Bats played a rare December home game, falling just short in a 3-2 loss to Lubbock. The Bats had the pedal down until the finish, but couldn't pull the win out on "Lance Armstrong Foundation Night" at the Bat Cave.

The Cotton Kings opened up a 2-0 lead on first period goals by Mike Brolsma and Kyle Nosan. The Ice Bats halved the Lubbock lead when Julian Smith rebounded Dave MacIntyre's breakaway shot 8:06 into the second period. That sent a shower of stuffed toys onto the ice, donated by Ice Bats fans to children surviving cancer.

Lubbock retook a two-goal lead 1:12 later on an Emery Olauson goal, but the Ice Bats got a piece of good fortune late in the second period. Bats winger John McNabb threw the puck toward the net, and in trying to clear the crease, Lubbock defenseman Ryan Moren accidentally put the puck in his own goal.

The Bats then put the pressure on the Cotton Kings with a late power play in the final two minutes, but couldn't tie the game. Brolsma, Olauson and Paul Fioroni led Lubbock with two points each.

Last Friday, the League's 14th rated power play ran wild as Odessa blasted the Ice Bats, 7-2 at the Ector County Coliseum. The Jackalopes opened up a close game with goals on their first four power play chances, as Ice Bats penalty killers failed to protect the area around their net.

The Jackalopes scored first, with John Kozoriz walking from behind the net for a power play goal 3:41 into the contest. But the Jacks were then whistled for five consecutive minor penalties, and the Ice Bats tied the game at 17:31. Forward Julian Smith won a face-off, then centered to Gerald Tallaire for a power play goal. Odessa winger Dominic Leveille retook the lead a minute later, poking home a rebound left uncovered by Bats goalie Matt Barnes.

The Jackalopes power play then accounted for three straight goals early in the second period, cashing in on both ends of a double minor penalty against Bats forward Dave MacIntyre. After a terrific save by Barnes, who stuck his left pad in the air to block an Odessa shot, Jacks forward Sebastien Thinel scored on the rebound. Just 23 seconds later, Leveille scored, and Donnie Margettie scored a third unanswered power play goal on a scramble in the crease at 6:02.

The Ice Bats shut off the Odessa string at 15:51, with Jason Kenyon centering into the slot to Mike Tucciarone. But the Bats gave it right back just 11 seconds later, leaving a wide-open Adam Loncan to score on a helpless Barnes.

Thinel wrapped up scoring on an odd-man rush midway through the third period. The Ice Bats outshot Odessa 50-34, but the Jackalopes finished with four goals on eight power play chances, while the Bats scored just once on nine opportunities. Odessa goalie Mike Gorman, named earlier in the day as the starting goaltender for the CHL All-Star Game, made 48 saves.

The Ice Bats finished 2005 with a 5-2 loss New Year's Eve in Laredo. One night after their penalty killing fell apart in Odessa, the Bats kept the Bucks from scoring on five first period power play chances. The Bucks scored the only goal of the period at even strength, a Nick Warriner rebound goal 5:53 into the contest.

A turning point in the game came about seven minutes into the second period. Austin center Aaron Davis backhanded the puck wide on a shorthanded breakaway, and the Bucks sprinted the other way for a James Hiebert power play score. Serge Dube added a power play goal off a Jeff Bes centering pass to produce a 3-0 Laredo lead.

The Bats crashed the net for a power play goal of their own from Jeff Neufeld with 3:24 left in the second period. But the Bucks blew the game open with a third period goal from Brett Arcand-Kootenay and a shorthanded score by Igor Agarunov. Arcand-Kootenay's shot appeared to have been covered on the goal line by Ice Bats goalie Miguel Beaudry, but was ruled a goal by referee Mike Peerson. Neufeld set the final score with a power play goal in the final minute. Agarunov led scorers with a goal and two assists.

Roster Flights:

Arrivals: Last Friday, the Ice Bats obtained the rights to defenseman Brandon Cox from Wichita, in exchange for future considerations. Cox, a feisty defender, played the past three seasons in the British Columbia Junior League. He appeared in 10 games in his rookie pro campaign with Wichita, but missed 1-1/2 months to a broken jaw. Cox is expected to join the Ice Bats on Wednesday.

Wounded Wings: Forward Shawn Roed will miss a minimum of four to six weeks after undergoing knee surgery last Friday. Defenseman Jonathan Jolette rejoins the lineup this week after missing two games last weekend to injury.

Player Plaudits: Winger John McNabb leads the Ice Bats in scoring with 16 goals and 14 assists. Forwards Aaron Davis and Dave MacIntyre are next on the team with 24 and 21 points, respectively. Aaron Schneekloth ranks among the top 15 defensemen with 7 goals, 10 assists. And Mike Tucciarone's 10 goals rate him fourth among all rookies.

On Tuesday, McNabb and Schneekloth were named to the roster for the CHL All-Star Game by Southern Conference Coach Terry Ruskowski of Laredo.

Potential Bite Victims: Rio Grande Valley has won eight of its last ten games to get within eight points of Laredo in the Southeast Division race. At 16-11-1, the Killer Bees are greatly improved offensively, and have taken more pressure off their goaltending than at any point in their two-year history. Trevor Weisgerber (11 goals, 25 assists) has taken over the scoring lead for a team that ranks in the top five offensively and third on the power play (19.1%). Daymen Bencharski (16 goals, 17 assists) will represent the host Bees in the starting lineup for the CHL All-Star Game. Veteran Dwayne Hay has 27 points. The Killer Bees will regain another piece of the puzzle when power forward Ryan Shmyr returns from a five-game suspension. Goaltender Evan Lindsay is 12-7-1 with a 2.92 GAA. Rio Grande Valley is 9-6-1 at home, and an impressive 7-5 as a road team, winning their last four away from home.

At 19-8-3, Laredo has won four straight to maintain its division lead. The Bucks are deep, balanced and very talented. Laredo ranks in the top three on offense (3.73 average goals scored), and second on defense, allowing a full goal fewer per game. And even though they rank 14th in penalty killing (81.9%), the Bucks have scored a league-most 11 shorthanded goals. James Hiebert and Serge Dube are tied for 7th in league scoring with 39 points each. Dube, who has played both forward and defense this season, carries an 11-game point streak into the week. Center Jeff Bes is right there too, with 11 goals and 27 assists in 22 games. Given enough minutes to officially qualify, Laredo's goalies would rank as the league's two best. David Lemanowicz is 6-1-1 with a 1.99 GAA, and Dov Grumet-Morris 6-2-1 with a 2.19 GAA. An even 6-6-3 on the road, Laredo hosts Youngstown before coming to Austin.

The Series: The Ice Bats are 12-14-1 lifetime against Rio Grande Valley, 2-3 this season in generally high-scoring affairs. The Bats are 1-2 against the Bees in Austin, 1-1 in Hidalgo, and the margin of victory has been three goals or more in each of the five games. Rio Grande Valley has won the last two series meetings.

Austin is 13-21-1 lifetime against Laredo. The Bucks have won all four meetings this year, beating the Bats 4-2 November 10th in Austin, then by 5-2, 5-3 and 5-2 scores in the three December games played in Laredo.

Comments From the Coach:

On Last Week: "The only way I know to break out of this kind of funk is to work harder in practice and work harder in games. Our biggest deficiency continues to be sustaining offensive pressure. So we've changed the lines around a bit, but we need to get to the net and be more physical around the net-- ours and our opponents.' I still believe our guys are good enough to win hockey games and get to the playoffs, but some guys have to step it up physically and play with more of an edge."

On This Week: "January and February are big months, and we may be in fourth place now, but there are only two or three teams ahead of the pack with half a season to go. There's plenty of opportunity for us to do something. We just have to play harder, play more consistently and keep our fingers crossed from an injury standpoint. We've got the top two teams in the division this week. It's time for us to start making a statement, if we're going to make one."

Cave, Sweet Cave: The Ice Bats play their first two home games of 2006 this weekend. On Saturday, Ice Bats souvenir cups go to 3,000 fans, courtesy of Budweiser. Sunday, a free post-game skate with the Ice Bats players follows the contest.

Tickets for Ice Bats home games are on sale now through the Ice Bats office at 927-PUCK, or at any Texas Box Office location, including all Austin-area HEB stores. For on-line orders, fans may visit www.TexasBoxOffice.com or www.GetTix.Net. To charge by phone, fans may call the Ice Bats ticket office at 927-PUCK, Texas Box Office at (512) 477-6060, or Get Tix at 1-866-4-Get Tix.

Individual game tickets range in price from $11 to $35, depending on section, with discounted rates for groups of 15 or more. In addition to individual game tickets and group outings, season tickets and corporate partnerships are currently available for the upcoming season, with full-season, half-season and 10-game ticket packages on sale now. 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 2005-06 regular season and CHL Playoffs. The games will also be available on-line, through the station website at www.espnaustin.com. The Bud Light Warm-up Show begins 20 minutes prior to game time. Ice Bats VP of Broadcasting, Media/PR Glen Norman will handle play-by-play duties for an eighth 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.

THIS WEEK:

Fri., Jan. 6th, 7:35pm, vs. Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees, at Dodge Arena, Hidalgo, Texas

Sat., Jan. 7th, 7:30pm, vs. Laredo Bucks, at Travis County Expo Center, Austin, Texas

Sun., Jan. 8th, 4:00pm, vs. Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees, at Travis County Expo Center, Austin, Texas

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Central Hockey League Stories from January 3, 2006


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