As the Storm finished up their third game in three nights saturday in Oceanside, you could see a hint of frustration as the boys boarded the bus. Despite spotting the Generals a 3-0 lead, they roared back to pull cut it to 3-2 heading into the final 20 minutes on goals by Jordan Suzuki and Chase Haley.
Just under five minutes to the third, the Generals would score again, and if they were facing the boys a month ago, it would have signaled the start of a downward spiral. But not this current edition. Good second effort from Chris West off of an Alex Benjestorf rush cut the lead to one again just 23 seconds later. The game wouldn't be decided until the 14 minute mark, when Tyler Auricchio scored for Oceanside to give them a 5-3 win at home, a spirited game that saw both teams play physical and not back down.
Probably the most complete effort for the Storm in the 3 games. Thursday, the boys were also down 3 to Victoria before scoring 3 straight to tie it in the third. Only late penalty trouble allowed the Cougars to score a pair with the man advantage en route to a 6-3 win in Vic. Friday, the team came out strong against the Kerry Park Islanders, who were missing the likes of Zach Fridella, Spencer Reich and Sheldon Latham. Great opening period, but the vets for the Isles in Cole Thomson and Ryan Reynolds the difference in a 4-0 win for the visitors at the Brindy.
There continues to be signs from this group that when that elusive win comes, it will get them on track to gain 2 points more often than not. Jordan Suzuki has easily been the Storm's MVP, not only scoring big goals from the blueline, but now adding a physical element to his game. If he can avoid the box while doing so, teams will be wary when #28 is lurking about. Goalie Tyler Bachmeier has adjusted his game, from making highlight reel saves, but allowing a soft goal, to focusing on rebound control and it's given his team a chance each time he suits up. Ryan Fairgray has shown he can man the fort when Tyler's off his game or needs a break.
Chase Haley has been a revelation since coming aboard. He's fearless, goes strong to the net and has a knack for generating offense through hard work.
Alex Benjestorf is like this team's "Rudy". A guy that many thought would never play more than a supporting role in spot duty. He's been one of the strongest players for the Storm the last 8 games and has been rewarded with 5 goals.
I loved seeing Brendan Enns up front. The big man loves to carry the puck, makes it difficult for opposing defenders to move him from in front of the crease, and could give the Storm a really good weapon if he can cash in a few chances and play physical, but clean on the forecheck.
Corey MacLachlan continues to get points when he's not crashing into the opposition keepers.
I think Andrew Gaiga still has a lot to give this team offensively and has shown it in glimpses.
Kiefer Rivington is another kid that gets better every game. Under the steadying influence of Dylan Budgell, he continues to emerge as a solid blueliner in this league.
From the great two way play of Jesse Spooner, to the grit of the Eliason brothers, the pesky nature of Rob Iszak and lunch pail attitude of Danny Hall, to the speed of Matt Tilton and Wade Bartlett, everyone is starting to discover their roles on the team.
Even Joe Szabados has stepped up his game the last few, since the departure of McNeill. Hopefully, scoring his first goal in 3 games will help Chris West get acclimatized to the team.
So there is hope, Storm fans. It's always darkest before the dawn. A big 4 game stretch awaits the Storm starting friday. 4 very win-able games with a pair against Saanich and two against Westhore. I'd be ecstatic seeing the boys win 3 of those. Tune in friday to find out. As of now, pregame at 6:15.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
New month could mean new beginnings for Storm team
The past weekend did give Storm fans a glimmer of hope. As Coach Jim Revenberg so eloquently put it, the bonehead plays are down to 3 or 4 a game, as opposed to 14-15 earlier in the month.
On thursday, the boys were in Mill Bay to face a Kerry Park Islander's team that had beaten them twice earlier in the month, including an 8-3 whooping in Mill Bay the last time they met.
It looked like it could have gone that way, after the Islanders jumped out to a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.
But it would not be the same. Jesse Spooner scored after a scramble in front of goalie Ben Kantor to cut the lead in half. Then the Isles benefited from some Halloween trickery at their arena. The Isles would score after a Matthew Johnson point shot hit the shoulder of Gavin Lindner, fooling Ty Bachmeier and making it 3-1. Then a crazy bounce off the end boards landed on the stick of Chase Salisbury, who was all alone and he fired it home, 4-1 KPI.
But the Storm didn't quit. Chase Hailey, who played his best game in a Storm jersey, got his team to within a pair after 40 minutes.
In the third, Alex Benjestorf scored his third in a Storm jersey to make it a 1 goal game. The Storm would continue pressing, but Lindner would put it into an empty net with Bachmeier on the bench in the final 30 seconds to make it 5-3 KPI.
The next night, the Storm hosted an Oceanside Generals team with a lot of key vets out of the line up. With the likes Yamasaki and Dixon up in Junior A, the tables were leveled in terms of overall talent. The Storm would open he scoring, with Alex Benjestorf the recipient of a terrific pass from Chase Hailey, who dished it from the end boards, allowing Benji to rifle it past goalie Kolding Larsen. The Gens tied it with some terrific passing. Travis Briggs went backhand from the left boards to Brett Willsie, who then sent another backhand pass on to the stick of Travis Flug, who was alone in the slot. 1-1 after 20 minutes.
Only one goal was scored in the second, but it should rank as one of the top 5 from this season. Brent Baltus took the puck from the right boards with the Gens on the power play, stick handled around tow Storm PK'ers, lured Ty Bachmeier out of his net then put it into the gaping cage. 2-1 Gens after 40 minutes.
The Storm didn't let up as the third period began. They had chances to tie it up. They just couldn't pull the trigger, and it proved costly. A turnover at their blueline to Oceanside's Brett Willsie eventually ended up on the stick of Travis Briggs, who gave the visitors a 3-1 lead with under 5 minutes to play.
Then in the waning moments of the 3rd, with the net empty, Jordie Eliason's point shot beat Larsen to bring the Storm to within 1. But with only 15 seconds remaining, it was too little too late. 3-2 Oceanside.
Still,, if you compare it a few weeks previous, when they faced these two teams in back to back games, the combined score was 4-15. So much improved and hopefully that will continue when the Storm face the Victoria Cougars thursday, who have won 8 straight.
Aaron Enns of the Laronge Ice Wolves is my first period intermission guest, Tom Arlidge of the Cougars broadcast team in the 2nd. Puck drops at 7:15, so we'll be on the air at 7. On a side note, it's nice to see former Tyee Carsen Germyn healthy again and getting a chance to shine in the Swiss Pro League for EHC Olten. Carsen had 1 goal and 3 assists in his last game, a 9-1 win.
Here's a fun video of him and the team's other import, former Hobey Baker winner Marty Sertich. The subtitles are in German, but they're speaking in English (2nd story in).
http://www.ehco.ch/de/ehco-tv.html
Looks like a pretty nice play to play hockey for a living.
On thursday, the boys were in Mill Bay to face a Kerry Park Islander's team that had beaten them twice earlier in the month, including an 8-3 whooping in Mill Bay the last time they met.
It looked like it could have gone that way, after the Islanders jumped out to a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.
But it would not be the same. Jesse Spooner scored after a scramble in front of goalie Ben Kantor to cut the lead in half. Then the Isles benefited from some Halloween trickery at their arena. The Isles would score after a Matthew Johnson point shot hit the shoulder of Gavin Lindner, fooling Ty Bachmeier and making it 3-1. Then a crazy bounce off the end boards landed on the stick of Chase Salisbury, who was all alone and he fired it home, 4-1 KPI.
But the Storm didn't quit. Chase Hailey, who played his best game in a Storm jersey, got his team to within a pair after 40 minutes.
In the third, Alex Benjestorf scored his third in a Storm jersey to make it a 1 goal game. The Storm would continue pressing, but Lindner would put it into an empty net with Bachmeier on the bench in the final 30 seconds to make it 5-3 KPI.
The next night, the Storm hosted an Oceanside Generals team with a lot of key vets out of the line up. With the likes Yamasaki and Dixon up in Junior A, the tables were leveled in terms of overall talent. The Storm would open he scoring, with Alex Benjestorf the recipient of a terrific pass from Chase Hailey, who dished it from the end boards, allowing Benji to rifle it past goalie Kolding Larsen. The Gens tied it with some terrific passing. Travis Briggs went backhand from the left boards to Brett Willsie, who then sent another backhand pass on to the stick of Travis Flug, who was alone in the slot. 1-1 after 20 minutes.
Only one goal was scored in the second, but it should rank as one of the top 5 from this season. Brent Baltus took the puck from the right boards with the Gens on the power play, stick handled around tow Storm PK'ers, lured Ty Bachmeier out of his net then put it into the gaping cage. 2-1 Gens after 40 minutes.
 | ||||
| Game action between the Storm and Generals. Pictured are #17 Chase Hailey and #4 Thor Rossback. | Photo by Sandi Goldrup-Thomspn |
The Storm didn't let up as the third period began. They had chances to tie it up. They just couldn't pull the trigger, and it proved costly. A turnover at their blueline to Oceanside's Brett Willsie eventually ended up on the stick of Travis Briggs, who gave the visitors a 3-1 lead with under 5 minutes to play.
Then in the waning moments of the 3rd, with the net empty, Jordie Eliason's point shot beat Larsen to bring the Storm to within 1. But with only 15 seconds remaining, it was too little too late. 3-2 Oceanside.
Still,, if you compare it a few weeks previous, when they faced these two teams in back to back games, the combined score was 4-15. So much improved and hopefully that will continue when the Storm face the Victoria Cougars thursday, who have won 8 straight.
Aaron Enns of the Laronge Ice Wolves is my first period intermission guest, Tom Arlidge of the Cougars broadcast team in the 2nd. Puck drops at 7:15, so we'll be on the air at 7. On a side note, it's nice to see former Tyee Carsen Germyn healthy again and getting a chance to shine in the Swiss Pro League for EHC Olten. Carsen had 1 goal and 3 assists in his last game, a 9-1 win.
Here's a fun video of him and the team's other import, former Hobey Baker winner Marty Sertich. The subtitles are in German, but they're speaking in English (2nd story in).
http://www.ehco.ch/de/ehco-tv.html
Looks like a pretty nice play to play hockey for a living.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Panthers flex offensive muscles in weekend sweep
The Storm and Peninsula Panthers squared off in a home and home series, with the first game going friday at the Panorama arena. The Storm were without the services of Brandon Tidy and Chase Hailey, but got Rob Iszak back.
As for the Panthers, they continued to shuffle the deck as they prepare to defend their Patterson Memorial Trophy. GM Jackson Penny added Trevor Yee from the Saanich Braves for James and Chris Miller, then picked up Marshall Brome from the Delta Ice Hawks of the PIJHL.
Yee had 88 pts while never missing a game in 2 seasons with the Braves (96 games) and was the Braves captain coming into the season.
Brome is not nearly as offensive, with 14 goals and 31 points in 91 games in Delta, but brings a hard-nosed approach and some grit.
The first period of friday's game was very close. The Panthers held a two goal lead before Jordan Suzuki cut it in half. After Kyle Peterson restored the Cats two goal lead by beating Tyler Bachmeier, Andrew Gaiga put a rocket past goalie Nick Babich to once again close the gap to one. But a late goal by Peninsula's Joe Densmore with just over a minute remaining doubled up the score and the Panthers never looked back, winning 11-3. Gaiga with the other Storm goal. Evan Campbell the hat trick for Peninsula, Cole Peterson with 2. Marshall Brome scored in his debut.
On sunday, it was another tight one in the first. The Panthers again took a two goal lead once again, with goals from Trevor Yee and Joe Densmore but unlike friday, that would be all the scoring until early in the second. Jordan Suzuki beat Brady Berisoff with a beautiful wrist shot from just inside the blueline. The Storm would continue battling, but the Panthers expanded their lead by 2 more, making it 4-1 as Densmore scored his second and Kyle Peterson found the back of the net.
Andrew Gaiga fired one short handed to bring the Brindy back to life, but it was short-lived. The Panthers proved to be too deep, and this time it was Densmore who scored the hat trick, his final goal one that would have made any highlight reel, and short handed to boot.
On the breakaway, he pulled the puck back on his stick, sucked Ryan Fairgray deep into his net and then slipped it into the wide open left side of the crease. Then Corey Allen put a dagger in te hearts of the Storm faithful by scoring with 1 second remaining in the second, making it 6-2.
Jordan Suzuki would sniped on the power-play to cut the lead in half, showing the patience of Job by waiting out a forward who slid to block the shot, then skating in and snapping one past Berisoff. It wasn't enough, as Christian Stephenson's goal on the PP with under 2 minutes remaining was the cing on the cake in a Panthers 7-3 win.
Some bright spots in the game was the play of Jesse Spooner and Alex Benjestorff among the rookies up front, with Rivington making some good decisions on the backend to complement the play of Suzuki and Gaiga.
One area I'd love to see the Storm continue to work on is their transition game. Often times the defense will put a nice pass on the forward's stick in the neutral zone, only to see the forward babble the pass or over skate it. Mistakes like these are costing this team a chance to compete, and a correction in this area could result in more red lights behind the opposition net, less behind the Storm's and even more importantly, more time spent in the opposition's end. I can't even begin to count how much it's hurt this team on their 6 game slide.
From a broadcasting standpoint, Brandon Tidy did a remarkable job filling in for Joe O'Shea on color. Excellent insight from a very mature 17 year old. I apologize to any of our listeners for sunday's broadcast. With a few minutes remaining, the computer that controlled our broadcast froze up, putting us off air for 12 minutes. Thankfully, we were back on by the start of the third.
Next up for the Storm is a game in Mill Bay against the Kerry Park Islanders thursday. Pregame at 7:15 on 99.7 the River. The Islander's Zach Fridella is our guest in the first intermission.
As for the Panthers, they continued to shuffle the deck as they prepare to defend their Patterson Memorial Trophy. GM Jackson Penny added Trevor Yee from the Saanich Braves for James and Chris Miller, then picked up Marshall Brome from the Delta Ice Hawks of the PIJHL.
Yee had 88 pts while never missing a game in 2 seasons with the Braves (96 games) and was the Braves captain coming into the season.
Brome is not nearly as offensive, with 14 goals and 31 points in 91 games in Delta, but brings a hard-nosed approach and some grit.
The first period of friday's game was very close. The Panthers held a two goal lead before Jordan Suzuki cut it in half. After Kyle Peterson restored the Cats two goal lead by beating Tyler Bachmeier, Andrew Gaiga put a rocket past goalie Nick Babich to once again close the gap to one. But a late goal by Peninsula's Joe Densmore with just over a minute remaining doubled up the score and the Panthers never looked back, winning 11-3. Gaiga with the other Storm goal. Evan Campbell the hat trick for Peninsula, Cole Peterson with 2. Marshall Brome scored in his debut.
On sunday, it was another tight one in the first. The Panthers again took a two goal lead once again, with goals from Trevor Yee and Joe Densmore but unlike friday, that would be all the scoring until early in the second. Jordan Suzuki beat Brady Berisoff with a beautiful wrist shot from just inside the blueline. The Storm would continue battling, but the Panthers expanded their lead by 2 more, making it 4-1 as Densmore scored his second and Kyle Peterson found the back of the net.
Andrew Gaiga fired one short handed to bring the Brindy back to life, but it was short-lived. The Panthers proved to be too deep, and this time it was Densmore who scored the hat trick, his final goal one that would have made any highlight reel, and short handed to boot.
On the breakaway, he pulled the puck back on his stick, sucked Ryan Fairgray deep into his net and then slipped it into the wide open left side of the crease. Then Corey Allen put a dagger in te hearts of the Storm faithful by scoring with 1 second remaining in the second, making it 6-2.
Jordan Suzuki would sniped on the power-play to cut the lead in half, showing the patience of Job by waiting out a forward who slid to block the shot, then skating in and snapping one past Berisoff. It wasn't enough, as Christian Stephenson's goal on the PP with under 2 minutes remaining was the cing on the cake in a Panthers 7-3 win.
Some bright spots in the game was the play of Jesse Spooner and Alex Benjestorff among the rookies up front, with Rivington making some good decisions on the backend to complement the play of Suzuki and Gaiga.
One area I'd love to see the Storm continue to work on is their transition game. Often times the defense will put a nice pass on the forward's stick in the neutral zone, only to see the forward babble the pass or over skate it. Mistakes like these are costing this team a chance to compete, and a correction in this area could result in more red lights behind the opposition net, less behind the Storm's and even more importantly, more time spent in the opposition's end. I can't even begin to count how much it's hurt this team on their 6 game slide.
From a broadcasting standpoint, Brandon Tidy did a remarkable job filling in for Joe O'Shea on color. Excellent insight from a very mature 17 year old. I apologize to any of our listeners for sunday's broadcast. With a few minutes remaining, the computer that controlled our broadcast froze up, putting us off air for 12 minutes. Thankfully, we were back on by the start of the third.
Next up for the Storm is a game in Mill Bay against the Kerry Park Islanders thursday. Pregame at 7:15 on 99.7 the River. The Islander's Zach Fridella is our guest in the first intermission.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Top dogs devour the Storm
We knew coming into the weekend it would be tough sledding for the Storm. When the weekend began, Comox Valley and Victoria were 1-2 in league standings. The Storm were a combined 0-3 against them this year, outscored 16-5 in the process. But there's a reason games are played on ice and not paper. You never know what can happen.
Looking back, what did happen feels like something out of a Steven King novel as saturday's game in Courtenay was as nightmarish as it gets.
Lets rewind back to friday night. The first period against the Victoria Cougars went well. Tyler Bachmeier returned to the net and made 10 saves, 4 of them dazzling as it finished scoreless. In the second, the wheels fell off as the Cougars scored early and often, tallying 5 in all in the middle frame. By the third, the big blueline of the Cats wore down the Storm's smaller forwards, while the speed of Victoria up front kept the pressure in the Storm zone, and kept them from generating many chances on Corey Koop's net. It was 6-0 Victoria, with Trevor McNeil and Eric Guthrie each scoring twice. Bachmeier finishing with 39 saves to Koop's 16.
Saturday, the team headed to Courtenay with aspirations of a tight game like one back on September 24th, where the Kings posted a 3-2 win.
Those aspirations evaporated 3 minutes into the game, as the King's Mitch Ball beat Bachmeier high over the glove hand side. In fact the Kings would take a 3-0 lead 6 and half minutes into this one, while holding the Storm to no shots. Then in the final 5 minutes of the opening frame, they would add four more to lead 7-0.
OUCH!
The Storm settled down in the second period, with Jesse Spooner scoring his first junior hockey goal. He stepped out of the penalty box when Jordan Suzuki passed a bullet from the d-zone to his stick, sent him on a break away and he beat Cam Waddington in the Kings net. 8-1 after 40 minutes.
In the third period, it felt like I was broadcasting a root canal, only more painful. The Kings poured it on to the delight of the 265 paying fans in attendance at the Comox Valley Sports Center. They would strike 4 more times en route to a 12-1 drubbing of the Storm. Bachmeier 25 saves, Fairgray made 1 save on 3 shots in relief.
You can look at the numbers and criticize this group, but that would be like laughing at the kid who got "pants" by the bully in the cafeteria. Effort is not the problem with this group. Decision making is a much more prevelant issue.
They are trying so hard to make this work. They are battling hard to chase down their dump-ins in the offensive zone, but either the speed isn't there up front, or opposing defenses know what the Storm are going to do and counter it before anything can happen.
They are trying to finish their checks, but often find themselves up against much bigger opponents in the process, or out of position trying to make that hit.
Logic dictates that they could take the easy way by playing the trap, and clog up the neutral zone, which would limit the oppositions shots and with a goalie like Bachmeier, might keep the score down against more experienced opposition.
But Coach Jim Revenberg never did it the easy way as a junior player with Windsor Spitfire team that went undefeated in the OHL playoffs on their way to the Memorial Cup final final against the Medicine Hat Tigers. And chances are, he won't take the easy way out with this young group he's committed to developing for the future, regardless of how the present might feel.
The Storm get Peninsula in a home and home starting friday at the Panorama Recreation Center.
Looking back, what did happen feels like something out of a Steven King novel as saturday's game in Courtenay was as nightmarish as it gets.
Lets rewind back to friday night. The first period against the Victoria Cougars went well. Tyler Bachmeier returned to the net and made 10 saves, 4 of them dazzling as it finished scoreless. In the second, the wheels fell off as the Cougars scored early and often, tallying 5 in all in the middle frame. By the third, the big blueline of the Cats wore down the Storm's smaller forwards, while the speed of Victoria up front kept the pressure in the Storm zone, and kept them from generating many chances on Corey Koop's net. It was 6-0 Victoria, with Trevor McNeil and Eric Guthrie each scoring twice. Bachmeier finishing with 39 saves to Koop's 16.
Saturday, the team headed to Courtenay with aspirations of a tight game like one back on September 24th, where the Kings posted a 3-2 win.
 |
| # 7 Jesse Spooner |
OUCH!
The Storm settled down in the second period, with Jesse Spooner scoring his first junior hockey goal. He stepped out of the penalty box when Jordan Suzuki passed a bullet from the d-zone to his stick, sent him on a break away and he beat Cam Waddington in the Kings net. 8-1 after 40 minutes.
In the third period, it felt like I was broadcasting a root canal, only more painful. The Kings poured it on to the delight of the 265 paying fans in attendance at the Comox Valley Sports Center. They would strike 4 more times en route to a 12-1 drubbing of the Storm. Bachmeier 25 saves, Fairgray made 1 save on 3 shots in relief.
You can look at the numbers and criticize this group, but that would be like laughing at the kid who got "pants" by the bully in the cafeteria. Effort is not the problem with this group. Decision making is a much more prevelant issue.
They are trying so hard to make this work. They are battling hard to chase down their dump-ins in the offensive zone, but either the speed isn't there up front, or opposing defenses know what the Storm are going to do and counter it before anything can happen.
They are trying to finish their checks, but often find themselves up against much bigger opponents in the process, or out of position trying to make that hit.
Logic dictates that they could take the easy way by playing the trap, and clog up the neutral zone, which would limit the oppositions shots and with a goalie like Bachmeier, might keep the score down against more experienced opposition.
But Coach Jim Revenberg never did it the easy way as a junior player with Windsor Spitfire team that went undefeated in the OHL playoffs on their way to the Memorial Cup final final against the Medicine Hat Tigers. And chances are, he won't take the easy way out with this young group he's committed to developing for the future, regardless of how the present might feel.
The Storm get Peninsula in a home and home starting friday at the Panorama Recreation Center.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Here comes the calvary
Like the Cinderella song from 1988, Don't know what you've got 'til it's gone, the Storm discovered life without defenseman Jordan Suzuki and goalie Tyler Bachmeier can be a bit rocky for this fresh-faced line up. Suzuki does so many things well for this team, when he's not trying to carry it on his back. He adds size to the blue line along with terrific mobility, gives the power play a legitimate quarterback and provides leadership to a green blue line.
Ditto for Tyler Bachmeier when he's on his game. Last season he showed when he is confident and mentally sharp, he can not only keep his team in games they have no right being in, he can also steal two points. This year we've seen flashes, like the first period of the Kerry Park game on October the first, where his team was out shot 21-5, yet led 1-0. Injuries have played a role in stalling his progress, but a healthy, dominant Bachmeier could do wonders for this team's psyche moving forward.
I mentioned a few days ago that the Storm could use some more beef up front to off set a smallish, yet gritty line up. They have added 6'2 Kurtis Bond, who is a 17 year old from Williams Lake who was toiling for a struggling Kamloops Storm franchise this season. He thinks he can play the role of power forward and put some pucks in the net. We'll get our first glimpse tomorrow when the Storm host the Victoria Cougars.
Ditto for Tyler Bachmeier when he's on his game. Last season he showed when he is confident and mentally sharp, he can not only keep his team in games they have no right being in, he can also steal two points. This year we've seen flashes, like the first period of the Kerry Park game on October the first, where his team was out shot 21-5, yet led 1-0. Injuries have played a role in stalling his progress, but a healthy, dominant Bachmeier could do wonders for this team's psyche moving forward.
I mentioned a few days ago that the Storm could use some more beef up front to off set a smallish, yet gritty line up. They have added 6'2 Kurtis Bond, who is a 17 year old from Williams Lake who was toiling for a struggling Kamloops Storm franchise this season. He thinks he can play the role of power forward and put some pucks in the net. We'll get our first glimpse tomorrow when the Storm host the Victoria Cougars.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Growing pains for young Storm team continue
Unlike the 80's sitcom featuring Kirk Cameron, the growing pains the Storm are experiencing are no laughing matter. A combination of factors led to a pair of unflattering results this weekend. They were beaten 7-1 by an Oceanside Generals team at home on friday that appears to have the Storm's number this season.
Then saturday, in a game that featured two penalty shots for the Kerry Park Islanders, the Storm lost 8-3. It would be easy to point the finger at the lack of experience in the line-up with only Andrew Gaiga, Dylan Budgell and Corey MacLachlan the ones with any junior experience. Even Westshore has a dozen players with a few years under their belts.
You could easily fault special teams as a big contributor in both losses.
Heck, you could credit bad luck amongst the reasons the Storm seem to be struggling, as every mistake they make seems to result in a red light going off behind their keeper.
It's sometimes much harder to examine the positives. Bear with me, but there are some rays of light peering through the black clouds of Storm land.
Some of the young forwards are finally scoring some goals. Two weekends ago, it was Robo Eliason who scored in back to back games. This past weekend, Chase Haley got his first junior goal in 3 games.
Look at Alex Benjestorf, who had markers in both games this weekend. Matt Tilton was finally rewarded for the opportunites he's given himself by firing one home saturday night.
You would be more worried about this team if they weren't generating any sort of chances. On the contrary. The kid line of Tilton, Wade Bartlett and Brandon Tidy had a bunch of chances, especially in the Oceanside game to score. You hope with experience that they'll put some pucks past the blue-ice instead of onto the goalies pad as this season progresses.
Look at some of the reasons why the boys are struggling at this point of the season.
The Storm play an aggressive forecheck as part of their system, bringing multiple bodies up high. Sometimes all 3 forwards can be found behind the opposition net. This creates a big problem when they don't come away with the puck and the Storm defense are often left to contend with odd-man rushes.
The Storm also try to employ a physical game plan and hit at every opportunity. While each player wearing green, gold and red may have a giant heart, their frames don't match, and so an undersized Storm team often find themselves searching the services of Hawkeye Pierce.
Boston McNeill is the latest to join the ranks of Jordan Suzuki, Rob Iszak, Tyler Bachmeier and the now-retired Jesse Bachmeier on the M.A.S.H unit after McNeill went down hard behind his own net in the Kerry Park game. The young players on this team are having to eccelerate their learning proccess and play bigger roles than were maybe anticipated at the start of the season.
I know some Storm fans lump this year into the past 4 or 5, but that's unfair to this year's group. They've faced more adversity early in this season than any other I can remember in 8 years of calling games for this organization. As you'll hear from Brandon Tidy and starting with Alex Benjestorf, they will continue to improve themselves.
Some good news comes in the form of Mike Alexander helping the team until Christmas.Mike's a veteran of the WHL and a guy that helped La Range of the SJHL reach the Royal Bank Cup. He's coaching the powerplay in practice, an area the Storm desperately need some help in. It's a shame we can't modify his birth certificate and just put him back there. So you may see special teams improve throughout the year, which could lead to more W's in the standings.
Despite some early season woes, this Storm team is determined to see this through and will not pack it in. Let's hope you the fan follow their lead. Remember, you have to go through a lot of dirty coal before you can make that diamond shine. Continue to come out and support this team that represents Campbell River, the best hockey city on Vancouver Island. That's what being a true hockey fan is all about!
Then saturday, in a game that featured two penalty shots for the Kerry Park Islanders, the Storm lost 8-3. It would be easy to point the finger at the lack of experience in the line-up with only Andrew Gaiga, Dylan Budgell and Corey MacLachlan the ones with any junior experience. Even Westshore has a dozen players with a few years under their belts.
You could easily fault special teams as a big contributor in both losses.
Heck, you could credit bad luck amongst the reasons the Storm seem to be struggling, as every mistake they make seems to result in a red light going off behind their keeper.
It's sometimes much harder to examine the positives. Bear with me, but there are some rays of light peering through the black clouds of Storm land.
Some of the young forwards are finally scoring some goals. Two weekends ago, it was Robo Eliason who scored in back to back games. This past weekend, Chase Haley got his first junior goal in 3 games.
 |
| Alex Benjestorf |
You would be more worried about this team if they weren't generating any sort of chances. On the contrary. The kid line of Tilton, Wade Bartlett and Brandon Tidy had a bunch of chances, especially in the Oceanside game to score. You hope with experience that they'll put some pucks past the blue-ice instead of onto the goalies pad as this season progresses.
Look at some of the reasons why the boys are struggling at this point of the season.
The Storm play an aggressive forecheck as part of their system, bringing multiple bodies up high. Sometimes all 3 forwards can be found behind the opposition net. This creates a big problem when they don't come away with the puck and the Storm defense are often left to contend with odd-man rushes.
The Storm also try to employ a physical game plan and hit at every opportunity. While each player wearing green, gold and red may have a giant heart, their frames don't match, and so an undersized Storm team often find themselves searching the services of Hawkeye Pierce.
Boston McNeill is the latest to join the ranks of Jordan Suzuki, Rob Iszak, Tyler Bachmeier and the now-retired Jesse Bachmeier on the M.A.S.H unit after McNeill went down hard behind his own net in the Kerry Park game. The young players on this team are having to eccelerate their learning proccess and play bigger roles than were maybe anticipated at the start of the season.
I know some Storm fans lump this year into the past 4 or 5, but that's unfair to this year's group. They've faced more adversity early in this season than any other I can remember in 8 years of calling games for this organization. As you'll hear from Brandon Tidy and starting with Alex Benjestorf, they will continue to improve themselves.
Some good news comes in the form of Mike Alexander helping the team until Christmas.Mike's a veteran of the WHL and a guy that helped La Range of the SJHL reach the Royal Bank Cup. He's coaching the powerplay in practice, an area the Storm desperately need some help in. It's a shame we can't modify his birth certificate and just put him back there. So you may see special teams improve throughout the year, which could lead to more W's in the standings.
Despite some early season woes, this Storm team is determined to see this through and will not pack it in. Let's hope you the fan follow their lead. Remember, you have to go through a lot of dirty coal before you can make that diamond shine. Continue to come out and support this team that represents Campbell River, the best hockey city on Vancouver Island. That's what being a true hockey fan is all about!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Eight point weekend awaits the Storm
Back to business for the Storm with a pair of important games early in the season. The Storm hope to prove something different to both teams. Against Kerry Park saturday, they'll try and show that they can skate with the Islanders in the third period, after last week's meltdown where they allowed 4 goals in the final frame.
Against the Oceanside Generals tomorrow, they'll just try to show they can skate with them at all. Last saturday the Generals came into the game with a purpose, and they never allowed the Storm to get into a rhythm.
Two Gens in particular impressed me. Big Josef Chase on the blue-line does a lot of stuff behind the play that seems to rattle the opposition. One sequence in particular stands out. Away from the play, he cross-checked Corey MacLachlan from behind, then as Corey got up, he punched him in the back of the helmet. That led to Corey skating into the Gens' goalie without the puck and a game ejection.
The other Gen that stood out was #23 Brent Baltus. He seemed to always be around the puck and has a terrific shot. That might explain why the Moose Jaw Warriors of the WHL have listed him.
The Storm will have to do more of what worked monday against Westshore. Getting pucks in deep and grinding down the defense.When rolling the Storm have 3 very capable lines in the Bartlett, Hall and Spooner units.
The defense needs to do 2 things to be successful in my opinion. They've been exposed when they've backed off of opposing forwards and allowed them to gain the blue-line the way France allowed Germany in during WWII.
They also need to find the timing to jump into the rush. One play that re-enforces this is during the Westshore game, when the Storm had the power-play. One d-man had jumped way up deep on the near boards, the other d-man was playing point on the same side, and no-one had the other point covered. A good team can make that mistake a costly one.
The Storm have played pretty well at home, with a 2-2 record. They're tied with Kerry Park in points with 6, however the Isles have 3 games in hand. The Generals are just 3 points up with 2 games in hand. It's a great chance for the Storm to gain some ground in the standings, while growing as a team. We've got the pregame starting at 7:15, sponsored by Work World in the Tyee Plaza and Home Depot.
Nice to see some former Tyees doing well in Junior A.
Derek Hills, who also played defense for the Storm in '07, now the Captain of the Amarillo Bulls of the NAHL. They lead their division with a 7-1-1 record in just their first year of operations, thanks in part to Hills 8 pts on the blueline.
We'll speak with Hills next week and have that for you during one of the games.
Another Campbell Riverite with a good start is Zac Ashdown of the Coquitlam Express. He's got 3 goals and 5 assists in 8 games, as the Express are 5-3-1. I caught up with Ashdown and you can hear that interview during the first period intermission of tomorrow's Storm-Oceanside game (Oct 8).
Against the Oceanside Generals tomorrow, they'll just try to show they can skate with them at all. Last saturday the Generals came into the game with a purpose, and they never allowed the Storm to get into a rhythm.
Two Gens in particular impressed me. Big Josef Chase on the blue-line does a lot of stuff behind the play that seems to rattle the opposition. One sequence in particular stands out. Away from the play, he cross-checked Corey MacLachlan from behind, then as Corey got up, he punched him in the back of the helmet. That led to Corey skating into the Gens' goalie without the puck and a game ejection.
The other Gen that stood out was #23 Brent Baltus. He seemed to always be around the puck and has a terrific shot. That might explain why the Moose Jaw Warriors of the WHL have listed him.
The Storm will have to do more of what worked monday against Westshore. Getting pucks in deep and grinding down the defense.When rolling the Storm have 3 very capable lines in the Bartlett, Hall and Spooner units.
The defense needs to do 2 things to be successful in my opinion. They've been exposed when they've backed off of opposing forwards and allowed them to gain the blue-line the way France allowed Germany in during WWII.
They also need to find the timing to jump into the rush. One play that re-enforces this is during the Westshore game, when the Storm had the power-play. One d-man had jumped way up deep on the near boards, the other d-man was playing point on the same side, and no-one had the other point covered. A good team can make that mistake a costly one.
The Storm have played pretty well at home, with a 2-2 record. They're tied with Kerry Park in points with 6, however the Isles have 3 games in hand. The Generals are just 3 points up with 2 games in hand. It's a great chance for the Storm to gain some ground in the standings, while growing as a team. We've got the pregame starting at 7:15, sponsored by Work World in the Tyee Plaza and Home Depot.
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| Derek Hills |
Derek Hills, who also played defense for the Storm in '07, now the Captain of the Amarillo Bulls of the NAHL. They lead their division with a 7-1-1 record in just their first year of operations, thanks in part to Hills 8 pts on the blueline.
We'll speak with Hills next week and have that for you during one of the games.
Another Campbell Riverite with a good start is Zac Ashdown of the Coquitlam Express. He's got 3 goals and 5 assists in 8 games, as the Express are 5-3-1. I caught up with Ashdown and you can hear that interview during the first period intermission of tomorrow's Storm-Oceanside game (Oct 8).
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