EPL Play-off Semi-final Scores

The first game of the day featured the EPL League and Cup (Double) Champions the Guildford Flames, who took on the Milton Keynes Lightning. Always thrilling encounters, today was no different as the Flames came from behind in the third to take victory in dramatic fashion.

Despite taking an early powerplay, the Flames could not capitalise and it was the Lightning who found themselves in front when Captain Adam Carr fired past Mark Lee to give the Lightning a one goal lead in the first period. However the Flames were able to re-group and took advantage of the additional man as Nathan Rempel fired them back into contention with the equalising goal just over a minute later. Neither team could find the net for the remainder of the period as the scores remained level after 20 minutes.

A sole marker in the middle stanza saw the Lightning take the lead once again in the game with Michael Farn’s 27th minute strike. A tense final period was in store and when David Longstaff levelled the scores in the opening two minutes of the final session the Flames were once again back into contention.

Despite their chances neither team could find the go ahead goal, but with just under three minutes remaining in the period, Rempel was able to break the deadlock and put the Flames ahead with his second of the evening. Even after pulling netminder Stephen Wall for the extra skater the Lightning were unable to level the game and so the Flames secured their place in Sunday’s final; to keep up their hopes of securing the EPL Grand-slam.

In the second match of the evening, it was a first for the Basingstoke Bison who were visiting the Skydome Arena for the first time since dropping to the EPL in 2009. Despite being short benched the Herd were fired up for the occasion and player/coach Doug Sheppard was leading his men in search of the club’s first silverware in 13 years. Having lead the Slough Jets to victory over the Manchester Phoenix a year ago he was well placed to deal with the pressure the play-off finals weekend can sometimes throw at teams. Tony Hand was looking to end the season on a high after failing to match up to both the Bison and Flames during the regular season.

Despite their early chances, including a powerplay opportunity, the first goal swung in favour of the Phoenix as James Neil’s shot beat Stevie Lyle to make it 1-0 to Manchester. Just over three minutes later and the Herd were back in the game as Greg Owen levelled the scores. With the Phoenix killing off another powerplay chance in the final stages of the period, it was to no avail as Sheppard fired the Bison into the lead before the close of the period.

With the second period underway, netminder Stephen Fone was a rock at the back for Phoenix, stopping a huge chance for Joe Greener to extend the lead further. Moments later and the Phoenix were back into the game, with Hand finding the net. With both teams running into penalty trouble neither were able to find the upper hand in the middle phase of play. Fone once again kept the Phoenix in the game with a big stop on a one-on-one break against Joe Miller before Lyle repeated the action at the other end of the rink against Michal Psurny. With the period drawing to a close the Phoenix were able to find the go ahead goal with Flaten’s powerplay strike beating Lyle.

With momentum swinging in favour of the Phoenix, it appeared that the Bison had got an early equaliser in the second period only for Jaroslav Cesky’s shot to be wiped off and no goal given. In a sign of frustration Cesky slashed his stick across the glass at the goal judge and earned himself a misconduct penalty. Moments later and the equalising goal did come when Greg Chambers found the bet in the 43rd minute; leaving it all to play for.

It appeared it was a session of tic-tac-toe on the score board. Just over a minute after Chambers levelled the scores Psurny grabbed his second of the game to put the Phoenix back in front. A further minute on and the scores were once again level with over 10 minutes remaining. A period of 5-on-3 was gifted to the Bison but they couldn’t take advantage to take the lead once more. With the game drawing to a conclusion overtime was needed to find a difference between the two evenly matched sides.

With the extra five minutes unable to find a winner, the dreaded penalty shots were called upon. First up were the Phoenix and Psurny who bagged his hat-trick marker to put the Phoenix ahead.

Next up was Cesky for the Bison, who made no mistake in making up for his earlier disallowed goal, firing past Fone to level the scores. Captain Luke Boothroyd was next but his effort just missed. Joe Rand put the Bison ahead with his well taken penalty and it was all down to Miller to win it for the Bison; but his shot missed extending the tension further.

McKenzie stepped up for the Phoenix and his shot got the better of Lyle as he levelled the scores at two a-piece. James Archer was next up for the Phoenix who fired them straight into the play-off final with a well worked penalty shot. Sheppard was next for the Bison but his missed shot ensured the Phoenix would make the final for a second year in a row.

EPL Semi-final Contenders Confirmed

Last weekend saw four quarter final match-ups take place on Saturday and Sunday and after 480 minutes and a few seconds of tense hockey action, the contenders for the EPL semi-finals have been decided.

The Guildford Flames took their 4-1 advantage from Saturday and extended it further for an 11-3 aggregate score against the Peterborough Phantoms.

The Basingstoke Bison secured their place at the finals weekend in Coventry for the first time since they dropped to the EPL with an overtime winner on Sunday against the Swindon Wildcats.

The Manchester Phoenix overturned a one goal deficit on Saturday to beat the Bracknell Bees 7-2 on Sunday to secure their place for the fourth year running.

The Slough Jets come back from 4-2 down on Saturday to force the game into overtime but Milton Keynes’ overtime strike fired them into the final 4.

Here is a game-by-game summary of the quarter finals.

Guildford Flames [11] v [3] Peterborough Phantoms
The Double-double champions went into the quarter final the favourites to progress to Coventry. Having secured the EPL Cup and league titles in the weeks preceding the fixture the team was full of confidence, whilst the Phantoms would be hoping for an upset as in 2011. On Saturday the Flames travelled to Peterborough for the first game and after a feisty affair took a comfortable 4-1 advantage into their home leg on Sunday; with a brace of goals from Curtis Huppe and individual efforts from Rick Plant and Paul Dixon.

On Sunday there was a vibrant atmosphere at the Spectrum, with the Kids go free offer packing the rafters to capacity. Despite early chances the first goal did not come until the 13th minute. Damien King seeing the better of Dean Holland’s wrap around attempt; however the rebound fell straight back to Holland who fired the puck from an acute angle past the post. The Phantoms struck back quickly as Maris Ziedins found the net to equal the scores; however the Flames advantage was re-stored before the end of the period with Nathan Rempel finding the net to make it 2-1.

A pair of goals from Curtis Huppe and Branislav Kvetan in the second period stretched the Flames lead to three going into the final period.

The Phantoms job of a comeback was made even harder early in the third period when Ben Campbell found the net. With the game entering the final 10 minutes Jez Lundin comfortably put the Flames five goals in front with a blueline strike. Minutes later and James Ferrara was able to grab a consolation goal for the Phantoms only for Huppe to add his second of the evening with just over a minute remaining in the game. A game very much subdued than the previous night was brought to life in the dying seconds as Scott Greenfield and Greg Pick dropped the gloves to round up the final period.

A 7-2 victory on the night secured a 11-3 aggregate win for the champions who will be keeping their fingers crossed they can secure the grand slam they were so close to winning last season.

Basingstoke Bison [5] v [4] Swindon Wildcats (after overtime)
The Bison went into the quarter final short benched through injuries and with two of their junior players on international duty in Estonia; but they were hoping for some luck. Having never reached the finals weekend in their three previous seasons, the pressure was on player/coach Doug Sheppard who led the Slough Jets to the Play-off crown in 2011-12.

A very tight opening game at the Link Centre saw both teams’ level terms after 60 minutes. The Bison opened the scoring through Joe Greener but the Wildcats responded in the second period with Aaron Nell grabbing the first of his hat-trick. By the mid-way point of the game ex-Wildcat Jaroslav Cesky’s pair extended the Bison’s lead to two. But Nell added a second before the period was over. A final strike in the final 5 minutes earned Nell a well-earned hat-trick and set up an epic battle in Sunday’s game back at the Basingstoke Arena.

There was not much two split the two sides as the opening period got underway, but Joe Rand put the Bison ahead at 14:51. It took some time but the Wildcats were able to respond and Sam Bullas brought the game level once again at 22:23. Neither side could find the go ahead go with both netminders on top form and with the game drawing to an end it was clear that overtime or penalties would have to settle this tie.

With the Wildcats penalised for too many men just before the final buzzer the extra period was 4-on-3 in favour of the Bison. Taking full advantage straight away Cesky wound up a slap shot from the point only to be denied by the post. However the puck bounced across the crease to a waiting Greener who fired home to seal the victory for the Bison and secure their place in Coventry.

Manchester Phoenix [10] v [6] Bracknell Bees
With both teams enjoying a strong end to the regular season it was always going to be hard to pick a winner from this quarter final. With a comeback win against the Sheffield Steeldogs in the final game of the season the Bees secured 6th place and had made the play-off quarter finals for the first time since 2009-10.

On Saturday the Phoenix made their way to the Hive for the first leg; however it was not to go their way and the homeside took the opening victory 4-3 with goals from Shaun Thompson x2, Scott Spearing, and Grant Rounding. It was, as they would say, a proper play-off encounter and a very close game right to the final buzzer.

On Sunday the Phoenix were back in their own barn and hoping to give the home fans something to cheer about. Unlike the previous night the Phoenix took a first period lead which they would not give up for the remainder of the game. With the Bees hitting penalty trouble early in the encounter goals from Flaten and Psurny gave the Phoenix the aggregate lead at 5-4.

The homeside started the second period as the first ended and extended their lead further when James Archer set up Robert Schnabel for the game winning goal in the 26th minute. With the game at 4-on-4 following an altercation between Spearing and Pozivil, Andy McKinney made it 4-0 on the night just before the mid-way point.

Going into the third and final period the Phoenix held a 3-0 aggregate lead over the Bees. However hopes of a sparks of a comeback were made when Oliver Bronniman found the net at 42:01. But a second goal by Schnabel killed of any hopes of a Bees comeback. Lukas Smital did grab the Bees a consolation goal on the powerplay, but their inability to keep out the penalty box lead to their downfall as Boothroyd made it 6-2 with less than 10 minutes to play. With the game drawing to an end the Phoenix were able to grab a final marker at 57:04 with McKinney grabbing his second of the game.

Milton Keynes Lightning [5] v [4] Slough Jets (after overtime)
Neither team could be seen as the favourites going into the weekend, but the Lightning took the advantage in Slough on Saturday. The Jets opened the scoring through Ciaran Long but ex-Jet Blaz Emersic was on hand to grab an equaliser for the Lightning before the end of the opening period.

The Lightning seemed to be firing on all cylinders for the second period and peppered Greg Rockman with 21 shots in the Jets goal however only a single marker found the net as Kamil Tvrdek scored on the powerplay giving the visitors a one goal lead heading into the third period.

The Jets seemed to overturn their own performance and dominated for much of the final period, but it was the Lightning to get on the board first as Chris Wiggins netted their third at 50:11. Just over a minute later and Nicky Chinn scored on the powerplay to extend the Lightning’s lead to three with less than 8 minutes remaining. But the Jets kept up the pressure and Dan Davies kept the deficit to just two scoring at 54:14.

On Sunday and back in MK the Lightning only had to hold the two goal lead and bag a couple of early goals to extend their advantage but it was Slough that were calling the shots. The Jets took an early lead in the opening two minutes to make it 4-3 on aggregate score. Before the period was up, Blaz Emersic was called for checking from behind and ejected from the game.

It was the Jets that were having the better of the chances and they levelled the game at 28:47 with Long grabbing his second of the weekend with a powerplay strike. Both teams were able to hold on for the final 30 minutes and neither could grab a go ahead goal, forcing the tie into overtime. With the 5 minute overtime period underway it was Captain Adam Carr that was able to fire the Lightning into the semi-finals with a well-placed strike past Rockman.

On Saturday the semi-finals kick off at the Skydome Arena in Coventry. The first game will see the double champions Guildford take on the MK Lightning at 3pm before the Bison and Phoenix go toe-to-toe at 7pm.

Kapicka Released by Wildcats

The Swindon Wildcats have announced that import forward Michal Kapicka has been released by the club with immediate effect.

The Czech native joined the Wildcats for the start of the 2012-13 season and has appeared in 19 contests; in which he has registered 11 goals and 11 assists for 22 points.

Kapicka started his career in 1999-00 in the Czech Under 18 league icing for the Bili Tygri Liberec U18 as well as HC Litvinov U18. In 2000-01 Kapicka continued with the Bili Tygri Liberec U18 side as well as joining the U20 team in 17 games. This was followed by four consecutive seasons with the U20 side as well as icing for the HC Jablonec in Czech 3 in 2004-05 and 2005-06. Kapicka joined HC Jablonec in the Czech 3 division full-time in 2006-07 and iced in 11 games; registering 13 points. During that season he also spent time in the Slovakian 2 league with HK Nove Zamky for just one game.

During the 2007-08 season Kapicka was well traveled having split his time amongst 4 teams; with HC Jablonec in the Czech 3, HK Nitra in Slovakian division, Ferencváros TC in Hungary and HK Nove Zamky in the Slovakian 2 division. The following three seasons saw Kapicka spend his time in his native Czech, as well as Germany. In 2011-12 Kapicka spent the season with Mullhouse in the France 2 division. He registered over a point a game, finishing the season with 36pts from 26 starts.

The announcement may come as a shock to some fans and not to others. In recent weeks the Wildcats looked to strengthen their roster with the signing of import defenceman Tomas Fojtik from the Telford Tigers. Fojtik started the season with the Basingstoke Bison however was released in favour of Tigers forward Jaroslav Cesky. In what seemed a straight swap between the two clubs was far from being so simple. Fojtik spent just a sole weekend in Telford before heading back south to join Ryan Aldridge’s men.

At the time of his signing there was no news regarding the imports in Swindon with the option of 5 players. However following their 5-2 defeat to the Milton Keynes Lightning Aldridge took the decision to release Kapicka as he looks to bring balance to the team; especially following the return to fitness of Matias Perkkio.

This leaves Jonas Hoog, Jan Melichar, Perkkio and Fojtik as the remaining import players on the Wildcats roster. Kapicka will now most likely look for other options to continue playing this season, with a number of EPL clubs looking to make changes to the teams and also short of their import quota; most notably Sheffield and Telford. Following the departure of Cesky to Bison and Fojtik to Swindon, Tom Watkins has not yet found a suitable replacement for the Tigers; however it would be no surprise if Kapicka is seriously being looked at. Kapicka is a very capable forward at this level and his 22 points from 19 games shows his ability to score and collect points. He is good on the puck and has the ability going forward.

We’ll keep you updated as soon as any news of Kapicka’s whereabouts is released.

Sunday 02 December – Scores

Bracknell Bees [5] v [1] Sheffield Steeldogs

Telford Tigers [1] v [4] Guildford Flames

Peterborough Phantoms [6] v [3] Basingstoke Bison

Manchester Phoenix [3] v [4] Slough Jets (PSO)

Swindon Wildcats [2] v [5] Milton Keynes Lightning

Only 3 teams came away with four point weekends, the Guildford Flames, the Milton Keynes Lightning and after a hard fought come-back in Manchester; the Slough Jets.

The Jets went into the game after a win the previous night against Sheffield and were looking to add to the Phoenix’s woes. However the home-side opened the scoring within the first 10 minutes when ex-Jet Ciaran Long scored. This was added to in the 13th minute by Joachim Flaten. Just minutes before the end of the opening period Jets’ player/coach Slava Koulikov pulled one back. The Jets had the better of the second period chances and were rewarded when Darius Pliskauskas scored just 36 seconds before the second period buzzer to level the scores. James Archer gave the Phoenix the lead in the 53rd minute but Frantisek Bakrlik levelled the scores with just 47 seconds remaining in regulation time. With the scores levelled at 3-3 the game was forced into overtime; but this still couldn’t find a winner. With penalty shots the only way to find a winner, Flaten went first for the Phoenix and his effort was saved. Pliskauskas was next for the Jets and his shot was also saved. Psurny’s attempt then hit the crossbar and Bakrlik took an excellent penalty shot to score. Long missed the final penalty for the Phoenix gifting the Jets the win and extra point. The 4 point weekend sees the Jets remain in 5th place with 28 points.

The Guildford Flames met the Telford Tigers for the second weekend in a row. This time in Telford rather than the Spectrum however the outcome was very much similar. Despite the Flames’ offensive threat and strength, the Tigers held the champions to a close draw and restricted the open playing style that the Flames enjoy. Ben Campbell opening the scoring for the Flames inside the first 7 minutes for the only goal of the opening period. This was matched by the Tigers in the middle stanza as Tim Burrows got the home-side on level terms. However 3 unanswered third period goals saw the Flames take the points; firstly by Stuart Potts in the 42nd minute, followed by two goals from Curtis Huppe in the 47th and 56th minute of the game. The double victory sees the Flames claw back the advantage held by Manchester and sees them in third level on points.

The Milton Keynes Lightning headed to Swindon for their second game of the weekend after an impressive (yet embarrassing)  9-0 victory against Telford. The Wildcats opened the scoring when Aaron Nell’s one timed shot found the back of the net. However Blaz Emersic fired in a rebound shot to level the scores. But the Lightning’s player/coach Nick Poole scored to give the Lightning the lead. The second period saw much of the same end-to-end hockey and shortly after the mid-way point of the game the scores were once again level as Wildcats’ Lee Richardson collected a loose puck and fired past Stephen Wall for 2-2. Both teams came out in the third period looking for a break through to take advantage in the game. This came from the visitors as Adam Carr tapped in a dumped puck past Dean Skinns. This was followed by a mis-fortunate slap-shot from Kamil Tvrdek’s whose stick broke from the shot but it was enough to put the puck past Skinns. The two quick goals saw a time-out called by the Wildcats who were looking to dig deep and find a way back in the game. The Wildcats did start to pressure the Lightning’s net and a defensive face-off should have lead to their advantage; but a bounced puck on the blue line saw Zatopek rush in on Skinns 1-on-1 slotting the puck home for their 5th of the game and the game winning goal.

The Bracknell Bees returned to action after their Saturday evening off and were facing the under performing Sheffield Steeldogs. The Steeldogs player/coach Andre Payette took the decision before the weekend to coach the side from the bench so he could assess how the team reacted and played with the recent player changes. The first goal came for the home-side as Grant Rounding backhanded a deflected shot to the right of James Flavell. It was the only goal of the opening period which saw the majority of chances come for the Bees. Lukas Smital added to the Bees tally just 4 minutes into the second period. A third goal was added on the powerplay from a Marcel Petran trademark slapshot that find its way past Flavell. Shaun Thompson added a fourth from a well place wrist shot. Lloyd Gibson spoiled any chances of a Ambler shut-out after his shot crossed the line (despite claims it had passed through a gap in the side netting). A 5th Bees goal was added before the end of 40 minutes when Thompson added another wrist shot powerplay goal to the score sheet. For the final period Bees assistant coach Smital decided to watch the game from the side-lines and assist Cox in coaching the team. The Steeldogs were unable to find a way back into the game and the Bees didn’t add to their already impressive tally; taking the win 5-1.

The shock of the day came from Peterborough, as the Phantoms took a well earned victory against the top of the table and team to beat; the Basingstoke Bison. Will Weldon opened the Phantoms scoring in the 6th minute; however the Bison responded almost immediately with Greg Owen scoring. Maris Ziedens gave the Phantoms the lead once more with a goal in the 10th minute and this was followed by his second of the period coming just over one minute from the break to give the Phantoms a 3-1 lead. Ziedens completed his hat-trick just over the mid-way mark and Tom Carlon made it 5-1 with just 38 seconds remaining of the second period. Jaroslav Cesky pulled a goal back for the visitors inside two minutes of the game re-start and Owen grabbed his second of the game as the Bison looked for an almighty comeback. However with two goals still to find the job was made harder when Luke Ferrara scored the game winning goal in the 48th minute. With just over 10 minutes to play to Phantoms held on and took a rewarding 6-3 victory to dent any further advantage the Bison could hold atop the league standings.

After all that action the league table looks like the following.

Kamil hopes to have the Lightning affect.

The Milton Keynes Lightning have taken the necessary steps to ensure they are not left short benched; whilst influential forward Adam Calder recuperates from a hip injury he incurred in their game against Telford.

Calder had surgery on his fractured hip on the evening of his accident in Telford and was able to go home three days later to begin his recovery. His rehabilitation process is likely to see him side-lined for the foreseeable future.

To ensure the club remains competitive and able to ice a full quota of imports they have taken the decision to sign Czech native Kamil Tvrdek. Kamil, a left winger, has played the majority of his senior ice hockey career in his native Czech Republic; with just a single season in Slovakia during 2008-09 for the MsHK Zilina.

This current season has seen Kamil ice in both the Czech 2 and Czech 3 leagues whilst on loan to SK Kadan and HC Banik Sokolov respectively.

Kamil started his hockey career icing for his hometown club Karlovy Vary, in the north-west of the country, where he played for nine seasons. He returned to the Czech 2 for 2009-10, following his year in Slovakia, where he has since remained.

Nick Poole has said a lot of hard work was taken to ensure this move could happen; “Over the last few days we’ve been able to do our homework and draw up a shortlist. We know we’re bringing in a good hockey player who can skate well and will certainly add to our line-up. Kamil has played at higher levels than the EPL, and although obviously there’ll be an adjustment period we are very optimistic and excited to have him in our line-up.

“It’s been a very difficult period for all of us over the last 10 days, so it’s great to see the guys upbeat and ready to impress their new team-mate. Lukas (Zatopek) has already been in touch with Kamil, and we hear he’s very excited to be heading to the UK to enjoy the MK experience.”

It is a very sensible move by the Lightning to bring an additional player to the team whilst Calder is away. Many tipped MK to be one of the team’s to watch this year,with the additional of Calder during the summer and he was on for another high scoring season. Although Kamil has not put up the high numbers we have come to experience from Calder, the Czech leagues are a considerable step above the EPL and he should, if he can work well and connect with his new team mates, put up decent numbers whilst the Canadian is away.

It has not been announced how long the deal is for or for how long Calder will definitely be side-lined however I expect he will be kept on for a period of time even after Calder is back on his feet. Calder will not be 100% match fit after his recovery and it would make sense to bring him back gradually whilst keeping Kamil on the team.

Having scrapped for their victory last night against Slough, they will definitely benefit from the extra firepower; especially whilst Leigh Jamieson is on GB duty in Japan.

MK currently sit in third with 19 points and will look to remain around this area of the table.

Flames add Holland to roster

I have to admit I was very surprised last night when I saw the press release from the club announcing that Dean Holland would be joining the team. We have all thought and agreed, even before the season started, that we needed to see some fresh faces on the roster and some “young blood”; but is Holland really what the current champions need to bolster the squad and see us climb from 4th back to the top (or at least top 2).

Let’s take a look at Holland first before passing any form of judgement. Dean started his senior hockey career in 2004-05 for the Sunderland Chiefs. He iced in 15 games during that season and scored 7 points.

His first full-time outing came in 2007-08, icing for the now defunct Newcastle Vipers, in the Elite League (EIHL). During that season he iced in 51 games and registered 5 goals and 4 assists for 9 points. He will join former Vipers team mates Lundin, Longstaff and Campbell when he suits up for the Flames this season.

For the next two seasons Holland remained with the Vipers where he registered on average under 10 points a season. In 2010-11 Holland signed for the Manchester Phoenix icing in 4 games and scoring one goal before heading back to Newcastle for the Vipers final season in the EIHL. It was a break-through season for Dean as he registered 4 goals and 14 assists for 18 points from 50 games.

Last season Holland iced for the Whitely Warriors in the English National League North; whilst also icing for the Dundee Stars in the Elite and Telford Tigers in the EPL. In total Holland has over 220 Elite League games under his belt and is an experienced player given his age (24).

Dixon stated the following for the Flames press release; “I think the way we have started the season could best be described as inconsistent.  We have played very well at times and not well at other points.  If we factor that in with some injury concerns, now is a good time to take steps to deepen our line up.  We are still in a good position in the league for this early stage of the season, so acting earlier is better than later to make sure it gives us the best chance to have a positive impact as we head into the bulk of the schedule.

“Despite only being 24 years old Dean has more than a couple hundred games in the UK’s highest senior leagues.  He is a good skating, solid up and down type winger who brings a gritty dimension to the character of the team. He is a great depth addition to our group and we are looking forward to the impact his ability and attitude will have on our line up.”

It is an interesting move by Dixon bringing Holland to the team. I don’t think anyone denies that the start of this season hasn’t gone according to plan and that other teams in the league (notably the Bees and Bison) have improved considerably; whilst it would appear on first looking that the Flames have stood still and not improved. A number of fans took the mentality of why fix what isn’t broken and make changes to a double winning team. Others thought that changes would need to be made to keep up with other teams that were developing and changing their squads.

We are 15 games into the season, with just 8 wins and sit in 4th place some 5 points from Basingstoke in first. I agree by what Dixon says and that it is better to make changes before it is too late and the gap is too large to overcome.

Holland will most likely fit in on the third line and will benefit from being with players he has played with before. I can see Plant dropping back to a constant third line position alongside Potts and Holland. This will revert Sharp, Edwards and Greenfield only getting ice time when there is an opportunity and will rotate with one of the third liners.

It will however be interesting to see what happens to the top two lines. No one can argue that Rempel isn’t firing on all cylinders like we have seen in recent seasons and that he needs to be on a line that attributes his playing qualities and skills; most notably a set-up guy like Longstaff.

I have to agree with QuickBen on the forum that the lines will be the following for the coming weeks;

Campbell, Kohut, Huppe. (Campbell has the speed to chase down the puck or move quickly up the ice whilst JoKo and Curtis have the ability in front of net to get the puck in).

Remper, Hemmings, Lobby. (like the first line, Hemmings has the speed to chase the puck and he doesn’t mind fighting in the corners for possession. He can then get the puck to Longstaff to set up Rempel).

Holland, Potts, Plant. (The hard working, gritty line that will pressure the other team into mistakes. We know that Potts is like a puppy and chases the puck carrier and can gain possession behind net, Holland will be the hard hitting forward that will try to force the puck from the opposition and Plant is the scoring machine on that line who rushes the net and holds the puck well).
It will just be interesting as to who fits into the second line whilst Longstaff is on international duty this weekend with TeamGB.

So is Holland the player we need? Yes and No! Ideally we need a creative, goal scoring Brit forward to replace Towe; however Holland will bring stability and grit to the third line which has been missing at times this season.

Welcome to the Flames Mr Holland and good luck this weekend!!

Henry released by Tigers

In a rather shock move after their defeat to Bracknell on Sunday evening the Telford Tigers released young-British forward Joe Henry. According to their press release Henry refused to play the third period against Bracknell and Player/Coach Tom Watkins had little option but to sack the forward.

Watkins states; “It was unacceptable and he really let his team-mate down tonight. I decided to change the lines around and for whatever reason Joe decided he didn’t want to play.
“I take that as being disgusting. Whether a coach or one of his staff tells you something, you get on with it and come and see me after the game.
“I wish Joe well, as I have known him for a long time, and I’m sure he will move on.”

Now whether it was right or not by Henry to sit out and refuse to play for your team; it seems rather drastic action that Watkins and the club has taken. Surely a meeting should have been held between the two the following day when all the adrenaline of the previous night had wore off to discuss whether he had a future at the club or not!

The decision to sack one of his players may come to bite Watkins in the ass before the season is through. The Tigers sit in their usual place at the bottom of the standings some 6 points from 9th placed Sheffield and 7 points behind the final play-off spot held by Peterborough; who have inflicted two devastating defeats to the Tigers in recent weeks.

Watkins however is not ready to hit the panic button juts yet; “As a coach, you are never happy with what happened, but you have to look around and see what is available,” he said.
“You have to look at where to make moves, but we still had three dedicated forwards against Peterborough, so it is early to talk of anyone.
“At this time of year there are not a lot of guys available, but we will keep track and see where we can make improvements, but there are constraints.”

Given the Tigers lack of budgetary power, I cannot see an influential forward/s signing for the Tigers to help them out of their current slump and Watkins may have to resort to signing ENL quality players to ensure they are not short benched for the remainder of the season.

I respect the Tigers organisation and what the fan backed committee have done over recent seasons to bring hockey back to Telford and Shropshire; but you do get a sense of whether they are out of their depth in the EPL.

Telford must now prepare for another tough set of games this coming weekend, when they travel south to face Swindon on Saturday, before returning home to entertain the inform Manchester Phoenix on Sunday.

Weekend Round Up – Week 8

It has been a strange start to the English Premier League season with some see-saw results across the whole league. This past week there were two mid-week games, firstly the Manchester Phoenix against the Peterborough Phantoms and the Guildford Flames at home to the Swindon Wildcats.

The recent form of all four teams lead to two very close encounters; with the Phantoms coming from behind to force overtime and a shoot-out decider finally beating the Phoenix 5-4.

The Flames had a slow start to their game and were 2-0 down after the first period. Despite a late charge in the third period with 10 of the most intense minutes of play I have ever witnessed in an ice hockey game they could not overcome the deficit and lost 5-4 in regulation to the Wildcats; who took their first win since beating the Flames 6-2 on home ice. I can sense the Wildcats being the Flames’ cryptonite this season and pulling out the shocking results against the champions.

Wednesday 31 October

Peterborough Phantoms 5 – 4 Manchester Phoenix (SO)

Guildford Flames 4 – 5 Swindon Wildcats

Saturday 03 November

Basingstoke Bison 6 – 2 Slough Jets

Telford Tigers 3 – 5 Bracknell Bees

Sheffield Steeldogs 4 – 2 Peterborough Phantoms

Swindon Wildcats 3 – 6 Milton Keynes Lightning

Sunday 04 November

Slough Jets 1 – 2 Basingstoke Bison (SO)

Bracknell Bees 4 – 3 Guildford Flames

Peterborough Phantoms 7 – 2 Telford Tigers

Milton Keynes Lightning 3 – 0 Swindon Wildcats

Manchester Phoenix 9 – 1 Sheffield Steeldogs

Weekend Round Up – Week 7

Saturday 27 October

Swindon Wildcats 2 – 4 Basingstoke Bison

Guildford Flames 5 – 2 Peterborough Phantoms

Bracknell Bees 4 – 5 Telford Tigers (OT)

Slough Jets 5 – 7 Manchester Phoenix

MK Lightning 1 – 0 Sheffield Steeldogs

 

Sunday 21 October

Sheffield Steeldogs 3 – 7 Guildford Flames

Basingstoke Bison 4 – 3 Swindon Wildcats (OT)

Telford Tigers 3 – 0 MK Lightning

Manchester Phoenix 7 – 1 Bracknell Bees

Peterborough Phantoms 3 – 0 Slough Jets

 

EPL League Standings

1. Manchester Phoneix

2. Basingstoke Bison

3. Guildford Flames

4. Slough Jets

5. Bracknell Bees

6. MK Lightning

7. Swindon Wildcats

8. Sheffield Steeldogs

9. Peterborough Phantoms

10. Telford Tigers