COLUMBUS, GA – It was all jokes and laughter at the last Columbus Cottonmouths coach’s show and meet and greet on Friday, April 3, 2009 in the hospitality suites at the Columbus Civic Center. The evening was a gathering for the fans to say thank you for a remarkable season and for the players to say so long for the summer or, in some cases, a fond farewell. Coach Jerome Bechard waved off the initial applause of the fans present in order to bring out the entire team to be part of the show. It was easy to see that the team is like a family and Bechard expressed the importance of having a core group of guys who all respect each other as much as these players do. Each player was given the opportunity to talk about the season, the team, the future, and their plans for the summer. Beneath the smiles was a wave of sadness knowing that this would be the last time the Columbus Cottonmouths would be together as the team the fans watched all season. With five existing veteran players (Tim Green, Orrin Hergott, Ryan Rutz, Lorne Misita, and captain Craig Stahl) and two more added at the conclusion of this season (Roman Marakhovski and Brad Patterson), changes are imminent. SPHL teams are allowed to have only three veterans – players with 224 or more pro games played – on their rosters at any one time. The decision will not be an easy one for Bechard to make. According to Bechard, the first half of the season didn’t go exactly as planned. With several players mired in scoring slumps, the defense and goaltending had to win games. Some nights it worked; most nights it didn’t, which was why the Cottonmouths were in or near the basement of the league standings. “We had a team of 21 individuals with their own agendas,” Bechard said. The team had a few injuries to contend with as well such as Andrew Dwyer, who missed half of the season with a back injury and Hergott, who missed significant time through the middle of the year. Michael George, with knee problems and illness, missed time during the playoffs but luckily was able to come back and help out in game four of the playoffs. Bechard felt that the team really came together after the now infamous bench clearing brawl against the Twin City Cyclones. With several key players suspended for as many as five games, everyone had to pull together. They did so and in the process became the hottest team in the SPHL during the last half of the season. The late run allowed the Cottonmouths to finish in second place when the regular season concluded. Bechard said that game one of the playoffs – where Columbus hit Fayetteville with a six goal second period blitz unlike anything SPHL fans have ever seen – was simply “awesome”. He thought that the referees had a huge impact on the outcome of game two with some questionable calls. In game three, he felt that the Snakes were in control but Fayetteville just got a lucky break in overtime. His one word description of game four was “unbelievable”, noting the feeling in the locker room before the game that his players “just knew they were going to win”. He said that the deciding game five was very hard and the team “just ran out of gas“. Like many of the fans, Bechard deemed the season as a whole as remarkable. With respect to the future of the team, Bechard said that 12 to 14 core players would be returning next season. In speaking with the players, each one expressed how much they love the team, the Columbus area and their desire to return next season as a member of the Cottonmouths – a testament to the fact that the Columbus franchise has become a model SPHL team and its fans among the most passionate in the league. “I hope so but it’s up to Coach,” was the common answer from the players about returning. If it was up to the fans, the clear answer would be “yes” but only time will tell. Contact the author at cindy.williamson@prohockeynews.com
