SWINDON, UK – Week 7 and while Jets’ D-man Adam Greener now heads both the EPL and British Top Ten Penalty Receivers’ charts, with Nicky Watt just a minor behind, it turns out he isn’t just, er, a pretty face but has a generous side as well because the Bees’ reported he has been a long-time sponsor of his former club. Also not pretty faces are Michal Pinc, who is the leading import penalty-taker in foyrth place and Marcus Kristoffersson close on his heels in ninth.
Manchester dominates the EPL Points Chart and you have to wonder if player-coach Tony Hand is enjoying something of an Indian summer having five top ten appearances out of the six scoring tables, four of which he leads. Second to Hand in the EPL Points Chart comes team-mate Curtis Huppe with Bees’ Jaroslav Cesky and Michal Pinc now down to second place with four Flames’ players filling the lower slots. Interestingly, the Brit chart is almost a reverse with David Longstaff leading the Flames quartet which is only topped by Hand, and with Bison’s Ollie Bronnimann plus Phoenix and Lightning players following.
Imports fill the EPL Goal Scorers Top Ten Chart with just Bronnimann flying the British flag at joint sixth, so a slight improvement on last week. Not much change in the Brit chart other than Lightning’s Gary Clarke arriving and Flames’ Matt Towe dropping out.
The Top Ten Assists chart belongs to Tony Hand with Nicky Chinn dropping out and Lightning’s Andre Smulter in. The main change in the British Assists Chart is the arrival of two Lightning players at the expense of Jets’ Joe Greener.
Paul Dixon of the Flames has gone to the top of the highest scoring D-men Chart above Phoenix’s Ben Morgan with three other Flames in tow. The remaining places are occupied by Bison and Phantoms’ players.
The British D-men Chart has lost Tigers’ Tom Watkins and Lloyd Gibson of the Steeldogs, swapped a Flames player and welcomed Phantoms’ James Ferrara and Rick Skene.
Steve Wall replaces Flames Miro Hala as number 2 netminder, Greg Rockman goes to third, but Lightning’s Alex Mettam is king of the castle.
Wednesday evening and the Wildcats lost at home to the Jets by a goal having fought back from 4-1 down. Phoenix went on to win 6-2 at Peterborough from 6-1 at the end of the second period. The Flames had a comfortable win at home to Bracknell although the Bees are definitely showing signs of improvement and, according to Coach Cox after Sunday’s game, played their first game of the season with everyone reading from the same page in the script.
All of which meant the Jets jumped the Bison to go into third place in the league table.
However, while Cox put some of the improvement down to splitting dangerous brothers Cesky and Pinc it was not all good news from the Bees camp as the coach was far from elated with his netminders Adam Marashi and Carl Ambler who he feels are struggling to find form. While Cox’s incentive to allow his boys to compete for the opening spot has its merit, as strange as this may seem it brought to mind an inspired solution from my old grand-pappy who used to say, ‘If your hog won’t perform put a grain sack over the sow’s face and tell him she’s a pretty one.’
Talking of not performing, early in the week the first import left the EPL when Jozef Kohut walked out on the Wildcats to return to his native Czech Republic for ‘family reasons’ which, if the rumours are to be believed, means he needed more money. Understandably the club was miffed with only a week’s warning and GM Steve Nell said, ’We are very disappointed Jozef has chosen to turn his back on the club, especially having committed to another year.’ Apparently, on top of the usual fees and expenses involved in getting an import into the UK the club had forked out another £3,000 on top to extricate Kohut from what the club described as ‘dire circumstances’.
According to Coach Dixon at the Flames, his team’s first loss of the season to the Jets after a ten-game winning streak may be a blessing in disguise. ‘Considering the weight that a streak can sometimes put on a player, there’s probably a bit of a silver lining removing that added bit of pressure,’ he said. Although the Flames were quickly back to their more familiar winning ways, only time will tell if the weight has been lifted from shoulders although it has to be said with their first goal in just over a minute against Bracknell and a reply just three minutes later, Dixon’s may still be right in his concern with his team’s wobbly starts.
Mid-week and a second import bit the dust with the Tigers’ announcing the release of Canadian Chris Allen from their blue-line in a move to save money. Coach Watkins said, ‘I am enormously disappointed to be losing such an experienced player. He will be an asset at any future club.’ Allen himself, an ex-Elite League player said on being appointed, ‘It may be a different level, but it is still hockey.’ Sadly not any more, it ain’t, and you have to feel both for him and the club. Looking on the bright side Coach Watkins said he felt Allen’s departure would give ‘other players more minutes and the opportunity to have a bigger influence on games in their own way.’
Also on another patch of thin ice were the Steeldogs who despite having recently lost top man Tom Squires now look likely to lose D-man Ryan Johnson. Neighbours EIHL Steelers requested a loan of one game to help prop up their depleted side with the carrot that if they are impressed with the Brit, he may be offered a more permanent contract.
The news must have induced a private snicker in Basingstoke where player-coach Steve Moria had just complained, ‘Sheffield are not going to make it easy for us.’ Adding, with an edge of frustration, ‘I want to dominate a game on our own ice, which is something we have yet to do this season.’ But then soon after welcomed back from injury top ten British forward Chris Wiggins.
But Coach Matt Darlow at the Steeldogs may not exactly get the last laugh so much as some breathing space because the following day the game was cancelled due to a ‘mechanical breakdown of the ice plant’ which I think translates to a bit broke on the ice machine and can’t be replaced for a week.
Talking of broken things, or to be more precise unbroken things, it was announced Steve Fone would be retuning to Manchester’s ice following his very close encounter with a puck to the face two weeks ago. Also expected to return are Lightning’s Swedish forward Monir Kilgoum and British D-man Lewis Christie.
By the weekend the Wildcats announced that although they had a short list an import wouldn’t be taking to the ice in Swindon at the weekend. Coach Aldridge said he would not be hurried into a signing as he wanted to make sure the right player was found, so the Wildcats meet the Jets for the second successive time an import short. However, although they made a spirited rally and only went down to the Jets by a goal midweek, Slough’s coach Pete Russell said, ‘We’ve been looking for some consistency and form, and I think now we are beginning to do that.’
So on to Saturday’s games, now down to three, and let’s study some form.
Well, none in Basingstoke because, of course, because the game against the Steeldogs was cancelled.
However, elsewhere on form you’d have to say the Jets would be almost unbeatable at home against the Wildcats, especially having defeating them on their own ice days earlier. So it was hard to believe at one point the Wildcats went three goals ahead with in-form import Jozef Liska bagging four goals, but then maybe not so hard to accept they eventually lost on penalties.
Lightning at home to the Phantoms which started with a tough first period, the first call in the first minutes followed by two ten-minute penalties on the home side for checking from behind and to the head and by the end of the period it was equal at two apiece, with Tom Carlon getting the Phantoms’ pair. In a disrupted second period the Lightning took the lead and eventually the game 6-2.
In Guildford visiting Phoenix took the lead after a minute and seven minutes into the second period the scored the game-winning-goal eventually taking the honours 3-1 and consolidating their lead at the top of the table. Lower positions didn’t really shift apart from some minor adjustment. The win also gave the Phoenix the same away winning run of five games as the Jets and Flames but remain one behind the Flames on nine as a best over all winning streak.
The second leg of the Phoenix-Flames weekend on Sunday could be a crucialer game than most crucial games because the question on everyone’s mind must be is the Flames party over? Also, can the Phoenix now equal the Flames ten-game winning run on their own soil?
And the simple answer is they can’t, at least not yet because the fortunes were reversed and the Guildford side came out winners at 4-3 keeping them well in touch at the top.
But, Sunday’s highlight, or lowlight depending which bench you sit on, must be the Bison’s 12-5 defeat of the Steeldogs which not only produced a record-breaking seventeen goals, sweeping aside the twelve of the current record, but a record-setting three hat-tricks from Bison’s Ollie Bronnimann, Ondrej Lauko and Viktor Kubenko.
Although none of the lower teams played two games over the weekend, it is still a shame none picked up points when they with them all playing at home. The Jets roared on with a 7-5 win in Bracknell, although that doesn’t seam like a disgrace by any means, and the Tigers went down 6-2 to the Lightning. The Wildcats took a lead at Peterborough and then threw it away again like the previous night going on to lose. And while a drubbing might incline you towards mirth at the expense of the underdog, I am reminded of a cautionary word from my old grand-pappy who used to say, ‘If you are about to have a laugh at someone else’s expense, make sure it isn’t the day you forgot you slipped a ferret into your trousers.’
So, as there were no great changes in the league table with just the Lightning and Jets picking up four points over a week which held three games for some, we can close Week 7 and check on the ferret.
For EPL news, stats, charts and a headline mailing list, take a look at my website – www. iceman-epl.com
Contact the author Bill.Collins@Prohockeynews.com
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