EPL Roundup – Week 12

SWINDON, UK – Week 12 produced several changes to the Top Ten Charts. Slough’s Adam Greener, for one, stormed into top place over Nicky Watt of both Penalty Takers Charts following his weekend walk which cost him half an hour and a suspension and also made him the first player to enter treble figures. Adding a bit of variety too, Tigers Andy McKinney entered as the first Telford player.
 
The Manchester trio of Tony Hand, Curtis Huppe and Marcus Kristoffersson still dominate the EPL Points Chart, but in the Brit Chart the Flames rule with five places although Telford have a place with Scott McKenzie and the with Lightning’s Adam Brittle.
 
In the EPL Goal Scorers Top Ten Chart, the only Brit is now Lightning’s Gary Clarke with Ollie Bronnimann of the Bison having dropped out but staying at number two in the Brit Chart which also now includes McKenzie and Phoenix’s James Archer.
 
EPL Assists Chart is as always headed by Tony Hand but Bison’s Steve Moria and Lightning’s Monir Kalgoum both make first appearances. In the Brit Assists Chart the Flames are strongest with four places although Matt Towe has crept above Paul Dixon.
 
Dixon has also been deposed at the top of the EPL D-men Chart by Bison’s Viktor Kubenko in a three-way arrangement with the Phoenix and Flames, although with another Tigers’ entry, Tom Watkins. In the British Chart James Hutchinson of the Phantoms and Lightning’s Leigh Jamieson add some variety.
 
In the Netminders’ Top Ten Chart, the Flames Miro Hala has gone to the top replacing Lightning’s Alex Mettam but after a disastrous weekend for the Wildcats James Hadfield has disappeared with Phoenix’s Adam Summerfield to be replaced by Tom Annetts and the return of Ben Bowns.
   
Understandably the big talking point following the weekend was what happened at Guildford where the Flames went down to the Tigers after an unlucky loss at home the night before. Home coach Paul Dixon, in acknowledging the Telford side’s cohesion and determination said, ‘We failed in our intensity and our execution to match what they were giving us, and the result reflected that.’ But, tremendous result that it was for the Tigers we mustn’t forget the Flames did go home with three from four points so not a disaster by any means even if it was a lack-lustre performance.
 
Tigers’ coach Tom Watkins was rightly over the moon or as my old grand-pappy used to say, ‘Every time he opened his eyes he had a face full of sunshine and not thunder clouds. ’We are all chuffed with the result – getting two points at Guildford,’ he enthused. Adding, probably quite rightly, ‘There are not many teams will do that this year.’
 
However, the weekend ended with the Flames and Phoenix on equal points at the top of the Table and Manchester’s coach Tony Hand declaring his team were, ‘back on track.’ He added: ‘We picked up four points and thirteen goals, and that’s all you can ask for. Guildford losing was a bonus.’   But it isn’t much of a bonus if the reports that top scoring Marcus Kristoffersson is to be poached by the Elite League. Kristoffersson is a real find and a feather in the cap for Hand who it goes without saying knows how to pick ‘em. The Swede came from virtual obscurity playing in a go-nowhere situation to the top of the EPL in the space of a couple of months. Kristoffersson himself has been pleased to acknowledge this luck and good fortune and who can blame him if he were to accept an offer to improve his lot? But his circumstances does highlight one of the problems with British ice hockey in that the Phoenix who have gone to the trouble and effort to sign him presumably because not only did they expect him to tot up the points but because they must have felt he had something to pass on to other players. Now, isn’t that partly what the EPL is supposed to be about?
 
We heard last season how Jaroslav Cesky and Michal Pinc said they wanted to stay with the Bees even if it meant a reduction in wages, and while I am not suggesting any player should feel a similar obligation it will be interesting to see what happens at Manchester because Coach Hand has revealed several players have already expressed a wish to return to the club next season, and we are not even half way through this one. Hand, understandably cautious said, ‘I would like to think the best will be back.’ What else can he say, really?
 
While the Tigers clearly seem to have improved, Bees coach Gareth Cox felt the Bracknell side had too, deserving of a point from the weekend’s endeavours having particularly giving the Jets a run for their money. Cox said he believed the Bees’ weak spot came down to power-plays both in converting them to goals and killing them off.
 
Not so lucky were the Steeldogs who had worked hard to secure the signature of Andre Payette, and even succeeded in getting him to the rink on time only to be thwarted by bureaucracy. Apparently the ITC registration or import license or was it the international hockey registration, or maybe it was his authenticated certificate of inside leg measurement that was up to snuff so he had to watch the game from the stands like a regular fan. But, that wasn’t the end of the Steeldogs’ frustration because late in the week it was announced a prior family commitment had further delayed Payette’s debut.
 
Then came some worrying news from the Phantoms. Owner Phil Wing released a statement declaring, ‘Last week was our worst crowd for five years. If things don’t pick up we will have to look to cutting our biggest asset, which is the playing staff.’ Can’t make it clearer than that, can you? But, presumably the coffers haven’t quite run dry because a few days later came the news that Canadian Chris Allen, who was dropped from the Tigers’ roster in October in a bid to save money, had been signed up. D-man Allen has been brought in as a temporary replacement for the injured Darius Lelenas so looking like later he will be subjected to a second financial scything in one season.
 
Injuries featured strongly this week with news from several other teams, perhaps the most concerning being the news from the Bison camp that D-man Sam Oakford had aggravated a shoulder injury after having only returned to the ice last weekend.
 
The weekend saw a couple of the final crucial games towards the EPL Cup semi-finals. Bison coach Steve Moria said, ‘It won’t be easy,’ against the Steeldogs, and when things started it looked as though he was right, but subsequently the Bison tore away to inflict a staggering sixty-five shots on Sheffield’s Ben Bowns, who deserves a medal for stamina if nothing else, and a place in the semi finals against the Flames.  
 
While the Bison achieved their first milestone of the season Coach Russell at the Jets said their impending game against the Phoenix would be the biggest game of their season so far. And what a game it was. The Manchester side have so far beaten the Jets with a shut-out at home and fairly comfortably although well fought game in Slough, but this time, although you can’t complain about lack of action, it went to penalties with the Jets coming out on top.
 
In a sense, it is also true the Wildcats game at Milton Keynes was their biggest of the season because they are in danger now of sliding into the red zone in the table and putting daylight between themselves and an emerging Tigers. GM Steve Nell confirmed Saturday morning that new signing James Knight had flown in from Toronto, and they even laid on ten-foot snow drifts to help ease him back into British weather, declaring the ex-Jets player was , ‘a massive boost for us.’ But, jetlag or no, at Milton Keynes on Saturday Knight grabbed a point and the Wildcats held their own for most of the game, but two quick late goals fifteen minutes from time by captain Adam Carr when all was equal sealed it for the Lightning.
 
The Bees, who must have had high expectations against the Tigers after last week’s improved performances, didn’t disappoint in that the floodgates were held   firmly closed at the back, although let’s not forget they have conceded only a single goal against the likes of the Phantoms and Jets. But as it turned out the Tigers continued in their new-found form as well and it took two late combination goals from Dangerous Brothers Cesky and Pinc to force the overtime and then penalties. The Tigers probably feel gutted for coming away with only a point but a few weeks ago ‘only’ a point would have sent them into orbit. For the Bees, their thirteen game losing streak was over.
 
So that just left the Flames who in beating the Phantoms at home without too much trouble after another iffy start which saw the Phantoms go two up firstly thanks to new-signing Chris Allen, returned to the top of the table by a point and with a game in hand.
 
Sunday saw the Flames in Swindon and although scoring first they then fell foul to two Wildcats’ goals. And had the Wildcats not missed a penalty they might not have gone down 3-2 and claimed a point instead. But with three players missing, including top scorer Jozef Liska, it is always going to be like running uphill with cement in your wellies against the top team, even if you put in good performance, which the Wildcats did.  
 
The Phantoms hosted the Lightning on Sunday and as you might have expected it was a hard-fought affair with Jeff Glower converting his own rebound to open the scoring and Chris Allen adding one on his home debut. Early in the third the Lightning were back in it but when Leigh Jamieson was given the boot both by the ref and victim Tom Jeffery for a cross-check to the head the Phantoms had it sewn up.
 
The Bees went to Manchester and held up quite admirably for almost a period. In the second Ladislav Harabin and Curtis Huppe made it 3-0 and by then it was really all over with three more unanswered goals in the third. Three points from a possible four from the weekend meant the Phoenix are a point behind the Flames in the table, who also have a game in hand.
 
Meanwhile, Basingstoke charged on to another four-point weekend with a win over the Tigers who actually managed to draw level at 1-1 in the second thanks to Tom Watkins only to see the rampaging Bison pull away. A late pair of goals from Ashley Calvert and Daniel Mackriel while well deserved, wasn’t enough to give the Bison a fourteen-goal two days and a move up the table to third.
 
It’s a funny old game. There you are one day heading towards the top of the table having wrested a point from the Phoenix with some very composed penalty shots, and the next tripping over the struggling Steeldogs despite being in the lead by a goal going into the first break. But then, I guess that’s one reason we love the game because even the best aren’t safe.   
 
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Contact the author Bill.Coollins@Prohockeynews.com