OXFORD, UK – Oxford City Stars Coach Ken Forshee has started 2011 by making some bold changes to his playing squad today.
Arguably Oxford’s best player so far this season, Swedish goalie Robin Lindva found himself on a plane to Stockholm, with Swindon ENL Wildcats goalie Jamie Thompson making the switch to replace him.
“Making the decision to make a change and release Robin was a very, very tough decision” admitted Forshee, who had originally signed the Swede on a recommendation from former Swindon forward Mikael Juhlin.
Lindva departs (Tim Bowers)
“Robin is a very good goalie and an even better person. But at the end of the day I have to do what I think will work better for the team. The team has not responded to playing with an import goalie. We have not been good this year. We have been regressing instead of progressing the past eight weeks and I didn’t feel we were heading in the right direction”
“This goes against a lot of my beliefs as I have been in hockey in this country a long time now and all too often I see imports being made the scapegoat when things go wrong. But this is not the case in this situation. I needed to change the make up of this team and this was the only way we could do it”
“I hope these changes will make us better offensively but also make us a harder working team week in, week out. I wish Robin all the best and he certainly deserved better”
The regression Forshee highlights is an obvious one. From sitting pretty near the top of the table at the start of the season, the City Stars now lie comfortably in mid table due to an awful run of form. Five defeats in a row were typified by a lacklustre display by the team last weekend when they were beaten 5-2 on their own ice by the lower ranked Milton Keynes Thunder.
The incoming Thompson is no stranger to City Stars fans having played for the team previously between 2003 and 2006. ‘Juice’ as he is most commonly known has been with his hometown team in Swindon for the past few years and won a runners-up medal last year in ENL 2, but this season the team is struggling at the bottom of the league following promotion.
“Juice is a competitive guy and I think this change will do him good” explained Forshee. “It’s obvious that it’s been a frustrating season for him so far and the chance for him to compete for a play-off spot and then hopefully in the playoffs is something he is looking forward to”
The sentiment was echoed by Thompson, who was a popular character in his last spell with the club.
Thompson returns (flyfifer.co.uk)
“I am very much looking forward to going back to play at Oxford again” said the former GB Junior international stopper. “It was a hard choice to leave my team mates at Swindon, but I felt it was the right time to go the back to Oxpens Road”
“I have some good friends on the Oxford team like Darren Elliot who have made me feel right at home. I am now looking forward to helping my new team finish as high up the league as possible”
The main reason for the change is simple. By replacing Lindva with a UK trained player in Thompson, Oxford can now play games with two outfield ‘import’ skaters. The league rules stipulate that only one non-EIHA (English Ice Hockey Association) trained player can ice at any one time. This has meant that with Lindva on the ice at all times as the goalie, no other imports could play. With Lindva no longer with the team, this means that Forshee can sign a new import and also ice himself. The Canadian retired last season but is adamant that the change is not a case of him simply wanting to play again.
“This move was not about me itching to play again or anything like that” stated Forshee.
“Like I said all along I was quite happy just coaching. But at this time I think I can help us and with me being a free player this basically suits our organization. I am an unlimited ITC and live in Swindon so there are no usual import costs. Obviously I need to contribute a lot offensively but if I go out there and work my socks off hopefully the rest of the team will follow suit”
Forsh back on ice (Pete Magnusen)
The ideal time for the team to kick into gear is this weekend with a road game in Bristol on Saturday, quickly followed by a home game in Cardiff. Both games could go either way for the Stars however they may have one more surprise up their sleeve.
Forshee also admitted the club are hoping to ice a new import skater this weekend subject to clearance, so all eyes will be on the club website (www.oxfordstars.com) for confirmation of who the new guy will be.
Whatever is said about this move by Oxford, you cannot accuse Forshee of a lack of decisiveness. Lindva was a real fan favourite at Oxpens Road and some supporters will be undoubtedly be upset that he is leaving, however Forshee must do what he feels is best for Oxford City Stars. Key players are returning from injury and the City Stars will be a lot stronger going into the next few fixtures with the likes of Fiddes and Endicott returning, plus the new import.
Can Oxford arrest the slump and gain some form ahead of the play-offs? Only time will tell, however Lindva can look back on his time in the UK with his head held high. The Swede put in some top performances whilst over here and is a victim of circumstance. The ENL will miss him both as a player and also an interesting talking point. Could he be the last import goalie in the ENL? That is another question to be answered by the sands of time.
Contact the author david.carr@prohockeynews.com
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