PEORIA, Ill – After a long winter, Spring has finally arrived in Peoria. The temperature is rising and the days are longer…but the heat is still on the Peoria Rivermen. While the front office is seeing some bright spots, the coach and the team are feeling the heat.
Losses Mount
The honeymoon for Rick Wamsley is obviously over. As the losses mount, so do calls for his ouster. Before his arrival, the Rivermen seemed to be jockeying for possible home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs, flirting with second place in the division at times. Since then, the team has fallen off the pace – even visiting the division cellar on brief occasions. As individuals, the players seem to put forth a good effort, but they have failed to play well as a team.
There has also been an uptick of too-many-men penalties. These could be forgiven if they weren’t coupled with too few men on the ice – one during overtime that certainly cost them a point. Confusion like that on the bench is not a good sign. And while these technical matters seem neglected, the team consistently challenges the spelling on line-up cards of the opposing teams.
While Wamsley may be winning those line-up card challenges, his team hasn’t been winning games.The line-up card trick isn’t winning him any friends, either. The late Yankee manager Billy Martin knew that the occasional use of an obscure rule could tactfully turn a game but that overuse can cause it to be seen as a cheap stunt.
The Rivermen have had a few nice wins in front of some big home crowds of late. but if they don’t return to the playoffs this spring, Wamsley is unlikely to return with the team in the fall.
Minor Trades
The recent NHL trade deadline has left Rivermen fans reeling. Sure, Yan Stastny had plenty of fans, but the trade that brought Pierrie-Cedric Labrie seemed to be a fresh start for both players.
The trade that baffled fans in Peoria and St. Louis was the one that sent Aaron Palushaj to Montreal. The Blues are an average team that over-achieved its way into the playoffs in 2009 and hope to do so, again, in 2010. Matt D’Agostini might help the Blues squeak into the playoffs this season, but don’t be surprised to see Palushaj do the same for the Habs for many years to come.
Look to the Future
There is hope, though. After the trades were completed, the Rivermen won their next two games. Blues property, Alex Pietrangelo, was named the NHL’s top prospect by The Hockey News. As his OHL season winds down, he stands a good chance of spending some time in a Rivermen seater this fall. And, while the Blues have dealt several minor league players recently, the Blues still have some highly-touted prospects in the minors and Juniors. Many of those will filter through Peoria in the next few years.
The Office
There has been some recent turnover in the front office, and while it is sad to see people leave, new blood and a fresh set of eyes is often good for the creative process. The Rivs look to be aggressive this off-season, marketing tickets to fans as well as selling themselves to local businesses. There seems to be renewed enthusiasm and a young, energetic staff is focused on getting more fans into Carver Arena.
In the Stands
The team was pretty successful at doing that on a recent Saturday night. over 10,100 showed up for the game on March sixth. It cost the team about 20,000 hot dogs, but judging by smiles on faces (and concession trays full of other items) the promotion paid off handsomely. A couple of these nights a year, in conjunction with the successful Sunday Family Nights keep drawing new fans to the games.
Another promotion expected to play well in Peoria is the post-game concert. Bret Michaels, lead singer for the 80’s “hair” band ‘Poison’ is set to play after the final game of the regular season. This promotion seems more geared to the 40-something crowd. This promises to be a big night. Another promotion to woo new business partners is also in the works, so a few more very large crowds are likely.
Old Timers
While is seems strange to call a bunch of guys in their early-to-mid thirties “Old Timers”, it has been almost a decade since the ECHL version of the Peoria Rivermen won the Kelly Cup. Many members of that team gathered recently to play a couple of charity games to benefit the youth hockey programs in the Peoria/Pekin area. The game in Peoria this past weekend was against the Peoria Fire Fighters Hockey team. The game was notable for its (lack of) speed and the Rivermen Legends trading Kelly Cup goalie Duane “Duke” Dirksen to the Fire Fighters midway through the first period. Despite the fact that Dirksen is probably at least as well know among fans for his participation in a late-season line brawl that year as he is for backstopping the team to the championship, there were no fights.
Contact the author: Shaun.Bill@ProHockeyNews.com
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