GUILFORD, UK – First news of the month came as a batch of releases were announced with Tom Duggan (GBR)(F), Dean Skinns (GBR)(NM), Adrian SAUL (CAN)(F) and Lubomir Huraj (SVK)(F) all biting the dust. Duggan, however, a former Flames junior and Bees player was snapped up by the Phoenix, but Skinns lost out to an experimental ‘job sharing’ scheme, and at the end of the month news on these other three is absent.
Days later, in what some see as a questionable signing, top Slovakian national netminder Miroslav Hala was added to the books. Hala is no slouch, mind you, and has consistently averaged in excess of 90%, with a peak of a staggering 94% and a record ten shutouts in his homeland, and even has the distinction of holding the record for the second longest number of goalless minutes in pro-hockey, so the question mark is more to do with him being an import and how that affects line juggling.
The Wildcats tried it a couple of seasons ago with Czech Ladislav Kudrna who proved to be a game-saver on more than one occasion and was popular with the fans picking up ten man-of-the-match awards as well as 24 pims, but the experiment only lasted a season. But Hala has Elite League experience and there seems little point bringing him in unless he is going to be the starting netminder, which makes you wonder about Mark Lee who also clocked up 90-per-cent plus last season with the Flames and ended third in the EPL netminders’ chart. Although word has it Lee will be re-signing, it does raise the question how exactly he will fit in and what he would have to do to get the number one spot.
So clearly a situation to watch.
While on the subject of who may or may not re-sign the names of Lukas Smital and Nathan Rempel were being banded about. Czech forward Smital finished last year with 73 points, a smidgeon less than top scorer Martin Masa, while Canadian forward Rempel was about two-smidgeons further down the chart but still with a respectable point-plus per game average.
One player who definitely won’t be re-signing is US-born British blue-liner Rick Skene who returned to the Bison after icing with them back in 2004/05 when they were in the Elite League, although since having been with the Flames for five campaigns.
Also, with Elite League experience is British forward Matt Towe, recently on the Cardiff Devils roster and now signed with the Flames. Somewhat unusually Towe, although being selected for international duty for five seasons, has the claim to fame of playing in both a GB senior and junior side in the same year, 2006. And while on the subject of EIHL, a rumour surfaced which named Ben Campbell, recently of Newcastle Vipers until the player exodus early in the month, as a possible incoming Flame British D-man, but nothing concrete, or even just firmly sludgy, had happened by the end of the month.
A D-man who did re-sign, though, was Jez Lundin, ex-GB junior international who ended the season as top scoring defenceman with almost a point a game, a figure anyone would be comfortable with and which gave him a top ten spot for those who usually populate the blue line.
The month of May ended with another piece of gossip which was confirmed by Lightning’s coach Nick Poole at their Supporters Club AGM. What, the fans wanted to know, was happening about Flames forward Gary Clarke? Was he joining the Milton Keynes team, or what? Poole confirmed he had been talking to the former Lightning player, but added so had other clubs, so another case of wait and see.
And wait and see, we will.
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Contact Bill.Collins@prohockeynews.com
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