ST. JOHN’S, Newfoundland and Labrador – The St. John’s IceCaps checked another item off their list of accomplishments for the 2011-12 season when they clinched the AHL’s Atlantic Division title on Saturday, March 31.
The IceCaps 3-2 win over the Hershey Bears that night guaranteed them Atlantic Division bragging rights and a top-three Eastern Conference seed for the AHL playoffs. The team’s players, coaches and staff were understandably excited after the win in Hershey, celebrating another milestone in what has been a very successful first season in St. John’s.
“To win the division and to get ourselves in the playoffs is a credit to the players here,” IceCaps head coach Keith McCambridge said in a release issued by the team. “They’re a real great group to coach. They come to work every day, whether it’s practice or in games, they give you everything they have. They should be proud of themselves.”
The IceCaps currently sit second in the Eastern Conference with 88 points, trailing only the Norfolk Admirals, who lead the AHL with 101 points.
Rookie goalie earns first win
Another bright spot for the IceCaps in the win over Hershey was the play of rookie goalie Chris Carrozzi. The 22-year old made 24 saves in his first AHL start of the season, earning his first career AHL win in the process.
Carrozzi has spent the majority of the 11-12 campaign with the Ontario Reign of the ECHL, where he accumulated an impressive 2.27 goals-against-average and .922 save percentage in 29 games. He recently joined the IceCaps after starting goalie Edward Pasquale suffered an upper-body injury.
“I thought Carrozzi had a real good game,” McCambridge said in a release issued by the IceCaps following the win in Hershey. “I liked what I saw of his game back there. I felt very comfortable (with him in goal).”
Carrozzi appeared in one AHL contest last season, taking the loss in a start for the Chicago Wolves. He was a sixth round pick of the Atlanta Thrashers/Winnipeg Jets franchise in the 2008 NHL entry draft.
Cormier continues comeback
For much of the first half of the current AHL season, fans in St. John’s were
Patrice Cormier – Photo by Jeff Crull
The hulking center is a former captain of Canada’s national junior team and was considered one of the Jets top prospects heading into the 11-12 campaign. But after failing to crack the Jets’ lineup out of training camp, Cormier seemed to go into an on-ice funk. He was not much of a factor offensively early in the season and frequently appeared lethargic and listless for long stretches of time.
But since the Christmas break, Cormier has won over the St. John’s fans with an improved effort and better offensive production. He was especially effective in the month of March, when he posted seven goals, six assists and 13 points in 15 games.
With a number of the IceCaps top offensive performers currently injured or on call-up to the Jets, Cormier couldn’t pick a better time to get hot.
“He’s reliable,” McCambridge told Tim Leone of The Patriot-News. “He takes key faceoffs for us. He doesn’t get himself out of position too much on the ice. He’s physical. He’s a big body guy.”
Cormier has 17 goals, 14 assists and 31 points in 54 games with the IceCaps this season. In six games with the Jets earlier this year, he was held pointless.
Injury bug bites hard
Between injuries and call-ups to the parent team in Winnipeg, the IceCaps are without several of their top players. In several recent games, McCambridge has had to dress seven defensemen and only 11 forwards simply because those were all the healthy players he had at his disposal.
Key players lost to injury of late include captain Jason Jaffray, Jason King, Paul Postma, Marco Rosa, Max Macenauer, Eric O’Dell, Brock Trotter, Brett Festerling, Derek Meech and Edward Pasquale.
Jason Jaffray – Photo by Jeff Crull
Spencer Machacek and Ben Maxwell were recently recalled to Winnipeg, although Maxwell was returned to St. John’s after only a few games with the Jets.
College players getting a look
Due to the shortage of healthy bodies, the IceCaps have added a number of players via call-ups from the ECHL and amateur tryout offers.
This has opened the door for a couple of graduating NCAA players to get some late-season games in with St. John’s. Included in this group are defenseman Will O’Neill and forward Scott Zurevinski.
O’Neill registered three goals and 30 assists in 40 games with the University of Maine this season, wrapping up a four year NCAA career. In three games with St. John’s O’Neill has not registered any points. He was a seventh round pick of the Atlanta Thrashers/Winnipeg Jets franchise in 2006.
Zurevinski suited up for 39 games with Quinnipiac University this year, picking up five goals and 14 assists. The six-foot-two, 215-pound power forward has played six games with the IceCaps, primarily in a checking role.
Both O’Neill and Zurevinski each served as captain of their college team this season.
Contact the writer at Darcy.MacRae@prohockeynews.com
Contact the photographer at Jeff.Cull@prohockeynews.com
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