NEWCASTLE, UK – Newcastle Vipers take on the Edinburgh Capitals and Belfast Giants this weekend with a much depleted roster to select from. In the past few weeks Vipers have lost captain David Longstafff to injury while both Mark Rooneem and Tyler Kindle have left the club after failing to impress during their time on Tyneside.
This has left Coach Rob Wilson with few players to select from at a crucial time of the season. In defence Newcastle have been rotating their 3 import defenceman in the past few games as Vipers have no experienced British blue liner that they can call upon. The lack of depth in Vipers squad makes the decision to let d man Ritchie Thornton join Whitley Bay Warriors ‘on loan’ a rather puzzling one. Thornton has shown in the past that he is capable of playing in the Elite League as he has logged ice time for Hull, Newcastle and Basingstoke at the British games’ highest level.
However it is not only at the back where Newcastle have few options open to them as it appears Vipers could be struggling to ice 2 forward lines this weekend unless the club give the youngsters on their books some regular ice time. Coach Wilson has been reluctant to give his inexperienced players much ice time of late however given that the club only have 4 import forwards (Berry, Tejchma, Petricko and Krajl) at this moment in time players such as Dean Holland, Nathan Salem and Jamie Tinsley could get a lot more shifts over the next few games.
Local lad Ben Campbell has been able to establish himself on the Vipers 2nd offensive line this season. Campbell is one of the quickest players in the league and his all round game has come onto such an extent that he is regularly used on the side’s specialist teams. Campbell has not been at 100% in recent weeks after suffering a couple of knocks in games however it is hoped that the forward suffers no more injury setbacks as the last thing Newcastle need is to be without another member of their roster. If Vipers were to suffer any more injuries to key personnel Coach Wilson could be forced to come out of retirement as Newcastle are so light on numbers.
Even though Vipers have recently lost the services of 2 imports it does not appear that the club will be signing a replacement for either Kindle or Rooneem in the near future. It has been well publicised that Newcastle are not in the best economic position at this moment in time and while the on ice product would certainly benefit from a new signing it makes sense for the Vipers organisation as a whole to be extremely cautious on the recruitment of a new import when finances are so tight.
Contact the author Chris.Mackenzie@Prohockeynews.com
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