Aucoin Gets Assist in NHL Debut
January 24, 2006
Keith Aucoin had a great debut with the Hurricanes last night, registering an assist on an Erik Cole goal in a 7-3 drubbing of the Habs. He had one shot for the night with over 12 minutes of ice time. It was great seeing him on the ice and he wasn’t afraid to go in the corners or park it in front of the crease.
There’s no word on how long his stay in the NHL will last, but with games on Wednesday and Thursday I expect the Hurricanes to hang on to him at least until the weekend.
I also made another discovery while digging for coverage of the game. I knew Aucoin was playing for his home state with Lowell, but didn’t realize he was playing only 5 minutes from his home town! Hopefully some of his family and friends were able to fly out for his first game last night. Here’s some hometown coverage of his callup.
If you’re wondering why I’m giving so much coverage to Aucoin, it is because he was one of my favorite BC Icemen players and I’d rate him as one of the top three offensive players I’ve seen on a Binghamton roster during my 9 seasons as a season ticket holder. I have to put Spezza #1, but Aucoin and Hamel would be a tough choice for second. Hamel has the speed, but Aucoin can make unbelievable moves with the puck and to be a top 5 AHL scorer at his size speaks volumes of his skill and hard work.
Weekly Crosscheck, Vol. 1, #8
January 23, 2006
Well… what do you know? I found a few minutes to write a Weekly Crosscheck. So Flame On!
I have two reasons for writing this week.
1. To raz the Phlamers for falling 9-1 to the Sublimators:
The league leading Philly Phlamers finally lost one, and lost BIG to the Sublimators. The Sublimators proved this week that they are more than just great goaltending. A couple of short handed goals would have swept the Phlamers who are in serious injury trouble. (Why couldn’t that happen when they were playing the Icebats???) If the Phlamers don’t start swapping out some players, their troubles will only be just beginning.
2. To congratulate the Monks on a brilliant goaltending strategy:
I thought last Saturday night that the Monks were doomed this week when Ed Belfour proved for the third straight time that he can’t stop any puck that just left a Senator stick. Yikes! But it turned out that the Monks had benched Belfour that night in favor of Lunqvist and Brodeur, who combined for two wins and a 1.85 GAA. Although the Monks lost to the Pucknuts, they swept the goaltender categories and coach Billy wins the Hockey Blog All Stars Coach of the Week award!
No records broken last week, but perhaps next week!
Week 17:
Monks vs. Icebats
This week Coach Billy will try to continue his brilliant strategies when The Monks take on The Icebats. The Bats need to figure out a way to shut down Alfredsson, Prucha, and Nylander. I give this week to the Monks, although the Bats have been putting together a better game lately. When is McCabe coming back, or is he just resting up for the Olympics????
Pucknuts vs. Sublimators
This is a match up between two of the hottest teams. The #2 Pucknuts take on the #3 Sublimators who are only 3 points back. The Pucknuts dropped Aebishcher and picked up Thomas. You really think that’s a great idea John? Thomas vs Washington… twice? Not gonna work. I give this series to the Sublimators.
Moonshimers vs. Phlamers
You know the Moonshimers have been struggling, and swapping players by the dozen, but this is their week to shine. Looks like a good healthy line-up. I give goalie stats to the Phlamers, but that’s it. Seven points for the Moonshimers, and a close battle between them and the Monks for the last play-off spot.
Oochamkunutk vs. Badabings
Ooch has been sinking steadily as coach Kathleen has been finding less and less time to go over her player lineups. Still that’s better than the Badabings who haven’t changed their line-up since before goalies wore masks. A good chance for Ooch to keep the Ice Bats farther behind this week.
Tune in next week when you will hear the Coach Dave ask “How the *&^@# did I lose to the Moonshimers”?
That is all.
Keith Aucoin Gets THE CALL!!!
January 22, 2006
Winnipeg Johnny just sent me some fantastic news. Former BC Icemen Keith Aucoin was just called up to the Carolina Hurricanes! The dimunitive center was once told he’d never make it in pro hockey, but he has been proving them wrong for years. With the new rules I’d hoped he’d finally get his shot in the NHL and it looks like he will tomorrow night against Montreal!
Dieter Kochan back in AHL
January 19, 2006
I was just checking up on some of my favorite Binghamton alumni and discovered that Dieter Kochan returned to the US and is playing with the Portland Pirates in the AHL. Sounds like he’s picking up where he left off and has already earned Portland Player of the Week honors. Anyone who saw Kochan playing for the Icemen will find this game report familiar:
Hartford was in complete control the third period of play, but Dieter Kochan was simply amazing as he stood on his head multiple times keeping the Pirates in the game.
…
Dieter Kochan faced a season-high 56 shots but also made a season-high 53 saves for the victory.
He’s a great goalie and I’d love to see him get another shot in the NHL. With the way many established goalies have been playing he might just get that chance.
Pecker in the News
January 19, 2006
There’s a good article in the paper today about Corey Pecker. Michael Sharp, the PSB’s new B-Sens reporter does a nice job covering Pecker’s role in getting the Sens season back on track as well as reporting on his attitudes and work ethic after recovering from surgery for Crohn’s disease when he was in juniors.
I’ve written before about how I take my little guys down to get high fives from the players before and after periods. Every time we’ve gone to the B-Sens entrance to see the players come off the ice after warmups, Pecker gives some lucky kid a puck and then makes sure he gives everyone a high five and even signs a couple autographs. He and Steve Martins really stand out as two guys who appreciate every day they are able to lace up the skates and their enthusiasm seems contagious on the ice and off. The recent success of this team is not only a reflection of the goals these guys are scoring, but the attitudes they bring to the team.
Pens Make a Smart Move
January 19, 2006
Wow, I guess it was bound to happen, but the Penguins finally did something SMART. They traded a draft pick to acquire Eric Cairns from the Panthers. Cairns will give the Pens a much needed enforcer to protect Sid the Kid. Now they just need to dump some dead weight on waivers and call up the hot farm hands from Wilksebarre and they’ll have a decent team.
Go Team Grapes
January 18, 2006
Tonight’s the night for the CHL “Top Prospects Game”. These guys are the best of the best draftable Canadian juniors. This year it will feature a team picked and coached by Bobby Orr (with coaching assistance from Ottawa Senator’s Jason Spezza) against (as always) a team picked and coached by Don Cherry. Can Orr and Spezza put together a game that can beat Team Cherry? Who cares! We all just want to see who Grapes picked. Although every player in the game will have a new gold star on their resume, it’s always the ones on Team Cherry who have the bragging rights. Wonder why that is, eh? {Note: Jason Spezza was the captain of Team Cherry in 2001.}
New Year, Same Fleury
January 17, 2006
Theo Fleury is up to his old tricks, this time playing over in the British Elite league for the Belfast Giants (Fleury playing for the Giants? hahahaha). The AP report is that some fans heckled Fleury while he was serving a 2 minute penalty during a game in Coventry. Fleury got an earful and decided to try climbing the plexiglass to have a more intimate discussion with the fans.
And now the rest of the story…
According to off ice officials, the hecklers weren’t yelling anything out of the ordinary and what appeared to set Fleury off was a fan waving an inflatable donkey and carrot at him. He was not ejected after his tirade, but called for a taxi after the end of the second period.
Unfortunately an escalation of outrageous behavior is nothing new to Fleury. I saw him do it with the Rangers. During the middle of a comeback season he began getting more and more aggressive. At first the fans loved it, but eventually he was getting kicked out of game after game and the behavior had a negative impact on the team. Seems like Fleury is in the middle of the same downward spiral and I would be surprised if he finishes the season with the Giants.
Movin On Up
January 13, 2006
Less than two weeks after I wrote about the mismanagement of the Islanders, Mike Milbury fired head coach Steve Sterling before announcing that he was stepping down as GM. The kicker is that Milbury isn’t leaving the team, but actually getting a promotion.
Milbury will leave the hockey operations side, and will move into a role as a vice president in charge of Wang’s sports properties.
He will now be VP of the Islanders and their AHL affiliate, the Bridgeport Soundtigers. This should make him the boss of the newGM and I’m sure he’ll play a role in the selection of his successor. I can’t help but think that Neil Smith will be a candidate. And if the next GM screws up, will Milbury go after him with a shoe?
And Don’t Let the Door Hit You in the Ass
January 10, 2006
Wow, has anyone ever heard of a team’s captain being placed on waivers before? That’s exactly what the Tampa Bay Lightning did to Dave Andreychuk. Win us the Stanley Cup one season, booted off the team the next.
The Lightning GM was at least honest about their reasoning for the move: “After giving ourselves half a season to evaluate and analyze, it became clear to us that David’s game was not suited to the new NHL.”
Here’s the kicker. If Andreychuck reports to the minors he will not make his NHL salary and Tampa has no plans to bring him back to the NHL. If he retires he forfeits his salary for the next two seasons. So he is stuck in limbo, earning his NHL and hoping another NHL team picks him up for the playoffs. I predict he’ll wait out this season and try to find a new team and then retire in the summer.
Still no word from Andreychuk on the matter.
