Saturday 5 October 2013

Seattle Thunderbirds Dump Hurricanes 6-2

LETHBRIDGE - Four goals in the first period powered the visiting Seattle Thunderbirds to a 6-2 victory over the Lethbridge Hurricanes Saturday night.

Not a good start for Lethbridge in this game. Seattle jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a pair of goals in the first 10 minutes of the period. Roberts Lipsbergs opened the scoring for Seattle in this game to give the visitors a 1-0 lead and then just over a minute later  the T-Birds would strike again, this time a goal by Alexander Delnov. That made it 2-0 Seattle. Things didn't get much better for the Canes in the second half of the period. Seattle would score on the power play on a goal by Roberts Lipsbergs. That would make it 3-0 Seattle and that would be it for goaltender Corbin Boes would would be pulled after giving up 3 goals on just 10 shots. Chris Tai would come in relief, but the Thunderbirds would get to him too. Lipsbergs would score his second goal of the hockey game, also on a man advantage and that would put Seattle in control of this game, 4-0 after 20 minutes. The shots were 14-10 Thunderbirds.

In the second, the Canes would finally get on the scoreboard. After going 5 games to start the season without a goal, Jaimen Yakubowski scored his first of the season late in the period on a power play to cut the Seattle lead to 4-1 after two periods. The canes settled down nicely in this period and held Seattle off the scoresheet. The Shots were close, 19-18 T-Birds through two periods of play.

In the third, the Thunderbirds would get another goal. Michal Holub put teh puck by Chris Tai to give Seattle a 5-1 lead. Lethbridge would get one more back, when Russ Maxwell scored his 2nd of the season. That cut the lead to 5-2. The T-Birds would get one more before the final buzzer when Alexander Delnov notched his second of the night to seal the deal. Seattle would go on to win 6-2. The loss drops the Canes record to 1-4-1 on the season. The Canes 1/5 on the power play while The T-Birds went 2/6. The shots were close, 35-29 Seattle.

Hurricanes This Week

Fred and I are back on the radio Monday, October 7th with our next edition of Hurricanes This Week. Coming up on the program we will be joined by Assistant Coach Brad Lukowich for the first half of the show. We will also speak with Hurricanes Captain Josh Derko Monday evening. This will be our last show until October 28th. Next Monday (Thanksgiving Day) the Canes play an afternoon game on the road in Kamloops so there will be no Hurricanes This Week on October 14th and the following Monday, October 21st is the Alberta Civic Election Day, so because of CJOC's live coverage of the municipal vote, there will be no Hurricanes This Week on the 21st either, so after this Monday, Fred and I will be back with the next radio program in 3 weeks.

Next Up

The Hurricanes have a few more days before their next game action. The Canes will play host to the visiting Kootenay ICE on Wednesday (Oct. 9) at the ENMAX Centre. This will be the 2nd meeting of the young season between the two divisional teams. The ICE won the first meeting just over a week ago in Cranbrook in a shoot out. Game time is 7:00 pm MDT. The pre-game show on CJOC at 6:30. Immediately following that game, the Canes will load the bus and head out on an all-night trip to B.C. The club will be away for an entire week and will play back-to-back games in Victoria both next Friday and Saturday, before playing a Thanksgiving afternoon game in Kamloops and then a stop in Kelowna two days. After that, the Hurricanes will return home for nearly a whole month before their next scheduled road swing in mid-November.

Thanks,
Pat

16 comments:

  1. Big time respect for Drake to come on the post game show.
    Class and maturity and from Wong in his comments on both staffs.
    Time for everyone to move on and focus on the season at hand.
    Long Run

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  2. The team was pretty bad Saturday night, even after the first they were lethargic and soft, but I tend to reserve judgement until a quarter of the season has gone by. No doubt, an inexcusable effort from most of the team but they could get 5-6 wins the rest of the month as some comfort and consistency sets in.
    Offensively, too many players taking unnecessary risks (bad pinches by the d-men) and not enough lines getting the puck deep. Why do some of the vets refuse to dump the puck? The Wong line and, early on, the Estephan trio worked to get and keep the puck deep but after that they kept the puck high.
    All the team's best chances — except for the Maxwell goal and the Amson rush/penalty shot — came from low in the Seattle zone.
    Defensively, bad pinches and a lack of physical play.
    -- Dylan

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  3. Not trying to make excuses, but there seems to be a lingering hangover from the previous coaching staff and their lack of structure both on and off the ice. There are obviously players who have not bought into the systems trying to be installed by the new coaching staff. If some of the 94's are not on the same page and thus being a negative influence on the younger players, then it is high time that Robson and Berehowski decide who to move and what to bring back. I realize the Khenkle situation threw a monkey wrench into the scheme of things, but it would be no different that losing a player to a season long injury and therefore the need to make a deal.

    Dump 'n Chase

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    1. Shipping out our vets might be the answer or it could set us back. You are assuming that the players we receive are going to buy into Drakes system? I have a hard time believing that our kids are the only issue. I think that this is a learning process for both players and staff. I would hate to see the backlash should they trade fan favourites like Sam, Russ and Yak if it backfires.
      Long Run

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    2. you darn toot'n this prestons team, rich brought in the player he wanted to play his style of game..it unfair to blame drake for anything up to this point...as the canes start their road trips into bc and host the us teams at home im sure drake/robson will have their eyes open for potential players to fit their need for current systems...drake having gm experience in the past should make the bulk of that decision to fit what he needs on the ice......

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  4. Agree with Dump 'n Chase........they need a vet d-man who can clear the front of the net. Seattle stood in front of net without any push from Canes small defence. And yes, they also need their 19 -20 year olds to step up and do what is being asked of them.

    Empty Net

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  5. Agree with Dump and Chase and empty net.. Since Johnston went down last January defensively Canes have been brutal. Need a D man who can take care of their zone and not give the puck away.
    LthHnd

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  6. Why are we always ragging on the vets. We have a 16yr old center with 5 games under his belt on the second line and on the pp. Really? He will be good but not in his first year. Our captain is playing with guys that can't even count the number of games they have in the WHL on one hand. Our vet line needs someone that is strong enough to go in the corner and actually win a battle.Our third line has a center with 5 games under his belt. And the defense are our best backcheckers. Set up the lines for success not to get everyone ice time. Just my two cents.

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    1. Funny. I remember last year some of us were complaining that our young guys (Like Duke) weren't getting enough time on the powerplay and not playing on high enough lines. Not saying that you specifically were on of the complainers last year, but just making a note of some of the more regular posters (myself included) on here.
      Jay

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  7. Long Run some of our older vets are not doing the job. Shipping them to another team maybe beneficial to both the team and the player. Fan favourite or not at this level it is not a popularity contest and our fans have to make a decision do they want a winning team or a team of fan favourites that continue to lose! Under the previous regime some players received undeserved ice time and first line playing time when all they did was take undisciplined penalties that hurt the team.

    Dump n Chase is right. A shake up is needed and quickly if we are to reach the goal of a playoff team. Looking forward to some moves.

    An Observer

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  8. Here are some quick stats we have 8 players 5 foot 10 and under Seattle had one in Calgary only has 3. I would love to see this t make some trades but I don't know which team would want any of our 19 or 20 year old players. This team look like they were very scared in the first. Because of the obvious size difference. The only way this team can win is out hustle no grit no guts no glory. One more stat Merkley 3 goals and 4 assists in 7 games

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  9. What make everyone so confident that this staffs system is the right one and has no flaws? Does everyone forget that Brad R was part of the past regime and had a say in the drafting/scouting of this current roster. What are the stats of the current staffs coaching resume (how many years coaching, win/loss record, players developed). I hope Drake becomes the next Don Hays, I want to see this city win a memorial cup and don’t care what players are on this team for him to do it. I am saying that one preseason and six regular season games is early to turn over your roster. It takes time and learning for both players and staff.
    Long Run

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  10. The 16-17 year olds are out playing the vets and deserve the playing time. As I said before most of the vets on this team would note be good enough to play on the the top 3 lines on most teams. The last canes bantam draft pick to be an nhl draft pick was Carter Ashton. Bantam draft of 2006. Team needs to take along look at the team scouting. Kaos

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  11. We have to agree with Long Run. Why do we assume that because we aren't winning that some players are not buying into or playing Drake's systems? I stand behind the rebuild of this team but we must remember that aside from the very limited time that Berehowsky has spent behind the bench, our new coaching staff has virtually zero coaching experience. I do believe that they could be a winning combination and stand behind them but maybe it is also the systems that are flawed and need to be reconsidered and not necessarily the players all the time.

    Size is an absolute issue with this team but issues that these new systems should take that into account. The coaching staff and GM knew going into camp what they had for stature on their roster and should be devising plans to counteract that to the best of the teams ability. That is just one of the systems they should be working on.

    There is no question that some of the vets (as well as some of the rookies) don't seem to be pulling the same weight they have in seasons past. Let us just remember that any fault for a slower than anticipated start surely cannot rest entirely on the shoulders of the players. When the team talks of accountability, that must include ALL involved in the hockey operations.

    The season is young. Go Canes!

    -cc

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    1. cc........It's not hard to read between the coach's words when he has stated in interviews that those players that practice hard and do the things he is asking them to do will get the ice time. Using his words, it's not hard to figure out that it's the older players who aren't practicing hard enough or doing the things he's asking the team to do. Players like Wong, Larencelle and Watson have obviously figured it out. Time for the older players to get it. I'm willing to give them another 6 games. However, I'm not sure how long the coaches are willing to give them.

      What's wrong with Derko??? He isn't skating like he can.

      Empty Net

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    2. Empty Net: I don't disagree with you at all that it is likely some of the players aren't putting in the effort that they should/could be in practices. What I am saying is that it is unfair of us as fans to put all the fault for the slow start on the players when we are dealing with a virtual rookie coaching staff. I think fingers have to be pointed at everyone in hockey operations from Mr. Robson on down to the newest rookie. It is time they started finding the best line combinations and letting those lines start to gel together instead of changing them every game.

      I am willing to give them a lot more time as well to sort this out. What I do expect is that instead of saying that the players need to be held accountable, EVERYONE needs to take responsibility and find a way to make this work.

      -cc

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