Changes a Foot For British Ice Hockey

Following on from the news that 4 time Elite League winners Coventry have hit into money trouble their head coach Paul Thompson has now stepped down from his role as the Great Britain team head coach.

Thompson had taken charge of the national programme in 2007 and under his stewardship the national team rose up the IIHF ranking. The greatest achievement was probably the victory over the Ukraine in the 2011 World Championships when his side beat the home team live on Ukrainian television on their way to narrowly missing out on promotion to the full World Championship group.

Thompson added in a statement that he was leaving the post to concentrate on the crises at the Blaze and leaves Ice Hockey UK with a massive task of finding his replacement before the build up to the 2012 World Championships.

A successor however will be had to come by, as currently Thompson is the only British although Corey Nielsen of the Nottingham Panthers could be a frontrunner for the role. Nielsen although born in Canada did represent the Great Britain team in the last World Championships and his side currently sits second in the Elite League.

Another name could be Rob Wilson who has served as Paul Thompson’s assistant and has coached in the Elite League with Newcastle and is well known in the UK with fans and players. However Wilson is currently in charge of Italian side Neumarkt Egna that will make him an unlikely candidate.

Tony Hand’s name could also be on a shortlist. Hand has also been an assistant under Paul Thompson and has coached in the Elite League with Belfast, Edinburgh and Manchester. Like Wilson, Hand is extremely well known within the game and with the players and was also a member of the last Great Britain team to play in the World Championship group. However Hand is currently the player coach of the second tier Manchester Phoenix and like Wilson would find in difficult to watch the players enough times to be able to pick the best squad. 

Ice Hockey UK may opt for a foreign coach and that could open the door to Doug Christiansen of the Belfast Giants.

Two things are for certain. One is that this is a huge job to fill and is immensely difficult given the time with players and lack of funding. The second is that there is not a long list of candidates with the experience, knowledge, success and perseverance needed to kept the Great Britain team moving forward.

Neil Tucker

www.bluelinehockeyblog.wordpress.com

The Get Real Guide to the Dundee Stars: Continuing the Hockey Tradition of a City.

League: EIHL

Home Ice: Dundee Ice Arena, Dundee, Scotland

Colours: Red, White and Blue

Founded: 2001

The Dundee Stars are one the UK’s new breed of growing teams. This is because that whilst the Stars may only be ten years old they, like Edinburgh, Coventry and Manchester follow in the footsteps of famous teams before them.

Ice Hockey in Dundee has a long history with the Dundee Tigers and the Dundee Rockets and in 2001 the Dundee Stars arrived and brought British league ice back to the Ice Arena. This was in the second tier British National League that they dewily won in their first season and followed it up with a win in the playoffs. Before the BNL was disbanded in 2005 the Stars would make several cup final appearances as well winning the playoffs again in 2005.

Following the disbanding of the BNL the Stars refused to enter the EIHL due to fears about being competitive and the lack of Scottish opponents with the Fife Flyers also not being admitted into the EIHL. This let the Stars with a problem. Their fellow BNL members either made the jump to the EIHL or stepped down to the English Premier League but the latter does not have a Scottish equivalent and the so the Stars were forced to drop effectively 2 tiers to the Scottish National League along with the Flyers.

In 2010 though the Stars did join the EIHL and made a successful first campaign. The team made the playoffs and narrowly lost to the league champions in the first round. Their second year in the EIHL has been less successful so far with the team struggling for home form and sacking their Head Coach Dan Ceman in early December.

Ice hockey in Dundee has survived through many phases and changes both in league structure and owner ship. In many ways this is typical of teams in Scotland and will continue to be the case as long as there is a rink.

Neil Tucker

www.bluelinehockeyblog.wordpress.com

The Edinburgh Capitals and the Guildford Flames Rack up Wins

UK Round Up 11^th December

It was a quiet day in the EIHL with only 2 games on the Sunday night schedule and one in the Challenge Cup. In the EPL however there were some significant results in the race for the title.

Elite League

Hull Stingrays 6 Edinburgh Capitals 7 (AOS)

It was a critical game for both clubs as they both chase a higher playoff rank especially as neither side could be said to comfortably in the playoffs either.

It was the home side that got caught napping early on as Hull raced into a two goal lead inside the first 5 minutes but Zemburgs strike kept the Capitals in touch at the break.

After the break however all signs of defence went missing as Campbell’s second of the night restored the visitors 2 goal lead after 10 seconds before 3 goals in less than 10 minutes put the home side in the lead for the first time. The scoring was not done there however as Jerome Tendler grabbed a brace to give the Stingrays the lead at the second break.

That was not the end of the scoring as the Capitals regained the advantage at the start of the final period with Hartmann and Hanzal getting the goals but Tendler’s hat trick sent the game to overtime and penalties only for the Caps to take the win.

The penalty shootout loss will give the Stingrays a six point lead in the race for the final playoff spot but two points for the Caps lifts them back to within striking distance of the Clan in their bid to be number in Scotland.

Braehead Clan 3 Sheffield Steelers 4 (AOT)

Sheffield went into their third game in 3 nights with 2 wins already under their belt. But the Clan were looking to take advantage of any fatigue to secure a 4 point all for themselves.

It was the Steelers that started the brighter and did not show any sign of fatigue. The Sheffield team scoring with Ramsay and Legue with 5 minutes on the clock but then the Clan got into the game more. However it took until the second period before Jorgensen got the Clan up on the board. Although the Braehead outfit still pressed Jonathan Phillips managed to restore the Steelers’ 2 goal advantage.

That advantage wouldn’t last long into the third as Krestanovich and Jorgensen hit the net as the Clan went on to outshoot their opponents 41 to 26. A win however was not to come and the Steelers took the game to overtime for the second time in 3 nights. This time however was less controversial as new boy Francis Trudel scored his first for the club and gave the Steelers 2 more points in the pursuit of the Belfast Giants.

The Clan will be pleased to have come out of Sheffield with a point however after outshooting their opponents so convincingly they will surely be disappointed that they couldn’t take both points back to Glasgow. Sheffield however will see it differently. They will be delighted to have come away with 3 wins from 3 games in 3 nights and will be flowing with confidence as they hunt down the Belfast Giants.

Challenge Cup

Fife Flyers 1 Dundee Stars 7

With both teams unable to make the semi finals this game was a dead rubber but did give new Stars coach Brent Hughes a good opportunity to stretch his coaching legs at home.

Goals from Maclean, Dolan and Zarb gave the Stars a 3 goal lead at the first intermission and they never looked back. Turner and Macintosh  added to that in the second to end the game as a contest and 2 more goals from Maclean and Hutchins completed the rout. Fife did get on the board in the third period through Mike Hamilton but it was all too late.

Although it was a dead rubber it was an important win for Dundee who will pleased to have gotten their first win at home in five attempts but they and new coach Brent Hughes know more wins like this will be needed if they are to reach the playoffs.

EPL

It was a decisive night in the EPL as the Guildford Flames claimed sole occupancy of the number one spot. A come back victory in Sheffield on penalties and the Slough Jets losing to the Milton Keynes Lightning meant that the Flames take a 2 point lead over the Jets at the top. But they know they cannot be complacent as those results mean that 3 points now separate the top three in the league.

Elsewhere the Phantoms failed to make it a 4 point weekend as they lost at home to the ever inconsistent Manchester Phoenix. Peterborough however do remain 2 points clear of the bottom as Telford went down to the Bracknell Bees who bounced back from their heavy defeat the night before.

Results

Slough Jets 3 Milton Keynes 4

Guildford Flames 5 Sheffield Steeldogs 4 (APS)

Bracknell Bees 3 Telford Tigers 1

Manchester Phoenix 4 Peterborough Phantoms 3

Neil Tucker

www.bluelinehockeyblog.wordpress.com

The Chicago Blackhawks Have the Best Forwards in the NHL

"An abundance of riches" should be the motto of the Chicago Blackhawks.  While many teams scramble to find a franchise player;  Chicago has four of them patrolling upfront.   The United Center in downtown Chicago is home to some of the best fireworks in hockey as the Blackhawks forwards light the lamp at an unseen pace in the NHL.  So far; Marian Hossa, Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, and Jonathan Toews have amassed a combined 122 points and a plus/minus rating of +45.  If these guys are on the ice chances are Chicago has the puck.  They are scary good and fun to watch. The Hawks offense is on cruise control and it shows no sign of slowing down.  This solid performance upfront has given their fans reason to believe that another Stanley Cup could be around the corner.

The last Stanley Cup win for the Blackhawks was a surprise to everyone except the Hawks.  They drafted well and traded even better and amassed a group of players who had a sense of destiny.  Some key players left Chi-Town after the last win but for some reason; Hossa, Kane, Sharp, and Toews all agreed to stay in Chicago for the long haul.  Their dedication to the team is a testament to the quality of the organization. The team and their fans treat their Fab Four with respect and these superstars have responded accordingly.  Kane and Toews (the Hawks captain) are the flashiest of the group but Hossa and Sharp are equally skilled in any situation.  If these players get the same feeling of destiny that they did last time; a push deep into the playoffs could be a problem for the Bruins who are trying to repeat this year.  Their captain could be the best player in the NHL and if he has anything to say about it a repeat for the Bruins will be just a thought and not a reality.

The Bruins and Flyers Are the Teams to Watch at Mid-Season

The NHL has been full of surprises this year. The Habs are on their knees, the Wild are in first, and the Ducks can't seem to buy a winning streak.  Surprises have a way of correcting themselves during the course of a full NHL season. However, real hockey fans are not big on surprises. Real hockey fans who love the game like the dynasties.  They like the teams which deliver day in and day out. Two of those teams are the Philadelphia Flyers and the Boston Bruins.  These bastions of hockey have seen the likes of Bobby Clarke, Reggie Leach, Phil Esposito and Bobby Orr; play and prosper. The 2011-2012 editions of the Bruins and Flyers are cast in the same dye as their predecessors.  Both teams offer a great product on the ice and watching them play is a treat even if you are not from the East Coast of the US.

Boston is lead by vets like Milan Lucic and youngsters like Tyler Seguin who are ripping up the league with speed and dazzle. The team is balanced like a Swiss clock and they make a formidable opponent for any team on any night.  The plus/minus rating for the Bruins as a whole is historically high and we suspect that they will continue this play all season on their way to a repeat as Stanley Cup Champions.  Just like the Flyers, Blackhawks and Wild; the Bruins play team hockey.  The one difference for the Bruins is that they tasted victory last year and the chemistry still exists for the repeat.

Philadelphia is built in the same image as the Bruins. They are young , strong, and skilled. Claude Giroux is quickly ascending as one of the top snipers in the league and guys like Couturier can't be far behind.  We think the Flyers will challenge this year and they could be crowned champs in the not too distant future.  I have seen a game in Philadelphia.  The intensity in the building is palatable and often it translates into an extra player when the hometown Flyers play.  This is even more evident at playoff time.  Anyway you cut, the Flyers are one of the soundest teams in the NHL.  If Jagr and Giroux stay healthy and produce at playoff time; an upside surprise is always possible. 

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Blue Jackets and Wild - A Tale of Two Cities - Doormats versus Champs

Parity is the name of the game in the new NHL.  Most teams got that memo and acted accordingly.  Two teams however were left off the list for the parity memo.  The Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild are  glowing examples that parity doesn't exist for everyone.

Columbus has been solidly at the bottom of the league all year.  Injuries and suspensions put these guys behind the eight ball from the get go and they never recovered.  The breakout year that never was has become an issue for the Blue Jackets.  Additions like Jeff Carter and James Wisniewski were supposed to make the team a competitor but mismanagement and bad luck have turned that plan on its head.  This has exposed Columbus' lack of depth.  When the injury bug hits or suspensions become an issue; there should be guys on the bench to pick up the slack.  Excuses are for recreational leagues and not the NHL.   The big question is why management has not taken steps to shake things up.  Respect for the fans is reflected in the product on the ice.  The talent is there in Columbus; coaching and vision are missing.  It will be interesting to see how the Blue Jackets rebound from this year. The first step in our book is a coaching or management change.

The Wild are the exact opposite of the Blue Jackets.  The obvious difference is their position in the standings but the real fundamental difference is the operational focus on a sound organization with real hockey men behind the scenes.  Head coach, Mike Yeo is the principal reason for the success of the Minnesota Wild.  The new coach has got the troops balanced and performing on cue.  The Wild are a mix of veterans and rookies and they find  a way to win even when it looks like they should be losing.  The rookies on the Wild played for Yeo in the minors and that continuity at the NHL level has paid off in spades for the big club.  Josh Harding and Dany Heatley are just two of the standouts for Minnesota.  When Josh Harding went down; Matt Hackett stepped in.  That's depth and team play.   It will be interesting to see how far the Wild can go with this year's addition.  We suspect you will see more fireworks from this group of players.  Confidence has a way of building and the only way these guys will come down the ranks is if they hit a supersized wall of injuries.