No, not really, but there was a trade involving the Express made yesterday. The rights to former Express forward Sean Randall were traded to the Alaska Avalanche. Randall played in 4 games for the Express early this season, scoring a hat trick in the 12-1 victory over Kenai River at the Showcase in September. He hadn't been with the team since the Albert Lea game on September 27th. The trade was officially announced yesterday, but Sean has already played in 3 games for the Avalanche, and scored a goal against Fairbanks a few weeks ago.
Although things didn't work out here in Owatonna, I wish good luck to Sean up in Alaska.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Cecka is Central Division Player of the Week
For the third straight week, an Express player has been named the NAHL Central Division Player of the Week. Read the article here: http://www.nahl.com/potw.cfm
- If you clicked on the link above, you might also have noticed that former Express forward and current Topeka Roadrunner Andy Inderieden was named the NAHL South Division Player of the Week.
- Former Express defenseman Ben Danford was acquired by the North Iowa Outlaws in a trade with the Motor City Machine. I'm very happy that Ben finally got out of Detroit, but it will suck to see him playing against our favorite junior hockey team.
Next up for the Express is a pair of home games against the Alexandria Blizzard this weekend. Check the official Express website for all the special events and promotions for the upcoming games.
See you at the rink.
--BK
- If you clicked on the link above, you might also have noticed that former Express forward and current Topeka Roadrunner Andy Inderieden was named the NAHL South Division Player of the Week.
- Former Express defenseman Ben Danford was acquired by the North Iowa Outlaws in a trade with the Motor City Machine. I'm very happy that Ben finally got out of Detroit, but it will suck to see him playing against our favorite junior hockey team.
Next up for the Express is a pair of home games against the Alexandria Blizzard this weekend. Check the official Express website for all the special events and promotions for the upcoming games.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Saturday, January 24, 2009
The Table is Set
The table is set, and the only question is: Will the Express pull up a chair and eat??
Our favorite junior hockey team has 21 games remaining in the regular season, and currently trail co-division leading Bismarck and North Iowa by 4 points in the standings. Now guess who the Express play 14 of their remaining games against?? That's right, the Bobcats and the Outlaws (7 games vs. each). **Cliche Alert** The Express control their own destiny in regards to winning the Central Division. The Express have had some success against both those teams this season, going 2-2-1 versus Bismarck, and 2-4 versus the Outlaws. The Express will need to win 4 or maybe 5 of the 7 remaining games against those two teams to make it happen.
Will it happen?? We'll see, but if you throw out the horrible loss last Saturday night, the Express are playing very good hockey since Christmas. If we have learned one thing over the history of the franchise, is that Cullen coached teams peak at the end of the season.
Tonight's game should be very entertaining. Both the Express and Bobcats are coming off victories Friday night, and every game between the two teams this season has been a barn-burner. The Express "Family 4 Packs" are available for $35, which includes 4 tickets to the game, 4 sodas, and 4 hot dogs. You can also clip the $2 off coupon from this week's Owatonna People's Press, or print one from here: http://www.expressjrhockey.org/documents/coupon_000.pdf .
- The 3 Express representatives at the NAHL Top Prospect Tournament were back in their Express jerseys Friday night against the Blizzard, after playing 3 games in Ann Arbor, Michigan earlier this week. Congratulations to Tony McDonald, Cory Thorson, and Tim Smith, who collectively finished +2 for the tournament. McDonald had 2 goals, and Thorson had a goal and an assist, including the game winner versus the West Division team.
- The magic number for the Express to clinch a playoff berth is 14 going into tonight's game. What that means is any combination of 14 points the Express earn, or the Albert Lea Thunder fail to earn will put the Express in the playoffs. If the Thunder win all of their remaining games (I'll give you a minute to stop laughing).................................................................................................. the Express would have to pick up 14 total points in their remaining 21 games.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Our favorite junior hockey team has 21 games remaining in the regular season, and currently trail co-division leading Bismarck and North Iowa by 4 points in the standings. Now guess who the Express play 14 of their remaining games against?? That's right, the Bobcats and the Outlaws (7 games vs. each). **Cliche Alert** The Express control their own destiny in regards to winning the Central Division. The Express have had some success against both those teams this season, going 2-2-1 versus Bismarck, and 2-4 versus the Outlaws. The Express will need to win 4 or maybe 5 of the 7 remaining games against those two teams to make it happen.
Will it happen?? We'll see, but if you throw out the horrible loss last Saturday night, the Express are playing very good hockey since Christmas. If we have learned one thing over the history of the franchise, is that Cullen coached teams peak at the end of the season.
Tonight's game should be very entertaining. Both the Express and Bobcats are coming off victories Friday night, and every game between the two teams this season has been a barn-burner. The Express "Family 4 Packs" are available for $35, which includes 4 tickets to the game, 4 sodas, and 4 hot dogs. You can also clip the $2 off coupon from this week's Owatonna People's Press, or print one from here: http://www.expressjrhockey.org/documents/coupon_000.pdf .
- The 3 Express representatives at the NAHL Top Prospect Tournament were back in their Express jerseys Friday night against the Blizzard, after playing 3 games in Ann Arbor, Michigan earlier this week. Congratulations to Tony McDonald, Cory Thorson, and Tim Smith, who collectively finished +2 for the tournament. McDonald had 2 goals, and Thorson had a goal and an assist, including the game winner versus the West Division team.
- The magic number for the Express to clinch a playoff berth is 14 going into tonight's game. What that means is any combination of 14 points the Express earn, or the Albert Lea Thunder fail to earn will put the Express in the playoffs. If the Thunder win all of their remaining games (I'll give you a minute to stop laughing).................................................................................................. the Express would have to pick up 14 total points in their remaining 21 games.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Monday, January 19, 2009
Dmitry Lugin - Player of the Week
Congratulations to Express forward Dmitry Lugin who was named the NAHL Central Division Player of the Week. Read the article here: http://www.nahl.com/potw.cfm . I believe that is the 4th different Express player to garner that honor this season.
- Express forward Tony McDonald scored the first goal for the Central Division Top Prospects team in their loss to Team USA on Sunday in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Fellow teammate Cory Thorson had the only assist on the goal. Despite losing 6-2, the three Express representatives were even on the game for plus/minus.
- The Central Division team plays again tonight at 7:00pm against the North Division Top Prospects and former Express goalie Nick Graves.
- From the Express Coaches Show on KRFO radio: The Express will not be carrying all 3 goalies for the remainder of the season.
Next up for the Express is a 4 game home stand starting this Friday night with a game against the Alexandria Blizzard. The Bismarck Bobcats then pay a visit to the 4 Seasons Centre on Saturday night. As Coach Cullen intimated on the radio show tonight, every game is a playoff game, so get your tickets today, and I'll....
....see you at the rink.
--BK
- Express forward Tony McDonald scored the first goal for the Central Division Top Prospects team in their loss to Team USA on Sunday in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Fellow teammate Cory Thorson had the only assist on the goal. Despite losing 6-2, the three Express representatives were even on the game for plus/minus.
- The Central Division team plays again tonight at 7:00pm against the North Division Top Prospects and former Express goalie Nick Graves.
- From the Express Coaches Show on KRFO radio: The Express will not be carrying all 3 goalies for the remainder of the season.
Next up for the Express is a 4 game home stand starting this Friday night with a game against the Alexandria Blizzard. The Bismarck Bobcats then pay a visit to the 4 Seasons Centre on Saturday night. As Coach Cullen intimated on the radio show tonight, every game is a playoff game, so get your tickets today, and I'll....
....see you at the rink.
--BK
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Big News Regarding Tonight's Game
From the Pre-Game Notes for tonight's game from the North Iowa Outlaws official website:
"Missing in Action With the Central Division prospects scheduled to play late Sunday afternoon, a bus taking the team and coaches has been scheduled to leave Saturday afternoon. As a result the Outlaws will be without defensemen Jon Crouse (Alexandria, MN) and Ryan Peltoma (Brainerd, MN) along with forwards Brandon Brodhag (Brooklyn Park, MN), Jack Paul (Minnetonka, MN) and Alex Carlson (Farmington, MN). Combined that is a loss of 55 goals, 92 assists and 147"
The entire article is here: http://www.northiowaoutlaws.com/pregame.asp?show=1/17/2009
This is very good news for Express fans, as our three Top Prospect guys will be in uniform tonight for the game. Cory Thorson, Tony McDonald, and Tim Smith are flying out to Michigan Sunday morning.
In my opinion, this is the biggest game of the year for the Express, and the Outlaws will be without their 3 top scoring forwards, their top 2 defensemen, and their head coach. The Express are on a roll, and with a win tonight can move to within 2 points of the 1st place Outlaws in the standings.
I won't believe it 100% until I see the lineup card tonight, but if it's true, that greatly increases the chances of the Express winning their 6th straight game.
Friday Night Recap: The Express went down to Albert Lea Friday night, and dominated the Thunder in a 11-2 victory.
- See the boxscore here: http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid=764121
- See the OPP recap here: http://owatonna.com/news.php?viewStory=32733 .
- Newly acquired forward Dan Cecka had a Gordie Howe Hat Trick Friday night. He scored a goal, an assist, and had a fight.
- The referees totally dropped the ball on the Cecka fight. As Cecka left the penalty box to skate to the Express bench, the Thunder's Ian Braun came over and checked him. This was away from the play, and could have been an interference penalty in itself. Braun then dropped his gloves and his helmet and challenged Cecka to fight. Cecka obliged him, and they both got 5 minute majors for fighting. However, no interference penalty was called, and no instigator penalty was called, even though it was blatantly obvious. I would have loved to heard the official's reasoning behind the no-calls.
- Newly acquired goalie Freddy Bergman had a solid night in goal in his first appearance with the Express. Although he wasn't tested much, he made some great saves, including stonewalling one of the Thunder players on a clean breakaway.
- If memory serves, this is the 2nd time this season that the Express chased both Thunder goalies in the same game. It also happened on November 15th in the Express's 10-2 win at the 4 Seasons Centre in Owatonna.
Don't forget that tonight's game is an 8:00pm start. See you at the rink.
--BK
"Missing in Action With the Central Division prospects scheduled to play late Sunday afternoon, a bus taking the team and coaches has been scheduled to leave Saturday afternoon. As a result the Outlaws will be without defensemen Jon Crouse (Alexandria, MN) and Ryan Peltoma (Brainerd, MN) along with forwards Brandon Brodhag (Brooklyn Park, MN), Jack Paul (Minnetonka, MN) and Alex Carlson (Farmington, MN). Combined that is a loss of 55 goals, 92 assists and 147"
The entire article is here: http://www.northiowaoutlaws.com/pregame.asp?show=1/17/2009
This is very good news for Express fans, as our three Top Prospect guys will be in uniform tonight for the game. Cory Thorson, Tony McDonald, and Tim Smith are flying out to Michigan Sunday morning.
In my opinion, this is the biggest game of the year for the Express, and the Outlaws will be without their 3 top scoring forwards, their top 2 defensemen, and their head coach. The Express are on a roll, and with a win tonight can move to within 2 points of the 1st place Outlaws in the standings.
I won't believe it 100% until I see the lineup card tonight, but if it's true, that greatly increases the chances of the Express winning their 6th straight game.
Friday Night Recap: The Express went down to Albert Lea Friday night, and dominated the Thunder in a 11-2 victory.
- See the boxscore here: http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid=764121
- See the OPP recap here: http://owatonna.com/news.php?viewStory=32733 .
- Newly acquired forward Dan Cecka had a Gordie Howe Hat Trick Friday night. He scored a goal, an assist, and had a fight.
- The referees totally dropped the ball on the Cecka fight. As Cecka left the penalty box to skate to the Express bench, the Thunder's Ian Braun came over and checked him. This was away from the play, and could have been an interference penalty in itself. Braun then dropped his gloves and his helmet and challenged Cecka to fight. Cecka obliged him, and they both got 5 minute majors for fighting. However, no interference penalty was called, and no instigator penalty was called, even though it was blatantly obvious. I would have loved to heard the official's reasoning behind the no-calls.
- Newly acquired goalie Freddy Bergman had a solid night in goal in his first appearance with the Express. Although he wasn't tested much, he made some great saves, including stonewalling one of the Thunder players on a clean breakaway.
- If memory serves, this is the 2nd time this season that the Express chased both Thunder goalies in the same game. It also happened on November 15th in the Express's 10-2 win at the 4 Seasons Centre in Owatonna.
Don't forget that tonight's game is an 8:00pm start. See you at the rink.
--BK
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Swagger
There are several different definitions/interpretations of the word swagger. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary definition is: To conduct oneself in an arrogant or superciliously pompous manner ; especially : to walk with an air of overbearing self-confidence. While absolutely correct, that's not exactly what I mean regarding swagger and this year's Owatonna Express team. I'm talking about the good kind of swagger.
From the moment this franchise was reborn last spring, it seems as if the Express have been the little engine that could. Most of it due to the circumstances of how it all came to be. We had to fight and scrape to get the money together to buy an expansion team, we got a late start with the draft and tendering process, we only had time for one tryout camp, we got off to a rough start at the Showcase, we lost some good players to injury, etc.. However, with the odds stacked against us we have managed to win more games than we have lost, and stay in the thick of the Central Division battle. You know, the little engine that could......chugga, chugga, chugga, chugga, whooo!! whooo!!
Well, in my opinion, it's time for our favorite junior hockey team to graduate from the little engine that could, to the overpowering, ginormous, express train (pun intended). In my position as a volunteer, and a corporate sponsor of the Express for 4 years, I have had the wonderful treat of getting to know personally, most of the individual players that have come through Owatonna. I can definitively say that this year's team is by far the nicest, most well behaved, and disciplined bunch of the lot. But what I haven't seen enough of out of this year's team is swagger (the good kind). The kind of swagger that John Elway had back in the day when the Broncos were engineering 4th quarter comebacks. The kind of swagger that Donovan McNabb has shown over the last month in leading the Eagles to this weekend's NFC Championship game. The kind of swagger Michael Jordan had back in the heyday of the Chicago Bulls.
As the article on NAHL.com this week stated, the Express are starting to pick up steam. They have won 4 straight games, but most importantly, they have played well, and dictated the pace of the game in recent weeks. The guys have bought into Coach Cullen's system, and are starting to gel in all phases of the game. On top of that, you throw in the arrival of Dan Cecka from the USHL, the return of John Kruse, and the most recent addition to the team (more about him tomorrow, but if you dig a little you can find out immediately). What you get is a very good team that is catching stride, ready to do some serious damage on their way to the top of the Central Division, and ready to let their swagger flag fly.
When they hit the ice this weekend I want to feel the confidence of a team that knows it is capable of winning every time out. Even if they are down on the scoreboard, they know they are going to come back and win. More importantly, I want the Thunder and the Outlaws to see the swagger(the good kind) in the Express this weekend. The Express are the most talented team in the Central Division, and it's time the rest of the teams see that on the ice.
Go out there and show them who the team to beat is this season.
See you at the rink.
--Big Kahuna
Update: In Friday's Owatonna People's Press, Coach Cullen finally confirmed what most of us knew a week ago: The Express picked up goalie Freddy Bergman from the Des Moines Bucs of the USHL. A 1989 birthyear, Bergman is tall for a goalie at 6'3", and hails from Vienna, Virginia. He spent the bulk of the last two seasons with the Bucs, where his numbers were not that good, but the Bucs have been a horrible team during that span totaling only 20 wins. I had a chance to meet him early this week, and he is a very personable and friendly kid, and should have no problem fitting in with his new teammates. It's been no secret that Cullen has been waiting for one of the goalies to step up and take the starting goalie job, I just didn't figure there would be three of them on the roster. Welcome to Owatonna Freddy.
From the moment this franchise was reborn last spring, it seems as if the Express have been the little engine that could. Most of it due to the circumstances of how it all came to be. We had to fight and scrape to get the money together to buy an expansion team, we got a late start with the draft and tendering process, we only had time for one tryout camp, we got off to a rough start at the Showcase, we lost some good players to injury, etc.. However, with the odds stacked against us we have managed to win more games than we have lost, and stay in the thick of the Central Division battle. You know, the little engine that could......chugga, chugga, chugga, chugga, whooo!! whooo!!
Well, in my opinion, it's time for our favorite junior hockey team to graduate from the little engine that could, to the overpowering, ginormous, express train (pun intended). In my position as a volunteer, and a corporate sponsor of the Express for 4 years, I have had the wonderful treat of getting to know personally, most of the individual players that have come through Owatonna. I can definitively say that this year's team is by far the nicest, most well behaved, and disciplined bunch of the lot. But what I haven't seen enough of out of this year's team is swagger (the good kind). The kind of swagger that John Elway had back in the day when the Broncos were engineering 4th quarter comebacks. The kind of swagger that Donovan McNabb has shown over the last month in leading the Eagles to this weekend's NFC Championship game. The kind of swagger Michael Jordan had back in the heyday of the Chicago Bulls.
As the article on NAHL.com this week stated, the Express are starting to pick up steam. They have won 4 straight games, but most importantly, they have played well, and dictated the pace of the game in recent weeks. The guys have bought into Coach Cullen's system, and are starting to gel in all phases of the game. On top of that, you throw in the arrival of Dan Cecka from the USHL, the return of John Kruse, and the most recent addition to the team (more about him tomorrow, but if you dig a little you can find out immediately). What you get is a very good team that is catching stride, ready to do some serious damage on their way to the top of the Central Division, and ready to let their swagger flag fly.
When they hit the ice this weekend I want to feel the confidence of a team that knows it is capable of winning every time out. Even if they are down on the scoreboard, they know they are going to come back and win. More importantly, I want the Thunder and the Outlaws to see the swagger(the good kind) in the Express this weekend. The Express are the most talented team in the Central Division, and it's time the rest of the teams see that on the ice.
Go out there and show them who the team to beat is this season.
See you at the rink.
--Big Kahuna
Update: In Friday's Owatonna People's Press, Coach Cullen finally confirmed what most of us knew a week ago: The Express picked up goalie Freddy Bergman from the Des Moines Bucs of the USHL. A 1989 birthyear, Bergman is tall for a goalie at 6'3", and hails from Vienna, Virginia. He spent the bulk of the last two seasons with the Bucs, where his numbers were not that good, but the Bucs have been a horrible team during that span totaling only 20 wins. I had a chance to meet him early this week, and he is a very personable and friendly kid, and should have no problem fitting in with his new teammates. It's been no secret that Cullen has been waiting for one of the goalies to step up and take the starting goalie job, I just didn't figure there would be three of them on the roster. Welcome to Owatonna Freddy.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Big Kahuna's NAHL Power Rankings - Playoff Twist Version
For this week's Power Rankings, I'm going to do another variation, as the normal power rankings have become boring and tiresome. This week, I'm going to pretend that the NAHL playoffs are set up with a 16 team tournament (4 teams from each division), with each team seeded by Big Kahuna regardless of division, except for the 4 division winners which will be seeded 1-4. The 3 teams not qualifying for my tournament are Albert Lea, Motor City, and Marquette.
#1 Seed - Topeka Roadrunners (South Division Champion)
#2 Seed - Mahoning Valley Phantoms (North Division Champion)
#3 Seed - North Iowa Outlaws (Central Division Champion)
#4 Seed - Fairbanks Ice Dogs (West Division Champion)
#5 Seed - St Louis Bandits
#6 Seed - Traverse City North Stars
#7 Seed - Bismarck Bobcats
#8 Seed - Alpena Ice Diggers
#9 Seed - USNTDP
#10 Seed - Owatonna Express
#11 Seed - Alexandria Blizzard
#12 Seed - Wichita Falls Wildcats
#13 Seed - Wenatchee Wild
#14 Seed - Springfield Jr Blues
#15 Seed - Alaska Avalanche
#16 Seed - Kenai River Brown Bears
Obviously it doesn't work this way, but this setup would provide some interesting match ups that you never really get to see apart from the Showcase. Everybody in the league is chasing Topeka right now, and the Central Division is a complete toss-up.
While on the subject of playoff seeding, Coach Cullen brought up an interesting point during the Express Coach's Show on KRFO radio Monday night. With the North Iowa Outlaws (as the host team) guaranteed a spot, that means the Central Division will get a second team into the Robertson Cup tournament. So let's say hypothetically that the regular season was complete, and the playoff seeds were determined from today's standings. North Iowa (#1) would host the Express (#4) and Bismarck (#2) would host Alexandria (#3) in the first round. Now let's say North Iowa beats the Express (not going to happen, but we're in Fantasyland right now) and Bismarck beats Alexandria. Since the Outlaws are already in, that would mean Bismarck would qualify as the Central Division representative no matter the outcome of the 2nd round series. So in an ideal world, the other central division teams would try and avoid the Outlaws in the first round of the playoffs, while hoping that the Outlaws win their series.
All of this is speculation, as I don't believe the NAHL has released the playoff information yet. Stay tuned, more on this as the season progresses.
See you at the rink.
--BK
#1 Seed - Topeka Roadrunners (South Division Champion)
#2 Seed - Mahoning Valley Phantoms (North Division Champion)
#3 Seed - North Iowa Outlaws (Central Division Champion)
#4 Seed - Fairbanks Ice Dogs (West Division Champion)
#5 Seed - St Louis Bandits
#6 Seed - Traverse City North Stars
#7 Seed - Bismarck Bobcats
#8 Seed - Alpena Ice Diggers
#9 Seed - USNTDP
#10 Seed - Owatonna Express
#11 Seed - Alexandria Blizzard
#12 Seed - Wichita Falls Wildcats
#13 Seed - Wenatchee Wild
#14 Seed - Springfield Jr Blues
#15 Seed - Alaska Avalanche
#16 Seed - Kenai River Brown Bears
Obviously it doesn't work this way, but this setup would provide some interesting match ups that you never really get to see apart from the Showcase. Everybody in the league is chasing Topeka right now, and the Central Division is a complete toss-up.
While on the subject of playoff seeding, Coach Cullen brought up an interesting point during the Express Coach's Show on KRFO radio Monday night. With the North Iowa Outlaws (as the host team) guaranteed a spot, that means the Central Division will get a second team into the Robertson Cup tournament. So let's say hypothetically that the regular season was complete, and the playoff seeds were determined from today's standings. North Iowa (#1) would host the Express (#4) and Bismarck (#2) would host Alexandria (#3) in the first round. Now let's say North Iowa beats the Express (not going to happen, but we're in Fantasyland right now) and Bismarck beats Alexandria. Since the Outlaws are already in, that would mean Bismarck would qualify as the Central Division representative no matter the outcome of the 2nd round series. So in an ideal world, the other central division teams would try and avoid the Outlaws in the first round of the playoffs, while hoping that the Outlaws win their series.
All of this is speculation, as I don't believe the NAHL has released the playoff information yet. Stay tuned, more on this as the season progresses.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Monday, January 12, 2009
Snow Day Tidbits
- Express forward Stephen Carew was named the NAHL's Central Division Player of the Week. Read the article here: http://www.nahl.com/potw.cfm
- There is a nice article on the front page of NAHL.com about the Express that you can read here: http://www.nahl.com/news/story.cfm?id=787
- The NAHL Top Prospect Tournament kicks off this Sunday in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The Express will be represented by Tony McDonald, Cory Thorson, and Tim Smith on the Central Division team.
- On the Express Coaches Show tonight on KRFO radio, Coach Cullen mentioned that forward Chris Darnell will be out until early March with his injured leg.
- Over on the Western College Hockey Blog, the blogmaster did a countdown of his 10 favorite games he has witnessed in person. #4 on the list was the Southern Minnesota Express's epic 3 overtime win over the Fargo-Moorhead Jets in the 2007 playoffs. It's a nice trip down memory lane that you can read here: http://westerncollegehockey.blogspot.com/2008/12/4-fargo-moorhead-vs-southern-minnesota.html .
- This isn't Express related, but former Owatonna Huskies girls hockey player Lindsay Macy had a 5 point weekend with the Minnesota Whitecaps of the Western Women's Hockey League. The Whitecaps are the top women's professional hockey team in the United States. Macy had 2 goals and 3 assists in a 3 game sweep over the Strathmore Rockies last weekend.
See you at the rink.
--BK
- There is a nice article on the front page of NAHL.com about the Express that you can read here: http://www.nahl.com/news/story.cfm?id=787
- The NAHL Top Prospect Tournament kicks off this Sunday in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The Express will be represented by Tony McDonald, Cory Thorson, and Tim Smith on the Central Division team.
- On the Express Coaches Show tonight on KRFO radio, Coach Cullen mentioned that forward Chris Darnell will be out until early March with his injured leg.
- Over on the Western College Hockey Blog, the blogmaster did a countdown of his 10 favorite games he has witnessed in person. #4 on the list was the Southern Minnesota Express's epic 3 overtime win over the Fargo-Moorhead Jets in the 2007 playoffs. It's a nice trip down memory lane that you can read here: http://westerncollegehockey.blogspot.com/2008/12/4-fargo-moorhead-vs-southern-minnesota.html .
- This isn't Express related, but former Owatonna Huskies girls hockey player Lindsay Macy had a 5 point weekend with the Minnesota Whitecaps of the Western Women's Hockey League. The Whitecaps are the top women's professional hockey team in the United States. Macy had 2 goals and 3 assists in a 3 game sweep over the Strathmore Rockies last weekend.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Did you hear it??
Now, I wasn't at the game in Alexandria tonight, but I swear I heard a very distinct clicking sound in the 2nd period of tonight's game. Was that the sound of the Express shifting into high gear for the stretch run?? It very well might have been.
The Express beat the Blizzard 6-3 in Alexandria Saturday night to extend their winning streak to 4 games. Coupled with Bismarck's sweep of North Iowa this weekend, the 2 wins pulled the Express to within 4 points of first place in the Central Division.
- New forward Dan Cecka, had a huge night in his second game for the Express. He scored a goal, chipped in 3 assists, and finished +4 for the night. He was awarded the #2 star of the game by the Blizzard folks.
- Forward John Kruse tallied 2 assists, and finished a +4, playing in his first game since October 18th. He was out for nearly 3 months after having surgery on his wrist. Welcome back John.
- Forward Stephen Carew scored twice, and now has 6 goals in the last 3 games. He has been steadily climbing up the scoring charts, and is now tied for the most goals scored in the NAHL this season.
- There has been plenty of line shuffling this season by Coach Cullen, but it looks like the Express now have a surefire #1 line in Carew, Kruse, and Cecka. It will be fun to see what these guys can do from here on out.
- Forward Zach Vierling missed his first game of the season due to illness.
- Forward Michael Palmiscno was not in the lineup "because of the fight" according to Cullen. It was the first time out of the lineup for him this season.
- Defenseman Troy Puente was playing with a full face shield tonight after getting his nose broken and 6 stitches in Friday's game against Albert Lea. He was apparently hit in the face by a stick. There was no penalty called on the play, but that shouldn't surprise anyone that actually watched the game.
- Coach Cullen took a more diplomatic approach to Friday's officiating that I did, telling Roy Koenig in the pregame interview that "The method to his penalty calling was hard to understand."
- With Vierling and Palmiscno on the sidelines tonight, the Express are down to 6 players who have played in all 34 Express games this season. They are: Carew, McDonald, Thorson, Smith, Puente, and Carson.
Next up for the Express is a trip to Albert Lea this coming Friday night, followed by a huge game against the North Iowa Outlaws in Owatonna on Saturday night. There are only 10 home games left for the Express this season, so let's pack the 4 Seasons Saturday night, and make it loud in support of Owatonna's junior hockey team.
See you at the rink.
--Big Kahuna
The Express beat the Blizzard 6-3 in Alexandria Saturday night to extend their winning streak to 4 games. Coupled with Bismarck's sweep of North Iowa this weekend, the 2 wins pulled the Express to within 4 points of first place in the Central Division.
- New forward Dan Cecka, had a huge night in his second game for the Express. He scored a goal, chipped in 3 assists, and finished +4 for the night. He was awarded the #2 star of the game by the Blizzard folks.
- Forward John Kruse tallied 2 assists, and finished a +4, playing in his first game since October 18th. He was out for nearly 3 months after having surgery on his wrist. Welcome back John.
- Forward Stephen Carew scored twice, and now has 6 goals in the last 3 games. He has been steadily climbing up the scoring charts, and is now tied for the most goals scored in the NAHL this season.
- There has been plenty of line shuffling this season by Coach Cullen, but it looks like the Express now have a surefire #1 line in Carew, Kruse, and Cecka. It will be fun to see what these guys can do from here on out.
- Forward Zach Vierling missed his first game of the season due to illness.
- Forward Michael Palmiscno was not in the lineup "because of the fight" according to Cullen. It was the first time out of the lineup for him this season.
- Defenseman Troy Puente was playing with a full face shield tonight after getting his nose broken and 6 stitches in Friday's game against Albert Lea. He was apparently hit in the face by a stick. There was no penalty called on the play, but that shouldn't surprise anyone that actually watched the game.
- Coach Cullen took a more diplomatic approach to Friday's officiating that I did, telling Roy Koenig in the pregame interview that "The method to his penalty calling was hard to understand."
- With Vierling and Palmiscno on the sidelines tonight, the Express are down to 6 players who have played in all 34 Express games this season. They are: Carew, McDonald, Thorson, Smith, Puente, and Carson.
Next up for the Express is a trip to Albert Lea this coming Friday night, followed by a huge game against the North Iowa Outlaws in Owatonna on Saturday night. There are only 10 home games left for the Express this season, so let's pack the 4 Seasons Saturday night, and make it loud in support of Owatonna's junior hockey team.
See you at the rink.
--Big Kahuna
59 Penalty Minutes??
Going into Friday night's game the Express, as a team, had 417 penalty minutes on the season. Their opponent, the Albert Lea Thunder, had 855 penalty minutes on the season. So which of those 2 teams would you guess got called for 59 minutes, and which got called for 33 minutes for the game??
The Express overcame their 59 penalty minutes with Stephen Carew scoring a pair of goals, and Dmitry Lugin scoring the eventual game winner, as the Express beat the Thunder for the 9th straight time this season. The officiating was absolutely brutal all night long, and not just for the Express, as there were plenty of questionable calls on the Thunder as well. However, as legendary Owatonna High School football coach Jerry Peterson always said, the only thing that matters is the win. That is 3 straight for the Express, who remain undefeated in 2009. If you want more details, you can read the People's Press article here: http://owatonna.com/news.php?viewStory=32573 or see the boxscore here: http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid=764100 .
- The Express went most of the season without a fighting major, but have picked up 2 in the last 3 weeks, both by Michael Palmiscno. By the way, Palmiscno is the shortest guy on the roster at a very generous 5'6". Friday night he was jumped after the whistle by the Thunder's Mikita Feaktsistau who had about a 7" height advantage and about 30 pounds weight advantage.
- The newest Express player, Dan Cecka, was in uniform Friday night wearing sweater #24 and playing on a line with Zach Vierling and Stephen Carew.
- In a first for me in my hockey watching career, I saw a triple minor penalty called. Express forward David Kurbatsky was called for a double minor checking from behind and a hooking minor early in the 3rd period. This resulted in a 6 minute powerplay for the Thunder, and an early trip to the showers for Kurbatsky, as he also got a game ejection on the play.
- I have said this before, and I'll say it again: The Thunder aren't anywhere near as bad a team as their record would indicate. The have gotten markedly better since the beginning of the season, and if they can ever get it all figured out, they will win some games. That is good news for our favorite junior hockey team, as we will need the Thunder to win some games against the 3 teams in front of the Express in the standings if we want to improve our playoff seeding.
Next up for the Express is a game with the Blizzard tonight in Alexandria. The Express have split their 4 games with the Blizzard so far this season, so tonight should be a competitive game. Looking even further ahead, if the Express can get the win in Alexandria tonight, they have a chance to string together a nice long win streak. After tonight, the Express play at Albert Lea next Friday, followed by a 5 game home stand.
See you at the rink.
--BK
The Express overcame their 59 penalty minutes with Stephen Carew scoring a pair of goals, and Dmitry Lugin scoring the eventual game winner, as the Express beat the Thunder for the 9th straight time this season. The officiating was absolutely brutal all night long, and not just for the Express, as there were plenty of questionable calls on the Thunder as well. However, as legendary Owatonna High School football coach Jerry Peterson always said, the only thing that matters is the win. That is 3 straight for the Express, who remain undefeated in 2009. If you want more details, you can read the People's Press article here: http://owatonna.com/news.php?viewStory=32573 or see the boxscore here: http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid=764100 .
- The Express went most of the season without a fighting major, but have picked up 2 in the last 3 weeks, both by Michael Palmiscno. By the way, Palmiscno is the shortest guy on the roster at a very generous 5'6". Friday night he was jumped after the whistle by the Thunder's Mikita Feaktsistau who had about a 7" height advantage and about 30 pounds weight advantage.
- The newest Express player, Dan Cecka, was in uniform Friday night wearing sweater #24 and playing on a line with Zach Vierling and Stephen Carew.
- In a first for me in my hockey watching career, I saw a triple minor penalty called. Express forward David Kurbatsky was called for a double minor checking from behind and a hooking minor early in the 3rd period. This resulted in a 6 minute powerplay for the Thunder, and an early trip to the showers for Kurbatsky, as he also got a game ejection on the play.
- I have said this before, and I'll say it again: The Thunder aren't anywhere near as bad a team as their record would indicate. The have gotten markedly better since the beginning of the season, and if they can ever get it all figured out, they will win some games. That is good news for our favorite junior hockey team, as we will need the Thunder to win some games against the 3 teams in front of the Express in the standings if we want to improve our playoff seeding.
Next up for the Express is a game with the Blizzard tonight in Alexandria. The Express have split their 4 games with the Blizzard so far this season, so tonight should be a competitive game. Looking even further ahead, if the Express can get the win in Alexandria tonight, they have a chance to string together a nice long win streak. After tonight, the Express play at Albert Lea next Friday, followed by a 5 game home stand.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Player Acquisition??
According to Pointstreak, the Indiana Ice of the USHL have traded forward Dan Cecka to the Owatonna Express. See the USHL transaction log here: http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/transactions.html?leagueid=49&seasonid=3192
That name might sound familiar to the faithful readers of the blog, as Cecka was drafted by the Express in last year's NAHL draft. Here is the player profile I did on him back in June:
Future Express Player - Dan Cecka
Dan Cecka - 5'11"/190lbs - Forward
'89 Birth year. Member of the 2008 Class AA State Champion Hill-Murray Pioneers, and was selected to the All-Tournament Team. Leading scorer in the Classic Suburban Conference his senior year. Was honorable mention All-State. Participated in the 2007 Minnesota Model Camp where he played on a the same team as Owatonna's Kyle Kozelka. Played for Team Minnesota at the Chicago Showcase in 2008. Played in the Tri-City Storm's (USHL) tryout camp all-star game in 2007. 9th round pick of the Indiana Ice in the 2008 USHL draft.
My take: Reminds me of another Hill-Murray alum, and Indiana Ice draftee: Brian Arrigoni... only bigger. He's a strong kid, team leader, and can finish. I don't know about his blocking the puck with your facemask skills. He was the leading scorer on the best team in Minnesota, not much else needs to be said.
My take: Cecka tallied 3 goals and an assist playing in roughly half of the Division leading Ice's games. It sounds like he just wasn't getting enough playing time with the Ice, but with the Express, I'm guessing he plays every night. If he does indeed suit up for the Express for the remainder of the season, it takes some of the sting away from losing Chris Darnell to injury. The Express roster is a little deeper and a little more skilled with him on board. Time will tell how big an impact he has this year, but I sure hope to see him in uniform this weekend.
Welcome to Owatonna Dan Cecka.
- The North Iowa Outlaws and Bismarck Bobcats are playing an exhibition game tonight in Aberdeen, South Dakota. You might ask yourself: Why Aberdeen?? Well it turns out, the folks in Aberdeen want to have a team in the NAHL. Could Aberdeen be the 6th member of the Central Division next season?? That is sure one possibility, but I have also heard from an owner of one of the Express's division rivals, that there could possibly be 1 or 2 expansion teams in Wisconsin next season. We'll have to see what happens, but it looks like the NAHL could have some fun trying to re-align the divisions this summer.
- Here's an article from the Wallaceburg Courier Press. It doesn't have anything to do with the Express or the NAHL, but it's a great read about a fallen teammate.
http://www.wallaceburgcourierpress.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1375025
It sounds like Friday's weather is going to be less than ideal, but luckily for us, the Express game is at the friendly confines of the 4 Seasons Centre in lovely south central Owatonna. The Albert Lea Thunder will make the short drive up I-35 for a 7:00pm matchup with our favorite junior hockey team. Let's face it, you have nothing better to do, so you might as well come out and cheer on the guys as they open a can of whoop-ass on the Thunder. Grab your husband/wife/significant other/neighbor/etc..(you don't have to sit with them) and don't forget little Johnny and Susie (point of clarification: you can still bring your kids even if they aren't named Johnny and Susie). Don't forget to bring buckets, airhorns, cowbells, and anything else that can make a bunch of noise. The beer will be cold, and the hot dogs will be hot.
See you at the rink.
--Big Kahuna
That name might sound familiar to the faithful readers of the blog, as Cecka was drafted by the Express in last year's NAHL draft. Here is the player profile I did on him back in June:
Future Express Player - Dan Cecka
Dan Cecka - 5'11"/190lbs - Forward
'89 Birth year. Member of the 2008 Class AA State Champion Hill-Murray Pioneers, and was selected to the All-Tournament Team. Leading scorer in the Classic Suburban Conference his senior year. Was honorable mention All-State. Participated in the 2007 Minnesota Model Camp where he played on a the same team as Owatonna's Kyle Kozelka. Played for Team Minnesota at the Chicago Showcase in 2008. Played in the Tri-City Storm's (USHL) tryout camp all-star game in 2007. 9th round pick of the Indiana Ice in the 2008 USHL draft.
My take: Reminds me of another Hill-Murray alum, and Indiana Ice draftee: Brian Arrigoni... only bigger. He's a strong kid, team leader, and can finish. I don't know about his blocking the puck with your facemask skills. He was the leading scorer on the best team in Minnesota, not much else needs to be said.
My take: Cecka tallied 3 goals and an assist playing in roughly half of the Division leading Ice's games. It sounds like he just wasn't getting enough playing time with the Ice, but with the Express, I'm guessing he plays every night. If he does indeed suit up for the Express for the remainder of the season, it takes some of the sting away from losing Chris Darnell to injury. The Express roster is a little deeper and a little more skilled with him on board. Time will tell how big an impact he has this year, but I sure hope to see him in uniform this weekend.
Welcome to Owatonna Dan Cecka.
- The North Iowa Outlaws and Bismarck Bobcats are playing an exhibition game tonight in Aberdeen, South Dakota. You might ask yourself: Why Aberdeen?? Well it turns out, the folks in Aberdeen want to have a team in the NAHL. Could Aberdeen be the 6th member of the Central Division next season?? That is sure one possibility, but I have also heard from an owner of one of the Express's division rivals, that there could possibly be 1 or 2 expansion teams in Wisconsin next season. We'll have to see what happens, but it looks like the NAHL could have some fun trying to re-align the divisions this summer.
- Here's an article from the Wallaceburg Courier Press. It doesn't have anything to do with the Express or the NAHL, but it's a great read about a fallen teammate.
http://www.wallaceburgcourierpress.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1375025
It sounds like Friday's weather is going to be less than ideal, but luckily for us, the Express game is at the friendly confines of the 4 Seasons Centre in lovely south central Owatonna. The Albert Lea Thunder will make the short drive up I-35 for a 7:00pm matchup with our favorite junior hockey team. Let's face it, you have nothing better to do, so you might as well come out and cheer on the guys as they open a can of whoop-ass on the Thunder. Grab your husband/wife/significant other/neighbor/etc..(you don't have to sit with them) and don't forget little Johnny and Susie (point of clarification: you can still bring your kids even if they aren't named Johnny and Susie). Don't forget to bring buckets, airhorns, cowbells, and anything else that can make a bunch of noise. The beer will be cold, and the hot dogs will be hot.
See you at the rink.
--Big Kahuna
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Big Kahuna's Reverse Power Rankings
I am going to try something new this week in regards to Big Kahuna's NAHL Power Rankings. I'm going to call them "Reverse Power Rankings". The criteria I used to rank the teams was very simple, and the list should be viewed like this: The Express have a hypothetical game tonight that they must win, and Big Kahuna gets to choose the opponent. This is who I would choose, with the most desirable matchup on top and the least desirable on the bottom:
1. Kenai River Brown Bears
2. Motor City Machine
3. Alaska Avalanche
4. Wenatchee Wild
5. Albert Lea Thunder
6. Springfield Jr Blues
7. Marquette Rangers
8. Fairbanks Ice Dogs
9. Wichita Falls Wildcats
10. Alexandria Blizzard
11. Bismarck Bobcats
12. Alpena Ice Diggers
13. North Iowa Outlaws
14. USNTDP
15. Traverse City North Stars
16. Mahoning Valley Phantoms
17. St Louis Bandits
18. Topeka Roadrunners
Feel free to share your opinions in the comment section.
See you at the rink.
--BK
1. Kenai River Brown Bears
2. Motor City Machine
3. Alaska Avalanche
4. Wenatchee Wild
5. Albert Lea Thunder
6. Springfield Jr Blues
7. Marquette Rangers
8. Fairbanks Ice Dogs
9. Wichita Falls Wildcats
10. Alexandria Blizzard
11. Bismarck Bobcats
12. Alpena Ice Diggers
13. North Iowa Outlaws
14. USNTDP
15. Traverse City North Stars
16. Mahoning Valley Phantoms
17. St Louis Bandits
18. Topeka Roadrunners
Feel free to share your opinions in the comment section.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Monday, January 5, 2009
I'm Back....
... I'm back in the saddle again. Thanks to Aerosmith for providing the title of my blogpost for today.
The holidays are over, and the Express are back on the ice. While I would have loved a 3 game sweep last weekend, I'll take the 4 points they did get. It very easily could have been a disastrous weekend with 3 losses. The New Year's Eve game with Bismarck was a tough game, but the guys bounced back with a nice performance on Friday. Albert Lea played tough Saturday night, forcing overtime, but Captain KangaCarew drove the dagger in the Thunder's heart 1 minute into extra time. So, 4 point weekend and back above .500% for the good guys.
-
Express forward Josh Daley had a great opportunity over break, doing a commercial for the Pittsburgh Penguins at Civic Arena in Pittsburgh. Josh served as Evgeny Malkin's stand-in, and the sweater, helmet and breezers are actually Malkin's. Congratulations Josh!
- Former Express defenseman Robby Spalding was waived by the Odessa Jackalopes of the CHL last week. He played in 11 games for the Jacks.
- Former Express forward Marco Ruggeri decided not to return to the Motor City Machine after the holiday break, and will enroll in college. He had served as captain of the Machine since former captain Andy Inderieden left the team earlier in the season.
- It was nice to see Grant Fahnhorst get a goal in the Albert Lea game Saturday night. Way to go Fahnzie!
- Forward John Kruse looks close to returning to the ice. The cast and brace are off, and hopefully he can pick up where he left off early in the season. On the other hand, forward Chris Darnell will be out for an extended period of time with a leg injury. I believe he was having surgery this week, and hopes to back by the end of the season.
Next up for the Express is a pair of games this weekend. The Albert Lea Thunder come to Owatonna Friday night, and then the Express hit the road for a Saturday night tilt with the Alexandria Blizzard. The Thunder have to be a little miffed after the overtime loss to the Express on Saturday, and you can be sure there will be some fireworks. The Blizzard split a pair of games with North Iowa last weekend, and are only 2 points out of first place in the Central Division. Game on!!
See you at the rink.
--Big Kahuna
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Owatonna Huskies on TV Today
The Owatonna High School Huskies boys hockey team is playing in the Bronze Division Championship game today of the Schwann Cup. The game will be telecast live on Fox Sports North. The Huskies hit the ice at 3:00pm against Mahtomedi who is ranked #7 in Class A. Did I mention the game is at the XCEL Energy Center?
Congratulations boys, enjoy your day in the spotlight.
--BK
Congratulations boys, enjoy your day in the spotlight.
--BK
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