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.