The Express picked up a new forward today, via a trade with the Chicago Steel of the USHL. His name is Charlie Thauwald, and he is from Rochester, Minnesota. He is a 1990 birth year, and is listed at 6'2" and 210 lbs. He has tallied just one assist this season, but is only a -1 on a struggling Steel team. He is currently ranked #14 in the USHL in penalty minutes, and has dropped the gloves 6 times this season in 28 games.
Thauwald in action:
My take: The Express needed a big, tough guy, and Coach Cullen went and found one. I honestly don't know much about him, but look forward to seeing him on the ice this weekend at the 4 Seasons Centre.
Speaking of this weekend: The Express play a huge pair of games this weekend. Friday night against the team we are chasing in the standings (Bismarck), and Saturday night against the team that is chasing us (Alexandria). With a couple of nice wins last weekend in Mason City under the belt, our favorite junior hockey team has won 6 of their last 8 games, and will be looking to make that 8 of the last 10.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Friday, January 8, 2010
The Big News is....................
Former Express defenseman Tim Smith is no longer a "former" Express defenseman. He is now "current" Express defenseman Tim Smith. Smith was one of the first draft picks in the new era of the Express franchise, and was a stalwart on the blueline during the expansion season last year. He was named to the NAHL league wide All-Rookie team, was an All-Central Division Defenseman, and was selected to play for the Central Division in the Top Prospects Tournament. His performance garnered him an offer from Providence College to play Division 1 college hockey, which he did (at least for 1 semester). However circumstances have now put him back in Owatonna with our favorite junior hockey team. He will be wearing jersey #23, and could be in uniform tonight for the Bismarck game. Welcome back to Owatonna Tim, and I can't wait to hear Express Public Address announcer Pete Kalan say "Starting on defense......from Superior, Wisconsin.......welcome back to Owatonna.....Tim Smith!!!"
Smith wasn't the only Express draft pick that joined the team this week, as 2009 pick Mike Yanis was also added to the roster. He is a 1991 birth year defenseman from Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan. He is 6'1"/190 lbs, and will be wearing jersey #25.
My take: I couldn't believe this news when I heard it the other day, and I couldn't be happier. I haven't seen Yanis play yet and don't know much about him, but Smith immediately makes the Express a better team. What a difference a week makes. Last Wednesday: 6 game losing streak, major question mark in goal, and big problems on defense. Today: 2 game winning streak, solid goalie, and a vastly improved defense.
Also from the "Big News" department today:
- Encouraging development in Albert Lea - A group of Minneapolis businessmen are interested in buying the Albert Lea Thunder franchise. Read the article here: http://www.albertleatribune.com/news/2010/jan/08/l-thunder-has-potential-buyer/ . This would be great news for our neighbors to the south, and a good thing for the Express as well.
- Aberdeen, South Dakota has been granted conditional approval for a membership in the NAHL. It's the lead article on the newly redesigned NAHL.com.
My take: Yesterday I was hoping for 6 teams in the Central Division, and now it looks like it could be 7 teams. Not sure the ramifications of that, or even if the league would allow, but it makes sense geographically. Aberdeen is not quite 6 hours from Owatonna, so it means overnight trips for the guys, and too long of a drive for all but the most ardent Express fans (although the speed limit is higher out in SoDak, so the endless hours of prairie go by a little quicker).
That's a lot of stuff for one day, and I could go on for another hour, but it is almost game time. For those of you that might read this during the game tonight, I will be live chatting on the blog. It will appear in a post above this post, and I encourage all of you to get your b2 broadcast ordered, and join us for a friendly chat.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Smith wasn't the only Express draft pick that joined the team this week, as 2009 pick Mike Yanis was also added to the roster. He is a 1991 birth year defenseman from Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan. He is 6'1"/190 lbs, and will be wearing jersey #25.
My take: I couldn't believe this news when I heard it the other day, and I couldn't be happier. I haven't seen Yanis play yet and don't know much about him, but Smith immediately makes the Express a better team. What a difference a week makes. Last Wednesday: 6 game losing streak, major question mark in goal, and big problems on defense. Today: 2 game winning streak, solid goalie, and a vastly improved defense.
Also from the "Big News" department today:
- Encouraging development in Albert Lea - A group of Minneapolis businessmen are interested in buying the Albert Lea Thunder franchise. Read the article here: http://www.albertleatribune.com/news/2010/jan/08/l-thunder-has-potential-buyer/ . This would be great news for our neighbors to the south, and a good thing for the Express as well.
- Aberdeen, South Dakota has been granted conditional approval for a membership in the NAHL. It's the lead article on the newly redesigned NAHL.com.
My take: Yesterday I was hoping for 6 teams in the Central Division, and now it looks like it could be 7 teams. Not sure the ramifications of that, or even if the league would allow, but it makes sense geographically. Aberdeen is not quite 6 hours from Owatonna, so it means overnight trips for the guys, and too long of a drive for all but the most ardent Express fans (although the speed limit is higher out in SoDak, so the endless hours of prairie go by a little quicker).
That's a lot of stuff for one day, and I could go on for another hour, but it is almost game time. For those of you that might read this during the game tonight, I will be live chatting on the blog. It will appear in a post above this post, and I encourage all of you to get your b2 broadcast ordered, and join us for a friendly chat.
See you at the rink.
--BK
Thursday, January 7, 2010
NAHL Franchise Coming to Austin??
First of all, this isn't the big news I referenced in the previous post. You will have to wait to hear that news.
I had heard rumblings that Austin, Minnesota was looking at joining the NAHL. This was confirmed today in an article in the Albert Lea Tribune which you can read here: http://www.albertleatribune.com/news/2010/jan/07/austin-could-get-junior-hockey/ . According to the article, there is an owner in place who wants to come to Austin, the NAHL has already approved him to own a team, and the city council/park & rec folks seem to be on board with the idea.
My take: This is great news for the Express organization. Worst-case scenario: the Austin franchise takes the place of the Albert Lea Thunder, and the Central Division stays at 5 teams. Best-case scenario: the Thunder stay alive in Albert Lea, and the Austin franchise makes the Central a 6 team division. A 6-team division would likely mean one less trip to Bismarck and one less trip to Alexandria each season. Two expensive trips replaced by a couple of short trips down Highway 218 to Austin. The other major benefit of a 6-team division is it makes the schedule more fair. In the current 5-team setup, there are far too many quirks in the schedule where one team is playing their 3rd game in 3 nights, while their opponent hasn't played for a week, or a team playing 3 straight nights in 3 different area codes. Let's hope the Austin franchise comes to fruition.
Next up for the Express is a huge 2 game series in Bismarck against the 1st place Bobcats. There is a nice article from the Bobcats media folks that you can read here: http://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/?id=3948663 . On the way back from Bismarck, the Express will wrap up the weekend with a Sunday 5pm game against the Blizzard in Alexandria.
The 6-game losing streak is in the rear-view mirror, the goaltending situation is solved, and the Express train is once again picking up speed. I'll see you at the rink.
--Big Kahuna
I had heard rumblings that Austin, Minnesota was looking at joining the NAHL. This was confirmed today in an article in the Albert Lea Tribune which you can read here: http://www.albertleatribune.com/news/2010/jan/07/austin-could-get-junior-hockey/ . According to the article, there is an owner in place who wants to come to Austin, the NAHL has already approved him to own a team, and the city council/park & rec folks seem to be on board with the idea.
My take: This is great news for the Express organization. Worst-case scenario: the Austin franchise takes the place of the Albert Lea Thunder, and the Central Division stays at 5 teams. Best-case scenario: the Thunder stay alive in Albert Lea, and the Austin franchise makes the Central a 6 team division. A 6-team division would likely mean one less trip to Bismarck and one less trip to Alexandria each season. Two expensive trips replaced by a couple of short trips down Highway 218 to Austin. The other major benefit of a 6-team division is it makes the schedule more fair. In the current 5-team setup, there are far too many quirks in the schedule where one team is playing their 3rd game in 3 nights, while their opponent hasn't played for a week, or a team playing 3 straight nights in 3 different area codes. Let's hope the Austin franchise comes to fruition.
Next up for the Express is a huge 2 game series in Bismarck against the 1st place Bobcats. There is a nice article from the Bobcats media folks that you can read here: http://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/?id=3948663 . On the way back from Bismarck, the Express will wrap up the weekend with a Sunday 5pm game against the Blizzard in Alexandria.
The 6-game losing streak is in the rear-view mirror, the goaltending situation is solved, and the Express train is once again picking up speed. I'll see you at the rink.
--Big Kahuna
Wait for it......wait for it.......
Something big is brewing, but you'll have to wait for it. Stay tuned.
--BK
--BK
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