The 2011 AIHL regular season has wrapped up this last weekend, with the Melbourne Ice taking out the H Newman Reid Trophy for the top team after the regular season.  They finished the season with an impressive 21 wins and 7 losses, giving them 65 points, 6 ahead of the second placed Newcastle North Stars.  So a big congratulations to the Ice for their victory.

Finals Seeding

The Finals will consist of 2 semi-finals on the Saturday and the Final on Sunday.  The 2 semi’s will see the Melbourne Ice face the Adelaide Adrenaline and the Newcastle North Stars take on the Sydney Ice Dogs.  The final will be played between the victors of these contests.  The Finals are always fast-paced exciting hockey, so be sure to be there or catch the games streamed live online.

The Blue Tongues Season

Another Tongues season has come and gone and it’s been full of highs and lows.

Standout Players

Without a doubt the most standout player on the Tongues this season was Tobias Falk.  Falk exemplified the true team-first playmaker.  His passing was exceptional, his skating smooth and as it turned out in the latter half of the season, his shot was deadly accurate.  Playing alongside Matt Amado most the season, Falk went from setup guy to being the #1 fan favorite import on the team.

As far as rookies go, Alex Hall had a fantastic season.  His 11 points were (i believe) the highest of all rookies in the league this season, and saw a lot of quality ice time.  Hall has amazing potential and will continue to grow and be a force on the Blue Tongues in future years.

Luke Fiveash may not have started the season with the Blue Tongues, but he finished it with an almost zealous cult following.  His acrobatic style and spectacular saves helped the team win vital games and carried them into a true race for the Finals.

Dave Upton needs to introduction to fans.  Since 2005 when Dave played for the team as a fresh faced 15 year old, Dave has always been a core member of the team.  Sadly, all things must end and Dave’s time with the Blue Tongues has ended as he heads to Sydney for work.  We wish Dave the very best of luck and hope that one day we’ll see him back in the Blue Jersey!

The Good

Defeating the Melbourne Ice has to be one of the standout moments for the fans.  The history between the clubs and the intensity of the games made that series a true one for the books.  Another game to remember is the second last of the season where the Tongues defeated the Newcastle North Stars in Newcastle; something that has only happened twice in their club history.

Seeing the Mustangs IHC enter the AIHL is a highlight, not for the Blue Tongues but for hockey in general.  The growth of the league is fantastic and the Mustangs did well in their first season.

The Bad

Walker-Gate, a name coined after the Ice Dogs were given a reprieve for playing an unsanctioned Nathan Walker early in the season has gone on too far.  People need to get over it.

Chemistry issues early in the season caused early Tongues games to end in less than desirable scorelines.  Add that to the coaches desire to play Kane “can’t stop a puck” Easterbrook for 6 games more than he should have all but put the Blue Tongues in a very tough position.  CJ Anderson was forced to sit on the bench and watch Kane fumble his way through games, when in reality he should have been playing.

Team disruption issues caused by non-passing star imports caused alleged rifts among the team, and also in the Stands.  Fans were heard commenting about how scoring chances were lost because people would not pass.  Then there were the rumours that some players would not play on a line with some others, causing what appeared to be major chemistry issues on the ice.

The Ugly

The Mustangs game on the Saturday will be remembered for one thing; a coach so out of control he lost the game for his team.  I have heard people talk about how the Stangs were goons that game, and i want to point out that the team simply followed the example led by their coach at the time.  As soon as he was ejected from the game the Mustangs settled down and played much better hockey.  Don’t hate the Mustangs for that game, as it takes 2 to tango.

A forfeiture is hard to take, especially when it could be argued that it cost a spot in the finals.  The Sunday game against the Ice Dogs was cancelled due to a malfunction at the Gold Coast Rink.  Both teams agreed it was unplayable and the league ruled the match a forfeit.  This was not the first time this had happened, and the Melbourne Ice were forced to forfeit a game a few seasons back for the same reason.  People need to stop hating the Ice Dogs for that situation, as the Ice Dogs and Tongues BOTH agreed that the ice was unplayable.  As i understand it (having read the full report) the Dogs did not petition for the forfeit, that was the leagues decision.  As i said in an earlier blog post, don’t hate the league for the decision, hate the Gold Coast rink for being so crap and if you must, hate the team for choosing to play out of that rink.

Looking Forward…

It’s the long off-season we go through now.  6 months of no AIHL hockey for us Blue Tongues fans, gives us plenty of time to speculate on what could happen.  How will the team look without Dave Upton?  Who will the new imports be? Will the Blue Tongues play at the Gold Coast? Will this be the last season captain Ross Howell laces up the skates?  We sure hope not!

The AIHL are rumoured to be bringing in rink standards as of next season and the Gold Coast rink is well below this standard.  Contrary to popular belief, the league CAN rule the rink below standard and force the Blue Tongues to find a new rink.   As a fan of this team i hope those in charge are taking this possibility very seriously.  The good news is, there are always rinks up in Brisbane which are well above standard.

The Blue Tongues season may be over, but don’t forget that the 2011 AIHL Finals are this weekend, the 3rd and 4th September, 2011.  Full details can be found here.