Seems a harsh subject, but if you were at the game, a fairly accurate description. The ice was reminiscent of a scene from Youngblood, an 80s hockey movie staring Rob Lowe and Patrick Swayze – fog all over the ice, and visibility for the crowd was extremely limited. After the game, I spoke to a couple of players who assured me that the visibility on the ice wasn’t that bad for them, and either way it was as bad for the Bears as it was for the Blue Tongues.
Fog and pelting rain on the tin roof of the rink aside, the start of the game didn’t bode well, with import Andre Selander sent to the penalty box for boarding 14 seconds into the game. However, the Blue Tongues strong penalty kill (PK) team showed up to play, killing off not just Selander’s penalty but Ivarsson’s tripping penalty 4 minutes later. Dave Upton opened the scoring for the BTs, with Trevor Walsh and Jon Bale also adding to the tally in the first.
Before I go onto to Trevor Walsh and how he was truly the hero of the game, I want to spend a moment on Jon Bale’s goal. The play was just beautiful. Don Burke passed to Dave Upton who sent a sweet pass, and I mean a sweet pass to Jon Bale, who connected perfectly, lifting the wrister shot into the top left shelf, where it missed the post, hit the net and the arms went up in the air. It was just such a pretty, pretty goal. The crowd screamed and cheered and clapped and everyone was elated. And it sent the Blue Tongues to the first intermission with a 3-0 lead.
In the second period, I’m not sure what happened to our boys but they either went to sleep or left the building because they weren’t the same team in the second period that they were in the first. Let’s face it, if it had been the North Stars out there yesterday instead of the Bears, that would have been the ballgame. The North Stars would have shredded us to pieces, spanked their butts and sent them home to their mothers. The defense was lackluster – no energy, no one looked to see where their teammates were – there were more turnovers than a Brumby’s bakery! The amount of times a BT passed the puck to a Bear was astronomical. And while the fog didn’t help the team, the Bears had to play in the same conditions, to they can’t use that excuse. The Bears put three goals on the BTs in that period. THREE! They shouldn’t have gotten anywhere near Fiveash to score on him – especially when we outshot them in every period.
Meanwhile… Walshie. Walshie was the hero of yesterday’s game. He lead the way on the ice the entire game, and was a standout player for the whole three periods. He was strong on offense, he was quick to get into position, he was helping out on defense when – in the second period – the defense for the Tongues took a nap or went on vacation. He was just one the entire game. Two goals were scored in the second period for the BTs – both by Walshie. And he scored his fourth goal in the third period. Brad Smulders and Andre Selander also scored in the third, while the Bears managed 1 more – the game ending at 8-4, but the scoreline just does not represent how the teams played.
In tonight’s game, the Blue Tongues once again face the Bears again in the second of the double header. The Blue Tongues need to tighten up the defense and watch their teammates. There is no point passing the puck if there’s no one there to receive it. And while we can score goals and put plenty of shots on goal, the defense needed a little improvement – or at least a little more physicality. The intensity that was there against the North Stars was not there against the Bears. Hopefully it will return tonight.
