Annual NYE game tonight!!

On the docket for today's post:

• New Years
• Hockey rivalry
• Whoo whoo who's jersey?
• Neal Prokop signed stick
  
• Penis cake
• Monkey pox
• Winter Classic liveblog

Happy New Year ('s Eve) everyone! It appears people on Spacebook and Twitter are being philosophical about the last decade, but I am just so happy with how 2009 was, I'm not going to worry about the other 9 years. Starting with this site, I saw readership steadily increase throughout the year, for which I am more grateful than I can ever put into words. Knowing y'all come back for more makes it all worthwhile. Also, as a result of this little site in the last year I've met the most amazing people (and we're all gonna wreck shit up tonight!) On a personal level this year also rocked my socks, bought a house, dead brain tumor, fell in love with baseball, and fell in love with Scotty Wazz. <3

Of course, December 31st also means the Chiefs are in town for the annual game.

"I can't wait," said Tri-City veteran forward Kruise Reddick. "This is one of the funnest games of the year -- the fans are crazy and everyone gets up for it. (Spokane) may be missing guys, but they are a deep team. When you play Spokane, it doesn't matter who's in the lineup, it will be a battle."

True story, games against the Chiefs are always good, especially if my boys win. It's such a heated rivalry, I love it when the boys just sort it all out on the ice.

"The last time they were here they laid a lickin' on us," said Hiller of a 4-1 loss on Nov. 27 at Toyota Center. "They will come after us. When you are on top you are the hunted because that's where everyone wants to be. You have to feel proud when you are there, the challenge is to stay there." (Herald)

heh. "laid a lickin'". (Insert your own predatory comment here).

It's anybody's guess who will be in net for the AMS tonight, I would assume Drew, but you never know. Hiller might toss in FRWG just to see how he handles the intensity of the rivalry game and/or to mess with Spokane's mind as they've never faced him before. Who the hell knows. I know the boys get super pumped for any game vs. Spokane, and with the sell-out crowd, hopefully they'll feed off the good energy of the fans.

I forgot to award waffles last game (I'll do it when I'm done with this post) but they're going to Brooks Macek. He's been working his ass off and he is due for a goal. Love the intensity he's had. It's also great to have Sergei back. When I did grades and mentioned that Patrick Holland would get my vote for Rookie of the Year, I had forgotten that Sergei is considered rookie this season as it's his first in the WHL. He totally deserves RoY for his play so far.

What's next on the list? Oh yeah, a game-worn Drew Owsley jersey that should be in my possession by game time. Srsly you guys, I have the bestest boyfriend ever. And actually huge thanks to Masheen for planting the idea in Wazz's head.

Speaking of gifts, tonight I'll also be getting my Neal Prokop signed hockey stick! It's really about time to break down and purchase these display things.

In case you weren't already jealous enough, The Bishes are partying tonight and apparently there will be a penis-shaped cake involved. And tiaras. Hilarity will ensue.

Back to hockey, don't forget tomorrow at 10 am (unless there's a crazy postponement, weather was looking like it was going to co-operate, but I think it's still a go at scheduled time) is the NHL Winter Classic. Reminder that Scotty Wazz and the boys at Face Off Hockey Show will be liveblogging the shenanigans. Go HERE for the direct link to the CoverItLive window. They'll be starting around 9 am our time. Holy crap that's early.

Martyniuk traded to Regina

in case you haven't seen already, from amshockey.com

Tri-City Americans Governor/General Manager Bob Tory announced today that the team has traded the rights to 18-year-old goaltender Brett Martyniuk (pro. Mart-nuk) to the Regina Pats for future considerations. The move reduces Tri-City's roster to 24 players (14 forwards, 8 defensemen and 2 goaltenders).

Martyniuk, listed at 5'9 175 pounds, has appeared in 7 games this season for Tri-City, going 1-1 with a 2.73 goals against average, a 0.860 save percentage and one shutout. Originally listed by Tri-City in September of 2007, the Winnipeg-native has appeared in 22 WHL games in his career, with a career record of 8-4 to go along with a 2.57 goals against average and a 0.890 save percentage. Before making the jump to the WHL, Martyniuk was named the Manitoba Midget Hockey League's 2007-08 Goaltender of the Year while a member of the Winnipeg Thrashers.

"With the arrival of (Alex) Pechurskiy, there simply is not enough playing time to go around," explained Tory. "We felt that it was important to find him somewhere he could compete for a job in the league. With Regina's injury situation, they were willing to give Marty a shot."

Best of luck Marty, you deserve to play a lot and be successful! Thank you for your contributions as a Tri-City American!

From Russia With Glove...and a shutout

So did you guys see that game last night? Yeah, it was a good one. For some reasons AMS and 'Tips are so consistently evenly matched that I always enjoy games against them (unless AMS lose of course...)

Hiller went with FRWG in net, not overly surprising there, toss him in, see what he can do. He did well, he's bigger (taller) than I pictured. He didn't look nervous or anything, played real solid. Me and the girls were laughing so hard, with every touch of the puck we said "Drew could have done that" or "Marty could have done that" and it got silly when we were saying that when ANY of the AMS players touched the puck. Silliness rules.

"I felt comfortable out there," said Pechurskiy with the help of an interpreter. "The guys helped me all game. It was fun. I'm happy with how I played."

So are his teammates.

"Not a bad debut for him," said overage forward Johnny Lazo. "We had confidence in him. (General manager) Bob (Tory) wouldn't have brought him in if he wasn't any good."

"He made a big commitment to join us," said Hiller, who picked up his 100th victory as a coach in the WHL. "We had to get him in. We have a solid team, we have depth and now we have that in goal, too." (Herald)

If he keeps playing well I imagine Drew and FRWG will become a #1 and #1A tandem thingy. Or not, who the hell knows.

Speaking of good goalies, that Kent Simpson is sure something to watch. Boys peppered him with 40 shots, he was outstanding as usual. I'm always impressed with his play.

The boys got today to rest (or practice I'm sure) to get ready for Chiefs tomorrow night in the annual NYE game. I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to it. Could just be The Bishes afterparty though. And getting my Drew Owsley jersey that Scotty Wazz got me (less than three!!!), and my Neal Prokop signed stick from Captain KB. Hell yes.

Lastly a couple notes, kudos to the little chick with the "I believe in Brett Martyniuk" sign, loved the glitter. Where were you when the contest was going on? :)

To my new BFF, you spent the game watching me? Who's the predator now creepy guy? If you don't like it, don't read it, stop wasting both our time. I'm not going to moderate comments at this point, I shouldn't have to, but I will if I need to. For now I'll leave your comments so others may just point and laugh at you.

Game day brain dump post

IT'S FINALLY GAME DAY!!

and these posts still haven't learned to write themselves. *sigh*

Annie's got the tale of the adventure the Winnipeggers had getting back to the States and to the Everett game:

"We got in about 7:30 and our flight wasn't until the next morning," said Americans forward Adam Hughesman. "We went to a hotel. There were 10 of us and just a few rooms left so one of them was a suite and there were four guys in there."

It was late at night and there were 10 hungry young men. They were allowed in the hotel bar and were able to order nachos and hamburgers.

After breakfast the next morning, they headed back to the airport where they caught a flight to Vancouver, British Columbia. The flight arrived in Vancouver about 1 p.m. Sunday afternoon, but with no open gate, the plane sat on the tarmac for 45 minutes.

It was after 2 p.m. when the players met with Terry Bangen, the team's director of player personnel, and Greg Toll, father of Tri-City team captain Jarrett Toll, who drove them to Everett.

"We were starving, we hadn't eaten since that morning," Hughesman recalled. "They had some subs waiting for us when they picked us up."

My cold little heart got the warm fuzzies seeing that Toll's dad drove them to the game. When you hear the phrase along the lines that the hockey community is a small, close one, there's the epitome of that right there. (That sentence is full of proper English and grammar fail, I don't care).

Personally, I'm curious to see if From Russia With Glove will be in net tonight. They've had at least one practice with him, not sure if that's enough to toss him in. And against Everett, it's not like they suck or anything. Course, if anyone knows me at all, you know I want Drew in net no matter what.*

If you've been living under a rock, perhaps you missed that the NHL Winter Classic is this Friday, at 10 freaking o'clock in the morning our time (after heaving drinking on NYE--terrible!). Scotty Wazz and the boys over at Face Off Hockey Show will be having a liveblog of the thing, here's some details, and here's the link that will lead you to liveblog. It'll be familiar format, the CoverItLive thing. Bonus points if you're still drunk and join in :)

Speaking of my boy Scotty Wazz, he's a sweetheart and sent me a Prospects Hockey magazine since they're sold in Canada. If you haven't seen one, you're missing out. It's published twice a year I think, it's the "official magazine of the Canadian Hockey League". They used to sell them with game programs at AMS games, but it's been a couple years :(.

Anyways, there's an article in this edition entitled "Everett's Piano Man" and it's about our Zach Yuen, though the dumb article says he plays for Everett.

If you're in the market for a pianist to play your next hockey fundraiser, look no further than Everett Silvertips (TRI-CITY AMERICANS YOU IDIOTS) defenceman Zach Yuen. "If there was a charity event, I could learn a piece of music and play," says the accomplished pianist.

The 16-year-old has been playing the piano since age five and is a certified piano teacher. Recently his mum bought him a keyboard so he could play at his billet's house, but he doesn't expect to be giving any of his teammates lessons any time soon.

"I don't think they'd be too interested in that," said, Yuen. "But I would like to start teaching sometime."

*for people who don't get it, I'm fully aware of why Bob brought in the Russian. I know Drew will need a rest. I know he can't play every game. Doesn't mean I have to like it, and my writing will reflect that.

Clay-ton Sto-ner clap clap clapclapclap

I know, I know, I said this was going to be posted like 2 days ago, I fail. Oh well.

In case you missed it, former American defenceman Clayton Stoner got called up to the Minnesota Wild. I've kept track of him with the Houston Aeros thanks to the fabulous Ms.Conduct (at her site and at The 3rd Intermission). Anyways, in his couple games with the Wild, he's certainly proved himself and has shown what a stud he is. Check it out:

Stoner makes his mark, leaving Scott expendable

Houston rookies no problem with shift in Wild philosophy

Elsie over at 18,568 Reasons Why has her introduction to Stoner here. (thanks for the link too Elsie!)

game day liveblog

Based on some inside scoops, I know that some of the boys had trouble getting back into the States because some jackass screwed up international flights. Should make for an interesting game, here's hoping they all make it safe and sound.

I may be running late since it's early game time and I'll be travelling back through the Gorge to my house today, but Spokant has awesomely agreed to get things started if I'm not around on time!

Mid-Season Report Card part 2

Alright, yesterday I looked at goalies and defencemen, today I'll break down the forwards. Huzzah! Also, since tomorrow's Christmas, probably on Saturday I'll give y'all some good links and stuff on former American Clayton Stoner's awesome performance with the Minnesota Wild recently.

Alright, going in order of number again:

Cody Castro: D My mother taught me that if I can't say anything nice to not say anything at all. Actually, I think that was Thumper on Bambi that said that. Look, here's the deal. Cody is a really nice kid, he skates decent, he's got good size. He was brought in to be an enforcer I guess, but I haven't seen much of that. He's not big or tough enough to intimidate anyone, he's not skilled enough to get a ton of ice time. His "fights" have consisted of some punches, but a lot of hugging. I think he has the determination to earn more time, which is a good thing, I just don't know if it'll be enough.

Nils Moser: C+ I'm tempted to go a bit higher, but I'm holding back. His skating (speed) could use a little work, but other than that, he's been an impressive rookie. He's got what I'm calling moxie. He's got passion for the game, he plays every shift like his ass is on fire. He's gotten into a couple good tilts, and done pretty well for himself. Obviously, he's got a ways to go with this development, but he's a behbeh, it'll happen. He's got good size, uses it effectively. I see a lot of potential in this kid.

Kruise Reddick: B Oh Pokey. Is it fair to mark him down for sucking at the point on the blueline when Coach is the one who puts him there? So I didn't, otherwise he'd be in the C range. I don't know, I guess I still have high expectations for Kruise like I always have, and I've always been disappointed. I mean, I've accepted that he'll never be a sniper, but still. I would really like to see a consistent effort. I still see him not playing balls-to-the-wall every shift like I expect someone of his experience to do. It's like he didn't get drafted so he's like "meh, whatever." Not all the time, mind you, but sometimes. He's got great vision, skates well, all the tools, but something is missing. Again, it's probably me having too high of expectations for him, but still.

Sergei Drozd: B+ (geez, I'm being tough on forwards today) I like this kid. Skates well, has great vision, good finish. I suppose I expected more goals from him, but at the same time, I can't say I've really been disappointed. Actually, he's probably helped Kruise's game a lot more too, having them on the same line, they seem to have some good chemistry.

Brooks Macek: B+ It would be higher, but I think some would accuse me of grading with my ovaries. Brooks has come a long way from last year, but still has a ways to go. He seems sort of streaky (like Messier, I'll get there) as far as finish, but he plays his hot ass off. He's been moved around with different line combinations, but in my opinion does his best when he's on a line with Jordan Messier, they seem to feed well off each other. For awhile he was paired with Drozd and Reddick, which wasn't bad either, Kruise has the experience, Drozd has the skill to compliment Brooks. All-in-all, he's done quite well, I expect to see great things from him in the coming seasons (and the rest of this one, for that matter).

Adam Hughesman: B+ gahhhhh. I just want to shake this kid. He started off so hot, playing with heart, with passion, like he no longer had cement in his skates. He showed what he's really capable of, it was spectacular, especially since it's his draft year. Aaaaaaaaannnnnnnddd then he dropped off. Considerably. Or at least it seems that way. There are times it seems he is just going through the motions. And I get it, he's on that top line and the opposition has figured out how to shut them down, but still. I think he's very talented, just doesn't always seem to show it, I don't know why. This has always been my frustration with this kid. I thought, based on his early performance, that this season would be different. I hope some home cooking and the Christmas break will revive his passion, his energy. He really is a great hockey player, it's just hiding sometimes. This is a kid who should NOT be invisible, but sometimes he is.

Mason Wilgosh: A You can't put a number on awesome. It's really too bad work ethic doesn't always translate to points or Willy would be leading the league. Srsly. He's got grit and determination. He's got ants in his pants on the penalty kill. He's like Drew Hoff. He's not going to be a sniper (even though he was in Bantams) but he'll wear down the opposition. He skates well and stays calm under pressure, again fantastic work on the PK.

Jordan Messier: A- Debated going with a B+... Mess plays his ass off. Every night. He's just not always rewarded with points, he's very streaky. As in, no goal since November whatever, then a hattie in Portland the other night. He was LONG overdue. Also, I'm probably biased (shocking I know) but he's one of the nicest guys EVARRR. He's got good size, he's not afraid to get in the middle and create havoc. Now if I can just get him to keep his mouthguard in his mouth so I can get good pictures of him...

Johnny Lazo: A Another streaky one, but he's always been that way. That being said, he's exceeded my expectations this season. I admit I wasn't sure he'd be kept as a 20, not that I didn't want him to be. He gets pushed off the puck all the time, no big shock there, but he never gives up. Kid is tenacious. And you can tell how strong he is the way he forces himself into tight spots to get to the puck. In addition, there's few that can outskate"The Roadrunner". He's targeted by the opposition because of his size and because he's on that top line, but he manages to do the dirty work to get things done. In the words of some random guy in the stands last season, "I LOVE YOU JOHNNY!"

Justin Feser: A Srsly. Rookie of the year last year, and he's just gone up from there. Especially since being moved to center, where he's gone bananas. By bananas I mean he's been lighting shit up. He's now 5th on the team in scoring, with the lowest PIMs out of that group. He's not going to come out of nowhere and wow you with spectacular plays (ok that one sweet breakaway a couple weeks ago was damn hot), but he's got excellent vision and he's off the radar of opposing players (though I'm sure that will change). At the beginning of the season we all said it'd be scoring by committee and Justin's been a huge part of that committee. He's a strong, thick kid who isn't afraid to use his size.

Brendan Shinnimin: A+ I debated (go figure) adding the plus, but he does lead the team in scoring. He's dropped off since the beginning of the season, but I think most of that is due to the opposition figuring out how to shut down that top line. Shinny's getting there, but isn't there yet, to be the kind of Yellow Horn or Fadden-type player where skill and talent can overcome being shut down by opposition, but he'll get there. He's quick and shifty--for lack of a better word. I never know quite what he's going to do and then BAM he scores a nifty goal. He's not the biggest guy but he makes up for it with speed and skill, similar to Yellow Horn and Fadden.

Neal Prokop: A+ And yes, that "plus" is probably my ovaries talking. But srsly. Like Wilgosh, this kid has an unstoppable work ethic. For him, it has translated into some points too. He's big and gritty. He has the ability to use his body to push guys off the puck and also to open up lanes for scorers. One of the hottest goals of the season was his sharp angle shot a couple weeks ago (against Swift Current I think). He was near the goal line and snapped it in over goalie shoulder, so damn sexy. Also it was right in front of me, I almost peed. I'm not in the locker room (sadly) but based on what I see on-ice and on the bench, he's clearly a leader on this team and if he's here as a 20 (I think he will be) I can see him becoming captain. I'm probably getting ahead of myself here, but still.

Todd Kennedy: Incomplete. What I've seen I haven't been very impressed with, it seems like for every shift he takes, it includes a trip to the penalty box. Yeah, he can fight ok, but meh. Whatever. I'm reserving opinion as he hasn't played a ton. But anyone who puts the team shorthanded on such a consistent basis isn't getting high marks in my book.

Patrick Holland: B+ Rookie of the year, I'm calling it now. He's got it all--size, speed, skill, good vision. Sometimes I watch him play and I'm amazed he's a rookie. Srsly. I can't wait to see what else this kid has in store, he's chock full of talent and he's not been hesitant to show it. He plays with full effort every shift, doesn't take lazy or stupid penalties. He seems like he'll become one of those solid, reliable type guys. Not necessarily super-scorer or anything, but steady and strong. I like that.

So there you have it, Merry Christmas everyone!

Player mid-term grades

Annie Fowler over at the Herald usually does mid-season grades around this time of year, as do I. Although this time, it looks like she's singled out Plouffe and is letting people vote? Whatever, I'm still gonna do my grades.

I apologize now for any suckitude, it seems my heart is in Calgary, not here with me so...yeah, it's been a rough week.

Let's start with the goalies, including the CHL Goalie of the Week!

Drew Owsley: A+++ Drew has far exceeded even my totally biased expectations. For someone who sat in the stands for the last half of last season, it's apparent he worked his little ass off this summer to take that #1 spot. Owsley isn't the biggest kid, I think his gear weighs as much as he does, and he's not very tall (then again, we're used to super tall Price and Pickard, but think back to Weiman) but he is quick and agile, and somehow makes himself bigger in the net. I've watched this kid pretty darn close and I am constantly surprised by the amazing saves he makes. At this point, I shouldn't be, but I am. I don't know how he is able to spot and grab the puck so quickly. As of today:

• 5th in the WHL in goals against (2.50)
• 4th in the WHL is save percentage (.917)
• 1st in the WHL, 2nd in the CHL in wins (25)
• Tied for 1st in the WHL for shutouts (4)

Brett Martyniuk: Incomplete. With Owsley having played 34 of 36 games so far, it's hard to give poor Marty a grade. I love my Owl and the way he's been playing, but it's not exactly fair to Marty to have him never play. Or tossed in when they're down by 5 goals or whatever. Marty got in some good games last season so I know he can play goal pretty good. At the same time, I understand riding the hot goalie (heh). With no official word from the team about the goddamn Russian, I don't know what the future holds for Brett. If From Russia With Glove really does show up (ugh) I imagine Bob will re-assign Marty, which in a lot of ways is good because he'll actually get to play. However, it will bring down the hotness quotient of the team exponentially.

Defence (in order by number):

Jarrett Toll: A+ There's a reason Toller is captain. He leads by example. You know what you're going to get from him each and every night which is great play and reliability. He's not going to wow anyone with big hits or flashy plays, but he does what he needs to do, night in and night out, never taking a shift off. As a 20-year-old he's shown what it means to be a leader and a steady, strong defenceman in this league. I predicted that Bob would not let him go, that he would serve out his entire career in and AMS sweater, and I'm glad I was right on that one.

Drydn Dow: C B- (I'm trying to not be too generous or almost all of them would have As) I hate giving lower grades to rookies simply because they're rookies and make rookie mistakes. Then again, Dow isn't one that makes even a lot of rookie mistakes. He really doesn't play like a 16-year-old. In fact, he plays like I expected Yuen to do (I'll get to him in a bit). Dow's a small guy, but doesn't hesitate to get in the mix. He had some sort of target on him when Prince George was in town but he stood tall(ish) and didn't back down, didn't shy away from hits or anything. Needless to say, I can't wait to see more of this kid, see him grow and develop, I think he's got a ton of potential, he sees the ice really well, doesn't get rattled at all.

Eric Mestery: A- (shut it haters, these are my grades) This is a different Eric Mestery than what the AMS used to have. No longer does one bad play throw off his entire night. Does he make mistakes? Yes, they all do. Hell, the pros do. So put away your microscopes people, and let him play. He's tall and uses that long reach to poke the puck out, he's one of the best skaters on the team. Like Toll, he's not flashy, he's not a hard-hitting physical guy, he doesn't need to be. He logs a ton of minutes. I have had him under a different microscope than most and have seen some really great plays. I've seen him help Drew by saving some goals, he's good at getting the puck up the ice. In addition, I think having Hiller/Virtue combination coaching him has helped his game, I don't imagine his fragile confidence issues were handled well by Dictator Don.

Riley McIntosh: A- If I had to vote now (and if my vote counted for anything) I'd vote Riley for "most improved" this season. Last year I cringed whenever Riley was on the ice, he was a liability. Now? Not so much. Well, at the beginning, he started a little rusty. But since then he's been absolutely nails. Another one who isn't flashy or big-hitting, but does what he needs to do. He logs a ton of minutes and has become quite the reliable defenceman. Personally, I think he just needed someone to believe in him, so kudos Mikaela (and the rest of us who believe in him).

Zach Yuen: C I gotta admit, I had high expectations for Zach and he has fallen short. Although the last couple games he's played in he's done a lot better. I don't know if it's a confidence thing or just being a rookie, or what, but he's been somewhat disappointing. And that sounds harsher than I intend it to, it's not like he's been TERRIBLE or anything, just not what I had hoped. Because of that, he's not been getting the ice time I had hoped, nor obviously developed as quickly as I'd hoped. That being said, as I mentioned before, he has been doing better, I really hope he has a much better 2nd half, and I think he will. I think it's just taken him some time to settle in. Which also isn't easy to do when you don't play every game.

Tyler Schmidt: A- I was going to go lower, in the B-/C range, but realized that wouldn't be accurate, that would be me going on emotion. Tyler is a good defenceman, he really is. I don't have a problem with his playing style, it's solid and reliable. His skating has vastly improved, he no longer looks like he's skating with cement in his skates. But holy hell, he needs to shut up. Me and the Bishes call him Tyler Schmidt, Attorney-at-Law who has never won a case. Schmidt, you're not going to change the refs mind, stop drawing attention to yourself and your teammates with that kind of whining. People who say Sidney Crosby is a whiner need to see Schmidtty in action. Just play your game Tyler, you're a good defenceman. UGH.

Brett Plouffe: B- That may not be a fair assessment, but he really was sucking it up at the beginning of the season. There were nights I thought "why the hell did Bob keep this guy? Why did I think he should be here as a 20?" He's played better, but still not where I thought he'd be as a 20. He had such a great season last year, and now it's almost like he's regressed a little. I don't know if it's due to coaching change or if someone pissed in his Corn Flakes, I have no idea. But I would like to see it turned around--quickly. All that negativity aside, he's still got one hell of a rocket for a slapshot, and he's an excellent skater. I pray for a better 2nd half.

Brock Sutherland: A- Now this is a kid who has come into his own. The last month or so has been the best hockey I've seen from Suds ever. He's playing smarter with the puck. He's using his size and strength quite effectively. He's been a healthy scratch a couple times but with the way he's been playing I believe we'll be seeing more of him, he's definitely earned it. Although I know it's tough with 8 guys, 6 spots and wanting the kids to develop, but srsly, Brock has been playing his ass off.

alright, I'll get to the forwards tomorrow! Feel free to disagree (if you want to get shanked J/K) but you know I'm right HAHAHAAAA

Vacation

It's gonna be sparse around here, but should have some content up later tonight or tomorrow. I'm spending the week with family. :)

WAIT, WHAT THE FUCK?? (yes, this does require the F-bomb)

19 years old Alexander Pechursky decided to report in North America as he's
going to play for the Tri-City Americans of the Western Hockey League, according
to allhockey.ru. Pechursky has been drafted by the US team in this spring's
Import Draft with the 55th overall pick. (Russian Hockey Fans via Drinnan)

Um, whut? He's "decided to report"? Can Bob say no? If Bob can't/won't say no, I'm guessing Marty will be re-assigned. Screw you stupid Russian. I'm so mad right now.

more later.

Game day @ PDX

I'm getting ready to head out to get to Portland to see the game tonight.

Before I forget, a couple notes about former AMS from last night:

Lane Werbowski scored his first goal of the season and Torrie Jung made 25 saves as the Edmonton Oil Kings managed a 3-1 win over the visiting Red Deer Rebels on Friday. (WHL)

Spencer Asuchak tied Trevor Linden for the fastest goal ever scored in a WHL game at 7 seconds (though it was a losing effort for PG). (WHL)

Drew shut out 'Tips last night, that's so hot. Johnny got another shorty and another multi-point game for him and Justin Feser. This is the sexy picture the AMS featured on the webpage (yes, tooting my own horn here a little. A lot.)



The FABULOUS Spokant will be your liveblog hostess this evening, I can't wait to read the hijinx tomorrow!

Game one of two on the road before Christmas

Boys are in Everett tonight to take on the Silvertips.

aaaaaaannnnddd ten minutes later, I'm wondering why this post can't write itself. Meanwhile, I'm stressing that I haven't come up with my list of what I would get the boys for Christmas this year, it's hard coming up with 25 different gifts. ::whines, pouts, stomps feet::

"We want to make our move before Christmas," said Tri-City veteran forward Johnny Lazo. "To sit atop the West at Christmas would be nice."

Tri-City will have a short holiday break -- Dec. 20-26, compared to last year when they had 10 days off.

"We need some rest," Lazo said. "But we got lazy during the break last year and we were rusty in Spokane. A shorter break may help us."

Tri-City coach Jim Hiller said the games this weekend can make a statement going into the break.

"This is a challenge for everyone," Hiller said. "Who wants to lay it on the line before they go home. We have to be focused. We've had a couple of bad games like everyone does, but I think we've shown teams thus far we are a team to be reckoned with." (Herald)

I was perusing the New York Times today (yay for morning rituals) and came across this article about brain damage in hockey players. I've discussed this issue before, it's a serious problem--not just in hockey. I'm not to say fighting should be eliminated or anything, just be careful with my boys' noggins. There's permanent damage occurring.

Once again, I can't get to CoverItLive from work (LAME!!!1) so I'll have liveblog up later this afternoon, hope to see y'all there. Lurkers, stop in and say hello! There may or may not be a lot of booze involved on my end this evening--YAY Christmas vacation!!

Mask

Drew was super nice and let me get some shots of his new lid. Click on an image for a larger size.

Still have Christmas shopping to do?

Check out the designs at Zazzle, today is the last day (by 3 pm) to order dark items (like Messier shirt) to have it delivered by Christmas!

The weekend that was

So I don't know about you, but I had an amazing weekend. Friday night teddy bear toss and a win. Then went out for celebration with my favoritest people on the whole planet (minus one, less than three Scotty Wazz)! The Bishes (yes, capitalized, our group is now a proper noun) banded together to get me a hockey stick for my birthday which was then autographed by the whole team last night at the skate! Srsly, these Bishes rule. Be so completely jealous that you're not one of us. Or not.

Last night was a great game against Swift Current. Full 60 minute effort. Ok, more like 59 minutes, that first minute of the 3rd was...lacking. But still

This Patrick Holland kid, watch out. Two totally sweet unassisted goals. He's got some skill. I don't know if he just had an ON night or it just seemed that way because he got a ton of ice time, but whatever, I'll take it. Actually, I'm pretty sure he was ON which is why he got so much ice time.

"Jim has given me more ice time lately and I've been playing pretty well the last couple of games," Holland said. "I was with (Justin) Feser and (Neal) Prokop today and they put pressure on them that helped me be able to score."

Also kicking ass was Riley McIntosh. He's been better this season overall, but since learning Mikaela believes in him so strongly, he's been absolutely dynamite.

"I think with age I feel more comfortable in the lineup," McIntosh said. "Things seem to be going my way a little bit more."

I thought Coach would put in Martyniuk against the Broncos, and I feel bad that he's not getting any time in net unless they're getting shellacked. That being said, Drew was his amazing self, once again.

"It's pretty easy on me when we score six goals," Owsley said. "Thirty wins is pretty cool."

HUGE thanks to Drew for letting me photograph his mask last night during the skate, I really appreciate it!

Let's also give some props to Jordan Messier, he was very long overdue for a goal and he's been working his ass off. Though I'm hesitant to compliment him too much since he was giving me shit about wearing Scotty Wazz's jersey. No, it's not a Winter Hawks or even Chicago Blackhawks sweater, is the Chesapeake Chiefs from the boy's playing days :)

"Mess has been snake bit," Hiller said. "It's nice to see him get that tonight." (Herald)

It's true, you could see the relief on his face. Also, if you're on the Twitterverse, so is Mess, you can follow him at Messier19.

In case you missed it, there's a nice article in the Winnipeg Sun about the large number of Manitobans on the AMS roster. Sister and I were behind a car with Manitoba plates going to Red Robin after the game Friday and I said "I wonder who's from Manitoba?" and all she said was "ummmmmmmmmmmmmmm" yeah, it was not the most intelligent moment of my life.

Brooks Macek = Awesome. Your argument is invalid.

2,683 was the amount of teddy bears (and other stuffed animals) that were tossed to the ice last night when Macek score the first of his two goals last night. I had forgotten how much I love seeing all those bears raining down on the ice. We missed last years' because we were in Boise watching former American Ryan Kinasewich (om nom nom). Anyways, it's just cool to see.

I thought overall it was a good game, lots of intensity. That's what I want to see on a nightly basis.

"We had contributions all the way around," Hiller said. "Moser scored a huge goal off a big play by Mac."

"This is a pretty big win," Macek said. "We are four points up on Spokane and two division rivals lost tonight, which is good. We had a good game in Seattle (on Friday) and again today. We want to carry that in against Swift Current." (Herald)

While I don't agree Seattle's game was good, I'll take it. This notion that they have momentum that will carry into tonight's game. And Nils Moser's goal was hot. As was Neal Prokop's sharp angle shot right in front of me. That one made me tingly in my lady bits, as such things by Neal Prokop tend to do.

I must say I was also impressed with the size of the crowd last night, it was almost a full house. For how crappy the weather was, it was great to see. And granted, I've got more snow here in Oregon than what was in Tri, but still.

Note to all 4-wheel-drive drivers, you are NOT, in fact, invincible. 4WD means 4 wheels sliding on the ice. I know this, I used to have a 4WD rig. So slow the hell down.

Speaking of ranting (who? what?) to the asshole sitting a couple rows back from me who was spewing Mestery hate, STFU. Please. He actually had a good game last night, and I'm not just saying that cuz I like the kid, he actually did. And whatever, haters gonna hate, but for heaven's sake, that's no reason to yell "Mestery you suck!" and other such shit. THAT'S A PLAYER FOR YOUR OWN TEAM. So you don't like his not-so-physical style of play, so what. Every guy has a different style and one that works for him (and the team), just because he's not banging bodies around like Tyler Schmidt or Brock Sutherland, doesn't mean he's not effective. Not only that, some people have him under such a huge microscope that any little mistake and that's the only thing they'll remember from his whole game. It's bullshit. If you're gonna do that, put them all under microscope. How about the play in the 1st when Sutherland let a guy get right by him and almost score (and would have if not for Drew)? How about the not-as-physical style of play of Captain Jarrett Toll? No one's questioning his abilities or anything, he's never been a super physical guy. Don't say you put them all under the same microscope, cuz you don't. ("you" =/= a specific person, I'm just sayin' in general). Also, don't come to me (or the comments section) with lists of shit Eric fucked up on, you're not going to get me to join your Hateraide party.

Well alright then, I spent more time bitching than talking about the game last night. Awesome.

Boys take on Swift Current tonight. I'm just hoping to make it safe through the snow to get some pre-game Burger Ranch and make it in time for puck-drop. Everyone drive safe, be smart, just slow down.

Toss your Teddies!!

Teddy Bear Toss night tonight with the Winter Hawks in town! But first, I gotta know:

• Where the F is the consistency? I think that's the most frustrating part, the lack of consistency. And I know there's no Mitch Fadden-type guy who can be spectacular on a nightly basis, and other teams are going to know to shut down Shinny and Co., so where are Macek, Feser, Messier on those night? They need to step the hell up.
• Yeah, 55 shots isn't anything to sneeze at, but how many of those 55 were quality? Twitter update from a buddy at the game last night: "Tri game plan. Muffins at calv and don't hit empty nets!!" Fantastic
• Where's the spark? The energy? The drive to make a real effort when getting down? I'm sick of these 5-1, 7-1 huge losses, I'd settle for a close game (even if it's a loss) once in a while.
• And don't tell me a Cody Castro hug fight is the spark. And now Kennedy's out for awhile, but I'm not convinced he's the answer either.
• I think it's a coaching issue. If they're failing to come out of the 2nd intermission ready to kick ass and play like their balls are on fire, that's on coach. In my opinion.
• No, I'm not jumping off any bandwagon, I'm not saying fire coach or anything crazy like that. I'm just saying he's the one at the helm who needs to figure out how to guide this team.
• I'm not opposed to giving Marty some starts. Srsly. My little Owl is perhaps a little overworked. Especially if the team is going to leave him out to dry like last night. Probably should have been Marty against PG the other night.

Ok Negative Nancy--let's look at some of the positives:

• It was one game. And Calvin Pickard is a damn good goalie. And Seattle isn't totally sucktastic.
• The work ethic of Neal Prokop and Mason Wilgosh--absolutely unreal.
• Add Messier to that work ethic list too. Captain Toll too.
• Yikes, only 3 positives? That's not good.

On that note, there's a few interesting bits from Drinnan this morning:

• The Vancouver Province is reporting that one player from the major midget Fraser Valley Bruins suffered a fractured collarbone when the team bus was involved in an accident near Williams Lake, B.C. The Province is quoting RCMP Cpl. Dan Moskaluk as saying: "One youth is suffering from facial injuries, non-life threatening, another with a fractured collar bone, and the remainder of the bus occupants are suffering from no injury to minor injuries.” I also was told that head coach Pat Ansell, a former goaltender with the Regina Pats 1976-78), suffered a broken nose. The Province story is right here.
• The WHL puts its annual Christmas trade moratorium in place early next week. Trading won’t be allowed from Tuesday (Dec. 15) through Sunday, Dec. 27. A trade will be accepted by the WHL office until 11:59 pm MT on Dec. 14 and again starting at 12:01 a.m. on Dec. 28. As well, players attending a World junior team evaluation/selection camp cannot be traded. If a player makes a World junior championship team, he cannot be traded until Wednesday, Jan. 6, the day after the World junior tournament concludes. Players attending the U-17 World Hockey Challenge cannot be traded until Monday, Jan. 4, the day after the event concludes.

Apparently I'm all about putting things into bullet points today. Fantastic.

Well, me and the fabulous bishes are going out to RR after the game to have an awesome time. If we have to drink away a loss or celebrate a victory, it's still going to be amazing. It's my birfday!

Game Day

I realized when I went to bed last night that I never wrote up a post-game thing from Wednesday's game. Oh well, such is life. It wasn't that good of a game. I mean, it was good, they won, but it wasn't super intense or anything memorable, really. I know, that sound harsh, but whatever.

I take that back, I do have a couple things to say about it.

• It was good to see Spencer working his ass off and getting a ton of playing time, I was even glad to see him in on the Cougars lone goal (sorry Drew)
• I don't know what Drydn Dow ever did to PG, but for some reason they were targeting him all night. He handled it well. Cuz he's a stud.
• Speaking of Spencer, not sure what the hell was the issue between him and Brett Plouffe towards the end of the game, but I didn't like it. I don't know what all goes on behind the scenes and if there was animosity between these two or what, but I don't like to see my boys fighting each other (yes, I know technically Spencer isn't one of my boys anymore, but yet he is).
• Finally, HUGE thanks to Shinny for giving Baby Spokant the autographed stick. So damn precious.

Onto tonight and this weekend:

Boys in Seattle tonight (liveblog stuff will be added below, I can't do it at work for some reason)

Portland in town Saturday for Teddy Bear Toss night. According to the Herald:

If you didn't have time to shop for a stuffed animal, the Americans will have teddy bears available to purchase for $3 at Section C on the concourse. The bears were donated by Fred Meyer and the proceeds will benefit the players' education fund.

So that's a pretty sweet deal, I'll probably just do that.

Sunday the Swift Current Broncoes are in town, there's Skate with the Americans after the game, with $5 skate rental available.

Speaking of the Herald, Annie takes a closer look at Drew Owsley's (who??) new helmet.

The sleek, shiny helmet has immaculate detail and each design has a purpose.

On one side is the Americans trademark logo, with stars running down along the jaw. Pretty standard as to why that was part of the design Drew worked up with Jason Bartziokas of Calgary.

On the other side is Uncle Sam on the top half and a bald eagle below by the ear hole.

"Both are well-known symbols in America, and playing in the States, they were fitting," he said.

On the front below the grill is a Calligraphy 'D' (for Drew).

"I had that on my old helmet and I had it replicated for the new one," Owsley said.

On the back plate are silhouettes of military personnel, mention of the Carson Kolzig Foundation and Owsley's last name.

"I think the military does a lot for our country and the States," Owsley said. "It's a way to pay tribute. The Carson Kolzig Foundation is run by one of our owners and is for a good cause."

You can view photos of his lid here. It's damn sexy. Though I must admit, I am a little sad there's no owl on it. Oh well, he didn't ask for my input. I'm tired of that, let me tell ya :)

Stay tuned for liveblog info coming later this afternoon...

Game Day v Prince George

hey, Spencer's back in town tonight! I love my goalies to death, but I kinda hope he snipes one. Just cuz.

"You can't overlook them," Lazo said. "(Brett) Connolly is a dangerous player and they have some guys who can score."

"After the last two games at home, we wanted to show our fans that it won't happen again," said Lazo, who had back-to-back hat tricks in the two wins. "It was nice to have four days of practice last week. We simplified things and got back to the basics. We want to put last month behind us and get a fresh start."

"We needed to get our game back," said Tri-City coach Jim Hiller. "We executed well and we were physical. We are at our best when we are physical. It doesn't matter how big you are, you take away the hands and the stick and knock them on their backside. Johnny used his speed and was the first guy on the puck. The goals were a byproduct of that. His whole line (with Brendan Shinnimin and Adam Hughesman) was good." (Herald)

Oh hey, Johnny's also CHL Player of the Week. That's damn sexy right there.

Thought this bit from Drinnan was interesting concerning Sbisa and the boners people around here seem to have for him:

There has been and is a lot of buzz among fans concerning Lethbridge Hurricanes D Luca Sbisa, 19. Will the Hurricanes trade him before the Jan. 10 deadline, or will they hang on to him? . . . Well, I spoke with one general manager on Tuesday who suggested that were a team to trade for Sbisa it should be prepared to have a tired player on its hands . . . whenever he is able to find time to play for them. “He’s going to be gone for so long,” the GM said. “You’re not getting him until . . . World junior . . . Olympics . . . he’s going to be burnt out. He won’t be anything good for you until playoffs. His whole focus will be World junior and Olympics; that’s all those players think about, their country.”

Remember AMS, there's a little cutie pie handing out the 3 stars awards tonight who really really really really really wants the autographed stick. Don't let her down.

Shots from the Point--It's my birthday edition

So it's my birfday (yay me!) I just ate an almost-as-good-as-mom's-homemade chicken pot pie. Good stuff, even the peas, which (magically) were not full of sand. And I did burn my tongue--UGH. I also wore the boy's old hockey jersey to work, because I'm that amazing (and so is he).

As for birthday wishes, I will just say I am blessed. Srsly, y'all, I love you. But I also have to share a couple of bits of awesomeness:

Drayson Bowman called today, wanted me to wish you a Happy Birthday. I was all "whatever dude, call her yourself" He was all "I'm too nervous, I can't" I was all "Dude, she loves you, it'll be all good, just do it" and he still wouldn't... so Happy Birthday!!! (Dave from Barry Melrose Rocks)

Happy Birthday to my favorite person in the whole Tri-Cities area, apart from Macek and Plouffe and Baby Owl. But you've got that #4 spot LOCKED DOWN, honey. ;) Hope it's a great day and you deserve every bit of happiness that comes your way, birthday or not. *mwah!* (Ms. Conduct)

Moving on, this, my dear AMS, is baby Spokant. She will be presenting the 3 stars tomorrow night and she wants the stick. Can you resist this face? Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannndd this request is way different than when I made my push to get the stick (heh) when I presented 3 stars last season because she is a precious 2-year-old, not an adult. Besides, once you see those saucers for eyeballs, you'll be sucked in by the cuteness and you will be ok with giving her the autographed stick.


GIVE HER THE AUTOGRAPHED STICK TOMORROW NIGHT.

If you missed out on the liveblogs from Friday and Saturday you missed that the host of Face Off Hockey Show (Wednesdays, 4:30-6:30 PST), Scotty Wazz, was in the house. Literally. No really, he was in my house. It was a fantastic weekend. I once again have to stand back an be in awe of the amazing people I have met through having this blog. But this boy... <3

Last bit for now, today I noticed (actually, Mikaela did and texted me about it) a link to this site is no longer on the AMS Unofficial Message Board. I didn't ever ask to have a link there, though I was certainly most grateful for the traffic. So whatever, hope people still know how to get here :)

Johnny Lazo--Player of the Week

ooooo I took that picture!!


from WHL.ca:

CALGARY, AB. - The BOSTON PIZZA WHL Player of the Week is forward Johnny Lazo of the Tri-City Americans.

Lazo collected seven points, scoring six goals and one assist to go with a +5 rating, in two road games over the past week, helping the Americans post a 2-0-0-0 record in that span.

On Friday, December 4^th, the Americans were in Kamloops to face the Blazers. Lazo netted the hat-trick as the Americans went onto a 7-0 victory over the Blazers; he was also named the games 1^st Star. The next evening, Saturday, December 5^th, the Ams’ were at Prospera Place to take on the Kelowna Rockets. Lazo collected another three goals, for his third career hat-trick and second in as many nights, along with an assist as the Americans downed the Rockets 5-1, he again was named the games 1^st Star.

Lazo’s six goals and seven points over the last two games has him sitting tied for 18^th among all WHL goal scorers with 17 on the season and 38^th among all WHL scorers with 32 points in 29 games. With the pair of weekend wins the Americans maintain top spot in the WHL US Division and Western Conference with a 21-8-0-0 record for 42 points.

Lazo, a 20-year-old from Winnipeg, Manitoba, is playing his third full season with the Tri-City Americans. He has appeared in 174 regular season games accumulating 54 goals and 77 assists for 131 career WHL points.

The WHL has also nominated Drew Owsley of the Tri-City Americans for the CHL Goaltender of the Week Award. Owsley posted a 2-0-0-0 road record with one shut-out this past week, stopping 40 of 41 shots faced for a 0.500 goals-against average and a remarkable 0.976 save percentage. Owsley, a native of Lethbridge, Alberta, leads all WHL goaltenders in the win category with a 20-7-0-0 record, and sits sixth with a 2.67 GAA.

THIS

why I try to avoid the message boards.

Depth

I don't know about you, but I had the best weekend EVARRRRRRRR!!1. I did run across the following bit from Drinnan this morning, I got nothing to add (shocking, I know) so I'm just gonna cut and paste.

It was only a few short years ago that the Tri-City Americans appeared to be
on the brink of extinction. Now here they are, six seasons later, riding high atop the WHL’s Western Conference, looking every bit like a championship contender. Again.

This season, they are doing it with a new (old) head coach, Jim Hiller having replaced Don Nachbaur, who now is head coach of the AHL’s Binghamton Senators. Hiller, of course, is hardly a stranger to the Americans, having served as an assistant with them before venturing into the BCHL and then on to a three-season stint as head coach of the Chilliwack Bruins.
Earlier this season, Hiller told me that once he had been in Kennewick, Wash., long enough to familiarize himself with the Ams’ organization, one thing stood out above all the rest -- depth.

And it is that depth -- the credit goes to GM Bob Tory, assistant GM/director of player personnel Terry Bangen and the scouting staff -- that has allowed the Americans to keep on keeping on they way they have and are.

Consider that they now are 21-8-0-0 and that this comes on the heels of
seasons in which they have won 47, 52 and 49 games, finishing atop the U.S. Division each of the last two season.

Consider, too, that since the present ownership group -- Stu Barnes, Olaf Kolzig, Dennis Loman and Tory -- took over, the average regular-season attendance has risen 35 per cent. In 2005-06, the first season under new ownership, the average per-game attendance was 3,857, an increase of 17.7 per cent from the previous season. In 2008-09, they averaged 4,117 fans per game.

The Americans, under Tory, do a lot of the little things right. The people, including players, in the organization are ultra-accessible. And, yes, they do all of the things in the community that junior hockey teams do. Which brings us to their media guide.

Not too many teams put out media guides these days and that's really too bad. Dan Mulhausen, the Americans’ director of marketing, media and game operations, oversaw production of this season’s gem and it really is a gem.

“We’re working hard to be fan friendly and to make sure the business is solid year to year,” Tory says, explaining why the Americans produce a media guide. If you’re a WHL fan, and specifically a fan of the Americans, you are going to want to get your hands on one of these 182-page babies.

I can personally attest to the awesomeness of the media guides. Really a spectacular job, and I'm not just saying that because several of my photos were used in it. It's really well done. Even designer Sister was mostly impressed!

Puck MILFs back again

Soooooooooooo, there's a game tonight. AMS at Kelowna. For his sake, it's a damn good thing Scotty Wazz did not bring his Ogopogologo Rockets jersey. And apparently I'm not allowed to get too liquored up tonight. We'll just see about that...

In the meantime, can tonight's liveblog top last nights? It'll be tough, but let's see what ya got.

GAME DAY

The boys have had a good week of practice and should be ready to go for weekend games in Kamloops and Kelowna (hey, that was my vacation this summer!)

"We were able to have a few decent days of practice, get some hard work in, go over details and work on the power play, which has let us down a bit here in the last stretch," Hiller said. "We didn't have a lot of puck luck over the weekend, but that will turn around."

Americans captain Jarrett Toll said the players have put the past two games behind them and are moving on.

"Things weren't going our way, we were sloppy and we lost focus," Toll said of the losses to Spokane and Everett. "We have to work hard if we are going to win. We've had a good week of practice and we are focusing on our system. We will be ready to roll this weekend." (Herald)

As usual with away games, I'll have liveblog up and running (huge thank you ahead of time to Spokant and Sister for helping with that as I am...distracted). :)

**for some reason, my new computer at work will not let me log in to CoverItLive to get liveblog info up here, I'll have it up later this afternoon**

uhhh more Reese news

aaaannnd Jason got traded. Again.

Olstad re-assigned?

found this tid-bit on Annie Fowler's "blog". An official statement from the team would be nice.

It's hard to say good-bye

I knew something was up Saturday night when I saw Cody Castro give Tanner Olstad a big hug out by the team benches.

One by one, the rest of the team came out, gave him a hug or a pat on the shoulder. From up in my perch, I knew the kid was going home.

Tanner is the third player in less than two weeks to vacate the dressing room. First was Lane Werbowski, traded to Edmonton. Then Spencer Asuchak was dealt to Prince George.

You may think of these guys as rugged hockey players, but they still are young men, hundreds of miles from home, whose friendships mean the world to them. These guys are a family.

No official announcement was made, but the league's weekly transaction sheet that Bob Tory so kindly passes along, has the native of Calgary, Alberta, being reassigned to the Alberta Junior Hockey League.

Tanner, all 5-foot-6, 150 pounds of him, played in just 10 of the Americans 27 games this season, chipping in one assist and two penalty minutes.

Reeser

Huge thanks to the fabulous Ms. Conduct who keeps an eye on things for me and passes goodies along, here's a shot of former American (and one of my all-time favorite kids) Jason Reese. He is currently with the Texas Brahmas, this is from their jersey auction. According to Ms. C, this photographer also takes a lot of great game shots so you can probably find some action shots of Jason if you view his flickr stream here.

Bowman Update

I am a Carolina Hurricanes fan (I know, shuddup) and things are looking pretty really crappy right now for the boys in Raleigh. The good news, their AHL affiliate, the Albany River Rats is doing pretty darn good. They have some great prospects in their system, including Brandon Sutter (who's been with the parent team for a while now, doing great), Zach Boychuk, and of course, Drayson Bowman.

Yesterday the AHL's website ran a feature on the object of my past traitorous whore-dome, sweet baby-faced Drayson. om nom nom (check out the tongue in the picture!)

"I wouldn't say I'm patient off the ice," Bowman laughed. "That's not what I'm known for."

"I want to make the NHL," said Bowman, who notched 6 goals and 6 assists in his first 18 games with Albany. "And I don't want the slow road."

The long road, maybe. Bowman grew up in Colorado until his family moved to the Vancouver area when Drayson was 13. Parents Mack and Nancy wanted Drayson and younger brother Colin to get better hockey competition and put them in position to possibly get taken in the WHL draft.

"It was a huge sacrifice for my parents, a lot more of a risk on their part," Drayson said. "I was too young to realize what they were doing. I just wanted to play hockey. Scoring five goals a game in Colorado wasn't going to help me. To go play against some of the best kids in Canada helped me a lot. I never felt overwhelmed. I felt comfortable right away."

"Things have gone OK. I got off to a real good start, felt comfortable right away," he said. "I don't feel overwhelmed. It (a mini-slump) was bound to happen. It happens to a lot of guys."

Bowman has spent much of the past several years trying to separate himself from the pack. With the final -- and most difficult -- push remaining, Bowman can't stomach the notion of blending in now.

"I don't like waiting around for my chance. A lot of guys have that attitude. Everybody wants to go up," he said. "I still have a few things to work on in my game. But I feel like I'm close to playing at that level. It's really not in my control, except for the way I play down here."