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Home sweet home
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Written by
JIM SWANSON, Citizen Sports Editor
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Thursday, 20 November 2008 |
Abysmal on the road, Cougars face Rockets on friendly sheet of ice
Has Drew Schoneck ever been a part of something like this?
“No.”
Does he ever want to go through this again?
“No.”
The head coach of the Prince George Cougars is watching more of his already-thin locks fall to earth. Why? Because he can’t resolve the home-road quandary that has tugged at his team all year.
Tonight, good news -- the Cougars are at home, where they’ve won seven of 10 games, losing only twice in regulation. The games played south or east of here have been a disaster, yielding six of a possible 30 points.
If you’re looking for a reason the Cats awoke this morning, glanced at the stats page of your friendly daily newspaper, and saw themselves in last place in the B.C. Division -- well, that’s the culprit.
Soft-peddle it all you want, but the lack of success on the road points to a deficiency in character and willingness to overcome adversity. That’s a theory the coach can’t argue with.
“It boils down to focus for 60 minutes, and at home guys have been able to challenge themselves and do that for the whole time,” said Schoneck.
“On the road, we’re having trouble doing that for whatever reason. We need to find a way, and when something bad happens we have to knuckle down and just keep things simple. We’ve had some good games that haven’t gone our way, but we seem to be a fragile group when it comes to road games.”
All the more frustrating for everyone involved with the team is that this group of players has proven it can play a complete hockey game -- the home fans swear by it. Then those who took in the Shaw broadcast on Wednesday, in which the Cats squandered a 2-0 first-period lead and lost 4-2 to the Kamloops Blazers, saw a side of the squad which has never been adequately explained.
“In many of the cases, that’s when we need our older guys to step up and stem that tide for us,” said Schoneck.
“Are we being passive because we’re afraid to make a mistake on the road? If that’s the case, it’s leading to more mistakes... sitting back... when we’re constantly working on being more aggressive and taking away time and space. We’re not a team that can let teams have that time and space, and when we do, we get burned. At home, we’re more aggressive.
“Through practices and video, we’ve done all that to show guys how important it is. As coaches we’re always talking about it, and looking at everything -- even game-day routines that might make it difficult to get ready to play. We’re working on it, and we want to get it solved.”
Yes, the Cougars are at home, but that doesn’t mean easy wins this weekend. The Kelowna Rockets have plenty of front-line firepower and have started to look like the club that many pundits predicted to walk away with the Western Conference title.
“That’s a good hockey team with dangerous hockey players, so that makes it more important for us to come out of the gates hard,” said Schoneck.
“Colin Long is back, and Jamie Benn is arguably one of the best players in the league. They skate and they work hard, so you have to be willing to match their work ethic. Again it’s important to stay out of the penalty box if we’re going to give ourselves a chance.”
GAMEDAY NOTES
PRINCE GEORGE -- The Cougars start a seven-game homestand with a double-dip against the Kelowna Rockets, games tonight and Saturday... The Cats let a 2-0 lead become a moot point in losing 4-2 in Kamloops on Wednesday... If there is a bright spot on this Cougars team -- other than Brett Connolly, that is -- it’s the home record. The Cats are 7-2-0-1 at CN Centre, but have been dragged to the bottom of the B.C. Division by a 3-12-0-0 road mark... C Dana Tyrell is fourth in the WHL with 17 goals... C Parker Stanfield is plus-5, D Colin Scherger is plus-9 -- outside of that, the plus-minus numbers are largely painful. Tyrell and D Art Bidlevskii are both minus-16, Cody Hobbs is minus-14, and Cameron Cepek is minus-10 despite 16 points in 22 games. And, no, it’s not possible to pin it on Kalvin Sagert or Garrett Thiessen anymore... Surprisingly, with a talented forward crew, the Cougars sit 15th in goal-scoring with 75 through 25 games -- exactly three per game. Defensively, the Cats are second-worst in the 22-team league with 105 allowed. Only the Edmonton Oil Kings (114) are worse... The Cougars are almost back to full health with Marek Viedensky (concussion) and Scherger (hand) available. D Dallas Jackson is out with a leg bruise.
KELOWNA -- The Rockets make their first appearance at CN Centre tonight. Kelowna beat Tri-City 3-1 at home on Wednesday... Rookie G Adam Brown has been feeling the heat. First, because he’s all but taken over the starter’s role from overager Kris Lazaruk, a former Ice netminder, but also because Brown’s family in California is breathing a sigh of relief after their home narrowly avoided the Yorba Linda wildfires. Brown’s family was evacuated; C Colin Long’s family lives about eight miles from where more than 300 houses were destroyed... Brown is having a pretty good year -- 2.17 goals-against average, 7-2-0-0 record... D Tyler Myers and LW Jamie Benn will play for the WHL against Russia next week, teammates with Dana Tyrell... The Rockets have an ugly home-road split of their own. At Prospera Place, Kelowna is 9-2-0-0, but when the bus is in play the mark is 5-8-0-0... Benn leads the WHL in goals (21) and is tied for second in points (36). Long has 33 points, including 19 assists. Head coach Ryan Huska has used the two on separate lines of late... Draft-eligible D Tyson Barrie, whose dad Len just fired Barry Melrose from his job as head coach of the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning, is tied for third in scoring among defencemen with 24 points.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 20 November 2008 )
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