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Sput
12-29-2006, 03:05 PM
www.princegeorgecitizen.com

Friday, December 29, 2006
Black night for White, Cougars lose 6-2
by JIM SWANSON Citizen Sports Editor

With the trade deadline looming, Thursday was not a good night for the defencemen of the Prince George Cougars to be exposed.

To say the team’s blueliners looked slow all night would be an understatement. Everyone, from first-round pick Ty Wishart to sophomore Chris Vanduynhoven, were so pedestrian it was as though their skates had no blades.

As a result, the Spokane Chiefs roared out to a 4-0 lead and made a 6-2 victory look stunningly easy.

Forget the candy coating, that machine is broken. This one was an unmitigated embarrassment for the Cougars – and not just the defencemen. The rookie goaltender and the forwards, who apparently don’t understand what pride is, can share equally in the blame.

“It’s almost indescribable – what concerns me is our lack of emotion,” said Cougars head coach Drew Schoneck.

Moments after the coach said that, and seemingly on cue, players emerged from the dressing room with few showing any visual signs of anger about the mess they just made on the ice in front of 2,937 at CN Centre.

Get out the pooper-scooper, Shirley. The sheet has been soiled.

“We were down 4-0 in our building, we’re getting embarrassed, and there wasn’t even a cross word said,” said Schoneck.

“That concerns me more than the fact we lost the hockey game. You have to bring a work ethic every time you play, and in the first period we didn’t have any. We had some in the latter two periods, but it was too little, too late. We have to bring a lot more emotion and commitment than that.”

No kidding.

The first five power plays of the game went to Spokane, and rightly so – one team was skating, the other was a half-step behind and had to use its sticks to reel in hard-working forwards who crossed the blueline unchallenged.

The first goal was not a good sign of things to come for the Cougars. Wishart was in the box for tripping, a penalty he had to take when Spokane’s Michael Grabner breezed by the defenceman who, not so long ago, was a highly-touted first-round NHL draft choice.

“The penalties we took were penalties – it wasn’t that he was making bad calls, we were standing still and having to take penalties,” said Schoneck.

“They go out and get a couple of power-play goals, then you get frustrated and start taking more penalties. Our guys were very poor tonight.”

The first goal was just the start of the explosion. By the time the Zamboni made its merciful first appearance – hey, Spokane couldn’t score with the teams in the dressing room, right? – Derek Ryan had a pair of Chiefs goals, with singles by Judd Blackwater and Evan Haw. Three of them came on the power play, and Ryan’s two were spaced 17 seconds apart.

Wishart restored a shred of dignity with a power-play goal in the final minute of the first, making the score 4-1, but this was a laugher from start to finish. Spokane’s first-period goals came on the slim total of eight shots.

Michael Grabner made it 5-1 in the middle of the second, and scored in the third to give him five goals in the two-game series.

Jared Walker scored the Cougars’ other goal, in the third period. A token marker, barely worthy of mention.

“We’re embarrassed,” said Cougars blueliner Kalvin Sagert, the best of the defencemen Thursday.

“Our feet weren’t moving off the bat and they came hard at us. We have to be a lot better. No one can be happy about what we did tonight.”

If it couldn’t be said before, it can now safely be stated that Jordan White, a Penticton BCHL product, is not the second coming of Justin Pogge. It will surprise no one if the goaltender has made his last appearance for the Cougars – numbers like a 4.86 goal-against average and .828 save percentage point that way.

White making his second-straight start because starter Real Cyr is not able to go because of a knee injury. Schoneck doubts Cyr can play Saturday when the Cougars head to Kamloops. Barring the acquisition of another goaltender, White will start his third straight.

“I don’t know if Real will even skate (today), but we’ll play that by ear,” said Schoneck. “Hopefully he’s getting better. It’s unfortunate (White) is left in there for tough goals, and I feel for him because he didn’t have a whole lot of help in front of him.”

KITTY LITTER: Spokane goalie Kevin Armstrong faced 30 shots, but had a very easy night. White finished with 23 saves… Spokane ended 3-9 on the power play, while the Cats were 1-3… The Cougars were without sniper Devin Setoguchi, out day-to-day with a knee injury. Rookie Dale Hunt took his spot on a line with Jared Walker and Chris Durand. Setoguchi has reaggravated the same problem that kept him out for four months.

scamperdog
12-29-2006, 05:45 PM
Sput
I heard something on the radio today about Dudas quiting the team today and going back to Edmonton, is there any truth to this?

Cougar Guy
12-29-2006, 08:06 PM
PG paper reported that Dudas is currently away from the team due to personal family issues. It certainly didn't sound like he quit the team.

Sput
12-29-2006, 11:45 PM
PG paper reported that Dudas is currently away from the team due to personal family issues. It certainly didn't sound like he quit the team.


The paper may have said that, but his billet has told me otherwise. Jesse has gone home, apparently quit the team, but until I hear something official (like a trade anouncement) he's done what the Citizen reported.

It would be to bad for Dudas if he quit. He's been a bandaid since he got to PG with a freak injury of the calcified thigh bruise, then a broken knuckle from NHL camp. When he's played, he has looked pretty good, and one of the few righthand shots on the team. I can't see how, with his injury track record, someone is going to offer much for him. Hard to tell right now, but with the trade deadline only 12 days away, we won't have to wait long.

Beaner
12-30-2006, 12:13 AM
The paper may have said that, but his billet has told me otherwise. Jesse has gone home, apparently quit the team, but until I hear something official (like a trade anouncement) he's done what the Citizen reported.

It would be to bad for Dudas if he quit. He's been a bandaid since he got to PG with a freak injury of the calcified thigh bruise, then a broken knuckle from NHL camp. When he's played, he has looked pretty good, and one of the few righthand shots on the team. I can't see how, with his injury track record, someone is going to offer much for him. Hard to tell right now, but with the trade deadline only 12 days away, we won't have to wait long.

Weird - the tips fans over on the tips board are saying that the Kelowna beat writer was speculating that Slade was on his way to PG.

Slade for Dudas maybe? Seems far-fetched to me, but I guess anything is possible.

scamperdog
12-30-2006, 12:25 AM
Weird - the tips fans over on the tips board are saying that the Kelowna beat writer was speculating that Slade was on his way to PG.

Slade for Dudas maybe? Seems far-fetched to me, but I guess anything is possible.

On the radio here they were saying he has decided that he just wants to play junior A

Sput
12-30-2006, 11:27 AM
There have been articals in the paper, none that are on the online paper tho, that have said that both the Spruce Kings and the Cougars are concidering Slade. The Kings I could see talking to Surrey. They need some goaltending help in a bad way, but would they really want to add Dustin's personality to an already volitile locker room (this is a Dempsey team afterall). Besides which, the Citizen also reported that to go to a BCHL team there would be a hefty price tag with it, somewhere in the $20G range. I don't know how much truth there is to this, but it was in the Citizen.

As for Slade becoming a Cougar....personally I doubt it for a couple reasons. White obviously is not ready to backstop a team, so getting the rest of this season out of Slade, then having either White or an unknown come in for next season looks to be suicidal. Would Bonner trade someone of Slade's skill to a divisional rival? Even if Slade comes here, barring Cyr not being traded, where does he play? Cyr will not be happy going beck to backup....and Slade already showed he won't split games 50-50 with someone. Be interesting to see how it all plays out. Won't have long to wait.

dondo
12-30-2006, 11:36 AM
sounds less about White and more about the team that hung him out to dry, to me. A goalie (a young goalie esp) can only do so much, but if the rest of the boys aren't skating and back-checking no goalie is going to save your team if he's left at the mercy of odd-man rushes and no back-end support.

I think White is capable, not stellar but capable, and with Cyr out PG would be careless to let him go. Sounds more like the team itself is unmotivated and filled with a bunch of passengers.

I don't see Slade going to PG either, giving a slumping divisional rival a chance to get back into the game? Also as Sput said -- putting Slade into a volatile room like that is not a good idea. I think is all just rumours right now and too many question marks.

Cougar Guy
12-30-2006, 11:45 AM
Sounds more like the team itself is unmotivated and filled with a bunch of passengers.

DING DING DING DING DING! And for that dondo, you win the Grand Prize of watching a team that actually cares about what they do on the ice :D

Sput
12-30-2006, 12:25 PM
I think White is capable, not stellar but capable, and with Cyr out PG would be careless to let him go. Sounds more like the team itself is unmotivated and filled with a bunch of passengers.

No doubt the team in front was horrible all night, but watching White, he's just as brutal. Looks like he has no control sliding across the crease, almost always overshoots the far post when he slides post to post, drops down when 90% of the shooters in this league shoot high, flops around on his belly alot (Hasik maybe his mentor?) and from what I saw has a hard time finding the puck in traffic. I'm not trying to say White lost that game, not by a long shot. The team...sorry.... group of assembled individuals, forgot to show up ready, or wanting, to play. The defense was not there. Whishart was brutal, Patterson was hopeless, Sagart and Vandynhuven were the best of the group. Redden and Thiessen I didn't notice much at all.

Drew needs to start playing everyone. Hunter,Drazz, and Tyrell can't do it all. Put Dana out with two other guys....who give a crap about 'team first' and one line maight pull things out a bit. Fuller,Deagle, Gardner create a lot of havoc on the ice, and would be more affective if they were on the ice a bit more. It amazes me how these coaches keep making the same mistakes over and over in this town. Play the legs off two lines and wonder why you can't win consistantly. I'm not going to profess to be highly knowlegeable in the game, but cycle your lines.....1-2-3-1-2-3-4....give everyone icetime, develop someone. But then I guess its tough to cycle your lines when you spend 60-80% of the game on the PK.

dj-kris
12-30-2006, 02:22 PM
Weird - the tips fans over on the tips board are saying that the Kelowna beat writer was speculating that Slade was on his way to PG.

Slade for Dudas maybe? Seems far-fetched to me, but I guess anything is possible.
If the guy your referring to is doyle pontinau sp? he still calls chilliwack the chiefs so who knows how reliable the info is

dondo
12-30-2006, 06:57 PM
Looks like he has no control sliding across the crease, almost always overshoots the far post when he slides post to post, drops down when 90% of the shooters in this league shoot high, flops around on his belly a lot (Hasek maybe his mentor?) and from what I saw has a hard time finding the puck in traffic.

are you certain that it isn't Marek Schwartz wearing White's name and number :thumb: :laugh:

Sput
12-30-2006, 07:37 PM
are you certain that it isn't Marek Schwartz wearing White's name and number :thumb: :laugh:


From what I remember, even Schartz didn't look as bad as White did in the second Spokane game. I can't comment on the first one as I wasn't there. Just got back from a Saskatchewan Christmas that night and wasn't back in time.

PGFlyfisher
12-30-2006, 07:49 PM
White seems slow with the glove and really slow moving post to post. Is he good enough at this level? I' m thinking probably not.
And he probably won' t improve much either as he gets limited ice and is only playing right now because Cyr is hurt.
I also believe, he shouldn' t be the fall guy for a "team"( and I use the term loosely) who have left him hung out to dry way too often!