nivek_wahs
02-05-2008, 10:44 AM
http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/news/sports/story.html?id=080be3cd-d02d-4a1a-98f4-2ce011e124f6
Pats get some extra work
Greg Harder, The Leader-Post
Published: Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Super Bowl Sunday was earmarked as a day of rest across the WHL -- everywhere but Regina.
The Pats' off day was cancelled when head coach Curtis Hunt decided his players hadn't earned a reprieve after their befuddling display against two of the league's also-rans.
"It was a tough skate but it wasn't just mindless skating," explained Hunt. "We worked but we worked on areas of our game we needed to work on. It was like a bag skate in disguise. It took some energy and some effort and there were high demands. I don't know if you'd say there was a little aggravation in my voice. Let's just say I wanted to make sure I got my point across."
Hunt also revised his team's post-practice schedule -- and not to accommodate Super Bowl plans, either. Instead of sweating through an off-ice workout, the team gathered in the dressing room for a philosophical discussion.
The talk centered around a phrase printed on the chalkboard: Together everyone achieves more.
It's an acronym for team.
"I see some frustration in guys and I see some reluctance to fulfil the role that has been defined," said Hunt. "One of the things we did was we brought them in, line by line, and explained what was important for each particular line. Sometimes that means less ice. What I don't think kids understand because they're young is, every role is important. If you take one face-off in the game and you win that face-off, that's important. If you don't get a shift but you're positive on the bench, that's important. When enough people care, we will all have success."
The Pats played as individuals over the weekend, but they lost as a team.
In the wake of Friday's 6-2 drubbing against the Saskatoon Blades, Hunt proclaimed that "the honeymoon is over!" It was a reference to his team's 12-game point streak to start the New Year, a run propelled by six new additions prior to the Jan. 10 trade deadline.
However, a recent attitude erosion brought that streak to a halt.
"We talked about how excited everybody was right after we made these deals," Hunt said. "We've been riding that wave. What happens now is the dust settles a little bit. All of a sudden because we've had an influx of older experienced players, guys are not getting what they think they deserve or what they had been (getting) earlier. It all comes back to attitude. Is it about 'me' or is it about the team?"
The head coach didn't get the answer he wanted on Saturday night, when Regina was beaten 4-3 by the Red Deer Rebels.
"We were outworked," said Hunt, who watched the game at home on the Internet due to a one-game suspension. "What's probably the most disappointing was we didn't play with any kind of urgency or desperation to right the situation from a night before. That was a real sore spot. It was basically the point of (Sunday's) gathering."
The discussion also included Regina's mind-numbing habit of losing to the WHL's lower echelon. A symptom of that problem is the team's apparent tendency to believe it can turn its work ethic on or off like a light switch.
With that in mind, Hunt is open to the idea he might need to push some different buttons to inspire more consistency.
"I think you re-evaluate all the time; that's basically our job," he said. "We'll continue to have discussions but in the end everybody has to make a decision (on their commitment)."
That said, Hunt has dealt with the issues and is eager to leave them in the rearview mirror. He emphasized that Regina's sole focus should be tonight's clash with the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers.
"The sun came up Monday morning," added Hunt. "From my perspective, the past is done. We hope we're a little smarter but we don't wanna linger and trudge around in this mediocrity much more than we have already. We need to wake up, get focused on what's important now and carry on."
SCOUTING REPORT
MEDICINE HAT (29-18-5-1) at REGINA (33-17-3-2)
Today, 7 p.m., Brandt Centre
Radio: 620 CKRM
Key injuries: REGINA -- LW Rudolf Cerveny (back, day-to-day), RW Brett Leffler (collarbone, day-to-day), G Linden Rowat (hand, day-to-day); MEDICINE HAT -- None to report.
Overview: Tonight's game is the last of four regular-season meetings with the Tigers. The Pats have beaten Medicine Hat in each of the previous three encounters despite failing to score more than three goals (3-2, 3-0 and 3-2 in OT). The last two games were on the road . . . Regina began the New Year by claiming at least a point in 12 straight outings (9-0-2-1) before suffering two home-ice defeats on the weekend -- 6-2 to Saskatoon and 4-3 to Red Deer . . . Those losses dropped the Pats out of the hunt for top spot in the Eastern Conference. They're now 11 points back of the Calgary Hitmen and just four points ahead of the Moose Jaw Warriors in the East Division race. The Pats and Warriors are to stage a home-and-home set this weekend . . . The Tigers are led by the dynamic duo of Tyler Ennis (31-36--67) and Brennan Bosch (15-37--52). Ennis is fourth in the WHL scoring race . . . Pats RW Jordan Eberle (32-23--55) is ranked third in goals, one behind Spokane's Drayson Bowman and four back of Tri-City's Colton Yellow Horn . . . Pats captain Logan Pyett (17-25--42) leads all WHL D-men in goals . . . Pats D Colten Teubert is eligible to return from his two-game suspension.
© The Leader-Post (Regina) 2008
Pats get some extra work
Greg Harder, The Leader-Post
Published: Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Super Bowl Sunday was earmarked as a day of rest across the WHL -- everywhere but Regina.
The Pats' off day was cancelled when head coach Curtis Hunt decided his players hadn't earned a reprieve after their befuddling display against two of the league's also-rans.
"It was a tough skate but it wasn't just mindless skating," explained Hunt. "We worked but we worked on areas of our game we needed to work on. It was like a bag skate in disguise. It took some energy and some effort and there were high demands. I don't know if you'd say there was a little aggravation in my voice. Let's just say I wanted to make sure I got my point across."
Hunt also revised his team's post-practice schedule -- and not to accommodate Super Bowl plans, either. Instead of sweating through an off-ice workout, the team gathered in the dressing room for a philosophical discussion.
The talk centered around a phrase printed on the chalkboard: Together everyone achieves more.
It's an acronym for team.
"I see some frustration in guys and I see some reluctance to fulfil the role that has been defined," said Hunt. "One of the things we did was we brought them in, line by line, and explained what was important for each particular line. Sometimes that means less ice. What I don't think kids understand because they're young is, every role is important. If you take one face-off in the game and you win that face-off, that's important. If you don't get a shift but you're positive on the bench, that's important. When enough people care, we will all have success."
The Pats played as individuals over the weekend, but they lost as a team.
In the wake of Friday's 6-2 drubbing against the Saskatoon Blades, Hunt proclaimed that "the honeymoon is over!" It was a reference to his team's 12-game point streak to start the New Year, a run propelled by six new additions prior to the Jan. 10 trade deadline.
However, a recent attitude erosion brought that streak to a halt.
"We talked about how excited everybody was right after we made these deals," Hunt said. "We've been riding that wave. What happens now is the dust settles a little bit. All of a sudden because we've had an influx of older experienced players, guys are not getting what they think they deserve or what they had been (getting) earlier. It all comes back to attitude. Is it about 'me' or is it about the team?"
The head coach didn't get the answer he wanted on Saturday night, when Regina was beaten 4-3 by the Red Deer Rebels.
"We were outworked," said Hunt, who watched the game at home on the Internet due to a one-game suspension. "What's probably the most disappointing was we didn't play with any kind of urgency or desperation to right the situation from a night before. That was a real sore spot. It was basically the point of (Sunday's) gathering."
The discussion also included Regina's mind-numbing habit of losing to the WHL's lower echelon. A symptom of that problem is the team's apparent tendency to believe it can turn its work ethic on or off like a light switch.
With that in mind, Hunt is open to the idea he might need to push some different buttons to inspire more consistency.
"I think you re-evaluate all the time; that's basically our job," he said. "We'll continue to have discussions but in the end everybody has to make a decision (on their commitment)."
That said, Hunt has dealt with the issues and is eager to leave them in the rearview mirror. He emphasized that Regina's sole focus should be tonight's clash with the visiting Medicine Hat Tigers.
"The sun came up Monday morning," added Hunt. "From my perspective, the past is done. We hope we're a little smarter but we don't wanna linger and trudge around in this mediocrity much more than we have already. We need to wake up, get focused on what's important now and carry on."
SCOUTING REPORT
MEDICINE HAT (29-18-5-1) at REGINA (33-17-3-2)
Today, 7 p.m., Brandt Centre
Radio: 620 CKRM
Key injuries: REGINA -- LW Rudolf Cerveny (back, day-to-day), RW Brett Leffler (collarbone, day-to-day), G Linden Rowat (hand, day-to-day); MEDICINE HAT -- None to report.
Overview: Tonight's game is the last of four regular-season meetings with the Tigers. The Pats have beaten Medicine Hat in each of the previous three encounters despite failing to score more than three goals (3-2, 3-0 and 3-2 in OT). The last two games were on the road . . . Regina began the New Year by claiming at least a point in 12 straight outings (9-0-2-1) before suffering two home-ice defeats on the weekend -- 6-2 to Saskatoon and 4-3 to Red Deer . . . Those losses dropped the Pats out of the hunt for top spot in the Eastern Conference. They're now 11 points back of the Calgary Hitmen and just four points ahead of the Moose Jaw Warriors in the East Division race. The Pats and Warriors are to stage a home-and-home set this weekend . . . The Tigers are led by the dynamic duo of Tyler Ennis (31-36--67) and Brennan Bosch (15-37--52). Ennis is fourth in the WHL scoring race . . . Pats RW Jordan Eberle (32-23--55) is ranked third in goals, one behind Spokane's Drayson Bowman and four back of Tri-City's Colton Yellow Horn . . . Pats captain Logan Pyett (17-25--42) leads all WHL D-men in goals . . . Pats D Colten Teubert is eligible to return from his two-game suspension.
© The Leader-Post (Regina) 2008