Big Ern
03-08-2008, 01:09 AM
WOOOO!!! That win feels really good....the Broncos brought their A-game tonight. The rest of the evening is sooooo easy when the Broncos come in like this and beat the second-best team in the Eastern Conference in what is obviously an extremely tough barn to get victories out of. WOW.
From the start of the game, our team came out determined to win. The 'Canes' Boychuk would go on to score the first goal of the contest on an unfortunate play just inside the Bronco blueline. The puck got caught up in the defender's gear, dropped to the ice un-noticed, and Boychuk was in on a 2 on 1 as a result. He doesn't miss on those very often. So the Hurricanes gained some momentum, and started buzzing around Yonkman, but Yonks held the fort. It was right around the 15 minute mark that Levi Nelson got his big night going...he waited for his opportunity in the Canes' zone, and ripped a wrister top shelf on Michael Maniago to get Swifty on the board. Three minutes later, Zack Smith snapped a shot from a sharp angle that rang the iron to the right of Maniago, and then found it's way in. Swift Current was rolling right along. The final minute in the period featured a TREMENDOUS effort from the youngster Codey Eakin. He outworked three Hurricanes, got to the net, and potted the 3-1 goal with 14 minutes to go in the frame....beautiful.
The second period started with a bang, as Dale Weise cut right in and scored a quick goal on the PP. You could describe that tally as "vintage Weise" for sure. Dale powered down two guys on his way to the net, and ended up putting it behind Juha Metsola, who started the second period in goal for Lethbridge. That goal turned out to be the winner, and again....that's why Dale Weise is a big part of our hockey team. For the rest of the period, the Broncos did the best job they could to lock things down, but you can't expect to completely choke an offense like the 'Canes have. They added two goals to cut the lead in half, and looked extremely dangerous at that point. The third goal was a PP marker by former P.A. Raider Jeff May. However, the Broncos found a way to stay ahead by one goal....that's the main point to remember here. It got them into the third with the lead.
I think defensively, the third period was the best yet....Swift Current managed to completely shut down a hard-working Lethbridge club and score an insurance goal in the process. The fifth goal came on the PP from Levi Nelson....his second of the night. He played very well tonight. Again, a credit to our defense which was very noticeable in the third....Stamler, Doyle, Wilson, and Dudas were great tonight....and the list goes on. Yonks was a wall as well, stopping all the shots in that period and the penalty shot by Zack Boychuk. That stop on Boychuk probably changed the momentum around....it was HUGE!
This was a great game to be at...it was worth all four hours to drive here for sure.
Tomorrow's game in Cranny should be pretty darn good. We'll see what happens!
LET'S GO SWIFTY!!!
NOTES
-today was abseloutely GORGEOUS! It was such an awesome drive up here. Let's hope the drive to Cranny tomorrow will feature more of the same.
-I'm staying at a beautiful B+B in Lethbridge. It's a renovated old style mansion...pretty sweet! I think it might be haunted. Ooooh. ;) I could have picked a hotel, but I find that B+B places are a lot more caring, and often cleaner...and WOW they have damned good breakfasts most of the time. lol
-I was in Lethbridge a few times back in 2003-04. From what I remember I thought of it as a grimy and dusty place at that time. Today it seemed different....I drove around lots, and it was pretty today...I dunno...is it the weather, or has Lethy improved? haha
-how about the Enmax Centre? I think it's a pretty nice facility, and almost identical to Regina's Brandt Centre IMO. I took some pictures of it. The big news here is the upcoming renovation to the building. The Enmax Centre is undergoing a $33 MILLION boost this summer. Changes will be made to the lobby, and a new lounge area will be added. Does that price look steep? Oh..they're also installing a video scoreclock! :)
-I had a chat with MY96 FM's Kim Johnston from Medicine Hat. He made the trip to Lethbridge to watch his hometown Broncos...he still bleeds Bronco blue after a long stint with the Eagle 94.1 in Swifty up until about three years ago, when he made the move to 'Hat. Thanks KJ!
-there was a group of Bronco fans here from home whom I sat with for parts of the game. These guys really make noise...I did my best to keep up, and I think it definitely helped the Broncos win. Hopefully we can do more of the same in Cranny tomorrow night.
-now it's off to bed, to Cranbrook at about 7AM...watch the game, and then straight home to Swifty right after!
:)
Have a GREAT weekend!!
Ern
From the start of the game, our team came out determined to win. The 'Canes' Boychuk would go on to score the first goal of the contest on an unfortunate play just inside the Bronco blueline. The puck got caught up in the defender's gear, dropped to the ice un-noticed, and Boychuk was in on a 2 on 1 as a result. He doesn't miss on those very often. So the Hurricanes gained some momentum, and started buzzing around Yonkman, but Yonks held the fort. It was right around the 15 minute mark that Levi Nelson got his big night going...he waited for his opportunity in the Canes' zone, and ripped a wrister top shelf on Michael Maniago to get Swifty on the board. Three minutes later, Zack Smith snapped a shot from a sharp angle that rang the iron to the right of Maniago, and then found it's way in. Swift Current was rolling right along. The final minute in the period featured a TREMENDOUS effort from the youngster Codey Eakin. He outworked three Hurricanes, got to the net, and potted the 3-1 goal with 14 minutes to go in the frame....beautiful.
The second period started with a bang, as Dale Weise cut right in and scored a quick goal on the PP. You could describe that tally as "vintage Weise" for sure. Dale powered down two guys on his way to the net, and ended up putting it behind Juha Metsola, who started the second period in goal for Lethbridge. That goal turned out to be the winner, and again....that's why Dale Weise is a big part of our hockey team. For the rest of the period, the Broncos did the best job they could to lock things down, but you can't expect to completely choke an offense like the 'Canes have. They added two goals to cut the lead in half, and looked extremely dangerous at that point. The third goal was a PP marker by former P.A. Raider Jeff May. However, the Broncos found a way to stay ahead by one goal....that's the main point to remember here. It got them into the third with the lead.
I think defensively, the third period was the best yet....Swift Current managed to completely shut down a hard-working Lethbridge club and score an insurance goal in the process. The fifth goal came on the PP from Levi Nelson....his second of the night. He played very well tonight. Again, a credit to our defense which was very noticeable in the third....Stamler, Doyle, Wilson, and Dudas were great tonight....and the list goes on. Yonks was a wall as well, stopping all the shots in that period and the penalty shot by Zack Boychuk. That stop on Boychuk probably changed the momentum around....it was HUGE!
This was a great game to be at...it was worth all four hours to drive here for sure.
Tomorrow's game in Cranny should be pretty darn good. We'll see what happens!
LET'S GO SWIFTY!!!
NOTES
-today was abseloutely GORGEOUS! It was such an awesome drive up here. Let's hope the drive to Cranny tomorrow will feature more of the same.
-I'm staying at a beautiful B+B in Lethbridge. It's a renovated old style mansion...pretty sweet! I think it might be haunted. Ooooh. ;) I could have picked a hotel, but I find that B+B places are a lot more caring, and often cleaner...and WOW they have damned good breakfasts most of the time. lol
-I was in Lethbridge a few times back in 2003-04. From what I remember I thought of it as a grimy and dusty place at that time. Today it seemed different....I drove around lots, and it was pretty today...I dunno...is it the weather, or has Lethy improved? haha
-how about the Enmax Centre? I think it's a pretty nice facility, and almost identical to Regina's Brandt Centre IMO. I took some pictures of it. The big news here is the upcoming renovation to the building. The Enmax Centre is undergoing a $33 MILLION boost this summer. Changes will be made to the lobby, and a new lounge area will be added. Does that price look steep? Oh..they're also installing a video scoreclock! :)
-I had a chat with MY96 FM's Kim Johnston from Medicine Hat. He made the trip to Lethbridge to watch his hometown Broncos...he still bleeds Bronco blue after a long stint with the Eagle 94.1 in Swifty up until about three years ago, when he made the move to 'Hat. Thanks KJ!
-there was a group of Bronco fans here from home whom I sat with for parts of the game. These guys really make noise...I did my best to keep up, and I think it definitely helped the Broncos win. Hopefully we can do more of the same in Cranny tomorrow night.
-now it's off to bed, to Cranbrook at about 7AM...watch the game, and then straight home to Swifty right after!
:)
Have a GREAT weekend!!
Ern