Spurs at quarter mark

(AP) Denver, CO Here it is at the quarter mark of the season and the Spurs find themselves playing below .500 hockey (8-10-3, 19 pts in 21gp). It's a far cry from the recent glory days. However, the past 10 games have seen the Spurs post a 5-3-2 record, so a bit of a resurgence. While 12 points in 10 games is nothing to shout about, it's not bad for the way this Spurs' edition has been going. Leading the team in scoring is the top line of Lecavalier (9-12-21), Sykora (11-8-19) and port sider Smyth (5-10-15). The surprises to date are rookie blueliner Hunwick (2-9-11 +2) and winger Sergei Kostitsyn (3-7-10 in only 12gp). Marty Brodeur leads the goaltending corps, as usual, with a 2.05 5-4-3 .937 SvPct in 12gp. Newcomer Pekka Rinne has been a disappointment to date posting a 2-5 record with a 3.80, .886 in 8gp.
Dasher Notes
Recently, right winger Brian Gionta was acquired from the Victoria Ronin for a 4th rd pick. While he has injury problems next season and his contract also expires after next season, he's viewed as a stopgap measure for the time being. To date, he has been seeing a lot of ice time on the 2nd line and seems to be responding well. He had been relegated to the Ronin's 4th line and is liking his increased playing time with the Spurs. In another deal, blueliner Jeff Finger was dispatched to the Budapest Honved for a 5th rounder in the 2010 CCHL entry draft. While Finger was part of the recent above .500 team play, moving him for the 5th was better than nothing for the upcoming UFA. His departure will probably see John-Michael Liles being re-inserted in the lineup. He had been benched due to his woeful -10 plus/minus.

Reported by Peter Puckhead

3 point weekend

(AP) Denver, CO It was a successful weekend for the fans of the Spurs at the Denver Coliseum. First, the Spurs managed a tie with the visiting Springfield Homers, thanks to, surprise, Marty Brodeur. Then the next game saw the Spurs comeback from a 2-1 deficit at the start of the 3rd to defeat the visiting Crusaders of Copenhagen 4-2! Vinny Lecavalier put the game away in the 3rd scoring two goals, his 3rd & 4th of the season! The 3 point weekend brought the Spurs to the .500 mark at home with a 2-2-1 record.
Dasher Notes
Brodeur has now posted a 3-2-1 record to date with a 1.65 gaa & .950 SvPct to date. Plus he finally got a win without a shutout! Thanks goodness for small favors. Who know where the Spurs would be without him. Probably knocking on the cellar door. The Spurs leave for an extended road trip in the morning heading to Portland, Dayton & Victoria before returning home in 10 days for a game vs. Reykjavik at the Coliseum in Denver.

Reported by Peter Puckhead

Ibex wax Spurs

(AP) Denver, CO Day 11 of the season saw the Spurs return home to the Denver Coliseum last night to face the Bismarck, North Dakota Ibex. Unfortunately for the Spurs, Martin Brodeur could not continue his magic between the pipes and the Spurs lost 4-2 to the visiting Ibex.
Brodeur said to sports columnist Woodrow Paige of the Denver Post, "What can I say. I stopped 41 of 44, it was a shooting gallery, I can't score 'em too."
Uh oh, Marty doesn't sound too happy. While he did face a barrage of rubber the score remained close going back and forth. It was knotted 2-2 when Alfredsson (3), left pic, scored the game winner in a scramble in front of Brodeur's crease at 18:25 of the 3rd. Perry (4) salted it away for the Ibex with an empty netter at 19:31.
Clemmensen (right pic) was more than adequate in net for the Ibex in stopping 25 of 27 shots (.926 SvPct).
Dasher Notes
Laperriere notched his 1st of the season at 9:09 of the 3rd to tie the score. The defense pairing of Sauer and Staios were outstanding during the game. Although not known for their scoring, they picked up 3 points between them, with Sauer scoring his first of the season at 01:34 of the 2nd and Staios picking up assists on both goals scored by the Spurs.
Next up are Cam Ward and the Springfield Homers. The Homers currently sport a .500 record so it will be a challenge for the .333 Spurs

Reported by Peter Puckhead

Brodeur Blanks Wings

(UP) Eissporthalle Linz
Martin Brodeur blanked the Blackwings earlier tonight as the Spurs skated to a 5-0 win. In addition to Brodeur's outstanding effort, rookie blueliner Matt Hunwick helped lead the way. Surprisingly, Coach Q had Hunwick on the top defense pairing with Lubomir Visnovsky to start the game and the rookie responded with 3 assists.
"Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would assist on goals by Joe Sakic, Vinny Lecavalier and Petr Sykora.
I'm pumped", the excited Hunwick said in an after game interview with the Neues Volksblatt sports reporter.
Blueliner Jeff Finger, in his first appearance of the season, logged an incredible 27 minutes of ice time while starting the game assigned to the second unit defense pairing.
Coach Q said after the game, "Looks like we'll be rolling the same lineup tomorrow night back home in Denver vs. Bismarck. No reason not to after this performance. Get your rest on the plane boys."
Dasher Notes
In addition to Brodeur and Hunwick's performance, Captain Joe posted a goal and 2 assists while Peter Sykora lit the lamp twice himself including the game winner. Sykora suddenly finds himself leading the Spurs in goal scoring with 4 in 5 games including both game winners.

Reported by Peter Puckhead

Former Champs near bottom

(AP) Denver, CO The Spurs have gotten off to a rocky start this season. They currently sport a 1-3 record and are near the bottom of the new league standings format. i.e. All one league, no conferences or divisions for the 22 CCHL franchises. The offensive effort to date is tied for 20th in the league with the defense tied for 16th. Looks like the glory days are over for the entry from Denver and the Rocky Mountain West.
A triumvirate of goaltenders have been utilized so far with Brodeur 1-1, 2.oogaa .943svpct posting the only win. Backup Pekka Rinne in his lone appearance was a woeful 0-1, 7.00gaa .774.svpct. Perhaps he doesn't have the makeup to man the net in the CCHL. Next in the rotation was Steve Valiquette, who while fairing better than Rinne, lost to the Honved in Budapest 4-3 in OT, while posting 3.69gaa .892svpct numbers.
Goal scoring has been non-existent for the punchless Spurs who have managed to pot only 7 goals thus far in 4 games.
Leading the club in scoring to date are Smyth 2g 2a 4pts, Liles 1g 2a 3pts but sports a team low -5 and Captain Sakic who has 3 assists in 3gp out of the 4 total games the Spurs have played to date. There has been a lot of
personnel and line shuffling the first few games. The result being that 27 of the 29 players on the pro roster have been utilzed in the 4 games to date. The lone blueliner who hasn't played, Finger, will be suiting up for the next game with Liles spending some time in the pressbox for the time being with his -5. That will leave only one player yet to see ice time. That being center Andrew Ebbett. His time will come, no doubt.
Coach Quenneville said, "It's been rough, but I have to see who plays best with whom. The chemistry...ya know? To be honest, I don't have a clue yet. John-Michael needs to get his head straight. He's been jumping into the play too much. For some reason he doesn't have the 'feel' yet this season for when to jump in and when to lay back. It's been burning us. But, ya know, he doesn't wear that CCHL Champs ring for nothing. He was a big cog in that championship run a couple of season ago."
Dasher Notes
Brodeur will be between the pipes for the Spurs' next game at the Eissporthalle Linz vs. the Blackwings. After the game the Spurs will board the charter jet for the non-stop all night flight back to Denver to face the Bismarck North Dakota Ibex back home the very next night. While they'll gain about 8 hours or so during the trip it still doesn't bode well....eh? I guess the league office never heard of jet lag! Whoever made up this travel schedule ought to be shot! Winger McCormick was injured in the game vs. Budapest when he was run into the boards with no ensuing penalty! It appears he will be out for an extended period at press time. Coach Q is going to experiment with free agent Jamie Lundmark at LW since he has played the port side earlier in his career. Other players besides Liles are going to sit out with players who didn't play in Hungary suiting up vs. the Ibex. Coach Q is hoping this will combat the travel fatigue factor and result in the 2nd win of the season.

Until Next Time...









This is Peter Puckhead signing off

Start of '09-'10 CCHL Season

(AP) Denver, CO Much has transpired with the Denver CCHL franchise since the last article. After collapsing in the semis last season vs. the Havana Moon after being up 3-1, Spurs' management was displeased to say the least.
GM Poelker said, "What a deplorable way to defend the CC Cup. While I realize the Havana Moon are an excellent club, to fold like that after being up 3 games to 1 was embarrassing. Our congrats go out to Havana, the President's Cup winning Dayton franchise and, of course, to JimLeopardi and his Quebec Remparts on winning the CCHL Cup last season. Congrats to all the playoff clubs of the CCHL last season and all the other outstanding franchises that make up the CCHL for an excellent '08-'09 season."
Well, as things turned out the GM and ownership were more disgusted than most realized. Because during this past off season, Marian Hossa, who had been dubbed the franchise more than once by Poelker, was dispatched to River Cities along with backup netminder Kevin Weekes for a collection of players.
Leading the group was rookie blueliner Matt Hunwick who won a starting position on the 2nd line defense pairing this past training camp.
Also making the club this year from this trade is goaltender Pekka Rinne who will backing up Marty Brodeur to start the season. With Marty getting a bit long in the tooth, the plan is to have him get a lot more games off this season.
There were three other players obtained in the deal, all prospects, those being Joe Colborne centerman, who is currently playing for the University of Denver Pioneers, rearguard Bobby Sanguinetti with the Hartford Wolfpack of the AHL and winger Mike Hoeffel of the University of Minnesota.
In a surprising move Captain Joe Sakic was offered a 2yr deal worth $1.6mil which the free agent quickly accepted. In accepting the offer, Joe said, "It'll be great to be back with some of the guys I won the CCHL Cup with in Denver. This will probably be my last contract and I'll be more than happy to retire as a Denver Spur".
Management certainly hopes that some of Super Joe's 'magic' can rub off on his teammates and the prospects in the organization.
Free agent Left winger Ryan Smyth was resigned to a 2yr deal worth $7.7mil and will man the 1st line LW position with Sakic at the center pivot to start the season. In a startling move, it has been decided to have Milan Lucic man the 1st line RW position after being utilized sparingly in his rookie campaign last season.
In preseason they seemed to click fairly well, it'll be interesting to see what the regular season brings.
To fill some holes at winger and to provide depth at the position, vets Brendan Shanahan, Jamie Lundmark and Landon Wilson were picked up in the waiver draft this year. So it appears that two old warhorses, Sakic & Shanny, might be retiring in Denver Spurs' uniforms. Not bad for a franchise relocated from the wilds of Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories. Only 250 miles (400 km) south of the Arctic Circle.

Dasher Notes:
Other players leaving the club from last season either through contract expiration, cuts or trades were Hlinka (F), MacDonald (F), Malik (D), Paetsch (D), Parrish (F), Peca (F), Richardson (F), Skrastins (D), Stillman (F) and Tkachuk (F).
Other additions either via free agency or from within the system have been Ebbett (F), Giordano (D), Salo (D), Visnovsky (D) and Yelle (F).
Quite a turnover and what came in, sorry guys, doesn't replace what went out.
I'm afraid it'll be a long year for the Spurs. While the playoffs are possible in the new look CCHL (no conferences or divisions), going far probably isn't going to happen.

Until next time this is...









Peter Puckhead signing off...

Spurs Take USA West

(AP) Denver, CO
Well, as they say, better late than never as far as this article. The Spurs took the USA Western Division of the Jazz Conference and are the 3rd seed in the Jazz in defence of their CCHL Cup. This gave the Spurs home ice advantage in the 1st round of the playoffs vs. Linz. The Spurs were able to dispatch the Blackwings in 4 straight outscoring them 19-12 in the series. In the second round of the playoffs vs. the Moon the Spurs currently hold a comfortable 3-1 lead heading into Gm5 at the Humidor in Havana. 'Ol Fidel is none too happy. The Spurs lost Gm1 in Havana 5-2 and then managed to reel off three consecutive 3-2 wins in Gm2 at Havana and Games 3 & 4 at the Coliseum in Denver. Hopefully the magic will continue for the Spurs and they'll reach the Jazz Conference Finals.
Leading the way in the playoffs for the Spurs is the dependable Ryan Smyth who has lit the lamp 6 times along with 7 helpers for 13 points in in 7gp to go along with a +6 rate. His center pivot Vinny Lecavalier has chipped in 12 points with 10 helpers and 2 goals along with a +9 rate. By the end of Game 5 only 3 Spurs, winger McCormick and backup netminders Valiquette and Weekes, will not have seen ice time during the playoffs to date. Hopefully Valiquette and Weekes see none because this would mean starting netminder and team leader Marty Brodeur has been injured. Currently the President Cup winning Dayton Musicmen are in a dogfight with the River Cities Renegades for the other slot in the Jazz Conference Finals. They are tied 2 games a piece heading into Gm5 at Dayton's Soundstage.

Midseason Report

(AP) Denver, CO

The halfway mark of the season sees the defending CCHL Champs with 46 points and in 5th place in the Jazz Conference, one point ahead of division rival Portland. The Spurs currently hold 2nd place in the USA Western Division, one point up on the previously mentioned Portland Owls and three points back of the division leading Beverly Hills Lawmasters.
It has been a disappointing season to date for the Spurs, who have barely managed to stay around .500 hockey all season.
The team seems to be unable to perform well at home, sporting a .500 record at the Coliseum in Denver.
The road has seen the Spurs post a .619 winning percentage to date, which is a repeat of last season when the Spurs were also a good road team. Go figure. If the Spurs were just able to be a bit better on home ice, they'd be in first place in the Division and would probably be knocking on the door of the Conference leading Musicmen of Dayton.
One of the reasons for the team's spotty play is the equally spotty play of netminder Marty Brodeur. He's been up and down all season, following a brilliant performance with an equally mediocre one. Hopefully Marty finds himself over the second half of the season. He'll have to if the Spurs expect to go anywhere come playoff time.

Leading the Spurs in the goal scoring department are Lecavalier (20), Sykora (19) and Hossa (18).

The assist leaders are Stastny (31), Hossa (29) and Smyth (28).
The overall points leaders are Hossa (47), Lecavalier (43) and Smyth (42).