“I thought that the first eight minutes there in the first was the highest tempo we’d played. I thought they responded pretty good to it, too. I think we had more hits in that eight minutes than we did all game. You can’t do that. Consistency, obviously that is an issue. But you can’t have that big of a differential. If you can play that game, that’s the game we want to play. High tempo, get the puck deep.”
“That shift by Chris Poli at the end of the second period…he comes through the neutral zone with speed, all alone. It’s basically a 1-on-3, and he dumps it in and gets to a 50-50 puck, knocks the guy off the puck, wins the battle. We make a line change, he supports, he’s in there and we got a good chance to score and then we draw a penalty. That’s how we have to play, night in and night out.”
“As a player, if you’re on the bench and you see a guy not get the puck deep or turn it over or not finish his check, you’ve got to be saying in your head that I’ve got to go out and do that. We spent two weeks on systems and trying to lay out what we’re looking for. Seeing it at times and not at others is definitely frustrating. We were in the hockey game, and I thought Smith played well. But we found a way to lose it tonight”
On if he’s waiting for the offense that showed up in the preseason against Elmira…
“That’s exhibition, it’s a different animal here. The intensity’s higher, the lineups are better from top to bottom. Our power play had some success in Elmira, but it’s tough. We scored ten goals up there if you count the shootout and the overtime, but this is a whole different season now. But we had chances tonight.”
Trenton Devils head coach Rick Kowalsky told reporters after the game that defenseman Chris Dyment will be seeing a doctor on Monday and will not be playing tomorrow. The injury has been clarified as to his knee.
“Don’t expect him (back) for a while,” Kowalsky said.
Kowalsky also said that Matt Torti will not play tomorrow, but that he was hopeful he’d be back by next weekend.
Tony Zancanaro is also “at least a month away” after off-season groin surgery.
Good – Trenton’s goaltending. For the first two games, both Jeff Frazee and Jason Smith have been very solid. Frazee was spectacular at times in the season opener. If the team can actually get some offense and improve with the man advantage, they can get some points on the board.
Bad – The ECHL’s schedule makers. The Trenton Devils are the only team in the entire league that start the season with three games on three consecutive days. I was informally speaking with a scout from a Western Conference team for a few minutes inbetween periods, and he liked having the opportunity to see multiple games in such a short amount of time. I like it because it helps me get better acquainted with the team. But it has to suck (technical term) for the guys, some of whom’s conditioning might not be all there yet.
Ugly – The Reading Royals disrespecting SBA. I saw nothing wrong with Reading’s fans being as loud and supportive as they were. It’s good they traveled to support their team. And I have no problem with the Royals players acknowledging them. But to have somewhat of a stick salute to them on the ice, and then for Mac Faulkner to bang his stick on the ice and start pumping his fist Kirk Gibson-style towards them, that’s a little disrespectful. I wonder if any of the Devils took notice. If nothing else, it was a little bush league after winning the second game of the regular season, not a playoff game. The third period was a charging penalty waiting to happen anyway, and there were already two scraps, so perhaps things might be a little feisty the next time these guys play.
Pre-Game Notes (LIVE from SBA): Defenseman Rosario Ruggeri has been loaned to Trenton by Lowell and will be wearing #29. Jay Bletzer will switch to #33. There is no status update yet on Chris Dyment, so I suppose we’ll have to wait and see if he’s out on the ice for pre-game warmups.
I can’t imagine Ruggeri was sent here to sit…but then why have Bletzer sitting around? I’d imagine the move was made because Anssi Salmela got sent to Lowell.
6:40 PM — Jason Smith vs. James Reimer is your goalie matchup. This will be Reimer’s professional debut. photos coming shortly.
6:55 PM — Photos are posted. Dyment did not take warmups, but there was no roster move made with him as of yet. Ruggeri was out there, and he appears to be playing tonight.
Around The ECHL: Kris Mayotte, Johnstown’s backup goaltender last night, was loaned to AHL Syracuse today.
How about former Trenton Titans goalie Steve Valiquette picking up the shutout last night against the Maple Leafs? The game went 65 minutes without a goal before heading to a shootout, and Fredrik Sjostrom scored the game-winner to seal the shutout for Valiquette.
Around The Division:
Live Box Score: Click here for the ECHL.com updated boxscore from tonight’s game.
Radio Broadcast: Click here to listen to Paul Roper’s radio broadcast of tonight’s game.
First Period: Off to a pretty miserable start, and the game hasn’t even started yet. There’s a large contingency of Royals fans here, and the Devils got booed loudly when they came out for pre-games. Now that we’re about a minute away from anthem, there’s a “Lets Go Royals” chant going up. Yikes.
Devils Starters are:
Smith
Quaile-Ruggeri
Poli-Gerbe-Henkel
I’m going to tone down the game updates, and try to only do it after some stoppages. It got a little ridiculous for me up here last night, and I really need to get a feel for these guys out there on the ice, so I’ve got to pay more attention.
17:10 left — Not too much going on so far. Jason Smith had to make a nice stop on a quality scoring chance, but that’s about it. Joe Gerbe had a nice chance in front after a Chris Poli shot, but he couldn’t get it over Reimer’s glove.
16:39 left — The first penalty of the game goes to Reading’s Patrick Wellar. Looked like he held up one of the Devils behind the net.
15:20 left — Trevor Kell scores his first of the year on a rebound out in front after a point shot on the PP. Trenton leads 1-0. Eric Castonguay and Ryan Gunderson with the helpers.
14:28 left— Power play #2 already for the Devils. They need to do what they couldn’t do against Johnstown and take advantage of all these man advantages.
12:50 left — Gerbe had the best chance on the PP, but he backhanded one high and wide of Reimer on a tough chance. Chris Poli took a tripping penalty, and it’s 4-on-4 now.
8:19 left — Bad penalty by Tommy Harrison. He shoved one of the Royals to the ice after the whistle blew.
4:06 left — So this whole paying attention to the game idea, it’s starting to work out. Rosario Ruggeri HAS to stop pinching on the power play. He was on the left point and was attempting to be on the receiving end of a cross-crease pass. But, because he wasn’t back, Brock Hooton was able to take the puck away while Trenton was on the power play and score on a shorthanded breakaway. He tried to go five hole on Smith, who made the initial save, but Hooton stuffed in the rebound. 1-1 game.
1:07 left — Dylan Quaile has scored his first professional goal, lifting the puck into the top right corner of the net after Reimer got wiped out by one of his defensemen sliding towards the net. 2-1, Devils. Kell and Burton with the assists.
:31 left — Matt Cohen and Matt Herneisen drop the gloves with about 30 seconds left in the period. Wasn’t a whole lot of action in that one.
FIRST PERIOD OVER, TRENTON LEADS 2-1. FIGHT VIDEO AND A FEW SAVES COMING UP SOON. SHOTS ARE 9-8, TRENTON.
Second Period: Quaile and Castonguay led the team with 2 shots each in the first. The second is underway.
16:00 left — Not a whole lot going on in the second. Smith’s had to make a few saves, but nothing big.
13:39 left — Kevin Cormier just tried to get Mac Faulkner to go as they were skating up the ice, but it appeared Faulkner wanted no part of it.
10:57 left — Very nice save by Smith on Dan Rudisuela, who was on the doorstep skating in. Rudisuela shot low, but Smith got it with his glove.
7:41 left — Mark O’Leary takes a hooking penalty and gives Trenton a power play. He looked over to the ref just after he committed the hook and slammed his stick down after he saw the ref’s arm was raised.
3:37 left — Trenton’s still up, 2-1. Reading’s Mac Faulkner’s in the box, and Trenton’s on another PP.
:10 left — Trenton will go into the third on the power play after a bad penalty by Mike Salekin. He shot the puck over the glass in his own zone.
SECOND PERIOD OVER, TRENTON STILL UP, 2-1. SHOTS ARE 17-15, TRENTON.
Third Period: Added a video of a nice chance Trenton had on the power play in the 2nd.
18:30 left — Pretty lame power play by Trenton right there. The best chance went to…uhhh, well Reading’s Brock Hooton. Smith made the save on a point-blank slapper from right around the top of the circle.
16:15 left — Well, they blew another lead. Smith made an excellent save on the first chance by Rudisuela, but Joe Cooper swarmed on the rebound and buried it to tie the game at two. Sounds like this team had a lot of leads that went by the wayside last season too. 2-2 game, and it’s getting very physical out there.
12:00 left — Nice chance by the Devils, but Reimer came up back. Eric Castonguay came up the left side and took a hard, low shot on the goalie. The rebound came out to Tyler Burton, but Reimer recovered beautifully and got over to make the save.
10:29 left — The lead is completely blown. Rudisuela with a goal that appeared to go off of his skate. The ref emphatically signaled goal, and it did not appear to my eyes that he kicked it in. 3-2, Reading.
8:45 left — Very nearly 4-2, but Jason Smith makes a big save, and one of the D-men makes a big block with a wide open net.
7:55 left — Jeff Corey tripped up Jim Henkel to give Trenton a CRUCIAL power play, I believe their 8th of the game. Sounds familiar to last night, yes?
3:40 left — Still 3-2, Royals. Trenton really hasn’t been able to get much going.
1:44 left — Trenton calls timeout, down a goal. Smitty’s out for the extra attacker. This is more or less the exact same game as last night, but with two more goals and a different visiting team.
:45 left — Reading calls their timeout. Trenton had a few chances on a stuff-in play at the front of the net. Eric Castonguay ended up in the net, but the puck did not. I’m new to this whole covering hockey thing, but I don’t think that’s a goal. Ha. 3-2, Reading leads.
Final Score: 4-2, Reading. A Faulkner empty netter seals it. Reading saluted the raucous crowd in the corner that had supported them all night. Embarassing when you consider they’re the road team.
Three Stars:
* Rudisuela
** Kell
*** Cooper
Post-Game Notes:
Pre-Game Photos:
Scott Bartlett
Trevor Kell Matt Cohen
David Leaderer
Robert Page
James Reimer
Reimer
Rosario Ruggeri
Jason Smith
Danny Taylor
Steve Ward
Patrick Weller
In-Game Videos:
Joe Gerbe scoring chance early on
Jason Smith makes the stop on a turnaround shot
Reimer makes a save on a point shot by Robert Page
Smith makes a save in traffic
Trenton has a solid chance on the PP in the 2nd.
Mac Faulkner’s empty netter
Fight Videos:
Cohen vs. Herneisen
Next Game: Tomorrow, at Sovereign Bank Arena against the Elmira Jackals. 4PM start time.
With a 1-0 lead through more than 50 minutes of play, it seemed like Jeff Frazee was going to be unbeatable.
And then Ryan Garlock took over, scoring two late third period goals to hand the Trenton Devils a tough, 2-1 loss.
“I think we played really well in the first two periods,” Frazee said.
“But I think we just kind of sat on our lead and didn’t really go out there and put too much pressure on them in the third. I gave up a few too many rebounds, it’s a tough break. I think overall, I think it was a good game though.”
The game-winning goal came off of a rebound, with the pesky Garlock camped out in front of the net. He chipped the puck over Frazee off of his backhand after the collegiate standout made the first save.
“I think two guys converged on it, and it was just a perfect angle, right over me and right down below the crossbar.”
Of the 25 shots that Frazee faced in his ECHL debut tonight, I’d venture to guess that about 20 or so of them were shot low.
With the thud of the puck ricocheting off of his pads so many times still ringing in my ears, I asked Frazee after the game if he thought it was a strategical move by the Chiefs.
“I don’t think so,” he said.
“Nobody really knows about any of the goalies in this league, usually. There’s a lot of new faces year in and year out, and I think they were just trying to get shots through screens. There’s less body to hit down lower on the ice.”
Frazee told reporters after the game that he was not playing tomorrow, meaning Jason Smith will be manning the crease for tomorrow’s 7PM game at SBA against the Reading Royals.
Chris Dyment’s captaincy did not get off to a good start tonight, as he suffered the dreaded “lower body injury” on a play behind the net during the second period.
“He got twisted up. It’s a lower body injury right now, that’s all we’ve got,” said head coach Rick Kowalsky.
“He came back and tried it. (It’s) no good right now.”
It appeared to be either a knee or ankle injury, and when asked if Dyment would be able to return to the lineup for tomorrow’s contest against Reading, Kowalsky said he wasn’t sure and that he hadn’t spoken to the team doctors at that time.
If Dyment is unable to play, it would appear Jay Bletzer will make his professional debut.
Going to try this out after home games. If/when it falls flat on its face, I’ll drop it and we’ll pretend it never happened.
THE GOOD: Tyler Burton. Granted, the only time he showed up on the scoresheet was as a minus when he was on the ice for Johnstown’s even strength, game-tying goal.
But outside of possibly Jeff Frazee, I thought he was Trenton’s best player. He showed good speed on the rush, and wasn’t afraid to put the puck on the net.
THE BAD: Trenton’s special teams. Johnstown gave them every opportunity to break the game open in the first two periods with nine minor penalties. But the T-Devils only went 1-for-8 with the man advantage, and ended up losing the game after a costly hooking penalty by Joe Gerbe late in the game.
THE UGLY: 2,083. That would be the attendance for tonight’s home opener, and that would be unacceptable.
Pre-Game Notes: So I’ve covered a few hockey games before at the AHL level, but that was for a radio station…where I didn’t need to do things like run a blog and have game threads and things like that. So for now, I’m going to try this format out and see how it works. If things get a little too cluttered, then I might try multiple posts during the same game instead of keeping it all in one thread.
If you have any suggestions on things you’d like to see on here, or how you’d like things to be laid out on gamedays, feel free to send me an e-mail or post a comment.
As for things that you’ll actually care about, this is the tenth season of Trenton Devils hockey. After making the playoffs in his first season, T-Devils legend Rick Kowalsky’s club had a disappointing year last season and missed the playoffs for only the second time in team history.
Nobody wants a repeat of last year, and there’s a lot of optimism around the club this year.
“If you look at the preseason, where a few guys had serious injuries…Trevor Kell losing a tooth on the first shift and guys rallying around that, and then coming back to win the two preseason games, hopefully that will start to identify the kind of character that we need,” said forward Scott Bartlett.
Pre-Game (LIVE from SBA): 6:15 PM — Well, I made it. And the internet works here as well. Two upsets in one day, not bad.
The view from my spot in the press box looks like this…
Can’t complain about that, can I?
A lot of last minute things are taking place here before the season opening game at Sovereign Bank Arena. A few light fixtures are being checked out, they’re testing the camera’s feed to the jumbotron and the goal horn just blared for the first time. The fairly large crowd expected for the game tonight is certainly hoping that won’t be the only time.
I honestly don’t know whether they’ll be providing the team’s lines and expected starting goaltenders for the evening — I’m told they won’t be — but I’ll be down for warmups taking pictures and whatnot, so I should have that information for you regardless.
6:20 PM — Jeremy Akeson and Jay Bletzer are expected to be the scratches for Trenton tonight. Kevin Cormier will be playing.
In the meantime, enjoy these fight clips I shot from last year of Thomas Harrison taking on Johnstown’s Jason Spence and Brandon Straub.
7:10 PM — Looks like it’ll be Frazee, as I previously reported, against Ian Keserich for Johnstown between the pipes.
I’ll have photos from warmups shortly.
Chris Dyment was wearing the C, with Trevor Kell and Jim Henkel wearing the A’s, if I remember correctly.
7:25 PM — Photos are posted, check out the bottom of the thread. If you guys ever have a player you’d like me to take photos of, just let me know.
Around The ECHL: David Shantz was called up to the Panthers from the Florida Everblades, and the Everblades have added last year’s Goaltender of the Year, Anton Khudobin.
Chris Holt was called up from Alaska to Peoria by the St. Louis Blues to fill a hole in the organization after Chris Mason underwent an emergency appendectomy.
Around The Division: Reading and Wheeling both added their second goaltenders today, with Reading bringing in James Reimer and Wheeling getting David Brown. Kind of hoping to see Danny Taylor for Reading this weekend, but we’ll see how that goes.
Live Box Score: Click here for the ECHL.com updated boxscore from tonight’s game.
Radio Broadcast: Click here to listen to Paul Roper’s radio broadcast of tonight’s game.
First Period:
17:40 left — Some good action here in the first perod as the 2008-09 Trenton Devils season gets underway. Trenton’s on the PP.
16:24 left — Devils power play didn’t look so good, and then Henkel got called for a hook about a minute into it.
14:00 left — Two nice saves, one from each goaltender. Keserich with a nice pad stop on Tyler Burton on a breakaway, and that came before a save on a point shot from Ray Macias.
12:11 left — Lots of end to end action so far, this game has a good pace to it right now. Still 0-0.
8:16 left – The Devils get their second power play of the game and the season. Seems like the D aren’t afraid to shoot, Dylan Quaile just missed on a rocket from the point.
6:10 left — Thomas Harrison and Alex Penner just dropped the gloves and squared off right off the faceoff. Not a lot of punches landed, I’d say it was a draw. I’ll have the video in a bit, of course. That’s what you can expect all year long.
Seems like most of Johnstown’s shots have been low on Frazee, by the way. Not sure if that’s by design.
4:00 left — Another penalty by David Schulz leads to Trenton’s third power play. They’re getting outshot, 10-8, though.
2:00 left — Two real good chances on the PP, one on a stuff-in try by Tyler Burton, and the other on a wraparound attempt by Trevor Kell. No dice, though. Both goalies have looked good.
:02 left — Not a good night for Schulz, his third minor of the night leads to Trenton’s fourth PP. He basically cross checked one of the Devils into the net…but Trevor Kell took a penalty late in the period to nullify another power play chance. Fight video now posted as well, other highlights coming.
Scoreless after 1. Shots tied at 10.
Second Period: I have the lines as Harrison-Henkel-Radoslovich, Bartlett-Gerbe-Poli and Castonguay-Burton-Kell. I honestly haven’t noticed Cormier at all. The second is about to get going.
The shots were “adjusted” to 12 for Johnstown and 11 for Trenton.
19:00 left — Ryan Garlock very, very nearly put one past Frazee on a nice little deke just in front of the crease, but the puck trickled just wide. 4-on-4 hockey for another 20 seconds or so here. Tyler Burton and Robert Page led the Devs with three shots a piece in the 1st, by the way.
16:30 left — Mike Bartlett missed the net on a nice pass from Macias, and Chris Dyment was injured on the same play, down behind the net for a short amount of time before limping off. Oh, there’s Cormier showing up with a hit from behind…but Johnstown retaliated and Trenton’s getting their fifth power play out of it.
15:41 left — Questionable play by Frazee, covering the puck with 1:10 left in a Trenton PP with nobody from Johnstown around him. Why would you want a faceoff in your own end when there’s no reason to not keep the play going?
14:18 left — Real nice save by Frazee though, robbing Jon Landry on a partial 2-on-1 where the pass went through the defenseman’s legs.
10:00 left — Rick Kowalsky wasn’t screwing around…Tyler Burton is a nice player at this level. He had another nice shot on goal, this time through the legs of d-man Greg Gallagher. But both goalies have been up to the task, and we’re scoreless through 30 minutes.
6:00 left — Finally saw a shot high on Frazee, and he made the save. He looked a little scrambly on one recent sequence, but he’s looked very good.
4:10 left — Chris Poli scores on a rebound on the power play to give the Devils a 1-0 lead. I have video of the goal and will post it. Assists to Dylan Quaile and Jim Henkel. Keep an eye out on the bottom of the post.
END OF PERIOD — Devils lead, 1-0. Assuming the scoreboard totals are correct…and uhhh, they probably aren’t. They’re outshooting Johnstown, 20-15. If my math is right, the Chiefs have taken nine minor penalties in the first 40 minutes. Can’t win that way.
Poli’s goal video coming shortly.
Third Period: Poli’s goal video is posted, so check that out. The shot from the point was by Quaile, by the way. Page and Burton continue to lead the team in shots, now with four a piece. The shots are 21-16, Trenton…so they were at least close.
19:00 left — Johnstown is swarming in the first minute. A missed chance on a three-on-one, then a shot that either hit the post or the very outside of the net…and a missed chance with a wide open net and Frazee down. They’ve got some skill if they can stay out of the box.
14:00 left — This game seems to have gotten back to the pace that it was at early on. Lots of end to end, fast-paced action. No penalties, either.
9:48 left — It’s been a penalty free period so far, which is a welcomed sight after the first 40 minutes. My three stars ballot right now looks like Frazee-Poli-Burton. Frazee’s not standing on his head or anything, but he’s making the saves he needs to make.
7:54 left — Ryan Garlock scores for Johnstown to make it 1-1. Pretty similar goal to Poli’s, in that the goalie — in this case Frazee — made the initial save, but Garlock got the rebound and chipped it home. Macias and Petr Pohl with the assists. Garlock has looked like the Chiefs best player out there right now.
6:24 left — Not good. Joe Gerbe’s in the box, and the Chiefs are on the power play. The momentum may be shifting a bit here.
5:21 left — Yup. Garlock chips one over Frazee on his backhand right in front of the crease to give Johnstown a 2-1 lead on the PP. Randy Rowe and Pohl with the assists.
3:51 left — The Johnstown players are chirping at Frazee after he went after one of their players chipping away at a puck he appeared to have covered. It didn’t sit well with either side. Frazee’s probably a little frustrated right now, too.
1:12 left — Time’s winding down, and Frazee’s out of the net so the Devils have six attackers on the ice with a faceoff in the Chiefs zone after Trenton called a timeout.
Garlock just misses the hat trick, hitting the post on a diving attempt. Devils LOSE, 2-1.
Final Score: 2-1, Chiefs.
Three Stars:
1 – Ryan Garlock
2 – Ian Keserich
3 – Chris Poli
Post-Game Notes:
In-Game Photos:
Kevin Cormier, wearing #32
Jeff Frazee
Frazee
Greg Gallagher
Jim Henkel
Ian Keserich
Kris Mayotte
Chris Poli
Jason Smith
Smith
In-Game Videos:
Harrison vs. Penner
Frazee robs Ryan Garlock, who briefly raised his arms thinking he scored
Nice pad save by Frazee in his ECHL debut
Joe Gerbe’s denied off the rush by Avs draft pick Ian Keserich
Jeff Frazee dives around the crease in the second period.
Chris Poli scores on a rebound past Keserich in the 2nd period. Look at how he cuts to the net to try for the deflection, and gets the rebound afterwards.
Next Game: Tomorrow night, at Sovereign Bank Arena against the Reading Royals. 7PM start time.
Mike Ashmore's Trenton Devils Blog is in no way associated with the Trenton Devils, ECHL, New Jersey Devils, or its employees or players. All information is subject to change. All views and comments made from outside parties, other than blog personnel, are subject to their own permission. They are not the views of the author or any of the aforementioned parties. If you have any questions regarding this policy, or for more information, please contact the author.
Inside The Trenton Devils with Mike Ashmore 