Five straight wins for Panthers

by Elliott Stanley

Firstly I must apologise for the erratic nature of what is supposed to be a ‘weekly’ blog. Whilst it’s no excuse I am in the final stages of wedding and honeymoon planning and that, along with the ever present thorn in the side known as ‘work’ has taken much of my free time recently. It’s for that reason that my intake of Panthers games has been limited to the NIC games and one dodgy webcast from the Skydome on the opening weekend.

All in all, and as I’ve learnt throughout my work life to date, it’s results that speak louder than anything in most businesses; and hockey is no different. Five wins from five starts in Elite League action speaks for itself and long may this rich vein of form continue.

So how are the team performing so far? Well the trio of Billy Ryan, Ian McDonald and Dustin Sproat seem to be exactly as was described on the tin. Hardworking, hungry guys with some skills to boot. McDonald is the guy who, in a converse kind of way, has stuck out by not sticking out if that makes sense. He’s quietly gone about his role on his new team contributing more than a little to our five wins. Ryan clearly has a touch of class about him to compliment his tenacity, it’s clear to see why he was so strongly touted as a starlet in his younger years. Sproat is the one of the three who I would cite as the genuine out and out workhorse, although they could all easily share that tag to some degree. As the season wears on and the going maybe gets tough at times, I can see Sproat being a guy we look toward to grind out results.

Two guys who without doubt deserve mention (but whom I mention second behind the trio of Sproat, Ryan and McDonald simply because they were less ‘wait and see’ signings and more ‘do what we know you can’) are Zion and Myers. The latter looks to have added even more speed and power to his game, it really is like having another import on the ice and his impromptu return to Nottingham could be pivotal in our title challenge. Having just watched the highlights from Sunday’s Challenge Cup game in Coventry I feel his two shorthanded efforts illustrate just what he brings perfectly.

As for Zion, I remember him being good when icing for them lot last term but he’s been a class above so far this season. Not wanting to jinx the guy but to me he has the presence and influence that is not too dissimilar to that shown by Jeff Szwez at Belfast last year. As overused as this phrase is I do think he is too good for this league.

I have to say that Lepine has impressed me, not least with his efficient destruction of Sean Selmser at the weekend but also with the understated way he has gone about his business in the defensive zone. It’s a thankless task playing a purely defensive role in a Corey Neilson side but thus far I’m more than comfortable that he’ll do a good job for us.

Some mention has to be made of ‘The K-Wall’ and I think it’s fair to say the traditional early season knives have already been sharpened in some quarters. All I can say, and really plead, is give the guy a break. I like his puck handling and rebound control and I think he’s more than capable of pulling off the saves that keep our perennially attacking side in games, he’s faced a lot of rubber so far this season and his save % is more than acceptable. Any Panthers netminder hovering around 90% must be doing something right.

So what about Weapon X. As always the presence of enforcers sparks debates amongst fans and ‘experts’ alike. I think Penner is still finding his way in the league, not least with the referees. The incident, if you can call it that, with Jeff Smith on Saturday was an example of just how difficult it is to judge what our erratic and inconsistent officials will do in reaction to an incident. 2+2+2+10 was a joke and replays confirm this for me, the ‘attempted spearing’ element of the call being the bone of contention for me. If Penner had wanted to spear Smith there would have been no ‘attempt’ about it, he was on the floor and at Penner’s mercy. What Penner has shown is that he is no pushover, taking on seasoned guys like Hoffman and McMorrow and doing himself no disgrace at all. I am certainly looking forward to his future meetings with Sheriff McMorrow.

I can’t really say much about DAB, the guys scores goals, that’s what he does and that’s what he’ll continue to do. It’s a joy to watch a born goalscorer like DAB and his sheer elation every time he finds the net is almost as enjoyable as watching the goals themselves.

I like the fact Neilson seems to be logging fewer minutes and I like the fact that we seem to have a mentality that sees us face up to challenges or adversity. Panthers of old would have crumbled at 2-0 down to a quality Giants side but this side, you sense, is made of sterner stuff. Credit to Neilson to that and, also, credit to Davey Graham as well.

It’s probably not fair to make any judgements on Rob Liscak yet given he’s barely had time to settle in. He has a fairly solid pedigree including a short time in the AHL where he was hopeful of NHL experience before the lockout season handed him a one way ticket back to Europe. It will be interesting to see how he slots in, and indeed how long he’s given to slot in as the rumours of a return for Sean McAslan are both prevalent and consistent. We shall see. Personally I think we need a replacement for Jay Henderson and, as good as he is, Macca doesn’t give us that.

Finally a quick mention to the Brit pack, only one of whom I’ve mentioned thus far. Whilst we’re still missing a major part of our side in Marc Levers the entire roster have pulled together to give us a simply superb start to the campaign. I genuinely think that anyone who had no idea which guys on the ice were home grown and which were from overseas would be none the wiser from watching them play. Meyers has been solid and dominating, Clarke his devastating usual self in front of goal and Stevie Lee just goes on getting better and better now appearing to have even more power behind his checks and a series of more than solid performances thus far. The young guns, Lacho and Nortz, haven’t had huge amounts of ice time but have looked more than capable when they have.

So to the weekend ahead and only one game for the boys as Bruce brings his new Clan team to the NIC on Saturday night. Fireworks are expected as, in addition the fire that will no doubt be stoked by Richardson, our very own Weapon X and the Clan’s Cedric Bernier have old scores to settle.

I think Braehead will be a good side this term, Bruce’s aims of a top four finish could well come to fruition if they play to their potential. This game will not be easy for Panthers and whilst I remain confident, as I always am at fortress NIC, that we can pick up the points we need to eradicate the sloppy goals and stop losing concentration for large chunks of games. Sooner or later we will have to dig deep and grind out a result some other way than simply outscoring the opposition – if we can do that then confidence in this team, on my part, will be very high.

After the dust has settled on Braehead’s first ever trip to Nottingham I’ll put together a review of the key points and also a preview of next weekend’s trip to Belfast.

Enjoy the game!

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Cardiff	0-3	Basingstoke
12th March 2006 19:00
Coventry	5-3	Sheffield
12th March 2006 19:00
Edinburgh	4-5	Belfast
12th March 2006 19:00
Newcastle	1-4	Nottingham
12th March 2006 19:00
Basingstoke	4-4	Cardiff
11th March 2006 19:00
Newcastle	2-4	Coventry
11th March 2006 19:00

	Club	GP	W	L	OL	GF	GA	Pts

Chelmsford	5-8	Telford
19th March 2006 19:00
Hull	5-1	Wightlink
19th March 2006 19:00
Romford	4-1	Milton Keynes
19th March 2006 19:00
Slough	5-2	Swindon
19th March 2006 19:00
Solihull	3-7	Bracknell
19th March 2006 19:00
Sheffield	1-1	Guildford
19th March 2006 19:00

	Club	GP	W	L	OL	GF	GA	Pts

	Club	GP	W	L	OL	GF	GA	Pts

	Club	GP	W	L	OL	GF	GA	Pts

	Club	GP	W	L	OL	GF	GA	Pts

	Club	GP	W	L	OL	GF	GA	Pts

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