Opening Night Observations

• First of all - why don't we have a captain?
• Dov, way to scare the hell out of us all night. Also way to keep your head on straight even when things were getting shaky. You kept us in it.
• Bryan Schmidt, not a big fan. 4 points, but a -1 and 4 PIM and pulled a Dean Stork defense move approximately twelve times. Hey guess what, that means you fail. Please, have a seat.
• Chad Starling is sort of out of control, but I kind of like it.
• EVERYONE WAS A F*#$ING MINUS BASICALLY. Power play goals kind of hurt us that way, but 4/9 on the PP is pretty much cool with me. 0 goals on the PK, so the PK did things right and that's okay.
• "What's the score now, bitch?"
• Who did Yannick Tifu blow to get an A? Or does that stand for ... nevermind.
• Hey Goulet, you're a Bomber now, but thanks for the PP opportunities.
• Howells and A. Martin combined for 11 SOG. Way to be. Very impressed with both so far. Also with Sixsmith, who put up 2 A's on the score sheet.
• 7801, hahahahahahaha.
• Yay 1-0 and starting the season in 2nd place!
• Also poll results: 11 for Cedrick (61%), 4 for Dov (22%), 2 for Smith (11%) and 1 for "someone else".

We have liftoff.

When I'm less tired and more coherent, I'll break down my $0.02 on the game. In the mean time, have the single best photograph I took all evening (and I took like, 500).

Press Coverage

Press coverage anyone???

Post article from Saturday about Mathieu Aubin & the team.

Enquirer article from Friday about the opener & Avery Wilson.

Hopefully this is a sign of things to come.

Update (3:04pm): Another good article out of the Dayton Daily News about Bomber Jason Goulet meeting his former team tonight.

Opening Night Roster

Courtesy of ECHL.com:

Dov Grumet-Morris, G; Chad Starling (Vet.), D; Billy Irish-Baker, F; Bryan Schmidt , D; Greg Gallaher, D; James Sixsmith, F; Barret Ehgoetz, F; Avery Wilson, F; Tyler Howells, D; Andrew Martin, F; Travis Fuller, F; Jean-Michel Daoust, F; Scott Reynolds, F; Cedrick Desjardins, G; Matt Macdonald, D; Conrad Martin, D; David Desharnais, F; Mathieu Aubin, F; Thomas Beauregard, F; Sean Perkins*, D

Notably missing is late arrival Matt Syroczynski, a 6'5" 225-pounder who amassed 41 points in 73 regular season games and 106 penalty minutes with Fort Wayne of the UHL in 2006-07. Appears to be a force to be reckoned with.

Is it Saturday yet??

On the eve of the opener

Ahhh, the season officially opens in less than 24 hours... unfortunately in Johnstown, not Cincinnati. But if you're interested in J-Town/Wheeling and all the accompanying fanfare, it's going to be free on the B2 Network.

Matt Rogers was released today. Steven Doherty was the only other cut following preseason. Also, Sean Perkins was placed on the 3-Day IR to start off the year. Opening Day rosters are due tomorrow afternoon, I'll be sure to post it when I get my hands on it.

For the two (I'm sure) disappointed folks who voted for John Smith in the goalie running, sorry you won't see him here, but Weber says he's trying out in the Mid-Atlantic league.

Anyone else impressed with Billy "The Killer" Irish-Baker? Two games, two fights. Not that he dominated in either, but he really stepped up in both and I give him mad props for doing so. Love to see that kind of play from a team, especially this early on. Last year's team was a lot similar - guys like Urquhart, Gleed, etc... who don't regularly fight - stepping up when somebody went down.

The Hockey News apparently has the Clones slated to finish 4th in the division and 16th overall. Hahahahaha. Because they're totally credible. Remember last year? Last year they chose them to finish 24th of 25.

3:30-4:30 on Thursday - be sure to check out Coach Weber on 700AM.

Pictures: If you're looking for a photos from the two preseason games, I've posted a bunch right here. Nothing super impressive, but feel free to check them out if you've got the time.

Musings from the Road

Hello from windy and cold Youngstown, OH. Our boys opened up preseason play tonight with a 4-1 win over the Steelhounds. The game opened slowly and after the end of 1 was tied at zero. Dov Grumet-Morris was in net and faced only 3 shots in the first period, but ended up with 14 on the night and only 1 (glove side high, of course) went in. He did look impressive, though. The team also did a simulated shootout after the game and Dover looked great. The Clones had something like 30 shots on former Wheeling netminder Andy Franck, and three of their four goals came in a 3 minute span. Two were by Matt MacDonald, two by newcomer Travis Fuller. Three of their goals were powerplay goals. In the second period, their power play looked incredible. Things clicked, passes were made. Very impressive. Hopefully that translates over into the regular season.

A few new players that made impressions: obviously Fuller with two goals; rookie Sean Perkins with two assists; former Storm forward Andrew Martin stepped up with some intense, high-speed play; Billy Irish-Baker was throwing his weight around well. One player I was not impressed with was defenseman Bryan Schmidt, he didn't skate well and looked like he was on a completely different page than the rest of the team. Sloppy.

Overall, they looked good. When I make it back to Cincinnati I'll be sure to link some pictures over if anyone's interested. Not sure if I'm making it to the Kettering game, if not - let me know how they look. :)

Last minute updates

Both training camp goalies (Lansdowne & Smith) were released (according to cycloneshockey.com we have 23 players in camp). Means we should be seeing both Grumet-Morris and Desjardins dressed tonight in Youngstown. If you can't make it be sure to listen to Hammer on cycloneshockey.com -- and check back here for a post-game update from Y-Town. Game time is 7:05.

The team also released their promo schedule... highlighted by Twister Bobbleheads (!!!!!), Nashville Predators Night, Montreal Canadiens Night, and the return of Faith Night (note: Grumet-Morris will be in net, whether you like it or not). Also, Wet Wednesday & Thirsty Thursdays are also back.

Only slightly-related note: The Bulldogs raise their Calder Cup Banner tonight in Hamilton vs the Amerks. :)

11 days

I didn't make it to the scrimmage today but from what I hear there were a lot of different mini-games involved. The Cyclones' recap is here. The team plays Friday in Youngstown at 7pm at the Chevrolet Centre, the Section 136 crew is making the trip, so I will be sure to link some photos next week and come back bearing some real insight, finally. Look for an update late Friday or early Saturday with a game recap. If you can't make it Friday - the game is on B2.

We're also trekking to Cleveland on Saturday for the Hamilton/Lake Erie game, and I'll be sure to drop a few updates on how things are going for the Bulldogs. Not sure if this was mentioned, but Cyclones signee Gerard Miller is on a 25-game PTO with Hamilton and played his first AHL game on Friday. The season hasn't started yet and our players are already being sought after - hopefully it's a good sign. (Btw, they topped the Amerks 3-2, 0:39 into OT on a Maxim Lapierre goal.)

A few notes of interest... the first coach's show is on Monday the 15th at Jefferson Hall (Newport on the Levee). Need more info on Jefferson Hall? Show kicks off at 7pm (Happy Hour is 4-7, btw), and the place is family-friendly before 9pm (and in case you're of the older age bracket, there is a DJ at 10 on Mondays). If you can't make it, catch it on SuperTalk 96.5FM. Also, October 21st the Cyclones make an appearance at Kings Island... special discounts are available.

In the mean time... we're 11 days from Opening Night at the Nut House... any early observations??

Miscellany

• P.O. Mouton was released by the team on Friday.
• Meltdown in Dayton? Columbus severed ties with Dayton, and move affiliation to Elmira. Camp for the neighboring Bombers opens October 11th, just 3 days before their matchup with the Cyclones. Detroit, having no ECHL affiliate, could make the move, but we'll have to see how it pans out for the Bomb Squad.
• As for the Cyclones, in day 2 of camp - they're looking fast, solid, working well together already. Except for Dov "Top Corner" Grumet-Morris. But we won't go there...

Welcome to Training Camp

Coach Weber, Coach Stork, and the boys were on the ice this morning at Sports Plus in Day One of the 2007-08 Cyclones' training camp. The team will be back on the ice at 11am tomorrow and Sunday if you want to catch them in action. Don't forget - Tuesday at 4pm, the team will be scrimmaging.

2 weeks, 1 day until the road opener in Dayton!

Former 'Clone update: Jarred Mohr inked a deal with the Rocky Mountain Rage (Broomfield, Colo.) of the CHL; forward Erik Johnson has joined Youngstown.