Are you ready?

Lots of Change, yet lots of familiar faces in the new NIHL South 1

After what seems like the longest off-season break for this blog since its inception way back in July 2013 it seems like it is time to get things underway again in advance of a season that has seen more change than at any other point in my time watching hockey.

So where were we?  My last post (here:  http://wp.me/p3I8ZK-jC) looked at the Phantoms joining the NIHL and we have seen an initial proposal agreed upon and then amended to give us a nine team NIHL S1.

Along with the Phantoms and former EPIHL outfits Basingstoke, Bracknell and Swindon we have Cardiff Fire, Invicta Dynamos, London Raiders, Milton Keynes Thunder and Streatham IHC.  Teams will be played twice at home and twice away with the top eight qualifying for the play-offs.

Whilst there have been considerable changes across all of the former EPIHL teams (including the Phantoms who say farewell to Stepanek, Auzins, Archer, Darge, Bebris, Levers and Stubley and welcome on board two big hitters in Nathan Salem and Leigh Jamieson and two top talents in Glenn Billing and Edward Knaggs), there are a number of familiar faces across the sides that the Phantoms will face this year.

What follows is only meant to be giving a flavour of some of the clubs and players that we’ll be seeing in the coming year; having followed the EPIHL for the last ten years I’m only too happy to recognise that there’ll be lots to learn about the clubs and players that we’ll see in NIHL S1, but hopefully readers will find what follows of some use.

We’re still going to see Vanya Antonov, Joe Baird, Aaron Connolly, Dan Davies, Tomas Karpov, Kurt Reynolds, Grant Rounding and Dan Scott in Basingstoke, along with Dean Skinns between the pipes and former Phantom Jaroslav Cesky.

In Bracknell Scott Spearing has taken over head coach duties, and has seen Jan Bendik return to the UK, with Shaun Thompson, James Galazzi, Matt Foord, Alex Mettam, Harvey Stead, Josh Tetlow (interestingly on a two-way with the Nottingham Panthers) all re-signing, and with one of the signings of the summer, our old favourite Frankie Bakrlik returning to Bracknell once more.

Swindon have also kept a large number of their EPIHL roster, with Steve Whitfield, Sam Bullas, Toms Rutkis, Jordan Kelsall, Jan Kostal, Max Birbraer and Phil Hill returning, with Sam Zajac (Telford Tigers and  netminder Renny Marr (formerly of the Elite League’s Coventry Blaze) joining Aaron Nell in Wiltshire.

What about the former NIHL sides?

This is new territory for most Phantoms’ supporters and will give us a a great opportunity to get to some rinks that we’ve not been to before, or not been too in some while at least.

Cardiff Fire have recently recruited the experienced Nicky Chinn, who Phantoms’ fans are most likely to have seen most recently in Basingstoke in the 2014-15 season, and who will be familiar with Callum Buglass and Michael Stratford (former Wildcats) and Alex Symonds (Swindon and Basingstoke).  Cardiff will have Joe Myers between the pipes – a former Elite League netminder who played in the same Slough Jets side as Ales Padelek (and of course Slava Koulikov and Darius Pliskauskas too) in the 2013-14 season.

We haven’t seen the Invicta Dynamos in Peterborough since September 2013 when a certain Alan Lack went toe to toe with then Phantoms Cesky and Nicky Watt in a fiery encounter.

Two former Phantoms in Mason Webster, who impressed hugely in the Phantoms 2014-15 play-off winning season and netminder Damien King who has seen action with Milton Keynes (Lightning and Thunder) and in New Zealand with Canterbury since leaving this neck of the woods are both in Gillingham with the Dynamos, and Phantoms’ supporters will also recognise the combative Bobby Chamberlain, formerly of the MK Lightning and Tom Ralph, who impressed with the Hull Pirates.

London (formerly Romford) Raiders skate out of the Lee Valley Ice Centre and are not short of names and faces that will be familiar to the Phantoms.  Phantoms’ Treble winners Euan King and Andy Munroe will be in goal and defence respectively, with Alan Lack making up a trio of former Peterborough men that are joined by a host of players (and Coach Sean Easton) who have been recruited from the Chelmsford Chieftains.

Milton Keynes Thunder have seen a number of the former MK Lightning players join Coach Lewis Clifford, along with a smattering of others who have EPIHL experience.

We will be seeing Grant McPherson, Ross Green, Tom Carlon, Tom Annetts, Ross Bowers, Jamie Line, Lewis Christie, Rupert Quiney, Gareth O’Flaherty and Rio Grinell-Parke in what will surely be a strong outfit this year.

Finally for now, Streatham are led by the hugely experienced Jeremy Cornish (former player-coach of Isle of Wight based Wightlink Raiders), have signed Michael Farn and Adam Carr (scorer of the penalty shot that gave victory to the Lightning in last year’s cup final against the Phantoms) from MK, and Ryan Watt from the Hull Pirates. Streatham are one of the historic names in British hockey, founded in 1932 and skate out of a rink on Streatham High Road.

In addition to the nine team NIHL S1 league the Phantoms will be involved in a National Cup competition, with the Sheffield Steeldogs and Hull Pirates being the other teams in our group vying for a quarter final berth, and an Autumn Cup featuring former EPIHL teams, this time with Basingstoke and Sheffield being the Phantoms’ group opponents.

And that’s it for now.  Oh yes – you’ll remember, clubs are now recruiting two imports and can only have one on the ice at a time, and there are no import netminders.

That just about covers it for now.

The Phantoms are at home on Sunday 3^rd September and Sunday 10^th September in Challenge Fixtures against Basingstoke and Swindon respectively, before the season proper starts on Saturday 16^th September with a home fixture against the Bracknell Bees.

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at   ‏@phil_smith66  and Instagram its_phil_smith and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

 

Season 2016-17 Week 24: Bracknell Bees

Peterborough Phantoms 6 Bracknell Bees 7 (PSO)

Phantoms’ MoM Darius Pliskauskas

Well, it had to happen sometime, and here’s two dates you might want to reflect upon – Sunday 3^rd March 2013, and Sunday 9^th October 2016.

The first of those dates, stretching back to the last game against the Bees in the 2012-13 season was the last time Bracknell beat the Phantoms – a 4-0 victory for the home side down in Berkshire if memory serves correctly.  Since then the Phantoms have won 23 consecutive games against the Bees, meaning almost four seasons worth of games home and away going have seen the Phantoms have picked up the points.

There have been some close results in the least four years, not least a 5-4 win for the Phantoms in Bracknell at the end of November, or even an overtime win at The Hive in November 2015, and an overtime win in Peterborough in October 2014, but wherever the game has been played the Phantoms have managed, somehow, to keep the run going, until last night (Saturday 18^th February 2017), when the Bees finally got the Peterborough monkey off their collective backs.

By the time that Marc Levers gave the Phantoms a 4-1 first period lead, tapping in a Darius Pliskauskas pass on the doorstep on a late powerplay, most of the supporters (and the players and coaching staff of both teams) in the rink would have expected the Phantoms to continue their fine form against the Bees, but with Wehebe Darge stepping out of the game after the first period to rest an injury in advance of games on the horizon, and with the Bees starting the second period on the front foot, momentum quickly switched from the Phantoms to their visitors.

Within just 6 41 of the second period on the board the Bees had reduced their deficit to a single goal with Carl Thompson beating Adam Long from distance and Rio Grinell-Parke adding a third for the Bees, assisted by Lukas Smital and Martin Pavlicek.

The Bees had taken the game to the Phantoms and pressed for an equaliser, though it would be the Phantoms who scored the eighth goal of the evening, James White picking up a pass off the boards behind the goal from James Archer, and beating his man on the edge of the crease, lifting the puck over Matthew Smital in the Bracknell goal to make the score 5-3.

If the Phantoms thought that was job done, they needed to think again.  An unmarked Shaun Thompson fired into an empty goal on a powerplay late in the frame to make the score 5-4, and in the final stanza Luka Basic and Thompson once more made it three unanswered goals for the Bees, giving the visitors a remarkable 6-5 lead with nine minutes to go.

The final strike in regulation time saw the Phantoms notch their second powerplay goal of the evening.   Tom Norton shaped to shoot from the blue line but passed to Darius Pliskauskas and the veteran forward swept the puck home with just five minutes remaining to tie the game up at 6.

Overtime couldn’t provide a winner; Adam Long made a flashing glove save to keep the score at 6-6, and was also saved by his right hand post when a David Gaborcik shot cannoned out, and at the other end Matthew Smital snuffed out the chances created by the Phantoms.

And so to penalties – scored by Basic and Lukas Smital for the Bees, saved by Matthew Smital from Petr Stepanek and Darius Pliskauskas, giving the Bees their first victory against Peterborough for a long, long time.

Takeaways

1. No sour grapes here – well done to the Bees. At 4-1 down they might’ve folded, but sensed they could get in the game early in the second period, which they did through Carl Thompson and Rio Grinell-Parke.  As soon as the deficit was reduced the Phantoms looked a shadow of the team they had been in the first period and with momentum switching to the visitors the Phantoms struggled to contend with the aggressive fore-checking of the Bees, whose pace and industry trumped that of the Phantoms.

2. Credit to the Bees then, though this was a game the Phantoms should still have won; leading 3-1, 4-1, and crucially after the Bees third goal seeing the Phantoms strike back for a 5-3 lead through White with a goal that was somewhat against the run of play, I would’ve expected the Phantoms to take the game to their opponents. The Phantoms didn’t take their chances, turned the puck over too many times in dangerous areas, and having dropped a gear struggled to dominate late in the game.  The Phantoms conceded soft goals and once the Bees were back in the game the Phantoms couldn’t shake them off.

3. It was good to see Ben Russell back on the ice, and though the Phantoms were missing James Ferrara, Janis Auzins and Scott Robson, it is starting to feel like bodies are starting to return to the line-up. It was also pleasing to see Rob Ferrara play after the injury he sustained in Swindon on Wednesday, and pleasing too to see him receive the captain’s C in the absence of his brother James.

4. A point gained or a point lost? The late deficit was recovered by the Phantoms to secure a single point, but given their early lead this was a case of the one that got away.

As for the Bees?

Lukas Smital received the Man of the Match beers, though I think that Matthew Smital in the Bees goal had a fair shout for the award.  Conceding four quick fire goals in the first period could’ve rattled the young netminder, but through the remaining forty five minutes and penalties, he did well.  Shaun Thompson continued to show what a great pick up he has been for the Bees this year, and Luka Basic impressed too.

The odds had been on a Phantoms victory, but the Bees showed great resilience in their fightback and deserved the extra point in this breathless, end to end encounter.

 

You might wonder about that other date in the introduction to this piece – Sunday 9^th October 2016.  That was a night when the Phantoms raced to an early lead against the Sheffield Steeldogs and ultimately lost in a shoot-out, in game that was almost a carbon copy of this defeat to the Bees.  The Phantoms have taken big leads in other games this year, including games against Hull, Sheffield and Swindon, and finished the job, but need to ensure that they do not drop a gear once they are ahead – there’s enough evidence to show that on any night any team in this league can prevail against any other.

 

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at   ‏@phil_smith66  and Instagram its_phil_smith and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

Season 2016-17 Week 16: Bracknell Bees

Bracknell Bees 0 Peterborough Phantoms 3

Super Stepanek with the game winning goal

A short benched Phantoms roster put 2016 to bed with a comfortable road win against the Bees and ensured third place in the league at the turn of the year in doing so, with a three goal salvo from Petr Stepanek (2) and a beauty from Sam Towner before the nine minute mark seeing off the challenge from a combative Bracknell side determined to snap their 22 game losing streak against the Phantoms.

The Phantoms arrived in Bracknell effectively a line down, with Weldon, Levers and Pliskauskas all absent and potentially missing for some while, which meant that James Ferrara moved from defence to a forward line with Ales Padelek and James Archer, and young Callum Medcalf taking the sixth defensive position alongside Norton, Robson, Robbie Ferrara, Ben Russell and Tom Stubley.

Within three minutes Stepanek had connected with a Susters’ pass to fire the visitors ahead, and on 6 15 Stepanek scored an unassisted powerplay goal to extend the Phantoms’ lead in a period where they lead something of a charmed life, and may well have conceded but for desperate defence and some profligate finishing from the Bees.

With 8 56 on the clock Stepanek was involved once more, feeding Sam Towner with a precise pass, leaving the young forward the task of finishing the breakaway, which he duly obliged, firing high into the net over Mettam’s glove.

In terms of scoring, that was the job done.  The Phantoms couldn’t find a clinical edge in the remaining 51 minutes of the game, despite working strong opportunities and benefitting from a number of powerplay opportunities.

In the middle of the second period James Galazzi was given 5+game for a slash on Janis Auzins which was promptly followed by an offset penalty for Martins Susters and Harvey Stead, and a further two minutes for Lucas Smital, giving the Phantoms a 5-on-3 that they couldn’t capitalise on.

Despite a big push from the Bees in the final period there would be no repeat of the game at The Hive at the end of November that saw Bracknell score four unanswered goals to threaten the Phantoms’ five goal lead, ensuring the Phantoms twenty third consecutive victory against them.

Takeaways

1. Highlight of the evening – Sam Towner’s breakaway goal was a thing of beauty. Towner picked up a Stepanek pass, raced to goal and finished with aplomb.  It’s unusual for a netminder not to pick up the Man of the Match award after a shut out, but Towner’s goal was worthy of the accolade in itself.

2. Which doesn’t mean that Auzins doesn’t deserve recognition. Nothing spectacular from the big man this time, but everything he did, he did well, despite getting under the Bracknell players’ skins.  Auzins is certainly a netminder that opposition players want to get to, and on the evidence of this performance, he came out top this time, as he so often does.

3. Strangest moment of the evening – no one in the rink (probably apart from the Bracknell netminder) knew that Stepanek’s unassisted second goal had gone into the net until the Phantoms skated along their own bench in recognition of the goal scorer. The cheer from the travelling Phantoms’ fans was delayed for several seconds as they were unaware that the puck had beaten Mettam, and with there being no lamp lit at that end it just wasn’t clear.

4. The clock in Bracknell threatened not to work before the game, saw the first period out, and gave up the ghost. The players, benches fans on the opposite side of the rink to the away supporters could see a clock projected onto a screen, but the away fans didn’t have such a luxury.  Many thanks for the match night announcer for keeping us updated on minutes left and penalties expiring, but that was one of the most exasperating experiences I’ve had watching hockey!

5. Finally – a big well done to the Phantoms who dug deep for the win. Five games in eight days is a big ask, and the Phantoms have two wins out of three games so far, with a double-header against the Steeldogs looming.  There has been some talk of bodies coming in, but at such short notice, and with the Phantoms unlikely to know the extent of Weldon and Pliskauskas’ injuries as yet, I imagine this is extremely unlikely before the weekend.  Watch this space, however, to see if any of the Peterborough Islanders are called up …

As for Bracknell?

I have to say I had a feeling that Bracknell may have snapped this losing streak given the fact that the Phantoms were short benched, but in fairness, so were the Bees, missing Spearing and Basic, and once Galazzi has been thrown out, another experienced performer.  Chances did fall to the Bees early on and with greater composure they may well have taken a lead that would have given the game a different complexion.  There are a number of talented young players in Bracknell, such as Rio Grinell-Parke and Josh Tetlow who are getting lots of experience in this difficult season and hopefully will benefit from doing so.

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at   ‏@phil_smith66  and Instagram its_phil_smith and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

Season 2016-17 Week 14: Bracknell Bees

Peterborough Phantoms 2 Bracknell Bees 0

Game Winner – Sam Towner

When the Bees drove out of Peterborough on Sunday they could be forgiven for shaking their heads and wondering when they are going to snap this 22 game streak the Phantoms have over them, stretching back to March 2013.

This was the third consecutive weekend where the Phantoms and the Bees have faced each other, and after 30 goals in the previous three games this year fans might well have expected the Phantoms to win, scoring a hatful in the process.  In truth, this was a game that was in the balance for large periods, with the Bees shading a scoreless first period, and despite out shooting the Phantoms by a margin of 16-13 there were relatively few first class opportunities at either end.

The spark the game needed was provided by Wahebe Darge with almost half of the game played.  Darge chased down a puck played by Owen Griffiths into the corner and showed considerable tenacity to regain possession for the Phantoms before playing a pinpoint pass into the path of Sam Towner, who calmly fired the puck into the roof of the net for the game winning goal.

Towner has had a barren run following an early season injury, and the way that both he, the Phantoms on the ice, and the crowd celebrated the goal is testament to the young forward’s popularity here in his first season in Peterborough.

Bracknell responded well to falling behind, and despite only having 15 skaters they continually put Janis Auzins under pressure.  The Latvian stopper was called on time and again throughout the game, and it looked like the Bees would score a short-handed marker for a second week running when firstly Shaun Thompson (hooking) and then Lukas Smital (elbows) took a seat in the penalty box.

The third period went the way as much of the first two, though the intensity of the game increased as the clock wound down.  The longer the game proceeded the Bees became more dangerous and the Phantoms’ lead became more vulnerable, and though the Phantoms held the puck for long periods, and created one or two half chances, the Bees created plenty of their own.

Janis Auzins was a deserved Man of the Match for the Phantoms, denying a number of chances from the Bees.  This wasn’t a situation where you’d point the finger at the Bees’ forwards and say they were guilty of poor finishing; for the most part Janis Auzins put in another of those displays which Phantoms’ fans are just so used to seeing, and perhaps we take for granted.

With 48 12 on the clock Petr Stepanek gave the Phantoms some breathing room as Martins Susters battled on the boards, winning the puck and riding a check before passing to Stepanek who gave himself some room with a deft touch before finishing past Mettam.

With 70 ticks remaining Smital pulled Mettam, but the Bees couldn’t make their numerical superiority count, in no small part due to some last ditch defence work, and more heroics from #33.

Takeaways

1. A win’s a win, and though there is plenty to reflect on, it felt like the game was pretty flat, with both sides waiting for something to happen and neither having the guile to really carve the opposition open. Credit Bracknell – after being on the wrong end of an 8-2 scoreline last week they closed the Phantoms down quickly and were in no mood to lie down.  Perhaps one or two of the Phantoms thought the game would be more straight forward than it was, but the chances for the boys in blue were few and far between.  Too often the Phantoms saw their offensive play broken up, or a puck played from the Phantoms’ forwards evaded the defencemen on the blue line, which contributed to a frustrating and scrappy affair as the Phantoms had to build once more.

2. Mettam and Auzins were deservedly awarded the Man of the Match beers. So often the sponsors pick their favourite player rather than one of the ‘stars of the game’, but on this occasion they were spot-on.  Mettam’s save percentage was 94.59% and Auzins kept out all 37 shots on goal to remain top of the EPIHL’s netminder stats at this stage of the season.  In a game with relatively few standout performances the two netminders deserved their accolades.

3. A mention in dispatches for Wahebe Darge and Tom Norton. For the second weekend running Darge skated tirelessly, and it was Darge’s industry that led to Towner’s game winning goal.  While Auzins, Padelek, Stepanek and Pliskauskas grab the headlines, Darge quietly creates plenty for his line mates without necessarily getting on the score sheet himself.  As for Tom Norton?  I thought his D work was outstanding against the Bees, both at the back, where you’d expect him to be, but also through the neutral zone and backing up on the blue line too.

4. The Phantoms move into fourth place at this stage of the season, and have only dropped three points at home all year. There’s some tough games on the horizon, but for now it’s Fortress Bretton.

5. One record continues while another is snapped. The Phantoms win streak is now five games, and after 18 consecutive games with at least a point, including 16 goals and 17 assists, Darius Pliskauskas didn’t trouble the scorers this evening, despite a late swing on an empty net opportunity.  It’s been a great run from the veteran forward.

As for the Bees?

A solid performance from a short-benched Bracknell, who created as many chances as the Phantoms, and but for Auzins may have taken something from the game.  Other than Mettam I felt that Scott Spearing played well, as did the Thompsons, Shaun and Carl, and though the record book may prove me wrong, I felt that Shaun Thompson was used more sparingly in the face-off circle than last week when he was so impressive.  I’d have had him on as may draws as possible given his efficiency a week ago.

Next week?  Guildford and Telford.

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at   ‏@phil_smith66  and Instagram its_phil_smith and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

Season 2016-17 Week 13: Bracknell Bees

Peterborough Phantoms 8 Bracknell Bees 2

MoM: Ales Padelek

The Phantoms coasted to a comfortable victory against the Bracknell Bees, securing valuable league points and a much coveted cup semi-final berth in the process, in their only game of the weekend.

With Milton Keynes beating Basingstoke on Friday the Phantoms knew that two points against the Bees would see them pip Doug Sheppard’s men to fourth place in the cup rankings courtesy of their head to head results, and for parts of the first period, and certainly until Ales Padelek opened the scoring with a powerplay goal after 8 32, there was more than a suggestion that the significance of the game was playing on the Phantoms’ nerves.

The Bees dictated the pace of the game in the early stages and there was precious little intensity in the opening exchanges, with neither netminder troubled unduly.  With little over eight minutes on the clock Scott Spearing took an interference call and thirty seconds later Padelek benefited from a sublime pass from Petr Stepanek and finished beautifully to give the home side the lead.  The Phantoms looked as though they had breathed a collective sigh of relief following the opener, and applied pressure on Mettam’s goal during the remainder of the period, with James Archer extending the lead with just 38 seconds before the buzzer with a sublime shot over Mettam’s shoulder, assisted by Pliskauskas and Padelek.

Padelek (a tap in) and Pliskauskas (a deft finish cutting through the slot and beating Mettam one-on-one) scored either side of a Luka Basic short-handed marker for the Bees to make the score 4-1 by 28 03 and two goals within a minute and a half from 37 19 saw James Ferrara put the finishing touches on a tic-tac-toe move with Towner and Darge, and Martins Susters benefit from Petr Stepanek’s strength to put the puck away on an odd man rush.

6-1 after forty minutes suggested the game was all but over, but both teams will have been mindful of the Bees’ four goal response to a Phantoms’ five goal lead last week.  As he had done in the first two periods, Ales Padelek got the first goal of the stanza and his hat-trick goal to cap off a fine performance, and James Ferrara scored unassisted after initially losing the puck in neutral ice just three minutes after David Gaborcik had scored the Bees second short-handed goal of the evening, picking up on an errant pass from Auzins and rifling the puck high into the Phantoms’ net.

Takeaways

1. With the Phantoms’ winning streak against the Bees sitting at 20 games before this fixture, and given the relative league placings of the two teams, many would’ve expected the Phantoms to have won this evening.  Nevertheless, Bracknell beat high flying Hull on Saturday and a win in this game was simply not foregone conclusion.  It was a nervy start to the game, with honours even in the early exchanges.  Credit then to the Phantoms, who put in a thoroughly professional performance in securing the victory.

2. The Bees found the Archer-Padelek-Pliskauskas line unplayable, and from a Phantoms’ perspective it was a real joy to behold. This trio picked up five goals and six assists in the game, and whenever they were on the ice the Phantoms looked threatening.

3. Padelek will grab the plaudits and he took the Man of the Match beers, but there was no finer performance on the night than that of James Archer. Archer was the big signing of the summer for the Phantoms, and the last few weeks, and tonight in particular, have shown what a contribution he can make.

4. Though Darius Pliskauskas capped off another night with a goal and a brace of assists to keep his hot streak going (I think that will be 16+17 in 18 games, at 1.83 ppg), my favourite goal of the evening was James Ferrara’s first, a great finish at the end of a terrific passing move.

5. It’ll seem like nit picking after an 8-2 victory (which in truth could’ve been 9, or 10, but for poor finishing), but the Phantoms turned the puck over too cheaply too many times, and conceded two poor short-handed goals. Whether these errors are down to a lack of concentration or not, and with respect to Bracknell who kept going in a game they were chasing for long periods, more clinical opposition would’ve made the Phantoms pay for poor work in their own zone, and a failure to execute the game plan efficiently enough.

As for the Bees?

Bracknell made a steady start to the game without challenging Auzins, and had they taken the lead the game may have taken a different turn.  Basic and Gaborcik scored the shorties, but my Man of the Match was Shaun Thompson, recently rejoining the Bees from Basingstoke, and showing what a great pick-up he’ll be for Smital’s side.  Thompson’s face-off stats would have been phenomenal, and his overall play was a real highlight.  The Bees have plenty of young players in their line up too, with Rio Grinell-Parke impressing in this game, along with Stead, Smith and Tetlow.

Minds now turn to next Sunday when the two sides meet once more in Peterborough.

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at   ‏@phil_smith66  and Instagram its_phil_smith and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

 

Game Night Report: Bracknell Bees

Saturday 28^th November:  Peterborough Phantoms 5 Bracknell Bees 2

You could be forgiven for thinking that this was routine victory against a Bracknell side who have hit hard times of late.

After all, you’d need a long memory to recall the last time the Phantoms fell to the Bees (a 4-0 defeat on 3^rd March 2013) and the press release that recently came out of Bracknell pointed to short-term financial woes that have seen top forward Frantisek Bakrlik move to Milton Keynes.  With other Bracknell players such as Savage, Towaslski, Fowler and player-coach Lukas Smital not icing Bracknell came to town with a short bench and though there was experience in players like Scott Spearing, Milan Kostourek and Jan Bendik, there were plenty of young players in the Bees line-up too.

The Phantoms prevailed in overtime in Bracknell on Thursday evening to record the fourteenth straight victory against the Bees, though at 2-1 down the home side has rung the puck off the pipes via Carl Thompson, and if that had gone in…well who knows?  These are the fine margins by which games are won and lost.

The Phantoms were without Captain James Ferrara but home fans were able to welcome back Koulikov senior, who has returned to the Phantoms’ bench after a spell in Hungary, and who will be invaluable as the Phantoms look to build on their strong start to the season.

Edit:  With James Ferrara absent through injury any guesses who the game sheet had down for the C?

None other than Scott Robson!  Well done to Scott, there are some of us who take notice of who has the honour of wearing the C and the As, and I’m sure this won’t be the first time that Scott is named captain.

The first period saw the Phantoms dominate possession and shots-on-goal by a ratio of 17:6, yet found Alex Mettam in the Bracknell goal in good form, snuffing out chances from across the Peterborough front-line until Ales Padelek fired a wrist shot high into the net as a Matt Foord tripping penalty was close to expiring.  It would be no more than Padelek deserved in a Man of the Match performance that saw the big Czech grab 2+1 in a strong showing.

Whilst the Phantoms benefited from three powerplays in the first period (Bendik, Foord and Spearing), they would fall foul of the officials with only two seconds before the first intermission, and with barely a minute of that penalty gone Sam Waller tied things up at 1-1, finishing coolly in plenty of space in the left hand face-off circle.

The Phantoms penalty kill unit was called upon two more times in the second frame, as Tom Norton took an interference call on 26 28 and less than four minutes later as Lloyd Gibson was involved in a high sticking incident on Jan Bendik that saw the Bracknell man leave the ice spitting blood.  Gibson’s penalty initially saw a ‘match’ call which was downgraded to ‘game’ as Bendik returned to the ice.

Though the Bees dominated that five minute powerplay the Phantoms did well to negate the threat, and crucially saw off the challenge, though in truth Auzins’s goal wasn’t under siege as a combination of solid defending and a lack of urgency saw the score remain 1-1 until the end of the period.

Whatever Coach Koulikov said to his charges in the second intermission had the desired effect.  The home side exerted pressure on the Bees who struggled to clear their own zone for extended periods, and on a Bendik tripping penalty Tom Norton showed great movement from point to the edge of Mettam’s crease to tuck away a rebound, giving the Phantoms a 2-1 lead from which they didn’t look back.

Craig Scott bagged his second of the week against the Bees, lifting the puck high into the net on 49 07, and in double quick time Darius Pliskauskas added a fourth on 50 48, leaving it to Padelek to finish off the Phantoms’’ goal scoring with his second, and the Phantoms’ fifth of the evening on 53 51.

Padelek’s goal was the Phantoms’ third powerplay goal of the evening (3/7) and illustrated their superiority in the final stanza, though after forty minutes this was no foregone conclusion.  In boxing terms the Phantoms would’ve taken the first round, but the Bees had the second on points.

The final goal of the evening came as the Bees pushed in the last five minutes.  Kostourek seemed to fire a shot which came off the cross-bar, only to fall invitingly to Tom Beesley, who made no mistake from close in, and to give us a final score of 5-2.

MoM:  Padelek (Phantoms) & Antonov (Bees)

The victory sees the Phantoms top of the pile for the moment, and if nothing else, these back to back wins against a Bracknell side who have recently beaten Milton Keynes and Swindon (albeit before the departure of Bakrlik) show the team’s capacity for picking up results when they are not at their best.  Ales Padelek was probably always going to get the MoM honours for his two goal performance, but Craig Scott is back to his best, scoring goals and leading the EPIHL in assists.

Bracknell were running with just two imports and without key Brits, and put in a strong showing in the circumstances.  I though Mettam’s showing deserved MoM, but Antonov did impress too, and the young forward nearly capped off a fine performance with a short-handed goal.

Up next?  Guildford and Swindon.  You can’t help but feel that the Phantoms will need to find first gear a little earlier than they did against the Bees.

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at   ‏@phil_smith66  and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

Game Night Report: Bracknell Bees

Saturday 26^th September 2015:  Peterborough Phantoms 3 Bracknell Bees 0

MoM: Jason Buckman

If there were one or two disappointed Phantoms’ fans leaving the Peterborough Arena last Sunday after the overtime loss to Milton Keynes, normal service was resumed after this 3-0 victory against the Bracknell Bees.

The fixture was set up nicely; the Bees came into the game after a mixed weekend, losing to the Swindon Wildcats, who the Phantoms had beaten in the season’s opener, and trouncing the league’s new boys, Hull, by a 10-3 scoreline.  In contrast, the Phantoms came into the game after claiming a single point last weekend and had been slow out of the blocks in both the game in Guildford and at home against Milton Keynes.

There were one or two other points of note going into the game, of course.  In the Bees’ victory against Hull player/Head Coach Lukas Smital passed Garry Clarke’s all-time EPIHL’s points record.  Congratulations to Smital on such a prestigious achievement.

Amongst the familiar Bracknell faces such as Scott Spearing, Matt Foord, James Galazzi, Matty Towalski, hot prospect Ivan Antonov, and netminder Alex Mettam, the Bees have one or two new faces on board, notably Frankie Bakrlik, formerly of Manchester, Milan Kostourek, a 38 goal and 69 point forward, signed from Milton Keynes, the experienced David Savage from Guildford, and Callum Fowler, formerly of this parish.

Regular readers of this column will know that I have been a fan of Bakrlik, though he would not be able to make his presence count in this tie as the Phantoms recorded their first shut-out of the season.

Ultimately, the game was probably more comfortable for the Phantoms than they might have anticipated.  With the Bees four games so far seen a massive 41 goals there was every suggestion the early seasons’ point leaders, Bakrlik and Kostourek would provide a real threat. The Phantoms had a clean sweep against the Bees last year, and in truth that streak wasn’t threatened on Saturday.

The Phantoms dominated the first period, and though shots on goal don’t always tell the full story, they did on this occasion, with 12 shots on Mettam compared to the 6 shots on Auzins illustrating the balance of play.

Early shots from Baranyk, Levers and Pliskauskas peppered the Bees goal, whilst Kostourek and Smital had chances at the other end.

Tetlow picked up an early penalty for an interference call on Levers after 39 seconds, and in turn, McGiffin and Robson picked up penalties dining the first period for tripping and interference, on 7 31 and 10 54 respectively.

The Phantoms PP has built up pressure in the first few weeks of the season, but has probably not been as clinical in terms of goals as the Coach would like, but the penalty kill has done a terrific job.  With 28 seconds of McGiffin’s penalty still remaining, and with the Bees struggling to take advantage of their numerical superiority, a turnover in the Phantoms zone saw a stretch pass to Darius Pliskauskas who was hooked by Smital as he bore down on goal, and the resulting penalty shot was despatched high over Mettam’s blocker for a 1-0 lead.

Forty seconds later, and with the Bees struggling to come to terms with the pressure exerted upon the, Jason Buckman extended the home side’s lead, sweeping in from the top of the left hand face-off circle, assisted by Padelek.

The second period was a cagier affair than the first, and on balance, more even, as the Bees tried to kick start their recovery.  The Phantoms shaded the shots on goal once more, and showed no signs of simply trying to protect their lead.  Tetlow picked up his second penalty of the evening on 26 18, and for the Phantoms Pick and Levers both sat for interference.  Chances were traded at both ends, with Antonov impressing, and Bakrlik, who broke a stick on a boomer from the blue line threatening more than he had done earlier.

For the Phantoms, Bebris was becoming increasingly influential, and Lloyd Gibson broke into the Bees zone during Levers’ penalty, rounded Mettam and looked to finish, but was thwarted by the save of the evening.

Despite opportunities in front of goal for both teams, neither side would add to the scoring in a period characterised by turnovers and gritty board play.

Whatever Koulikov said to the Phantoms during the second period break clearly paid dividends.  After a mere 1 01 of the final period pressure on the Bees goal a crowd scene around Mettam’s goal saw Levers hit home to give the Phantoms a 3-0 lead.

On 46 36 Galazzi and Pick had a coming together, with both protagonists removing helmets and gloves before the Bracknell man landed a single right-hander on Pick who went down as a result.

Buoyed by Galazzi’s efforts the Bees gained momentum, but were unable to find a way through as the clock ticked down.

The Phantoms would benefit from two further powerplays in the last seven minutes, but had started to shut up shop by the time that Turner took his tripping call on 53 49, and though Lukas Smital had a great 1-on-1 opportunity late on that was snuffed out by a lunging Janis Auzins, the Bees would play short-handed for the majority of the last two minutes as Bakrlik took yet another Bees penalty, and there would be no further scoring.

MoM:  Jason Buckman (Phantoms) & Tetlow (Bracknell)

Strange to see anyone other than Auzins get the beers after a shutout, but credit to Buckman who caps an impressive start to the season with a goal.

The Phantoms took their chances, but could, and probably should’ve won by a larger margin.  The Bees gained momentum after the Galazzi/Pick fight, but were well marshalled by the Phantoms’ back-line and in taking penalties at key times failed to build up a head of steam.

The Phantoms now move on to Telford for a match-up in Shropshire against a team that has stuttered at the start of the season, but which is packed full of quality, and who will be right at the top of the table at the end of the season.  It should be a cracker!

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at   ‏@phil_smith66  and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

 

Close Season Update (4) – EPIHL ins and outs, part 1

#33 Janis Auzins, one of the stars from last season

With only two weeks to go before the first pre-season game it is time to have a quick peak at some of the other teams in the EPIHL and reflect on one or two movements and additions to rosters up and down the country.

Whilst the Phantoms had their roster signed and sealed pretty swiftly after the final buzzer in Coventry it wasn’t the same story everywhere, with one or two names still being added to locker rooms across the league, and some signings yet to be announced or made.

In Basingstoke the Bison’s big signing appears to be the additional of import netminder, Slovakian Tomas Hiadlovsky, who has been recruited from the Elite League’s Edinburgh Capitals, which means that the Hampshire club are joining the Phantoms, new boys Hull and the Steeldogs in having an import netminder.

It’s a gamble, for sure, and it will be interesting to see what teams do in overtime, as the new 3-on-3 format leaves coaches a decision to make if their single import is in goal.

By the way – isn’t the answer to leave the import nettie in, rather than introduce someone who is cold and has been sitting on the bench for an hour?

Basingstoke have also recruited impressive forward Shaun Thompson from the Manchester Phoenix in adding to a team who perennially challenges for honours.  Despite the loss of experience with Nicky Chinn, Michael Wales and Dean Skinns, I’m sure that the Bison will once again prove to be there or there abouts.

Almost as soon as last season started news of changes to the Bracknell Bees roster started to filter through, and I fully expect them to be a much improved outfit this year.  The Bees have lost hot prospect Vanya Antonov to the Steeldogs, and seen imports Hubacek and Strycek move on, but have recruited experience in David Savage (from Guildford), and two imports that that made an impact on the league last year – Bakrlik from Manchester, who I have to say is a player I’ve admired for a couple of years and who I would’ve liked to see in a Phantoms’ jersey, and Milan Kostourek, a 38 goal and 69 point forward, from Milton Keynes.

We’ll also see a return to the EPIHL for former Phantom and treble winner to boot, Callum Fowler, who has been lighting up the NIHL with the Invicta Dynamos for the last five seasons.

The Guildford Flames have said farewell to David Longstaff after five years with the club and after a glittering career and over twenty years, ‘Lobby’ returns to the Whitley Warriors in a player/coach capacity.

The Flames also see four of their imports from 2014-15, Tvrdon, Kvetan, Kútny and Kohut depart, to be replaced in part by Matic Kralj (Beibarys Atykrau, Kazakhstan), Jens Eriksson (Lyon,France), and a familiar face to Phantoms’ fans in Erik Piatak (signed from Gornyak Rudny, Kazakhstan).

Piatak has the ability to score prolifically, though at times gave the impression of not relishing the more physical aspects of the league, despite picking up plenty of penalty minutes himself when playing in Peterborough.

Nevertheless, to think that Erik scored 32 goals and 75 points in all in a poor Phantoms side that failed to make the play-offs, indicates what he might bring to Guildford.

Piatak will be joined another former Phantom in Stephen Wall who has moved to Surrey from Milton Keynes and will share net minding duties with Greg Rockman.

The Hull Pirates are hurriedly putting their roster in place under Dominic Osman.  They’ve brought in an import netminder from Sweden in Jon Baston, Mario Mjelleli, a forward from Holland, and in Jan Platil, they have signed a player who has great experience and who is no stranger to the penalty box.  Certainly one to watch!

Of course, the Pirates have also recruited both youth and experience in former Phantoms Warren Tait (Nottingham Lions) and James Hutchinson, and Mason Webster, who rather surprisingly has signed up on Humberside.  Good luck to Mason, another player I would’ve been happy to see pull on a Phantoms’ colours for another year, as he embarks on his first full season at this level.

Putting a side together quickly must have been a real challenge for the owners up at Hull; it’ll be interesting to see how quickly their blend of youth and experience, alongside some imports who are new to the league gel.

In a summer of apparent uncertainty for the Manchester Phoenix, key netminder Stephen Fone has signed on for another season, as has top import Robin Kovar and the experienced Luke Boothroyd, James Archer and Ben Wood, who have all got plenty of seasons with Manchester under their collective belts.

The Phoenix have brought in Elite League and GB experience in the form of D man Mark Thomas (Sheffield Steelers), Ben Russell from Milton Keynes,  and former Telford Tiger Gareth O’Flaherty has joined after a year in the Elite with Coventry.

The Phoenix have also brought in a name that many in these parts will recognise, in Trent Hope, son of former Cardiff Devils and Peterborough Pirates Shannon Hope, and two new imports in Stanislav Gron (Cortina, Italy) and Nico Aaltonen (Arlan Kokshetau, Kazakhstan).

As ever, it’ll be interesting to see how the new guys settle; one thing is for sure, and that is the Phoenix have seen bags of experience leave the club over the past couple of months and there will surely be challenges in playing in Deeside, as we saw when MK played in Coventry.

I’ve written in these posts before that I have liked the way that Tony Hand’s sides have played and hope that they can be successful going forward in these challenging times.

Keep an eye on ‘beyond the blue line’ for a look at the line-ups for the remaining EPL teams.

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at   ‏@phil_smith66  and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

 

Game Night Report: Bracknell Bees

Peterborough Phantoms 5 Bracknell Bees 3

So back to league action after a long weekend in Scotland and Lancashire, and a much needed victory against the league’s basement side, the Bracknell Bees.

An outstanding performance from Milan (Photo: Paul Young)

Despite the Bees’ league position they have shown some decent form of late, beating Swindon and Milton Keynes at home, and narrowly losing 3-2 to the Wildcats in Swindon. The Phantoms are on a terrific run against the Bees, with the last defeat against the Berkshire side coming in the final game between the two sides in the 2012-13 season, on the 3^rd March. Consequently, most pundits would’ve predicted the win that the Phantoms ground out, but be clear, going into the last period this game could’ve gone either way.

The Phantoms were still missing key performers in Pliskauskas, Hutchinson, Webster and Martins Susters through injury, and Marc Levers served his second game through suspension. It was great to see Rob Ferrara stepping up from the Peterborough Islanders after featuring so much last year, and the crowds were surely attracted to the game to see the debut of new signing Donatas Kumeliauskas.

There have been times when the Phantoms’ defence has been under pressure this year, with injuries to Robson, McGiffin, Pick and Hutchinson, and with the departure of Edgars Apelis we see the pack being reshuffled again. I’d be more than happy to see Rob Ferrara play out the rest of the season with the Phantoms; his solid performance tonight suggested he had more than enough to be a part of this team.

The game got off to a flyer, with Luke Ferrara scoring an early powerplay goal from Kumeliauskas and Bebris after Jan Bendik has been given a hooking call. The Phantoms were to benefit from Bees’ penalties on no less than seven occasions, yet despite going close on a number of occasions, this was to be the only powerplay goal of the evening; I’m sure that Coach Koulikov would want the team to be more clinical when presented with these valuable opportunities in the remainder of the season.

If the home supporters thought this early goal would be the start of an avalanche of goals for the Phantoms they were wrong. Bees player coach Smital equalised four minutes after Ferrara’s opener, and barely four minutes separated the teams’ second goals, from Bebris and Foord.

Bebris’ goal was a beauty, coming at the end of a sublime move from line-mates Milan Baranyk and James Ferrara. Baranyk in particular shone all evening. Although the new man was the Phantoms’ Man of the Match, Baranyk deserved the accolade equally for a tireless performance in which he showed a great work ethic and terrific skill in picking up a couple of assists.

Lukas Smital picked up a 2+10 for a check from behind near the end of the first period, and would eventually pick up a 2+20 for a trip and misconduct on 58 35 when there was an altercation with Baranyk that saw the Bracknell man drop the gloves but get no green light from the Peterborough forward, who picked up a ten minute misconduct for his part in an  incident that would have no bearing on the result.

The second period started at pace; the Phantoms hit iron twice in the first three minutes, and with four minutes played Kumeliauskas score his first goal for the team, rifling past Mettam who had replaced Annetts at the start of the middle frame.

Despite the Phantoms dominating the possession of the puck and shading the game at this point, shots on goal in the second period were equal, and the Bees drew level with less than two minutes until the buzzer when Hubacek swept in Bracknell’s third of the evening following a passage of play where the Phantoms failed to clear their crease and a mass of bodies screened Auzins in the Peterborough goal.

The final period saw the Phantoms’ dominance rewarded as Koulikov rifled a tracer into the visitors’ net from the right hand face-off circle after superb work from Luke Ferrara, and the scoring was wrapped up by Kumeliauskas as he picked up a loose puck in front of the Bees’ goal with 2 35 remaining and slid the home past Mettam.

This was an impressive debut from Kumeliauskas with two goals and an assist. Donatas has a rocket of a shot and will pick up plenty of points on the evidence of tonight; with Darius due back the Phantoms will be formidable in the offensive zone.  On the evidence of this single outing it looks like the Phantoms have picked up a real asset.

On a couple of occasions the Phantoms D was caught out by the long pass that left them outnumbered at the back. As we’ve been accustomed to, Auzins, and Norton in particular did well in mopping up the majority of the problems, but on another evening this may be the Phantoms’ downfall.

And finally – what a difference a goal makes – after Cam McGiffin’s first strike as a Phantom on Saturday in Dumfries he put in a strong performance again on Wednesday.

MoM: Kumeliauskas (Phantoms) and Mettam (Bees)

Now on to Swindon, with a crucial game in the battle for a top-four, and home advantage in the play-offs.

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at  ‏@phil_smith66  and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

24^th January 2015

Farewell to … Alan Lack

Alan Lack (Photo – Paul Young)

There can’t have been a Phantoms’ supporter that wasn’t disappointed to hear the news that Alan lack was leaving the club after little more than half a season. In a relatively short period of time he has done what many players fail to do in a career, in that he became a fans’ favourite.

Alan came to Peterborough with a reputation of being a brawler, and though we have seen that side of his game, we have seen so much more too. Both on and off the ice Lack has been a great fit with the Peterborough Phantoms; his energy, determination and skill will be missed; the way he lifted his team mates and the crowd has been a pleasure to witness.

It was only fitting that Lack scored in his last game in a Phantoms’ jersey, in that terrific win in Telford.

A new family and work commitments have meant that Lacky has had to move on and we wish him, Sam and Archie all the best for the future.

Name: Alan Lack
Age: 22
Position: Right Wing/bringing the energy

1.  Job outside hockey: Personal Trainer

2.  Favourite NHL team, and why? Detroit Red Wings – Love the colour red

3.  Favourite team from another sport?
The RAF rugby team – my brother plays for them
Gillingham Anchorians (field hockey) – my brother plays for them
Guildford Flames Women’s Team – my sister plays for them

4.  Can you just let the readers know the circumstances that have led you to leaving the Phantoms?
I got myself a new job which means I cannot give 100% of my time to the phantoms, which understandably they want. At this time of my life I had to make the choice of picking my new job and young family over EPL hockey with the Phantoms.

Off the bench …

which Phantom/which teammate:

is the best trainer? Jimmy and Luke Ferrara

is the worst trainer? Edgars Apelis

is the most skilful? Milan B

is the quickest? Jimmy Ferrara

is the slowest? Greg Pick

is the toughest? 😉

is the funniest? Will Weldon

is the best dressed? Mason Webster

has the worst dress sense? Edgars Apelis

is the biggest moaner? Mark Levers/Darius Pliskauskas

the best thing about the Phantoms and the thing you’d change?
The professionalism and fans. I would change the boards and the ice!

the thing you’d miss the most and the least from your short time in Peterborough?
The good friends I have made. 1000 miles a week of travelling

is there anyone you model your style on, or as a player has been a big inspiration to you?
Alex Ovechkin

which is your favourite rink to play in, and why?
Peterborough (of course!) for the crowd and motivation they give off, and Slough for the ice.

who are your favourite EPL opponents?
Bracknell, Guildford, Manchester

most difficult opponent that you’ve matched up against?
Sheffield, because they are the best at playing their game.

which game for the Phantoms was the most memorable for you, and why?
It has to be the game against the Blackburn Hawks where I scored 4 goals in one game!

favourite fight?
This season – versus Telford Tigers’ Sam Zajac (18^th October 2014)
All time – playing for Bracknell in Sheffield, against Craig Elliot (2^nd December 2012)

And finally …

A parting message for the Phantoms’ supporters …
Thank you for everything. Keep cheering the team on, they are going to need it and it really does help. Good luck for the rest of the season.

 

When Alan joined the Phantoms in July he did a Q&A for ‘beyond the blue line’ which you can check out here:  http://wp.me/p3I8ZK-6J

Many thanks to Alan for agreeing to do another one!

The Peterborough Phantoms can be found online at http://www.gophantoms.co.uk/

You can also follow the club on Twitter at @GoPhantoms 

If you have any comments or observations I’d love to hear from you.  Find me on Twitter at  ‏@phil_smith66  and follow for regular Phantoms updates.

5^th January 2015