Associated Press

05/09/2011 10:13:22 PM

During the last month of regular season hockey, TNT didn’t have much to cheer about.  Albeit, they entered the post-season as a number one seed posting a franchise best 17-5 regular season record, in cruise control three of those five losses came during the final month of the regular season play.  It was the type of play that could get them an early exit from the tourney if they weren’t careful.  Their efforts were conservative and lackadaisical and at times even teammates had it out with each other.  Goaltender Adam Weber seemed to have lost his mid-season ‘mojo’ posting a 7.60 GAA over the remaining five regular season games, a career and season low for him in that statistical category.

Entering the post-season bracket, TNT would face the winner of Team Lux and Average Benders after resting through their first round bye.  They would only need one win to advance to the championship.  As Team Lux edged Average Benders in round one, TNT got a favorable match up.  They continued their dominance over Team Lux as they would go on to prevail by a score of 12-6 and would finish the regular season and post-season with a combined record of 5-0 in action versus Team Lux.  And just like that, TNT stamped their tickets to the Championship on Sunday where they faced Thunder.  During the regular season, TNT posted a record of 3-2 vs Thunder so this would not exactly be a guaranteed win for them by any means.

When play opened up, Thunder jumped out of the gates to an early 3-0 lead.  After deliberating over calling a timeout, Assistant player-coach Jim Fish decided against it in the event TNT would need their lone time out later.  Through the first period of play, Thunder held a subtle, yet commanding 3-1 lead over TNT.  They found themselves taking unnecessary penalties and becoming frustrated with the chances they were getting and still being down two goals.  Then, TNT completely took their play to a whole new gear during the second period where they would score four unanswered goals while only allowing one late goal.  “The second period saved us.  We had to respond to their dominance in the first period.  We all needed to calm down a little bit and get back to the high scoring power known as TNT,” said a jubilant Ben Fehr in the locker room after the game as he received a Miller High Life shower from teammate Danny Kunath.  Through two periods of play, TNT held a lead of 5-4.  From then on, it was all the TNT offensive show.  The squad would then have to kill off a major penalty for the remainder of the game with just under five minutes left when forward Jim Fish was ejected for fighting.  Thunder would only be able to muster up one goal in the final minutes, even attempting the pulled goalie for the two man advantage.  With a final score of 7-5, TNT had many more chances than the score indicated.

The offense was very much spread out and the TNT forwards kept the same pace throughout the game rotating three lines, all with scoring ability.  Much to the notice of TNT teammates and fans alike, defensemen Ryan Lessnau and Ryan Latreille displayed a defensive performance like none other disallowing all chances Thunder had during their time on ice.  The defensive pair, known in the locker room as ‘Ryan Squared,’ did not allow a goal for their second consecutive game.  Said Lessnau in a post game presser, “…teams just cant score on us when we’re out there.  Webs owes us big time.”  With this being the first title brought home in TNT franchise history, I would say “big time” is right.  Next game is TBA.

Notes:  Defenseman Matt Broadus threw up during the game but returned to not miss a single shift and was quoted as saying “It’s OK…It’s just beer.” …Forward Peter Vollbrecht also did not allow a goal during his time on ice Sunday night. …Despite allowing 5 goals, Goaltender Adam Weber played a solid game making a number of key saves to keep the contest with TNT’s grasp. …TNT did not exactly have champagne to celebrate, but did drink from the cup with the champagne of beers.

Calgary Herald

04/15/2011 07:41:09 AM

The residents of Alberta can finally breathe a sigh of relief after TNT’s Wednesday night victory over Average Benders.  The win not only sealed the first seed heading into the month’s end tournament, but also gave TNT their first President’s Trophy in franchise history.  Clinching first place is a feat that TNT had a chance to secure for three weeks now but could not seem to muster up a win.  Prior to the game, the boys in black and orange were amidst their first three game losing streak of the season with consecutive losses to North Stars, Thunder and Average Benders.  A loss on Wednesday night would have extended the losing streak to 4 games, another franchise first.

“We had to come out with a sense of urgency.  April is playoff hockey and this team knows what it takes to go all the way.  By locking up first place, we just gave ourselves a better chance of winning it all,” said play-coach and GM Brian Long after the game.  Long, as well as all the other returning players from last year’s TNT squad, remembers the OT loss to North Stars last April.  “It’s something that has fueled this team all year.  Guys want to win it for each other, we feel like this has been our year since day one,” Long went on to add.  A source close to the team has indicated that Long still keeps the bottle of celebratory champagne from last year’s campaign.

TNT will play host to 5 Holes for the regular season finale this coming Sunday.  This season, TNT holds a 4-0 record versus the struggling club and a goal differential of +45.  If the trend continues, TNT will finish the regular season with 17 wins and 51 points.  “We just have to make the most of the these final games here to get ourselves ready for the tournament.  The other teams are going to be looking to knock us off, so we have to be prepared,” said forward Peter Vollbrecht.

Should the traditional tournament format be adopted from the previous seasons, TNT, along with the second place seed, will likely get a first round bye and then face the lowest seed remaining in the semi-finals.  Chances are they will have to go through Thunder or Team Lux to advance to the finals.  Sunday’s game versus 5 Holes is at 8:55pm.  Beer duty is TBD.

Notes:  …Defenseman Roland Baggot hands down had the hit of the game when he threw a pick on his own defensive partner, Shawn Fehr, in front of TNT’s net. …Forward Jim Fish returned to the line-up after serving a one-game, self-imposed suspension for his antics during the last match up with Average Benders. …This coming Sunday’s game will mark the 2010-11 home finale where the first 1,000 fans in attendance will receive special TNT spit-resistant ponchos.

The Sports Network
03/28/2011 11:23:47 PM

Dating back to last season, the North Stars seem to know how to beat TNT when it matters most.  For those who do not remember, let me refresh your memory.  The North Stars are the reason TNT locked up 2nd place last year by denying them a championship victory in OT.  In the final meeting between the two teams this regular season, they had no problem dominating TNT even with all the troops back on the bench.  It wasn’t even a week ago when TNT’s thinned out squad of 7 rag-tag skaters handed this very same North Stars team their 7th loss of the season.  Only this time, a combination of poor defensive play, no offensive punch and too many penalties sealed TNT’s fate.  Plus, North Stars had a loss from Wednesday night fresh on their minds.

“We didn’t have enough scoring and we had too much poor defensive play and bad goaltending,” said defenseman Matt Broadus, who returned to the lineup this week.  He went on to add, “This might be a good wake up call for us this late in the season.  We got a bit on ‘auto-pilot’ here the past few weeks with the win streak, so we’ll be able to take some positive out of this.”  This was only the fifth game this season TNT has been held to 5 goals or less.  In a last ditch effort, forward Ryan Lessnau suited up for the final 10 minutes of play hoping to spark the troops one last time for a comeback rally.  Lessnau, slated to be a healthy scratch for the game, provided some energy but it simply was not enough to bring TNT back to life.  TNT will just have to take this game as a lesson learned.  It is still very possible that these teams could face each other again in the finale for a championship rematch (Detroit and Pittsburgh style…same magnitude).

Most of the time this is where we would highlight some pivotal saves and highlight-reel goals, but let’s omit that this week.

Presented with a chance to lock up first place for the regular season going into last Sunday’s game, TNT folded under the pressure.  However, they will have an opportunity to accomplish that same feat again this weekend.  If they can get back on course and beat Average Benders, they will secure their first President’s Trophy in franchise history.  With only four more regular season games remaining, there is not much time remaining to finely tune the well-oiled TNT machine.  Next game is Sunday, 04/03 at 7:10pm.  Beer duty is TBD.

Notes:  The season series between TNT and North Stars finished 2-2.  …According to a fan poll on GoAGame.com, 83% of men’s league fans would like to see a post-season rematch between these two clubs. …In the five games TNT has scored 5 or less goals this season, they have a record of 2-3.