Post Game: Steelheads 7, Grizzlies 2

Screw you, Utah. Since you didn't bother to show up, we're reviewing the Wheeling-Reading game instead.


Royals win.

In a game that saw 3 former Grizzlies pick up a goal, the outcome came down to the goaltending. Reading goalie Dalton stopped 45 out of 47 SOG in regulation and all 4 Wheeling shooters in the SO to capture the win for the Royals. Now, that's a game. Add to that both of the Nailers' goals came on the 5-on-3, and we're even more impressed.

Of course, we also need to point out the great job that Wheeling did in their own end on defense and also on the forecheck. While the Nailers racked up 47 shots, they only allowed 27 comparatively. And like the Royals, both goals allowed came on the power play.

Both Reading goals came from former Grizzlies in Cruthers and Labelle (ah - we miss you, Labelle), and one of the two Nailers goals came from Tim Crowder (who we also miss dearly). It was Timmy's first goal in a Nailers uniform and it was on the power play. When we switched over to the Grizzlies game, Wheeling was leading 2-1 with Tim's goal as the GWG; but Labelle scored late in the 3rd to tie things up and send it past regulation. We missed it. Boo.

Overall, great effort from both teams. It's hard to make any sort of comparative statements regarding the game as we haven't been following these teams closely, but it was a fun one to watch. Much more entertaining to watch than Utah's non-effort.

Go Eastern Conference.


**If you want to read about Utah getting slaughtered, go read the official post game. We're opting to ignore it.

Cap Wars: Goalies, Forwards, and fun with ECHL trades

Earlier this week, the Grizzlies made a few changes to their roster. We saw Paul and Tim Crowder traded for Wheeling's David Marshall, goalie Tyler Sims signing with Utah, Paul McIlveen completing the Dylan Hunter trade, and now joining the team - Shane Connelly. But with forwards Marshall in the AHL and McIlveen now suspended (we're assuming this means Europe for Paul as he played there last season), what did Utah end up with out of all this wheeling and dealing?


Well, two goalies - which is exactly what the Grizzlies were looking for. Rumor has it, the trade of the Crowder boys was mainly to free up money in the Grizzlies' salary cap so they could have bargaining power in finding new netminders, which is where Utah has been hurting lately. With defensemen able to step up into the offensive stratum if needed, missing four (Crowder, Crowder, Marshall, McIlveen) forwards may not make Colley as uneasy as going without the solid help in net the Grizzlies have relied on all season.

Of course, this is all just our speculation. But from some of these post game interviews, we get the impression that Colley is looking to his boys to start burying pucks on their opportunities, rather than looking for someone new to take on that role.

Let's take a look at the new goalie Shane Connelly. So far this season, Shane's played in games with 3 different ECHL teams (Utah will be his 4th), and for all statistical accounts he looks like a solid backup goalie to Tyler Sims. With the Devils, he comes to the Grizzlies with a 0.883 save percentage and 3.45 GAA. We found this awesome save from his college days to show you what this kid is made of:


Very nice.

We're interested to see which of the two goaltenders Colley decides to go with in net this Friday. Welcome, Shane!

Crowders to Wheeling for David Marshall (and what we think this means for the big picture)

So, the Crowder boys have been shipped off to Wheeling in exchange for David Marshall. In our opinion, we're not happy about this one but we're also not in charge. The Grizzlies' plan here is to prepare for the post season and they're looking to put together a team that can make a run against the likes of Stockton and Alaska - two rivals that Utah has had trouble with this year.


On the numbers end, we can see Utah's point. After ramping up at the end of 2009-10, Tim has had an inconsistent season this year without his catalyst of a brother Paul, who was injured between November and February. Tim led the Grizzlies' with overall points for a while, but currently comes in with 33 points (13g, 20a) in 55 games. And a recovering Paul is still adjusting back to game shape from his injury.

That being said, the boys seemed to spark in both games this weekend in their hometown of Victoria, as we expected. We were hoping to see the return of the Crowders and Carpentier in the same firepower line that began the Grizzlies' season, but sadly that was not to be.


So, let's look at the big picture - we're talkin' playoffs, baby.

Grizzlies made the trade for David Marshall who is currently playing with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the AHL. With the Baby Pens, Marshall has picked up only 2 points in 8 games so not the heaviest hitter in that league. (His stats in the ECHL are pretty nice, though. You can check them out here.) Which means there's a good possibility that he'll be in Utah come playoff time.


That being said, it's necessary to take into account the upper leagues. Marshall's currently hanging out in WB/S, who has maintained the top spot in their division despite massive injuries and callups from the Pens, who have seen their own share of injuries and relied heavily on their farm teams this season. And even if the Pens don't make the playoffs this season, the Baby Pens are slated to make their run in the AHL. But with the injuries and callups to Pittsburgh, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton needs bodies . . . and this is where it gets tricky for us as Grizzlies' fans.

Marshall has played in recent games for WB/S, so we know he's not riding the bench and will be in game shape when he joins Utah - or should we say, IF he joins Utah. Just today, the Baby Pens found out that three of their top scorers will not be cleared for the AHL playoffs due to NHL injuries. This could mean a spot on the playoff roster for Marshall who has AHL experience not only with WB/S but with two other teams this season.

Of course, it's not uncommon in the ECHL for a trade made in preparation for the playoffs to fall apart due to an AHL callup; this is what we saw with the Simon Ferguson trade last year after all. And honestly, more power to David Marshall if he can make the callup stick even though we want him here in Utah to help out our boys.

So, as for the Crowders? We're going to miss them terribly on a personal note. But we know that the boys will be guaranteed ice time as shorthanded Wheeling fights to hold onto their #2 position in the Eastern Conference's North Division. Tim was drafted by the Penguins in 2005, so it's somewhat fitting that he's joining their organization and playing with ECHL affiliate for the last push to the post season. And if this last weekend was any indicator of what the Crowders will take going into the Nailers, we may have to look out for them in the playoffs.

Aw, draft day!
Best of luck to the Crowders!

Post Game: Salmon Kings 6, Grizzlies 5 (SO)

Grizzlies lose, but not as bad.

So the effort Colley wanted to see in this game was definitely taking shape. There was more push from the boys to keep up with the game, and we saw more of the Crowder magic with Tim's goal to tie things 2-2 at the end of the 1st. Even better, it was amazing to see Utah battle back from a 2 goal 3rd period deficit to send things past regulation. It's hard to recall when we last saw this kind of play from the Grizzlies, and we plan on holding them to more of it.

Welcome once again to Meyers and Grantham who both picked up points in their second game in Utah colors.

And special teams - ah, how we've hated you over this last stretch. We're glad to see the Grizzlies getting both their power play and their penalty kill back on track. The boys slaughtered a 4 minute shorthanded situation during the last few minutes of regulation and the beginning of overtime. Just amazing. And on the power play, Utah capitalized 3 of their 5 opportunities on the man advantage. Such an improvement from what we've grown accustomed to cursing under our breath. Keep it up, boys.

Glad to see Deeth once again making the stars of the game list - we're sure he is too.

The boys are back next weekend.

Stars of the Game -

1. VIC - C. Painchaud
2. VIC - R. Dingle
3. UTA - K. Deeth

Links -
post game || Grizzlies Fight Back To End Streak: Collect Shootout Point In Victoria
gamesheet || Utah at Victoria - 2/26/11
highlights || Game Highlights 2/26/11 at Victoria
interview || Marcus Carroll 2/26/11 intermission

Post Game: Salmon Kings 6, Grizzlies 2

Grizzlies lose. Miserably.

Typically this season, the Grizzlies have been able to control the game and the scoring by dominating the puck on the forecheck, but we didn't see any of this tonight. Utah only tallied 6 SOG in the 1st, 8 in the 2nd, and 5 in the 3rd - totaling 19 against Victoria's 39. The boys basically spent their time chasing the Salmon Kings around the ice, ineffectively hoping to get some wood on the puck. It was painful to watch, and we hope to see the hard work that everyone credits to these boys to come out tomorrow night.

Our prediction of the Crowder boys getting a goal in their hometown proved correct with Paul scoring the Grizzlies first goal and Tim picking up the second assist. We want to see the family effort kept up.

Welcome back, Meyers. Welcome to the Grizzlies, Grantham.

Links -
post game || Grizzlies Fall In Victoria
gamesheet || Utah at Victoria - 2/25/11
highlights || Game Highlights 2/25/11 at Victoria
interview || Tamio Stehrenberger 2/25/11 intermission

Playing Around at Midnight

The Grizzlies begin their week tonight, or this morning, in Las Vegas playing the Midnight Holiday Round Up against the Wranglers. This is the first time they have played in a midnight game. Seems like they are just trying to prolong their Christmas Break! Both teams are just about neck and neck when it comes to who wins after leading after 2 periods. The Grizz are 12-0-1, while the Wranglers are 11-1-2. (Or 14-0-0, depending on this ECHL.com article you read. Let's go with the first stat, shall we?)

We'll bet (this is Las Vegas, after all) on Tim Crowder scoring or at least getting a point. He has 4 goals and 6 points against Las Vegas.

The Grizzlies haven't played since before Christmas, so they could be rusty. Or they could be super rested up. Las Vegas, however, played yesterday and lost 6-5 in overtime.

Check out the jerseys the Wranglers were wearing before Christmas.

Game Day: Las Vegas Wranglers

Las Vegas tonight.

The Grizzlies haven't had the best of luck on home ice so far this season and with Vegas sitting at the top of the Western Conference, Utah will have their work cut out for them. However, midweek games seem to be successful for the boys as Adrian reported in his blog that the Grizzlies are 3-0 on Wednesdays so far this season.

Were not sure if Michael Ouzas is slated to be in net tonight, but we've got our fingers crossed that he's not as Ouzas is currently sitting at first in GAA with a 1.88. Add to that mix Vegas has the reigning ECHL Player of the Week in captain Tyler Mosienko, who scored 5 goals and tallied 3 assists last week, and the Grizzlies had better be on their toes tonight.

If Utah can score early and clean up their defense, they should have better luck against the Wranglers, who are 12-0-0 when leading after two periods if we go by stats alone. Tim Crowder is definitely the man to help the boys out with this, as he leads the Grizzlies in scoring against Las Vegas with 5 points (3g, 2a).

Jake Gannon is on the IR, unfortunately, as he's been essential on defense this season. But Utah has gotten used to playing without their captain during his periodic stints in the AHL, so we hope to see this trend continue.

Puck drops tonight at 7:05pm.
Let's go, boys.

Post Game: Thunder 3, Grizzlies 2

Grizzlies make a comeback, but it's not quite enough.

There were plenty of punch in the face contests in this one, but it didn't seem to push the momentum Utah's way. Though we have to admit we really enjoyed Tim Crowder's fight. He doesn't seem like the type to run his mouth, so when he dropped his gloves you could tell he meant business. And how!

Matt Clarke got tossed nearing the end of the 1st. Denny said he threw a tantrum; they didn't show it on the B2, so we won't speculate.

Both of the Grizzlies goals were on the man advantage, where Utah went 2 for 7. Marcus Carroll picked up both of the power play goals with Matt Sorteberg contributing to both as well. Nicely done, boys. Deeth picked up the second assist on the first goal, and Ruegsegger added to his points on the second. Good job by the PP unit on both of those goals.

Maybe a loss on the road means a win at home? Guess we'll find out.

Stars of the Game -

Meh - all Stockton. So enjoy this short clip of Tim Crowder's one fight last season in Victoria instead:


Links -
post game || Stockton Holds On: 3-2 Over Utah
gamesheet || Utah at Stockton - 12/11/10
highlights || Game Highlights 12/11/10 at Stockton
interview || Michael Gergen 12/11/10 intermission

Grizzlies Live: Mendelson is not much help with the right wing.

This week on Grizzlies Live, Adrian Denny was joined by Leigh Mendelson, Brent Gauvreau, and Tim Crowder.

The show aired on 860AM this week, which Denny stated to air conservative, right wing programs. Mendelson piped in with, "Well, I played goaltender, so I don't know how much help I'll be with the right wing." Clever.

Denny and Mendelson discussed the presence of Riley Emmerson on the bench Saturday, both agreeing that it made a difference in the Grizzlies' play. As Riley is a vocal and positive guy, Leigh believed it helped the boys to have encouragement from another player in addition to the coaches.

Discussing the upcoming road games, Mendelson cited needed improvement on the forecheck and not allowing the opposing team out of their own zone. He also characterized Ontario as a dangerous opponent due to the desperation of the hockey club, and commented on Stockton's coaching being a major hindrance to the Grizzlies.

Mendelson then turned to the players, expressing confidence in Igor Gongalsky as a good addition to the team who would bring size, strength and experience as a left winger. The assistant coach also cited Gauvreau for his leadership and professionalism on the bench, and touted Tim Crowder as a player who gets his job done all the time.

Tim Crowder and Brent Gauvreau discussed the recent upheaval of the team dynamics, with Tim stating his "linemates are dropping like flies." Tim discussed Paul's recovery which was frustrating, but his older brother was trying to get back on track. Gauvreau agreed with the frustration of injury. Brent found his lower body injury particularly difficult as he was unable to skate or do other training exercises.

With the injuries and callups, Tim was definitely feeling some pressure of his role: "The team is looking to me to put pucks in the net." And so far, Tim's been doing a pretty decent job of this, including contributions on every goal in Friday's game.

Gauvreau also put in his two cents about players traveling to work in Europe, stating it was great experience but warned players to do their research before signing overseas. And as a somewhat related aside, we learned that Tim Crowder has not been to Europe, and Brent Gauvreau has not been to Victoria.

The boys ended the night with some trivia, playing ADD: the Game Show and doing quite well at it.

Next week, Brent picked Riley Emmerson, Brett Parnham, and Kevin Deeth as the Grizzlies Live guests, so we look forward to hearing from them.

Good luck on the road, Grizzlies!

Post Game: Reign 4, Grizzlies 3

Grizzlies lose at home again.

Hate to say it, but the Grizzlies just looked lazy tonight. Half the bench didn't appear to have bothered to show up to play. The boys were dropping their sticks
(no idea what that was about) and passes left and right. And the boys three goals didn't seem to generate any momentum for the team. Not the most entertaining game to watch. If we're going to be brutally honest, Ontario's 3rd goal of the game was probably the highlight of the 60 minutes.

We will say that the last two minutes of play looked pretty slick, but having watched their last road series, it was barely noticeable as we're used to a full 60.

Tim Crowder seemed to find his groove again, helping out with all 3 of Utah's goals. That was nice to see as we expect big things from Timmy. It was also good to see Ruegsegger picking up a goal and assist to extend his 4 game scoring streak; we were waiting from some consistency from Tyler and we think we're finally starting to see it.

And of course Lamoureux. He still made some big saves to keep the Grizzlies in a competitive position. Thank you.

One more chance to get it right this weekend.

Game Photos -

*Fixing our main computer, will get pictures up as soon as possible

Stars of the Game -

1. ONT - M. Pelech
2. UTA - T. Crowder
3. UTA - S. Ferguson

Links -
post game || Grizzlies Fall 4-3 To Ontario
gamesheet || Ontario at Utah - 12/3/10
highlights || Game Highlights 12/3/10 vs Ontario
photos || 12/3/10 - Utah Grizzlies vs Ontario Reign
interview || Kevin Colley 12/3/10 post game
interview || Brian Kilburg 12/3/10 intermission

Post Game: Wranglers 3, Grizzlies 2

Um, Grizzlies? Where were you tonight?

Earlier in the season, we got used to Utah going up by a count of 2 or 3, then blowing their lead. Tonight, they seemed to sit back after a one goal lead and nothing seemed to shake them out of this mindset.

Let's talk about the stellar 5-on-3 kill. Utah had two defensemen in the box, and managed to kill a 1:46 shorthanded situation with few changes, two forwards, and one defenseman on the ice. Both the crowd and the benches were on their feet for the full situation. Yet this didn't change the momentum. We thought the boys would be at Def Con One after this kill, but no such luck. Surprising.

It just seems like the mental game is not there for Utah at home like it is on the road, particularly the last road trip. Granted the boys have had some upsets in their roster, adding two new defensemen and a good portion of the team out with injuries (or suspensions), so it may take a game or two for the changes to meld.

However, the Grizzlies still have some very strong players in place - Parnham, Ferguson, Snetsinger, Tim Crowder, Ruegsegger, Tuzzolino, Carroll, Fredricks - and that's only naming a few of the top of our heads. So we just expect more from these boys.

Lamoureux was amazing again tonight. 41 of 44 saves and a 2nd star of the game performance. Vegas's late 3rd goal was a hard one to take with his performance through the rest of the night. Overall, beautifully done.

Tomorrow against Ontario. Let's go.

Game Photos -

*Have some good ones, but are having computer troubles. Will get them up ASAP.

Stars of the Game -

1. LV - G. Collins
2. UTA - J. Lamoureux
3. UTA - B. Parnham

Links -
post game || Conference Showdown Goes To Las Vegas
gamesheet || Las Vegas at Utah - 12/2/10
highlights || Game Highlights 12/2/10 vs Las Vegas Wranglers
photos || 12/2/10 - Utah Grizzlies vs Las Vegas Wranglers
interview || Kevin Colley 12/2/10 post game
interview || Brett Parnham 12/2/10 intermission

Post Game: Aces 5, Grizzlies 4 (OT)

Grizzlies lose in OT, pick up a point.

Unfortunately, we called this one. Sitting in 121 with the 3rd goal just under the Grizzlies belts and half the game left to play, I leaned over to fellow blogger Joni and muttered, "These boys have a tendency to lose their lead. 4-4 going into overtime."

It is a little disheartening to watch a 3-0 lead go down the drain. We've seen it happen before, where the other team takes advantage of simple mistakes that Utah makes. One of Alaska's goals formulated on a 3-on-1, where defense was just not in position. It happens. Sometimes the Grizzlies get lucky when they take an on-ice breather. But when the opposing team pushes the advantage, it makes Utah's miscalculation that much more apparent. Assistant Coach Leigh Mendleson articulated on this in his post game, stating "We haven't learned our lesson yet. We haven't learned that once you get a lead going you don't sit back, you don't play the scoreboard, you don't feel good about things. You put your work boots on a little tighter and you finish the game."

But now for the good. The Crowder boys lit things up again, with 3 points (1g, 2a) for Tim and 2 for Paul (2a). Kevin Deeth, playing with the Crowder line, also lit up the scoreboard with 2 points (1g, 1a) of his own.

We also wanted to shine on Jason Fredricks. We'd actually been commenting on Fredricks' defense throughout the night. He was always where the puck was and from that was able to generate his first goal of the season with the Crowder line. Nicely done. Andrew Engelage made some amazing saves through the night, stopping 32 of 37. After all of his hard work, it was difficult to see the game go on such an easy goal, which we're sure he'd love to have back. And Riley Emmerson picked up his first point of the season with an assist and added another fight to his resume. Overall, it was an entertaining game for the 7,887 fans in attendance.

Rematch tonight at the Maverik Center @ 7:00pm.

Stars of the Game -

1. AK - B. Miller
2. UTA - T. Crowder
3. AK - K. Falite

Game Photos -



Links -
post game || 7,887 See Alaska Take Overtime Contest In Utah
gamesheet || Alaska at Utah - 11/19/10
highlights || Game Highlights 11/19/10 vs Alaska
photos || 11/19/10 - Utah Grizzlies vs Alaska Aces
interview || Leigh Mendleson 11/19/10 post game
interview || Kevin Deeth 11/19/10 interview

Post Game: Condors 4, Grizzlies 3

Grizzlies lose.

The boys looked amazing in the 1st, picking up two goals and dominating the puck. Utah piled on 11 SOG to Bakersfield's 6. However, the Grizzlies didn't look so hot in the 2nd.

We'd mentioned before that the boys have been starting out the 2nd period sloppy, yet so far they'd been fortunate enough to hold on until the opposing team lost the post-intermission momentum. But last night, the Condors picked up 2 goals before the halfway mark of the period to tie things up and snatch control away from Utah. We'd actually been waiting for one of the opposing teams to realize that the Grizzlies were slower in the beginning of the middle frame and take full advantage of that, so we weren't particularly surprised when the Condors figured it out.

We were a little surprised at some of the calls in the top of the 3rd, though. Yeah, if you were watching on the B2, you saw the leveling hit on Morency that took him out of the game . . . several hundred times. To us, it looked clean: Morency had the puck, his head was up, but the Grizzlies ended up shorthanded. Fair enough - this is the ECHL after all and we're not officials.

But honestly, Kaip . . . what was with the joke move on Tuzzolino before the puck dropped? Cute one, chief.

Utah improved on their power play, going 2 for 6 on the man advantage. I'm sure this was a relief to Colley after the 0 for 7 job the boys pulled on Wednesday. We'd like to see them keep improving on this tonight (and we're sure Colley would, too).

Stars of the Game -

*Wha? All from Bakersfield. Whatevs.

Links -
post game || Grizzlies fall 4-3 in Bakersfield
gamesheet || Utah at Bakersfield - 11/12/10
highlights || Game Highlights 11/12/10 at Bakersfield
interview || Matt Clarke 11/12/10 intermission

Post Game: Wranglers 4, Grizzlies 3 (SO)

The Grizzlies may have lost this one, but today - today we have love for the Crowder boys.

Yesterday, Paul piled on the goals and today younger brother Tim took his turn. When these boys are on, they're on fire! It's really hard to deny the numbers. Paul picked up 4 points over the weekend with 2 goals and 2 assists, while Tim picked up the identical stats. (We'd make a Sedins joke here, but it might be a little too early in the season.) And of course, we would be remiss if we didn't mention Michael Gergen's contribution to both of Tim's goals. Beauty.

Riley Armstrong joined the Grizzlies and picked up an assist on a power play goal by Jackman. As a bonus, Riley drew the penalty resulting in the man advantage. And if we're going to be honest here at the UGB, we've kind of been Riley Armstrong fans for a while, so it just made our day to see him land in Utah.

And we have to highlight the awesome Brock Wilson fight, which we're not even certain how it started as it was behind the play. One of the Vegas players was in Armstrong's face, and the next thing we saw was Brock taking care of business. But of course, for the B2 watchers, our favorite part was Wilson in the penalty box with a huge grin on his face. Good times.

Nick Tuzzolino took on the intermission interview and mentioned one reason for coming here was issues with the Wheeling Nailers. Well . . . we have heard that Death Is Better Than Wheeling (Found this on Bourne's Blog last season and we're still laughing at it).

Overall, the Grizzlies picked up 3 of 4 possible points in Vegas, so we consider it a good weekend.

Stars of the Game -

*All Vegas, so we deem the Crowder boys our stars.


Links -
post game || Grizzlies Fall 4-3 In Vegas Shootout
gamesheet || Utah at Las Vegas 11/6/10
highlights || Game Highlights 11/6/10 at Las Vegas
interview || Nick Tuzzolino 11/6/10 intermission

Post Game: Grizzlies 3, Wranglers 2 (OT)

Utah wins. Huzzah!

The Grizzlies really dominated the 1st period, even though no goals were scored on either side. What we really noticed was the amazing control the boys had over the puck during that initial frame. Whenever Vegas touched the puck, it seemed like Utah snatched it right back. And throughout the game, the Grizzlies piled on more SOG overall with 37 to the Wranglers 27.

Of course it wasn't all roses. The boys came out pretty sloppy in the 2nd period, but with back to back goals in that frame it is hard to complain about it. Though, we have our suspicions that was the only way to appease Colley after such a start.

And of course, the Crowders and Carpentier were definitely the talk of the night with all 3 goals being a product of that line, with a little help from Nick Tuzzolino for the game winner. Also wanted to point out Brad Snetsinger's 7 SOG as well. Another fun fact we found in the official post game: "Goaltender Andrew Engelage stopped 25 of 27 shots, including 23-straight" Nicely done boys.

And for anyone watching on the B2 you'll have noticed Vegas named their power play the Roulette Power Play. We tried to find out actual roulette odds to compare to the Wranglers power play percentage, but we only figured out that they went 0 for 3 on the power play for Friday. (Nice PK, boys!) So our guess is that you might have slightly better odds with roulette.

Stars of the Game -

1. UTA - T. Crowder
2. LV - C. Long
3. LV - V. Bellissimo


Links -

post game || Grizzlies Beat Las Vegas 3-2 in Overtime
gamesheet || Utah at Las Vegas - 11/5/10
highlights || Game Highlights 11/5/10 at Las Vegas

Pink in the Rink 2010-11 Jersey Auction

Another Pink in the Rink game, another pink jersey auction.

The Utah Grizzlies website reported that "Nearly $12,000 was raised to fight breast cancer following the team’s live post-game pink jersey auction." Nicely done, boys.

Auction Photos -

Captain Gannon is first up.



The other boys mill around waiting for their turn on the auction block.



Tim Crowder and Brad Stensinger hang out in the back.



Paul Crowder up for auction.



More milling about - Carpentier is up next.



Tim Crowder waits for his picture with a fan.



We also tried to get a clear shot of Brock heckling the bidders, but to no avail. And no classic GQ shots like we captured of Captain Kinasewich last year, but still some fun pictures.

Weekend Preview - Utah Grizzlies vs Alaska Aces

It's finally opening night!

The Grizzlies are opening the 2010-2011 season this weekend on the road in Alaska against the Aces. We're pretty excited, and not just because we've been deprived of Grizzlies hockey for so long. We think this team has a lot of potential for an exciting season. They're also taller than last season's team. We don't know if that's relevant or not.

Anyway, after a couple of weeks of training camp they're ready to go, and even if they're not, it's too late now. We looked up last year's stats against Alaska, and it looks like they won 6 out of 8 games against the Grizzlies, so the Grizz have something to prove. Either that, or the Grizzlies won 6 of 8, but there's no guide on how to read the chart. We're pretty sure it was the former. We do remember a gigantic brawl against the Aces last season so we know it wasn't pretty.

The Aces have consistently been a tough team for the Grizzlies to play against, so this should be a good test. They are coming back, however, with former Alaska goaltender J. P. Lamoureux, who took the Aces all the way to game 7 in the Kelly Cup Finals in '08-'09. Our guess is he'd like to get back there. A guy with his experience could be a great asset for the Grizzlies.

Here's a fun fact - the Grizzlies will be icing two pairs of brothers (a pair of pairs?) this season. Ed and Brad Snetsinger have joined the team, along with Paul Crowder, brother of returning forward Tim Crowder. Timmy and Paulie are expected to start on a line together. We wonder how that worked out in the back yard back in the day. Guess we'll find out.

The Grizzlies have updated their website with some videos from training camp, interviews, and this great fact sheet about tonight's opener. If you haven't seen it already, we recommend checking it out. Both games this weekend (Friday and Saturday) can be heard on 1230 am with the pre-game show starting at 8:45 pm. Puck drops at 9:15 pm.

It's about time.

Just a brief Preseason Review

It was great to hear the slap of the puck and the scrape of skates on the ice once again as the Grizzlies took on the Idaho Steelheads in their two preseason games last weekend. Nothing is quite like the ECHL hockey season, especially when it's Grizzlies vs Steelheads. And while we're still out of practice from the off season, here's your preseason review!

Friday, October 8th:
The Grizzlies found themselves in a 4 goal deficit at the top of the 2nd, as Idaho packed on the points. However, Utah was able to cut the lead to a single goal before the end of the period, 4-3. But unfortunately, the Grizzlies weren't able to even the score before the end of the match, and Idaho picked up an empty net goal to end the game 5-3 in the Steelheads' favor.

This preseason game wasn't open to the public, but you can read the official postgame on the Grizzlies' site: Late Idaho Empty-Netter Ends Utah’s Preseason Comeback Effort.


Saturday, October 9th:
On our way to the game in Logan, we stopped by Le Nonne for some eats. We honestly just wanted to give these guys a shout out because their spinach ravioli is amazing. But now on to hockey . . .

The Grizzlies took the lead halfway through 1st with a goal by Parnham. And a beautiful goal it was. You could see it coming from the blueline. But our favorite part was the look on Riley Emmerson's face as the team jumped up to celebrate the goal. (We're still depressed we didn't get a picture of this.) 6'8" Riley got a goal of his own in the 2nd on a power play to increase the Grizzlies' lead to 2-0. Then Utah piled on another goal at the top of the 3rd to widen the gap, before Idaho struck back, 3-1. Both the Grizzlies and the Steelheads picked up additional goals to end the game 4-2 in Utah's favor.

You can check out the official postgame for Saturday's preseason game on the Grizzlies' site: Grizzlies Beat Idaho 4-2 To Complete Preseason.

It was nice to see JP Lamoureux in action for the Utah side. He stopped every shot he saw during the match.

One change we did see from last year's preseason game was the 3rd period. There was no coasting on the lead in the 3rd. The boys put in a lot of hard work for a full 60, which elated us to no end. We hope to see this trend continue and improve throughout the season.

Here's to a great 2010-11, Grizzlies!

Training Camp 2010, Day 2

We managed to drop in to training camp again today for a bit, and have to say we are excited for this team already. The intensity was noticeable with these guys, and it's only the second day of camp. We don't remember guys battling this hard in training camp last year until... well, we don't really remember. But this seems to be a team of hard workers so far.

Again, there were 13 skaters on the ice, and we actually recognized a few today. (They stopped and stood right in front of us where we could see their faces.) It was good to see Tim Crowder back, and also Brett Parnham. There were three goalies on the ice today, so they took turns during the drills. (No word of who the 3rd goaltender is as of yet.)

When we arrived at Acord Ice Center, the team was already well into their practice, this time doing organized drills. The first one we watched was a 1-on-1 drill in front of the net - that's where we first noticed these guys were really going for it. There were quite a few good hard checks into the boards throughout practice, and they weren't afraid to shove each other around to get the job done.

This group also paid close attention to the explanations of the drills at the white board, and weren't afraid to ask questions if they didn't understand. They got it right more often than not. Perhaps it's because a lot of them were back from last season, but we checked our notes, and on October 14th last season (almost the end of camp) Coach Colley was still yelling at the team to go back and do it again until they got it right. Today we only saw one group that had to start over for doing a drill wrong. Either Colley is mellowing out, or this team gets it.

Practice went a little longer today than yesterday - they ended with a stretch at 11:00 am. Coach Colley told them, "good job today," and left the ice. Most of the guys were still hanging out on the ice getting to know each other and working on stuff when we left around 11:15 am. We would have stayed longer to see what they got up to, but we had to get back to our real jobs.

We may not make it out to practice tomorrow or Thursday, but after Tuesday even the calendar says W. T. F. We'll try to check in again this week, though, so stay tuned. Also, practices are free and open to the public, so if you can get away from your real jobs, drop by the Acord Ice Center and check out the Grizzlies.

*Pictures in today's post were taken at yesterday's practice (10/4/2010).

UPDATE: The third goalie in practice today must have been Dan Bellissimo. [Article from ECHL.com]

Game 4: Steelheads 4, Grizzlies 1

We did warn everyone that we would be spending the weekend moping about in our bathrobes if the Grizzlies lost. And we did. Here is your belated and final post game of the season.

The Steelheads scored 3 times in the 1st, the last of the 3 goals coming in the final minute of the period. Utah thought they had scored the first goal of the game, but the puck was not seen to cross the red line. In the 2nd Idaho tacked another goal to their total, ending the period 4-0.

The Grizzlies tallied their only goal during the 3rd as they kept the Steelheads to a scoreless period, ending the game 4-1 in Idaho's favor.

From the official post game:

The Idaho Steelheads defeated the Utah Grizzlies 4-1 Friday night at the E-Center to defeat Utah four games to none in the ECHL’s National Conference Semifinals. The Grizzlies season ends in the second round of the postseason. [utahgrizzlies.com]

post game || Grizzlies Season Ends In Second Round
highlights || Game Highlights 4/23/10 vs Idaho
gamesheet || Idaho at Utah - 4/23/10
photos || 4/23/10 - Utah Grizzlies vs Idaho Steelheads
interview || Tim Maxwell 4/23/10 intermission
blog || Adrian Denny's game day blog


Photo of the Game:


1st period - Ryan Kinasewich, Malcolm MacMillan listen to why their first goal was not a goal.

Additional Photos: [Flickr]



Scoring Summary:

IDH M. McCutcheon (3), 9:50 1st period (Derlago, Flichel); Steelheads 1, Grizzlies 0
IDH E. Barlow (3), 11:51 1st period (McCutcheon, Flichel); Steelheads 2, Grizzlies 0
IDH B. Kushniruk (1), 19:52 1st period (McCutcheon); Steelheads 3, Grizzlies 0
IDH M. McKnight (3), 5:02 2nd period (DeVergilio, Friesen); Steelheads 4, Grizzlies 0
UTA T. May (3), 11:15 3rd period (Sixsmith, Crowder); Steelheads 4, Grizzlies 1


Stars of the Game:

1. IDH - R. Bachman
2. IDH - M. McCutcheon
3. UTA - T. May

Additional Notes:

> James Sixsmith lead the team with 6 SOG and also tallied an assist.
> Mike Morrison stopped 23 of 27 of in the match.
> Thanks for an awesome season, Grizzlies!