For Immediate Release September 22, 2002
Contact: Andrea Gengler 515-278-9757

Bucs Home Opener This Saturday Night

The Des Moines Buccaneers open regular season play against the Waterloo Black Hawks this Saturday, September 28th at 7:35 p.m. at the Metro Ice Sports Arena, 7201 Hickman Road. Head Coach Bob Ferguson and his Buccaneers will face off against a Black Hawk squad returning 13 players with USHL ice time, including former Buccaneers Andy Nelson and Ross Carlson. New to Waterloo, but not to the USHL this season, is Head Coach P.K. O’Handley, Ferguson’s former assistant in Florida (ECHL). Like Ferguson, O’Handley is no stranger to the USHL, having spent 7 years as Head Coach of the North Iowa Huskies before his time in pro hockey.

The Bucs begin the 2002-03 season with 4 returning players from last year’s team: Evan Stoflet, Ryan Dingle, Tom Kolar and Marty Guerin, and 2 players with USHL experience: Bryce Anderson (a Waterloo native that played for Rochester last season) and Mike Neilon (a former Omaha Lancer).

Tickets for Saturday night’s game are on sale now and available by calling the Metro Ice Sports Arena at 278-9757. All seating is reserved: arena level seating is $11 and ice level seating is $13. Lounge table and luxury suite seating is also available; call for pricing. Every fan at Saturday’s game will receive a 2002-03 Buccaneers Team Poster at the door, and all fans are invited to stick around after the game for a “Meet the Team” autograph session on the ice.

This is the Bucs’ first game of the 2002-03 season; the team will play a total of 61 games.

Bucs Wrap Up Pre-season At CR Super 6 Tournament

The Buccaneers wrapped up pre-season play on Saturday with a 5-1 win over Lincoln at the MEGAtalk Super 6 Tournament in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Newcomer Joel Kitchen (Orillia, ONT) was a standout in the game, tallying a goal and 2 assists in under 1 minute of play during the third period. Des Moines finishes their pre-season action with a 4-5 record. They were 1-2 against opening night opponent Waterloo in pre-season play.

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