 |
| 11/2/01 - At Rochester. Attendance: 421 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| ROCHESTER |
3 (SO) |
1-0-1-1 |
32 |
10 |
1-4 |
Chen (23-25) |
| Des Moines |
2 |
0-1-1-0 |
25 |
10 |
2-4 |
Brown (30-32) |
| DES MOINES: Matieroukine (2G,2PP) |
| ROCHESTER: Vinz (G,A), Garneau (G,PP) |
Special Teams Ensure Victory
Des Moines, IA (11.3.01): The Buccaneers avenged last night's 2-3 shoot-out loss to Rochester with a solid 5-3 victory. The victory was due in a large part to the excellent play of the Buc power play and penalty killing units. Four of the five goals came on the power play, while the Bucs stopped 6 of 7 Rochester advantages. "It goes in streaks and  right now we are on a good streak," said Buccaneer coach Bob Ferguson. The Bucs lead the USHL on the powerplay and are second in penalty-killing.
The Bucs first goal came at 10:12 of the first period on a power play from defenseman Michael Hutchins, just 32 seconds after Rochester opened the scoring. His slap shot from just inside the blue line blew past the crowd in front of the net and then goaltender Yen-I Chen. Sean Kotary made it 2-1 eight minutes later with a quick wrist shot.
Rochester tied it at 2 5 minutes into the second period, but the Bucs again came back a minute later when Erik Johnson scored the first of his two goals on the night. His next goal came 10 minutes later on a powerplay. Rochester made it clear they were not giving up when they scored with 10 seconds remaining in the second period. The Bucs were outshot 13-9 in the first period, but peppered the net with 21 shots in the second period.
The Bucs added another goal early in the third period when Brett Skinner's blast made it 5-3. Brett Skinner's 3 assists and 1 goal put him in fifth place of the USHL scoring standings. Rochester pulled their goalie for an extra attacker, but the agressive Buccaneer defense kept the attackers bottled up and they were unable to put much pressure on Chris Gartman.
Hutchins (PP) (Skinner, Nelson), Kotary (PP) (Bouchard), Johnson (Skinner, Irwin), Johnson (PP) (Skinner, Bouchard), and Skinner (PP) (Matieroukine, Genovy) scored for the Bucs.
Written by Steve Bendy
| 11/3/01 - At Des Moines. Attendance: 3,342 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| DES MOINES |
5 |
2-2-1 |
44 |
18 |
4-8 |
Gartman (18-21) |
| Rochester |
3 |
1-2-0 |
21 |
20 |
1-7 |
Chen (39-44) |
| DES MOINES: Johnson (2G,GW,PP), Skinner (G,3A,PP), Hutchins (G,PP), Kotary (G,PP) |
| ROCHESTER: Hansen (G), Degerness (G), Koidahl (G,PP) |
| 11/4/01 - At Waterloo. Attendance: N/A |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| WATERLOO |
2 (OT) |
0-0-1-1 |
24 |
40 |
1-7 |
Siembida (36-37) |
| Des Moines |
1 |
0-0-1-0 |
37 |
28 |
0-10 |
Brown (22-24) |
| WATERLOO: McFarland (GW), Langenbrunner (G,PP) |
| DES MOINES: Nikle (G) |
| 11/9/01 - At Lincoln. Attendance: 5,010 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| LINCOLN |
4 |
2-1-1 |
43 |
26 |
1-4 |
Ziegelman (29-31) |
| Des Moines |
2 |
1-0-1 |
31 |
12 |
0-5 |
Brown (39-43) |
| LINCOLN: Irmen (2G,A,PP), Southern (GW,2A), Dowhayko (G) |
| DES MOINES: Hutchins (G), Johnson (G) |
Bucs Knock-off Division Leader
Des Moines, IA (11.10.01): The Buccaneers rebounded from two disappointing road losses by beating the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders in overtime, 3-2. The win brought the Bucs within a point of Eastern Division leaders Cedar Rapids. "It's early in the season, but we were treating this as a must-win" said Coach Ferguson. "We were missing emotion against Lincoln. It was definitely there tonight". He can say that again.
From the first drop of the puck the Bucs were in control. They were playing their positions and beating the RoughRiders to the loose puck. So complete was the domination that the RoughRiders did not get a shot on goal for the first 14 minutes of play. The Buc crowd roared their approval after Andrew Leach dropped his gloves and pummeled Tony Gill in front of the player's bench three minutes into the first period.
Speaking of the crowd - Coach Ferguson commented after the game that the talk around the league is about how great the fans are in Tri-City and Lincoln. "That's OK, they can think they have the best fans, but our fans are  knowledgeable about hockey, and nobody gets into the game more than our fans. There isn't a better home-ice advantage in all of hockey." Well said Coach, and nothing gets us more into the game than a bunch of obnoxious opposing-team fans showing up in our arena. The sold-out arena was rocking all night, but not in the mindless way that some of the previously mentioned Nebraska teams do. Maybe they need to cut-down on those Runza's and Valentino's pizza's.
Andrew Leach opened the scoring for the Bucs three minutes into the period when Erik Johnson fed him with a quick pass from the corner on the opposite side of the net. Erik assisted in all three of the Buc goals. "Erik is gaining confidence every game", said Coach Ferguson in a post-game interview with announcer Rob Lettington. The Bucs second goal came on a slap-shot from the blue-line from Luke Irwin with two minutes remaining in the period. The Bucs kept up the pressure the entire game, getting 44 shots on goaltender Bobby Goepfert, crashing the net and looking for loose-change. They found none. In the photo above Alex Matieroukine voices his displeasure with the treatment he got after the whistle had blown. All Alex did was cool-off the goalie with a few ice shavings as he stopped quickly to avoid hitting the goalie.
So, the game went into overtime. Chris Gartman had to come up with an early save, but Erik Johnson broke it down the ice, surprising the defender with his speed. He dropped the puck to Brett Skinner who put the puck above Goepfert's shoulder and into the twine. The red light went on, Gartman rushed down the ice to his team-mates, the crowd went crazy, and I am sure Brett's parents (who were in the crowd), were glad they made the trip from Canada. Also see the 18 photos of this game in the photo section.
Leach (Johnson) and Irwin (Johnson, Nikle) scored for the Bucs. Gartman was in goal.
Written by Steve Bendy
| 11/10/01 - At Des Moines. Attendance: 3,411 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| DES MOINES |
3 (OT) |
2-0-0-1 |
44 |
24 |
0-4 |
Gartman (23-25) |
| Cedar Rapids |
2 |
1-0-1-0 |
25 |
22 |
1-5 |
Goepfert (41-44) |
| DES MOINES: Skinner (GW), Johnson (3A), Leach (G), Irwin (G) |
| CEDAR RAPIDS: Valentin (G,PP), Brooks (G) |
| 11/16/01 - At Omaha. Attendance: 4,3581 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| OMAHA |
2 |
1-1-0 |
21 |
20 |
1-5 |
Vicari (24-25) |
| Des Moines |
1 |
0-1-0 |
25 |
12 |
0-4 |
Gartman (19-21) |
| OMAHA: Jaske (G,A), Harrington (GW,PP) |
| DES MOINES: Johnson (G) |
Special Teams Play Routs Tri-City
Des Moines, IA (11.17.01): The Buccaneers came into tonights game leading the USHL in power-play stats, but had been struggling lately, going 0 for 23 in the last 4 games. When the Buccaneers found themselves being outplayed, down 1-0, and on two 5 on 3 powerplays with less than 2 minutes left in the first period, everyone knew they had to score. "Everyone sensed we had to take advantage of that. We had three straight five-on-threes. We had to take advantage or we would be in trouble" said coach Ferguson.
 In less than two minutes the Bucs had scored two power-play goals, closing out the first period with a 2-1 lead. Alex Matieroukine got the first goal on a razor-sharp pass from Brett Skinner, who was on the other side of the net. Alex put it up high and beat Rudin. With 4 seconds remaining in the period, Justin Nikle scored, with the assist again going to Brett Skinner. The Bucs had taken the lead, and the momentum had clearly changed.
Jason Brown had kept the Bucs in the game the first period coming up with some great saves; now it was time for the Buc offense to take over. The Bucs ran the score up to 4-1, as Justin Nikle score 1:24 into the second period. He was assisted by Brett Skinner and Luke Irwin. Brett Skinner ended up with 3 assists on the night and leads all USHL defenseman in scoring. Less than 2 minutes later, Mark Langdon got the Buccaneers first short-handed goal of the year on a great personal effort. He came in from his own blue-line and cleanly beat Rudin to give the Bucs a 4-1 lead.
The Buc defense got sloppy and gave up a short-handed goal of their own less than two minutes later, but their was no doubt that the Bucs were in control of the game. Forty-two seconds after the Tri-City goal, the Bucs scored again on the power-play, this time from the stick of Erik Johnson (assists to Chris Collins and Luke Irwin). The Bucs added one more goal late in the third period (16:21) from Mark Langdon (assists to Tardy and Stoflet). The Bucs had played another thriller to a sold-out Metro Ice Arena.
Written by Steve Bendy
| 11/17/01 - At Des Moines. Attendance: 3,411 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| DES MOINES |
6 |
2-3-1 |
31 |
29 |
3-9 |
Brown (24-26) |
| Tri-City |
2 |
1-1-0 |
26 |
43 |
1-7 |
Ruden (25-31) |
| DES MOINES: Nikle (2G,GW,PP), Langdon (2G,SH), Matieroukine (G,PP), Johnson (G,PP), Skinner (3A) |
| TRI-CITY: Toll (G,SH), Carson (G,PP) |
Bucs Knock-Off USHL Leader
Urbandale, IA (11.21.01): Thanksgiving eve the Bucs hosted the league-leading Sioux City Musketeers (14-2-0) at the Metro Sports Ice Arena. Sioux City was working on a 10 game winning streak, not losing since October 19. They boasted two of the league's top three scoring machines - Brad Zancanaro is second in the league with 11 goals and 21 assists, Brandon Schwartz is third scoring 12 goals and 15 assists. Against these weapons, the Bucs boast a 7-1-0 record at home and have scored 39 goals, allowing only 18. In contrast, Sioux City is only +2 goals on the road. The Bucs also lead the USHL in power play goals with 25. Those are the hard facts. Add in the fact that this is a rivalry that goes back many years to that infamous incident in Sioux City where a player/fan fight caused all sorts of trouble for our team and coach. Yea, these teams have a colorful history. (If anyone was there or remembers the incident - please post it on the Forum!).
A packed house expected a good game and even though we had beat Sioux City twice in pre-season, there was a sense in the crowd that things could be very different tonight. When the puck was dropped, Sioux City looked, and played with confidence. As the coach said in an interview after the game, they were playing with a lot of confidence. When we did get to goalie Kris Mayotte, he came up big. "I don't know if we are just hitting a string of goalies that are hot, or we are making them look good, because we sure have hit our share of hot goalies this year", commented coach Ferguson. Regardless, by the end of the second period Sioux City had built a 2-0 lead and I began to wonder if we were going to be shut-out. Four minutes into the period, Brett Skinner lit the lamp with a power-play blast (assist to Michael Hutchins) and the crowd began to come to life. The goal sparked the Sioux City offense as they scored 2 goals one minute apart just two minutes later. With just 14 minutes left in the game the score was 4-1 and it looked like the Musketeer's would extend their winning streak to 11.
 Less than a minute after Sioux City's fourth goal, Andrew Leach took a pass from Erik Johnson, skated in on Mayotte and buried it. Hmmm, maybe the Bucs were not done. The entire Buc team was giving it everything they had. The momentum began to change as Sioux City was back on their heels. With 5 minutes left Ross Carlson powered his way in to the front of the net and made it 3-4 (assist to Mark Langdon). The crowd was going crazy and it looked like the only thing that could stop the Bucs was the clock. One minute later the red light was on again to tie the game at 4 each. Justin Nikle (assists to Brett Skinner and Erik Johnson) had tied the game. Looking out in the crowd, I noticed that a few fans had left between the second and third periods. Never leave a hockey game early - things change very quickly! The Bucs tried to end it before the going into overtime, but Sioux City held and we were going into OT! During the short break before overtime, I snapped the picture above of the coach and the players. They were calm and confident. They were determined to win, and I don't think there was any doubt in their minds that they were going to win.
When play resumed, Chris Gartman had to come up with a difficult save, but the Bucs quickly regained control. Brett Skinner broke the puck out of the defensive zone, styling past several defenders. He passed to Andy Nelson who fought off a defender and scored on a brilliant back-hand shot. When the red light went on the noise level increased to a deafining raor. Chris Gartman rushed to the opposite end of the ice where a mob of Bucs were celebrating. They skated to center ice and saluted the fans. The Bucs really proved something tonight - more than knocking off the league leader and ending a 10-game winning streak, they showed they have the pride and discipline to never give up. "I have to hand it to them - when the game was on the line, they stepped up", said coach Ferguson.
Written by Steve Bendy
| 11/21/01 - At Des Moines. Attendance: 2,960 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| DES MOINES |
5 (OT) |
0-0-4-1 |
33 |
26 |
1-6 |
Gartman (5-5) |
| Sioux City |
4 |
1-1-2-0 |
26 |
22 |
0-3 |
Mayotte (28-33) |
| DES MOINES: Skinner (G,2A,PP), Nelson (GW), Nikle (G), Carlson (G), Leach (G) |
| SIOUX CITY: Greaves (2G), Magnuson (G), Fletcher (G) |
| 11/23/01 - At Tulsa. Attendance: 1,001 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| TULSA |
4 |
1-1-2 |
26 |
14 |
0-3 |
Panik (34-36) |
| Des Moines |
2 |
1-1-0 |
36 |
8 |
0-6 |
Gartman (22-26) |
| TULSA: Pennington (HAT TRICK,SH), Childers (GW,A) |
| DES MOINES: Collins (G), Dingle (G) |
| 11/24/01 - At Topeka. Attendance: 1,774 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| Des Moines |
6 (SO) |
1-4-0-1 |
29 |
12 |
2-5 |
Brown (21-24) |
| TOPEKA |
5 |
1-3-1-0 |
28 |
10 |
0-6 |
Aarnio (17-18) |
| DES MOINES: Genovy (G,A), Irwin (G), Johnson (G,PP), Matieroukine (G,PP), Carlson (G) |
| TOPEKA: Bellissimo (HAT TRICK,A), Angell (G), Larson (G) |
| 11/30/01 - At Waterloo. Attendance: 1,895 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| WATERLOO |
3 |
0-2-1 |
22 |
55 |
1-7 |
Siembida (47-49) |
| Des Moines |
2 |
1-0-1 |
49 |
49 |
2-10 |
Gartman (19-22) |
| WATERLOO: Dagenais (GW), Johnson (G,PP), Hansen (G) |
| DES MOINES: Matieroukine (2G,2PP) |
Disclaimer
This is a game summary and commentary from a Buccaneer fan's point of view, and the viewpoints expressed in this column DO NOT necessarily reflect those of the Des Moines Buccaneer's organization.
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