North Iowa Wins Hard Fought Contest
Summary
Des Moines, IA (3/6/98): North Iowa kept their chance for the Cup alive by defeating the Bucs 3 to 2 Friday night before another sell out crowd at the Metro Ice Arena. In an evenly matched game, it was the Huskies who scored last on their only power play of the night, late in the second period. The Bucs had their chances to win the game, up to the last minute of play when Pete Fregoe's shot hit the cross bar.
Huskie goalie Greg Naumenko was hot, stopping 28 of 30 saves - many of which were quality shots. Bob Revermann was in goal for the Bucs and had 15 saves. The race for the Cup is really tight now. The Bucs need to win 2 of their next three games to clinch the championship. If the Bucs should end in a tie with Omaha at the end of the season, the Bucs would be awarded the Cup as we have a better record against Omaha - even if they beat us Saturday. Fregoe (Jensen, Clarke), and Searles (Strand, Nightingale) scored for the Bucs.
Ice Slinging
> This was an important game and we did need the win, although we could afford a loss. North Iowa desperately needed a win in their race for higher standings. Lincoln currently held third place though both teams had 69 points, but with Lincoln having more goals, it put them ahead of North Iowa. What better for North Iowa then to beat Des Moines, who was currently holding first place.
> If we could win tonight and tomorrow the cup would probably be presented to us. Rumor was that the cup was going to be brought Saturday night for a possible presentation.
> Revermann was in goal and so was Greg Naumenko for North Iowa. I'm sure Revermann won himself the start because of his outstanding play last weekend. Nate DiCasmirro for North Iowa, a sniper that had to be watched, was getting a star.
First
In the first minute and a half the Muskies were really fighting hard. They were keeping us fighting hard and within the first five minutes we were going head to head with them. North Iowa was giving us a lot of competition... the first in quite awhile! Rheese Carlson went for tripping at 6:14, but we had failed to make use of the power play. With 8:55 left North Iowa scored on a scramble... the crease was crowded with players other than Revermann. Marchus Willy got the goal (assist to Eric Lawson and Shane Fukushima). The one goal lead for North Iowa could only help them. With about five minutes left a certain player ran into another certain players. I don't want to point any fingers, but a certain player was playing rather clumsy tonight. It was all very messy. I'll just say his name starts with a p and his last name starts with an f. The crowd was really yelling and complaining in the remaining minutes. I think they really expected their Bucs to win and they weren't happy with how it was going so far. Saves: Des Moines 5 - North Iowa 10
Second
Omaha so far was winning. We didn't want them to win, it would just make the race closer for tomorrow night. With 17:12 left in the period we got our third power play. We really needed to score if we hoped to win this game. The Bucs had a hard time getting anything done though. And an even harder time with passing. Pete Fregoe took the puck down the whole length of the ice along with Erik Jensen at 9:42 and scored our first goal (assist to Jensen and Noah Clarke). The Bucs were playing well... but North Iowa scored at 12:49 taking the lead back again. Marchus Willy got himself his second goal and the second goal for North Iowa (assist to Tom Nelson and Shane Fukushima). I want to take the time to right now to mention what an idiot I was to talk about Blaine Lacher and to be stupid enough not to do some research to find out where he was. I found out he retired from hockey after he got traded several times and sent to the minor leagues! When Jake Searles came in alone on the left side of the attack zone at 15:14 he scored with a quick slap shot (assist to Erik Strand and Jason Nightingale). We were tied again, hopefully however, North Iowa wouldn't take another lead. Jeremy Vokes went for holding at 17:19. I mention this penalty because North Iowa scored with 57 seconds left in their power play. Paul Murphy got the goal over Revermann's glove-side shoulder (assist to Jeff Crouse). Once again we were leaving a period with North Iowa leading by one point. Saves: Des Moines 3 - North Iowa 7
Third
Garrett Stafford was taken down by Kent Sauer as they were coming into the attack zone, but the ref did not call it. The passing wasn't too crisp and clear and the play appeared sloppy. With about 11:30 left the score was still 3-2 and the way both teams were playing it didn't look like we'd be getting another goal. I wouldn't be surprised though if North Iowa got another goal. At about 8:19 the Bucs came extremely close to getting a goal, but we were to be disappointed. We were having some great defensive work in the third period, not only was Revermann doing a good job in net, but Garrett Stafford was doing pretty well too! At 14:14 Greg Naumenko got a slashing penalty and what appeared to be a time out was called (probably for Des Moines but I'm not really sure). During the power play we couldn't even keep it in the zone. When Pete Fregoe was taken down near the end and North Iowa got a penalty, but nothing happened in that power play. Bobby Revermann was pulled with about a minute left and the extra attacker was on. We lost 3-2. North Iowa was a happy team. The Huskies certainly deserved the win, they played hard! Saves: Des Moines 7 - North Iowa 11. Total Saves: Des Moines 15 - North Iowa 28. Written by Sarah Bendy.
Player of the Game: I had a hard time picking a player of the game, but I decided to name Noah Clarke, I thought he had a good game.
Bucs Shut Down Omaha in 3 - 1 Win
Summary
Des Moines, IA (3/7/98): The Lancers, the Bucs and a sold-out Metro Ice Sports Arena... Oh, baby, it was hockey night in Des Moines! The Bucs put together 60 minutes of championship level play to beat the Lancers and move within 1 game of the Anderson Cup. A win next Friday against Sioux City would give the Bucs their third Anderson Cup.
Led by the solid netminding of Bob Revermann, the Buc D was able to shut down the potent offense of the Lancers. The Bucs scored first on a beautiful touch pass from Mark Krueger to Garrett Stafford in the first period. The Lancers only goal came 3 minutes later when Jed Ortmeyer came in alone on Revermann. Revermann stopped Jed's shot but in the scramble that followed, Mike Lucci scored. The Bucs game winner came halfway through the third period when team captain Jason Basile scored. The empty net insurance goal was scored by Pete Fregoe. Stafford (Krueger), Basile (Fregoe) and Fregoe (en) (Jensen) scored for the Bucs.
Coach's Comments
The Lancers come to town after playing Dubuque last night. Obviously this is a big match-up. While we are 3-1-1 against Omaha this year, the Lancers have played well in our building (losing 5-4 in OT and winning a shoot-out 4-3). They are paced offensively by veterans Neil Breen and Chad Theuer up front, and feature the league's two highest scoring defensemen in James Armstrong and Pete Summerfelt. Newcomer Duvie Westcott (coming to Omaha from the University of Alaska-Anchorage) is a dynamic offensive defenseman. Goaltender Dennis Basset will be playing all the Lancer games, as Tony Zasowski is out with a leg injury.
The Bucs will need to stay out of the penalty box tonight as the Lancers feature the league's best power play (26.9%). We must attack them offensively, put a lot of pressure on their defensive corp, and work extremely hard to win battles to the loose pucks. As always, we must play unselfishly and establish good team defense to be successful.
Ice Slinging
> This was a do or die situation, we had to win the game and beat the Lancers if we wanted to win the cup.
> There's nothing quite like Omaha fans in our barn to bring us all together. We really began to cheer when we heard Lancer fans cheering. Despite a winter storm warning predicting up to 16" of snow and blizzard conditions, the house was full and there was an air of excitement.
> Revermann (1.60 GA) was in goal for Des Moines and Basset (2.61 GA) was in goal for Omaha.
First
The Bucs during the first period looked a lot better than they had the night before. There was a lot of back and forth play and it looked like it was going to be a long night! With 16:04 left Nicky Parillo was taken down when he tried to go for the net and Jed Ortmeyer was penalized for slashing. At 6:50 Garrett Stafford stuffed a goal home, the first of the game (assist to Mark Krueger). The players were just falling all over each other out on the ice, you could tell they were working as hard as they could! The play was so heated at this time that Jake Searles and David Noble got roughing coincidentals at 8:11. On a breakaway Jed Ortmeyer shot on goal, but Revermann came up big as he stretched out full length on the ice and stoned him. However our defense failed to clear the rebound and Mike Lucci managed to get the puck into the net as he went up and over the outstretched Revermann at 10:14 (assist to Ortmeyer). With a minute remaining Maxwell announced how much time we had left in the first period. The fans responded with "thank you!" and Maxwell came back with "No, thank you!" We were tied 1-1 with Omaha, we had to come out strong the next period. Saves: Des Moines 9 - Omaha 11
Second
In the second period we had the normal slump and the fire seemed to have disappeared compared to the period before. About six minutes into the period the fans started calling for Crazy Larry... now the funny thing about this is, I'm not even sure Larry was there! He sure wasn't anywhere to be seen. With about twelve minutes left the Pete Fregoe, Noah Clarke, and Dan Donnette line was getting kind of fired up! The fans were getting a little fired up as well. Fregoe was having a good game. Maxwell throughout the first and second period repeatedly urged the crowd on to cheer on their team. However the fans really seemed to quiet down in the second period. In the first period they were really very loud and excited, however they were getting quieter and quieter as the night wore on. With 2:59 left, Omaha thought they'd gotten the puck in the net but it was waived off due to a man in the crease. The Omaha fans weren't happy about this... but our fans certainly were! Saves: Des Moines 11 - Omaha 11
Third
We had fifteen minutes left or so with which to get a goal, preferably two goals. Omaha got a penalty at 6:31 for boarding by Jake Ortmeyer and perhaps this would give us a chance to get a goal. With 7:03 left Jason Basile scored (assist to Pete Fregoe). Basset was down on the ice holding his head. He was not happy with himself, but the Bucs were very happy! With about five minutes left Pete Fregoe and Noah Clarke took the puck down the whole way to attack Basset. Pete got that goal in on a one-timer but it was instantly waived off, not of course before all our fans could celebrate. The ref announced that he had blown the whistle before the puck had gone into the net - why there was a whistle in the first place was beyond me. So with another goal waived off in the game, the fans were excited, the team was excited, and one fed off of the other. With 1:14 left Omaha took a time-out and we were getting ready for the final minute. Basset was pulled with 54 seconds left and Pete Fregoe scored with 30 seconds left. Fregoe had a slap shot from the left side of the net (assist to Erik Jensen). Omaha put Basset back in goal, but the game was over. The Bucs poured out of the bench and converged on Revermann. They became one mass of moving players, as if one entity. The fans cheered and hung around after the game longer than usual. Saves: Des Moines 8 - Omaha 8. Total Saves: Des Moies 28 - Omaha 30. Player of the Game: Pete Fregoe; he had a good game and worked hard! Written by Sarah Bendy.
Bucs Capture share of the Anderson Cup
Summary
Des Moines, IA (3/13/98): A sold-out Metro Ice Sports Arena went wild as the Buccaneers captured a share of the Anderson Cup by beating Sioux City, 5 to 2. Both teams scored all their goals (except for the Bucs empty netter) in the first period. The Fregoe-Clarke-Jensen line was awesome, and Noah Clarke's individual effort earned him the game winning goal as he fought off a defender and scored.
After the scoring spree, both teams settled down to a defensive battle. Bob Revermann for Des Moines was outstanding, making 30 saves on the night. Sanger was also tough in net, stopping 26 Buc shots, many of which would have been goals with a lesser skilled goalie.
The Bucs will get the number one seed in the coming playoffs and an automatic bid to the National Junior A Championship May 1-6 in Billings, Montana. Fregoe (pp) (Clarke, Jensen), Fregoe (Jensen, Clarke), Clarke (Jackson), Maksimenko (pp) (Vokes, Capouch) and Searles (en) (Stafford) scored for the Bucs. [Game Rant].
Ice Slinging
> Owens was possibly more nervous than his own players were.
> There was a rumor that the cup would have dual champions (Des Moines and Omaha), but there was also rumor that the cup was here in Des Moines.
> We needed only one win to clinch our spot in the nationals. Billings or bust!
> Player awards were given before the game started. There were a lot of awards given to two or three players at the same time. Nightingale would win several awards, but his first award would prove to be memorable. The poor guy tripped over the non-smooth surface of the rug laid out to allow the awards to be given and received.
Booster Club Scholarship: Erik Strand, Chris Dube, & Jake Searles
Booster Club Academic: Pete Capouch & Jason Nightingale
Booster Club Rookie of the Year: Noah Clarke
Pepsi Scholarship Award: Erik Jensen
Bob Punsalan Memorial Award: Jason Nightingale
Community Service Award: Billy Rosseau & Jake Searles
Bob McCorkle Award: Jason Nightingale
The Landmark Trophy: Nick Parillo
Curt Hammer Award: Pete Fregoe
The Standard Trophy: Jason Basile & Pete Fregoe
First
The fans were loud and excited, and the players were very fired up. It looked like it was going to be a good game! Early into the period a delayed penalty was called and with Revermann on the bench and the extra attacker on the ice we scored the first goal of the game. Pete Fregoe got the goal at 1:30 (assist to Noah Clarke and Erik Jensen). Erik Strand was pushed into Sanger by a Sioux City player and Sanger out of his net ended up being thrown to the ice before 2:49. While Sanger was clearly out of his net and not probably getting back anytime soon, the Bucs got another goal. The ref however put a stop to it and waived off the would-be-goal. Instead they put Erik in the box for interference with the goaltender at 2:49. With 15:11 left Morgan Roach was doing a little cherry-picking and was continuously trying to set up some sort of play, it never worked. I never really liked Roach. B.J. Willis for the Muskies scored at 8:15 (assist to A.J. Kratofil). What's with these names?! A.J., B.J., hmm, no T.J! Revermann made a bit of a faulty move, perhaps he had gone down too soon, or maybe the rebound failed to be cleared. This goal managed to take the wind out of the fan's sails, perhaps even a bit out of the Bucs themselves. Completely unexpectedly Pete Fregoe scored again this time with 8:15 left it was a clean "tic-tac-toe" play (assist to Erik Jensen and Noah Clarke). Billy Birrenkott was having a good night, he took Steve Jones down along the boards behind Revermann, this caused happiness among our fans. Later when Jesse Unklesbay wound up, Birrenkott went down in front of him and took the body to clear the puck out of the zone. So Billy was having a good defensive game as was Jimmy Jackson and Vincent Bachet. The score was 2-1, we needed another goal or two to ensure our victory. Noah Clarke skated in on a line change with no other Bucs behind him, split the defense, and shot it high to the glove side of Sanger at 15:20 (assist to Jim Jackson). Not long after this Sioux City got another goal from Steve Jones at 15:49 (assist to Willis and Unklesbay). It was not a good goal for Revermann to let in. Now Sioux City would have a lil more fire and we needed the victory badly. We would have to get another goal. We got the much needed goal with 1:55 left on a power play from Maksi (assist to Jeremy Vokes and Pete Capouch). Saves: Des Moines 12 - Sioux City 7
Second
We had our usual second period slump, however the score stayed the same, 4-2. This was a good thing. If we could keep Sioux City from scoring we had a comfortable lead. Nicky was doing well at the beginning of the second and was working very hard. He had at least three shots on goal in one shift. Though there wasn't a whole lot of action out on the ice, there was in the stands. Crazy Larry made an appearance in this period and soon the fans were chanting for him. Larry began to start cheers and the crowd really got into it. Kratofil went for hooking at 7:44. We came close to another goal, but it wouldn't happen 'til much later. In section 4, front row, there was a group of about seven boys that would dance whenever the music was on. Saves: Des Moines 10 - Sioux City 9
Third
I swear I'm an iguana. I freeze in cold weather and faint in hot weather! I hate hot weather, but my toes and knees were freezing at the game. The fans began to complain a bit in the beginning and the Bucs seemed a little sluggish, or perhaps it was myself. I was after all very tired. I felt like taking a nap. I didn't have much to talk about in this period, but by then I was half asleep. Desperate to find something to talk about that I started watching the crowd. With 8:33 left the puck got sent out of the rink by a Buc and towards the heads of leaving fans. I found i amusing, why would someone leave at a time like that anyway? I noticed that Krueger and Dube, though dressed, had not played at all. Jeremy Vokes got slashed by Enders and went sliding across the ice. This managed to get the penalty called and Jeremy got up after this. With Vokes seemingly ok, Enders charged him and began to fight him. After it was all over Vokes was put away for roughing and Enders only got a slashing penalty. I still think Enders should have gotten a roughing penalty as well. All of this happened with 4:17 left in the third. Then with about a minute left the cup was brought in through the Northwest maintenance entrance and soon Sanger was pulled. Jake Searles got an empty-net goal with 28 seconds left (assist to Garrett Stafford). Soon the cup was sitting in the Bucs penalty box and the seconds ticked away. The Bucs had won the cup and they piled on top of Reverman and the net. The cup was given over to the captains and it was paraded around the ice and eventually to Owens, who said he just sighed as he received the shiny object. Saves: Des Moines 8 - Sioux City 10. Total Saves: Des Moines 30 - Sioux City 26. Player of the Game: Pete Fregoe. Written by Sarah Bendy.
Walker Gets Second Shut-Out Against Lincoln
Summary
Lincoln, NE (3/14/98): Jon Walker got his second shutout against Lincoln this year as the Anoka D alumni took care of defense and added 2 goals to boot! Bill Birrenkott got his first goal of the season and Josh Flynn got the game winner. Pete Fregoe got the empty net insurance goal. The Bucs end the regular season at 40-14-2 for 82 points, and sole possession of the Anderson Cup! Flynn (Krueger), Birrenkott (Donnette) and Fregoe (en) (Basile) scored for the Bucs.
Pre-game Rattle
Having clinched at least a share of the Anderson Cup, the number 1 seed in the Clark Cup playoffs and an automatic bid to the National Jr. A Championships, the final game at Lincoln didn't really matter much. Unless you wanted to prove something, unless you did not want Omaha as a co-champion. The talk around town was split. Some thought we would get blown out - others thought we had the momentum and that nothing would stop us. What do the stats say? The Bucs are 3 - 2 against Lincoln this year, including a 3-0 shutout by Jon Walker on November 28. We have won the last 2 games we played them. Lincoln is on a 7 game winning streak. What do I think? I think we are sick and tired of silly string! (Lincoln fans shoot silly string after goals). Tom and Pat, who sit next to us in section 19, were excited about going down and I hope they don't get "silly stringed" to death.
I need to make a correction from a rant I did on February 28 against the Flyers. I said that Garrett Stafford got a 10 minute penalty for 2 words spoken to the ref. Well, according to reliable sources, it was more than 2 words, more like, "You are a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ joke." Also, I have permission from Joe Parillo (Nick's dad) and Nick to relate a humorous story about Nick. Watch for it in the Interviews. But enough of this, let's talk hockey.
Period 1
The Lincoln fans were loud as usual, and as our players were introduced they yelled, "who cares!". Josh Blackburn would start in goal for the Stars and Walker would start for the Bucs. Jeremy Vokes took the face off and took a high stick for his effort. Seconds later Nick Parillo took a high stick from Austin Messer. About 30 seconds later Pete Capouch was down on the ice, having been checked from behind. It was obvious that Lincoln intended on playing a physical game. The ref, known for letting things go, would not make many calls. The Bucs responded by playing it cool and staying out of the box - the strategy paid off early.
Jason Nightingale got the puck and put a good shot on Blackburn who stopped the shot; the net was knocked off, forcing a face off. Josh Flynn, who had 20 points in 27 games last year at Anoka High School, took a pass from Mark Krueger and scored. Mark did a great job winning the face off and passing it to Flynn who has one of the hardest shots on the team. The Bucs were up 1 - 0, time of the goal 2:28.
It took 3 1/2 minutes for the Stars to get a shot on net. Austin Messer was up to his old tricks, knocking Maksimenko's helmet off. Walker got his first test when Richard Spiller got a quality shot off. Some demented fan thought it would be funny to toss a puck onto the ice during play. A linesman noticed it and scooped it up. Wyzgoski decided to punch Jason Basile, and Basile shoved back - sending them both to the box.
Halfway through the period Jeremy Vokes got a breakaway - well, sort of. He was being hooked so bad that the Lincoln D must have thought he was a speed boat and they were water skiers! In any case, Jeremy's shot was stopped. Austin Messer was up to his old tricks again, this time with Stafford. Garrett did not back down, and both went to the box.
Bill Birrenkott, who had 25 points in 28 games at Anoka, scored his first goal as a Buc on a pass from Dan Donnette, also from Anoka. Dan was Anoka's 4th leading scorer with 32 points in 27 games. The Bucs were up 2 to 0, time of the goal 9:12. Noah Clarke came right back and almost scored after the next face off. At 11:46, ex-Buccaneer Chris Antzoulatos went for elbowing. The Bucs were unable to get anything going, although they were able to pass it around well. Lundbolm was able to get a short handed break, but Walker was there to stop it. Lincoln had 12 saves and the Bucs had 9.
Period 2
The first 2 minutes of the period were wild. Both teams opened it up a bit. Joe Garvin had a point blank shot, but Walker ruled. Maksimenko had a great opportunity but Blackburn was playing tough. With 5 minutes gone, the Bucs were playing a more defensive game, but they really looked sharp and did not appear to have their typical 2nd period slump. Vincent Bachet was really playing well. He has really picked up the play physically - it seems that he enjoys dishing out a good hit!
Things livened up a bit when a fight broke out. Guess who? Nick Parillo and Chris Antzoulatos. Hey, these guys even fought in the Buc tryout camp! Lincoln fans would say that Chris "won" the fight. I, being completely unbiased, think it was a draw as there was no clear winner. In any case, neither team gained any momentum as a result of the fight.
Halfway through the period, Pete Fregoe almost scored, and had Blackburn left a rebound, Jason Nightingale would have stuffed it home. Stafford was put in the box for tripping at 9:59 and the Bucs would need to kill off a powerplay. Chris Fournier was robbed by Walker as he did the splits and caught a shot low to the glove side that would have gone in.
Lincoln got another power play at 16:43, and put heavy, sustained pressure on Walker. He came up big to keep them off the scoreboard. Erik Strand was able to clear the puck and even got a short handed breakaway with Vincent Bachet but was unable to score. Just as the power play was killed off, Jason Nightingale was stopped as he came in on a 3 on 1 break. As the period expired, Suderman and Mazurak each had a chance that was stopped by Walker.
Period 3
The period started with the Bucs needing to kill off about 20 seconds to a Flynn penalty, which they did. In the first 3 minutes Jeremy Vokes, Noah Clarke, Pete Fregoe, Garrett Stafford and Dan Donnette all put tremendous pressure on the Stars. Lundbohm was finally able to relieve some pressure as he streaked in on Walker. Walker stopped the shot but left a juicy rebound. Fortunately, Jason Basile was there to sweep the puck out of the zone.
Dan Donnette fed Chris Dube who got off a nice shot as the Stars began a huge "Let's Go Stars" chant. The Stars crowd had been really subdued all night. They really did not have that much to cheer about, as the Bucs were playing with intensity and consistency.
Halfway through the period McElroy decided to put a BIG hit on Jason Basile. Basile saw him coming and avoided him at the last second, sending McElroy crashing up and over the boards! If Basile wanted to, it would have been easy for him to dump him all the way over!
Walker came up with some big saves on Hodges and Spiller, and an altercation broke out between Birrenkott and a Star - both went to the box. Wyzgoski, tried to start something, but the Bucs were not biting.
With 3 minutes left, you could tell the fans were tired of waiting to blow off the silly string. Jake Searles and Erik Strand were working hard to break up the plays before the puck even got in our zone.
At 2:13 there was a face off in the Buc zone and Blackburn skated to player bench. The Star net was empty, and Walker was minutes away from his second shutout against Lincoln and sole possession of the Anserson Cup! Jason Basile gained control of the face off and cleared the zone. Lincoln brought it back in and Jason Basile poked the puck away and Pete Fregoe shot it into the open net! The score was 3 to 0, time of the goal 18:29. Some of the Stars fans headed for the exit as the Buc faithful began a B - U - C - S! cheer. The Stars did not give up and at the last second McElroy got off a shot that hit the crossbar!
The Bucs mobbed Walker as the fans cheered. What a way to end the season! Bring on Green Bay! Written by Sarah Bendy.
