Green Bay, WI (12/3/99): At the end of the first period the Bucs found themselves down by a score of 4-1. The Bucs battled back and scored 2 goals in the second period to pull within 1 goal. Both teams battled in the third period and in the end Green Bay scored an empty net goal to win 5-3. On the positive side, the Bucs held the best powerplay team in the USHL to just 1 goal in 8 attempts. Bennett (PP) (Weber), Weber (Kim, Laranaga) and Bennett (PP) (Kirchhoff, Sejna) scored for the Bucs. Mantua was in net for period 1, Morrissey was in goal for the last two periods.

Pre Game

Comeback ends in 4-3 Shoot-out win

Des Moines, IA (12/4/99): Tired from the long trip back from Green Bay, the Bucs ran into a hot goaltender in Adam Coole. One minute into the third period the Bucs were on the short side of a 3-1 score and things looked bleak. With 7 :39 left in the game Alex Kim sparked the team and the crowd and Ryan Kirchhoff tied the game just two minutes later. After a scoreless overtime, Jerrid Reinholz and Peter Sejna scored in the shoot-out to win the game for the Bucs. Mike Mantua allowed only one goal in the shoot-out. Sejna (Reinholz, Riddle), Kim (Mullen) and Kirchhoff (Bennett) scored in regulation time. Reinholz and Sejna scored in the shoot-out. Mike Mantua was in goal.

Pre Game

As we pulled out of the driveway, James remarked that if Adam Coole was in goal, we were going to have trouble winning. I had to admit I felt the same way. I don't know why, I mean he is not unbeatable - look at what happened the last time we faced him. Still, if he is hot he can win the game for Rochester. The other factor in the game tonight was that the Bucs had just gotten back into town at 6:00 in the morning from Green Bay. They would be tired.

First Period

The Bucs did not look tired as they started out strong. It was a full 2 minutes before Rochester was even able to get it into our zone. Every line was skating strong and contributing as a team. The Bucs dominated play but could not get the puck past Coole. The period ended with Mantua making 4 saves and Coole making 13.

Second Period

Momentum shifted to Rochester in a big way early in the period and Rochester scored first as Carlson scored with 14:02 on the clock. With 9:09 left in the period Troy Riddle fought for the puck along the boards and slipped it to Jerrid Reinholz who was behind the net. Jerrid passed to Peter Sejna who was all alone right in front of Coole. Peter deked, got Coole to move, and then went top shelf to score. Peter raised his hand into the air and gave it a little twirl to celebrate. The game did not stay tied for long - one minute later Rochester scored on their second powerplay. It only took 3 seconds for Rochester to score on the powerplay. The period ended and the Bucs were lucky to be only one goal down. Mantua had to make 18 saves while Coole only had 6.

Third Period

Things went from bad to worse as Carlson scored from the blue line with a quick wrist shot as the rest of his team was making a line change. The crowd got very quiet and stayed that way as Rochester dominated play. With 8 minutes left in the game, Maxwell announced scores from around the league and the crowd roared when they heard Waterloo was beating Omaha. I have not talked to any of the players about this, so I don't know if it is true, but after that announcement it seemed that the Bucs began to turn on the afterburners. With 7:39 on the clock - 20 seconds after the annoucement, Alex Kim made a beautiful shot to put the game within one goal. The assists went to Mark Mullen. The crowd got into the game, and I have rarely heard it so loud. The momentum had changed and the Bucs totally dominated play. Two minutes later Ryan Kirchhoff score assisted by Ryan Bennett. The game was tied. For the rest of the game it was all Bucs, but the score remained tied and we were headed into overtime. Mantua had 10 saves for the period and Coole had 11.

Overtime

Both teams seemed cautious in the overtime, but took advantage as the opportunities arose. Coole and Mantua both came up with gigantic saves to keep their team from losing. But tonight things would be settled in a shoot-out.

Shoot-Out

The first 7 shooters were stopped by Adam Coole and Mike Mantua, but Jerrid Reinholz went upstairs to beat Coole. The crowd went wild. The next Rochester shooter also scored as the puck trickled past Mantua. The Bucs had one more shooter - Peter Sejna. He took the puck at center ice and skated in on Coole. Sejna deked several times as Coole finally did the splits to cover the goal from end-to-end. Peter rifled the puck into the top of the net and the crowd went wild. Coole leaned forward on the ice - still doing the splits and stayed their for a long time. Meanwhile the Bucs mobbed Sejna and skated to the center of the ice and saluted the crowd. The Bucs had pulled off quite a comeback. Written by Steve Bendy.

Bucs fall to Sioux City, 2-1

Sioux City, IA (12/10/99): Despite excellent goaltending and outshooting the Sioux City Musketeers 27 to 25, the Bucs were unable to win where it counts - on the scoreboard. The Bucs lone goal came midway through the second period when Ryan Bennett got his sixth powerplay of the year to tie the game. Bennett (PP) (Larranaga) scored for the Bucs. Mantua was in goal.

Pre Game

Our latest reports indicate we now have over 1,600 different people coming to the Buc web site every day, from a total of 56 different countries! This being the case, I just wanted to make sure everyone knew about the new Electronic Trading cards. These cards are professionally done and can be used for your computer screen and printed on a color printer with excellent results. We have also just posted interviews for Justin Schabes and Travis Doan. Each interview has a short video clip of the player - a new feature this year. Also, don't forget to read the new articles by Trevor Grimm. Trevor is a true professional and always has some interesting insights. And last, but not least, Craig Hagkull has posted a lot of new Buccaneer merchandise that would make great Christmas presents.

First Period

Mike Mantua was tested early as the Musketeers came out hot. Mike was up to the challenge and with a minute and a half gone in the game it was the Bucs turn to put on the pressure. Sioux City took a penalty and Bennett, Reinholz and Sejna got qulaity shots on net. Sioux City took another penalty and the Bucs had a 5 on 3 for 30 seconds. Unfortunatley, the Musketeers worked all the harder and the Bucs were unable to score. Five minutes later the Bucs went down a man but easily killed off the penalty.

After a period of Buc pressure, SC came back and Ciancio scored on a tip-in. After the goal SC kept up the pressure and with 3 minutes left in the period the Bucs took a penalty. Mantua was forced to make a big save before the Buc defense pulled together and killed the penalty. The period ended with 8 saves for Betz and 10 saves for Mantua.

Second Period

This time the Bucs came out flying as Ryan Kirchhoff and Rob Novak took turns shooting at Betz. Six minutes into the period Torretti got dumped and lay on the ice in pain. So who gets charged with a penalty? Jesse Lane - go figure. The SC powerplay was working well at first as Mantua was forced to come up big again. Finally Jerrid Reinholz got the puck and got a short-handed shot on Betz and as a result of the pressure, SC took a penalty. The Bucs scored a powerplay goal at 9:11 when Ryan Bennett put in a rebound on a shot from Felipe Larranaga. The Bucs had tied the game. The goal just seemed to fire up the home team even more. You could tell they wanted to win this one bad. Polaski finally scored at 15:04 as a result of constant pressure. The Bucs regained their composure and fought back but neither team was able to score. Mantua had 8 saves and Betz had 5.

Third Period

The Bucs began the period with a 1 minute powerplay and despite tremendous pressure from Kirchhoff and Bennett, Betz was just too hot and the puck would not go in. With 5 minutes to go the Bucs knew they had to score and Peter Sejna went to work. He came up with 3 shots that on any other day would have lit the light. However, tonight Betz was just in the right place at the right time and the Bucs were not to score another goal. Felipe Larranaga got a good shot off with just 30 seconds left but that was as close as the Bucs got. In the end, the Bucs had outshot SC 27-25, but the scoreboard is what counts, and we came up short. Written by Steve Bendy.

Bucs beat Green Bay in shoot-out

Des Moines, IA (12/11/99): The final home game of the 20th century ended in a hard-fought 5-4 shoot-out victory for the Bucs. It only took Peter Sejna 35 seconds to score as the Bucs dominated the first period. The lead changed several times during the game, but the Bucs found themselves with a 4-3 lead with 8:23 left in the game. Green Bay was not about to give up and tied the game with 23 seconds left. Neither team scored in the overtime and we went into a shoot-out for the second time in three games. Justin Schabes scored as Paul Morrissey stopped every Gambler shot to give the Bucs the win. Sejna (Reinholz, Lane), Mullen (PP) (Sejna, Bennett), Reinholz (Sejna, Riddle) and Weber (Unassisted) scored in regulation time. Justin Schabes scored in the shoot-out. Paul Morrissey was in goal.

Pre Game

I had thought I might rave about how good the Green Bay goalie is, whether he deserved it or not, but the circumstances just didn't fit and so the reason for doing that was nullified. Some of you may not know what the last sentence was exactly for... but certain others should know exactly what it means. I have to laugh at some of this mudslinging. Sometimes truth is only how YOU perceive it. Welcome to my world, as I see it... you can leave if something offends you.

Paul Morrissey was in goal for the last home game of the year against Green Bay. Of course it might be wise to remember that Green Bay has the best power play in the league. We however... well, we're still working on that area!

First

We came out strong 35 seconds into the first period. Something we probably really needed. Peter Sejna got that goal (assist to Reinholz and Lane). Unfortunately Green Bay was able to keep up with us the entire way. The Gamblers came out hitting, but it seemed like half the time they were on the ice and falling all over. They worked hard though and got themselves a goal with about 16 minutes left. Things turned rather disgusting when Green Bay scored one more goal near the end of the period. With about three minutes left in the game a couple scuffs broke out. One of these was Kirschhoff...his fight looked just like the one in A Christmas Story where Ralphie was on top of the bully just whaling on him! Saves: Morrissey 8 - Penko 10.

Second

Mark Mullen was the next Buc to get us a goal and tie up the game, it came on a power play at 12:39 (assist to Sejna and Bennett). The Bucs were putting a lot of pressure on and looked wonderful, but very quickly it turned around. Unfortunately the Gamblers struck again and were leading the game....again at 14:28. But with four minutes left Reinholz snapped another tying goal home (assist to Sejna and Riddle). When Bryce Methven checked Riddle from behind, not only did he draw a lil blood, but he got himself a ten minute misconduct. Saves: Morrissey 10 - Penko 11.

Third

Weber gave us a lead at 8:37 when he scored an unassisted goal. The rest of the period would go by with a 4-3 score until there were 43 seconds left on the clock. Luke Stauffacher was continually mouthing off in the game...obviously Ryan Bennett got tired of this with about five minutes left in the game, because he just turned around hit the guy. All I have to say is...way to go Ryan! That is when Green Bay would tie up the game, there goalie was pulled and they had taken a time out a minute before. We were going into overtime. Saves: Morrissey 11 - Penko 11.

OT

We survived a full five minutes of over time without a score from either side. It was time for a shoot out. (Saves for OT Morrissey 5 - Penko 4.) The shoot out was very exciting and the atmosphere was infectious. Morrissey was solid in the shoot out stopping every single shot, which all but one was low, one hitting the crossbar. For the Bucs the only shooter to score was Justin Schabes, and he was the first shooter. Riddle, Kim, and Sejna also shot for the Bucs. We won the game, with an extra point for the shoot out which was a nice bonus! Total Saves: Morrissey 34 - Penko 36. Written by Sarah Bendy.

Riddle scores with 11 seconds left to win game

Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada (12/17/99): Troy Riddle scored with 11 seconds left in the game to give the Bucs a 2 - 1 victory over the Thunder Bay Flyers. Thunder Bay took a 1-0 lead in the second period and then killed off a 4 minute penalty to rob the Bucs of any momentum they might have had. Both goaltenders were on their game as they made save after save. Landon Bathe finally tied the game early in the third period although the Flyers contested the goal saying it was kicked in. The goal stood, setting up Troy Riddles winning goal.

Bathe (Novak) and Riddle (unassisted) scored for the Bucs. Mantua was in goal for the Bucs.

Pre Game

There are only two more games for the Bucs in this century. Sounds dramatic doesn't it? The only thing I am dissapointed about is that the Bucs were unable to get an opponent to play in the traditional New Year's eve game. Not only that, but the January 1 game with Cedar Rapids has been called off because the ice arena was not yet ready for occupancy. After the Thunder Bay games our next game is not until January 8, a home game you will be able to "skate with the Bucs" and get autographs at after the game.

First Period

Thunder Bay came out working hard and as a result got the first shot on goal. Mantua was there to save the day. It took the Bucs almost three minutes to get any kind of offense going. Alex Kim had a great shot but the light just would not go on. The Bucs then put on some sustained pressure and it looked as though things were going our way. Things changed quickly as disaster nearly struck when a mis-handled clearing pass went right to a Flyer forward. Mantua came up huge as he robbed Thunder Bay 3 times! The Bucs lost their momentum and the period ended without either team scoring a goal. Saves for the Flyers - 7, Bucs - 9.

Second Period

Mantua had to come up big on a two-on-none in the first minute of play. The Bucs would be in big trouble if Mantua was not on his game. Landon Bathe and Justin Schabes decided to kick into gear as both put pressure on the Flyer defense and both got quality shots on goal.

Three and a half minutes into the period, Paul Peterson scored for the Flyers as Mantua was screened on a shot. Three minutes later Kirchhoff nearly scored on a break, but the goalie wisely came way out and cleared the puck. Caldwell began shoving Ryan and then dropped the gloves and began punching. Kirchhoff decided to drop the gloves too, but the fight was quickly broken up. Both got matching penalties.

The Bucs got a break as the Flyers were called for a 4 minute high-sticking penalty. Although Durak got up slowly, he was OK. The Bucs did a great job of passing the puck around but were unable to get a good shot on goal as the Flyers killed off the first penalty. Actually, it would have helped if they would have taken a shot! The next two minutes were better as Riddle and Kirchhoff got good shots, but Thunder Bay killed off that penalty also. There were 4 minutes left in the period. The Bucs were called for a penalty and the Bucs would be down a man the rest of the period. The Flyers almost scored when Mantua's clearing attempt went right to a Flyer forward nut he redeemed himself by making the save. Saves for the Bucs - 9, Flyers - 7.

Third Period

And so we began period three on the wrong side of a 0-1 score, but within 30 seconds the Bucs were on their fourth powerplay. Peter Sejna wasted no time in ripping off a shot and he hit the post! The Bucs ( got two more quick shots as the whole team was playing with a sense of urgency. The Flyers were up to the challenge and killed off the penalty.

The Bucs first goal came at 3:55, but not without controversy as the Flyers said the puck was kicked in. The protest was to no avail and Landon Bathe had his second goal of the season, with an assist to Rob Novak. After the goal the Bucs continued their intense play. Riddle nearly scored off a great feed from Sejna and Weber nearly stuffed it in moments later. Ritson, the Flyer goalie was playing a fantastic game. The Bucs were forced to kill off another penalty - five so far tonight! The Bucs have looked real good on the penalty kill lately. After the Bucs killed off the penalty Mantua was forced to come up with 3 saves in quick succession. After a scuffle in front of the net, Paul Baumgartner finally grabbed a Flyer and put him in a headlock. Both went to the penalty box.

The clock was winding down and there were now less than 5 minutes in the game. The way both goalies were playing, the next team to score would likely win the game. With one minute to go McIver nearly won the game as he came in all alone on a break. Mantua came out and put up a brick wall to stop the scoring chance. Sloppy defemsive play almost cost the Bucs with just 35 seconds left, but Baumgartner froze the puck ending the Flyer scoring threat.

After the next face off, the Flyers iced the puck and the Bucs had a chance to put some pressure on. The puck was dropped and with 11 seconds to go, Troy Riddle got off a quick shot and scored! (unassisted). Troy had missed some golden opportunities earlier in the game but this goal made up for the, all. What a heartbreaker for the home crowd. This game was hard fought and could have gone either way. The Bucs had 10 saves while the Flyers had 8 in the period. Written by Steve Bendy.

Bucs end century with 5-1 victory

Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada (12/18/99): The Buccaneers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period and were never challenged. Never challenged until the second period when Baumgartner, Lane, Bathe and Bennett were all involved in fights. The fight-filled period ended with a 5-1 Des Moines lead. Both teams settled down for the third period and the game, and 20th century, ended with another Buccaneer victory.

November Rants | 1999-2000 Schedule | January Rants

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