Where's the spice? Where's the vigorous, entertaining, friendly ribbing? I don't know what you have had a chance to watch at home this year, but personally, I was sorely dissappointed last night watching the Ice. I haven't seen a team play that blatant and boring of a trap since the 1999-2000 Rockettes. At several points in the game, no one would forecheck past the bottom of our circles. Our D man could have stayed behing the net all night. Now, I guess that is understandable when you have the lead (as I first noticed in the first period) but how is it justified when you are behind 1 and 2 goals? Is it a very different game that you play on the road?

Also, I found the Ice to be VERY soft. I don't think they attempted a real punishing body check on ANYONE last night. They were there to hit someone, but rarely if ever followed through with a solid hit. I was shocked because all the Ice teams of the past have been pretty ferocious and punishing. Is there a massive flu bug going around? They really played weakly, almost timid. Maybe we took them by surprise by actually having a truly competitive team this year. Maybe they had a tough bus ride and were too tired. Maybe they just couldn't come close to the Coogs game, because this game was not as close as the score indicated. Maybe the Ice aren't all that the media has made them up to be. One thing is for sure...I'm betting on a better game tomorrow. Then I'll have even more reason to screech GOOOOOOOO COOOOOOOOOOGS!!!

Perhaps no hits on your post so far, 'cause it isn't possible to debate reality when reality is absent from the equation.
Not possible to give an opinion when anybody who listened to the game (assume nobody picked it up on the net) had it fed to them through somebody else's eyes.

Firstly, not sure where the media hype you speak of came from 'cause I heard (second/third/fourth hand)the Ice were picked to finish something like 17th in the league.

CSF, this team has 11 rookies including a 16 yr. old goaltender all getting a fair amount of ice time (almost exclusively insofar as goaltending is concerned) and so far in the hunt.

Call it overachieving??...or whatever you like, they've put up some good numbers to date and from the games I've seen and can confidently comment on with accuracy (through my eyes) they've been very entertaing for the most part.

They can play with energy and passion, have hit with some good hitting teams, can fill the net and on many nights they've skated circles around the opposition.

If they sucked last night...well every team has more than one of those in a season...likely even the Cougars, and speaking frankly the Coug's have had a lot of practice at performances like that over the past several yrs.

Remember, so far the young kids from Kootenay are right in there with your Coog's in the standings.

There's a lot of hockey to play, and you may find it prudent to exercise some caution right now, 'cause if the Cougs happen to go into the tank again this season as they have so many times in the past, you'd better hope the posters here with long memories don't come back to bite you where the sun don't shine.

Hopefully our kids will spoil your party Friday night!

Thanks for the visit. BJ

we have 2 new guys from trades on the blue line one of which is supposed to be our #2 guy, the other played last night with a broken thumb and didnt get many shifts.

Another rookie defenceman in Bohunicky
A 16 year old rookie defenceman in Negrin
as well as anoter rookie D-man in McDonald

so we have 3 Ice veteran D men right now.

A rookie Goaltender who I must say has played Brilliantly for 16 or 17 years old, as well as a 16 year old rookie back up tender.

And as BJ said we have a total of 11 rookies on the roster every night.

As for the Ice teams you speak of as being ferocious and punishing, we have never been up in that category. We are and always will be a team based on skill and speed. We have had many smaller players over the years with maybe a couple big guys around every year.

I love how you say the media hypes up the ICE, maybe just your PG radio announcer was talking them up before the game, but they are not even in anyones grand picture this season. They are ranked 17 over all.

I think maybe your looking through superbiased lenses on your gogs cougssuperfan. Our team hits and all the rest but you seem pretty hell bent on calling it your way anyways.

The ice must have rang two posts and a crossbar in the second and third periods so your lucky that way.

Teams may be able to take advantage of our blue line for now but with recent trades and additions we will be right where we want to be once they gell.

The 1st through 3rd lines all can score on a nightly basis so once they get going they have proven to be hard to contain from buzzing around the offensive end. They have no problem scoring on the nights they decide to shoot the puck alot.

I hope fridays take out special of crow tatses good going down. I think they willcome out with a little more grit and hunger.

GO ICE GO!!!

i think some of our spirit has been traded over the last week

There is no question that a lot of the team spirit was traded away last week. The one thing that management often overlooks when trying to make a team 'better' is the locker room chemistry. We HAD a team that played together on and off the ice, who got along great and rallied behind each other. Now we are missing two very important guys who were popular for their humor, team spirit, and steady play. In exchange we seem to have gained two guys who their teams are glad to be rid of. I hope I'm wrong, but it could take the Ice a long time to recover the team spirit and jump.

both goalies are in there 17 yr old year