Hello? Is Anybody There?

Hello fellow Jackalope fans.  It is a windy day here in the Permian Basin, and I know many Jackalope fans (including myself) are scratching their heads after the Jacks opened up the season with a record of 1-3-0.  All four games have been road games, and the Jacks are definitely missing a few key players from their roster, but with the talent and depth that this team has, there is no way in hell that they should have lost three out of four regular season games to start the season.  This team is way too good to struggle like they have so far in the young 2010-2011 CHL season.  I know there are quite a few new players on the team that need some time to adjust, and many fans have pointed out that in time this team will work things out, but I really don't buy that excuse.  Let me tell you why I don't buy that assumption.  I don't buy it because there are several other teams in this league that have far more new players on their teams, yet most of them seem to be doing just fine.  Now don't get me wrong, I have all the faith in the world that this team will get their act together and I believe they will eventually start piling up the wins, but I am just stunned at how sloppy and slow the team has looked thus far. With that said, I think we all know that Gillis will light the fire under the guys asses, and hopefully we will see the Jacks take their frustration out on the Bucks on Thursday and Saturday at the ECC.  I know (according to Pointstreak anyway) that Gruenke, Leveille, and Leisenring will all be eligible to play for both games at the ECC as their time on the 10 day IR will have expired by then.  However, whether or not any of them will actually be healthy enough to play is anybodies guess.  I'm hoping that all three guys will be ready to go, as all three guys are key players on this team, and we really need them right now.

  Moving on, lets go ahead and review the games that the Jacks have played so far.  I will give just a brief review of the Jacks first three games, and then I will give a more detailed review for yesterdays game between the Jacks and Gems.  The Jacks season opener was not a pretty one as they fell to the Missouri Mavericks by a final of 5-3.  The goal scorers for the Jacks were Brady Leisenring (1) and Kenny Corupe (2), with Jackalope assists being awarded to Sebastien Thinel (1), Jeff Pierce (1), Darryl Bootland (2), Alex Dunn (1), and Todd Robinson (1).  Marc-Antoine Gelinas would pick up the loss for the Jacks, as he stopped 20 of the 25 shots that he faced in between the pipes.  The Jacks were also 0-4 on the power play, but a perfect 2-2 on the penalty kill.

  Now lets move to the Jacks second game against the Quad City Mallards.  It seemed as if the real Jacks were back as the boys beat the Mallards by a final of 4-1.  The Jacks goal scorers in this game were Mike Ramsay (1), Jeff Pierce (1), and Sebastien Thinel (2).  Jackalope assists went to Sebastien Thinel (1), Phil Plante (1), Todd Robinson (1), Jeff Pierce (1), and P.O. Beaulieu (2).  Gelinas would pick up the win for the Jacks, as he stopped 23 of the 24 shots that he face on net.  Little did we know that this would be Gelinas last game in a Jackalope sweater as he was waived by the Jacks due to rumored off ice issues.  Thankfully, Joel Martin would return to the Jacks as he had been released from the AHL's Sound Tigers.  The Jacks went 1-5 on the power play, and were once again perfect on the penalty kill killing off all eight of the Mallards man advantages.  The Jacks would be 1-1-0 heading to their third game of the regular season, and it looked as if the Jacks would have momentum on their side after the solid game that they had against the Mallards.

  Unfortunately, that would not be the case.  The Jacks would fall to the Bloomington Prairie Thunder by a final of 5-4, even though the score was much more lopsided for the majority of the game.  The Jacks would be trailing by a score of 5-2 midway through the third period, before they finally decided to show up and try to mount a comeback.  They would climb to within one goal of the Thunder with about six minutes left in regulation, but unfortunately the comeback effort would be too little too late.  Instead of showing up to play for a full sixty minutes, the Jacks decided to show up to play for about fifteen minutes, and as all hockey fans know that will never get the job done.  The goal scorers for the Jacks in this contest were Mike Lesperance (1), Michael Schutte (1), Darryl Bootland (1), and Sebastien Thinel (1).  Jackalope assists were earned by Phil Plante (1), Mike Ramsay (1), Todd Robinson (2), Sebastien Thinel (1), Alex Dunn (1), and P.O. Beaulieu (1).  Unfortunately Joel Martin didn't quite look like last years CHL Most Outstanding Goalie as he took the loss stopping 33 of the 38 Bloomington shots.

Finally, lets talk about last night's game between the Jacks and Gems.  Gillis would be behind the bench for the first time this regular season after serving his three game suspension, and based on what was said during his pregame interview with Brien Rea, Coach Gillis was not a very happy person when it came to how his team had been playing.  After yesterdays game, I'm willing to bet that he wasn't any happier.  The Jacks would find themselves in a 3-0 hole before they would finally show some signs of life in the second period.  The Jacks would finally get on the scoreboard with four and a half minutes left in the second period off of a power play goal by Sebastien Thinel, with the assists going to Todd Robinson and Morgan MacLean.  The Jacks had cut the deficit to two goals, but the Gems would answer back with just one minute left in the middle frame when Dayton would score a power play goal to regain the three goal lead heading into the second intermission.  But, the Jacks would decide to show up to play in the third period once again, and they would trim the deficit to two goals yet again when Kenny Bernard would light the lamp less than five minutes into the third period, with the lone assist being awarded to Morgan MacLean.  The Jacks would pull to within one goal just three and a half minutes later when Darryl Bootland would find the back of the net, with the assists going to Todd Robinson and Phil Plante.  The Jacks seemed to have plenty of time to tie the game with a little over twelve minutes left in the final frame, and it appeared as if the Jacks were going to once again try and make a third period comeback, but it just wasn't meant to be.  Joel Martin would be pulled in favor of the extra attacker with less than two minutes to play, but the Gems would tally the dreaded empty netter to seal the fate of the Jacks.  The final score would be 5-3 in favor of the Gems, and Joel Martin would pick up the loss stopping 26 of the 30 shots that he faced in net.  The Jacks went 2-7 on the power play, but their penalty kill (which had been great for the first three games) really struggled killing only one of the Gems four power play opportunities.

Now the Jacks are tied for last place in the Berry Conference with the Mississippi Riverkings, and I think it's safe to say that Jackalope fans are wondering how a team as talented and deep as this team is, is struggling so mightily.  Maybe it's the injuries to several key players?  Maybe the boys still haven't got over the Van Drunen incident? Or maybe the team just needs a little more time to gel to get the team chemistry to where it needs to be?  I'm not sure what it is, but I'm sure Gillis knows exactly what it is, and you better believe that he will work this team hard until the problem is corrected.  What I do know, though, is that our offense has been flat much of the time (although it  finally seems to be clicking a little bit); our defense has been very bad giving up far too many odd man rushes to the opposition; our power play has been horrible; our penalty kill had been great until last night; and finally, Martin has definitely been shaky in between the pipes thus far in the young season.  With that said, it is still a very young season, I know that these problems will be fixed very soon, and in a few weeks (hopefully) the Jacks will be pummeling the opposition while sitting on top of the Berry Conference.  We should be getting the aforementioned key players back from the IR pretty soon, and hopefully in a couple months we will be welcoming back our captain to the ice.

Now that I have updated you all with how the Jacks did during their opening regular season road trip, I will go ahead and wrap things up here.  But before I do, I would like to give ya'll the link to the MacMillan/Van Drunen video, which was finally released a couple of days ago.  The video is very short, yet very disturbing, so viewer discretion is advised.  You all already know how I feel about this "fight", so I won't even comment on it again here.  But, I do encourage you to post your comments on what you thought of the video, or just comment how you feel about the Jacks in general.  Be sure to check The Enforcer throughout the upcoming week for any news pertaining to the Jacks, and please show up loud and proud this Thursday and Saturday to cheer the boys to a couple of victories at the ECC against our rival Laredo Bucks.


Until next time Jackalope fans all I have to say is GO JACKS GO!!! and lets take out our frustrations on the Laredo deer on Thursday and Saturday!

Justice Served? I Think Not!

Hello fellow Jackalope fans!  It's been a while since I last posted due to me being swamped with school work, and a lot has happened when it comes to the Jacks over the last few days.  On the eve of opening day in the CHL, we have learned the punishments handed out by the CHL after the MacMillan/Van Drunen incident that took place in the Jacks second exhibition game against the Colorado Eagles.

  Before I give my opinion on the ruling of Duane Lewis, lets first talk about what exactly happened at the BEC this past Saturday night in Loveland, Colorado.  In the third period of the Jacks/Eagles exhibition game between the Jacks and Eagles (which the Jacks were leading by a score of 3-1) seven "fights" broke out in less than a two minute span.  After all of this crap happened, Brad MacMillan of the Colorado Eagles (who had apparently been trying to instigate fights all night) decided to take it upon himself to sucker punch an unsuspecting Dave Van Drunen who crumpled to the ice in a pool of his own blood.  A line brawl ensued immediately after this "incident" with several non-fighter Jackalopes on the ice against the Colorado Eagle goons.  In my mind, there is no denying that this was premeditated due to the circumstances being too "perfect" for the Eagles to carry out these actions.  Needless to say, Eagle player George Bradley was literally on top of a slumped over Kenny Bernard on the ice delivering vicious uppercuts to a defenseless Bernard and even (at one point) drove a nasty elbow right in the middle of Bernard's back.

  Apparently Jackalope owner Rick Gasser had decided he had seen enough and instructed his team to leave the ice and head to the locker room.  Both Gasser and Gillis should be commended for getting their team the hell out of that place considering it was pretty evident what the Eagle's intentions were.  The Jacks forfeited the exhibition game, even though the Jacks still won in my book, and Van Drunen ended up having to stay in Colorado to have surgery on his severely injured face.  Van Drunen, because of MacMillan's vicious, deliberate sucker punch suffered from a broken nose, several facial lacerations, and a broken jaw.  He had to have several plates as well as eighteen screws inserted in his face to "fix the damage," so to speak.  Come to find out Van Drunen (the best defensive defenseman in the entire CHL) will miss at least two months due to the actions of the coward known as Brad MacMillan.  Anyway, fans from both teams have waited for a few days now, wondering what punishments would be dealt by CHL Commissioner Duane Lewis when it came to this incident.  By the way, on a bit of a side note, this incident was so severe that it actually made the national news.  To get back to my point, though, about Duane Lewis' ruling, we finally found out today what punishments were handed out to the Jackalopes and Eagles.

  Odessa coach Paul Gillis was suspended for three games due to the forfeiture of the game as well as supposed public comments made.  I was very shocked to see Gillis suspended at all, considering I felt he should have been commended for protecting his players from the violent acts of the Colorado Eagles during a meaningless game.  I guess I was wrong.  The Jacks were also fined an undisclosed amount of money. 

 Now lets move on to what the Eagles received, shall we?  Many unbiased fans, as well as Jackalope fans and Jackalope owner Rick Gasser were hoping that MacMillan would be banned from the CHL for good.  Boy were we wrong.  MacMillan received a 22 game suspension, and while that may seem like a hefty penalty to some, I would argue that it's not fair that MacMillan will be able to come back and play very shortly after Van Drunen is physically able to.  The coward should have been banned from the CHL, plain and simple.  Now lets move on to the other Eagle punishments.  They were also fined an undisclosed amount of money, but the aforementioned George Bradley received a five game suspension.  I won't complain too much about that suspension, because I was actually a little surprised to see that the CHL actually had the balls to do anything to Bradley.  However, Mario Joly (a former Jackalope and now a Colorado Eagle) was the first (and only) player from either bench to leave the bench during this altercation.  According to the CHL rule book, Mario Joly should have been automatically suspended for a minimum six games.  But, when Duane Lewis revealed his ruling this afternoon, it turns out that Joly only received a four game suspension.  Are you kidding me?  If this isn't blatantly bending the rules, then I don't know what is.

 Finally, Eagles assistant coach (who was the acting head coach during the exhibition games) only received a three game suspension, which was the same that Gillis received.  I couldn't disagree with this more.  Not only that, but while Gillis has to serve his three game suspension during the first three regular season games, Greg Pankewicz will serve his three game suspension when the Eagle come to the ECC to play the Jacks in our barn.  What is the CHL doing here?  It seems to me that the CHL is once again trying to protect a member of their "crown jewel" from being verbally assaulted by the great Jackalope fans.  Oh well, maybe this bullshit ruling by Duane Lewis (as well as the cheap shot by MacMillan) will be the much needed spark to finally aid the Jacks in bringing the President's Cup to the Permian Basin.

  Was justice served?  I think not.  Feel free to comment on what you think about this incident as comments are always welcomed and encouraged.  With all of this said, the Jacks take on the Missouri Mavericks tomorrow night in Independence, Missouri where I'm predicting a 6-2 Jackalopes win.  I'm going to go ahead and wrap things up here, but check The Enforcer in the coming days to see how the Jacks did this weekend, as well as anything else pertaining to the Jacks as well as Van Drunen's condition.


Until next time Jackalope fans all I have to say is GO JACKS GO!!! and shame on you Duane Lewis!

Bootland Assigned as Training Camp Looms



Hello fellow Jackalope fans!  It's a beautiful night here in the Permian Basin, and we have quite a bit of Jackalope related news to get caught up on.  First, remember in my last post when I mentioned that there might be another big addition that the Jacks would make?  Well, it was announced today on the Jack's website that Darryl Bootland has been sent to the Odessa Jackalopes from the AHL's Bridgeport Sound Tigers.  This is a HUGE addition for the Jacks, as not only does Bootland have a bunch of AHL experience, but he has quite a bit of NHL experience as well.  Bootland is a 6'2" 200 pound right winger, that is (from what I have seen) a heck of an enforcer that can score too.  All around, he seems to be a great player that is sure to become an instant leader on the team, and an instant fan favorite of the fans.  He is a veteran, which brings the Jacks to the maximum number of six veterans allowed not counting goalies, and it wouldn't surprise me at all if he gets called up to the Sound Tigers throughout the CHL season.  That's how good this guy is.  If you would like to read the full article from the Jackalopes website about the big addition of Darryl Bootland, click on this link: http://www.jackalopes.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=485:09story12&catid=69:newstory&Itemid=119. 



Training camp around the corner!



 Moving on, Jackalopes training camp starts in (can you believe it) four days, which is on Monday, at Music City Mall.  The Jacks will then head to Colorado for a couple of exhibition games against the Colorado Eagles on October 7th and 9th which will feature two of the CHL's powerhouses going head to head, and then the regular season begins on October 15th when the Jacks travel to Independence, Missouri to take on Scott Hillman and his Mavericks.  Hockey is almost here, folks, so you better get ready to watch a Jackalopes team that could very well be the best that Odessa has ever seen.  So, please, whether you're from Odessa, Midland or any of the surrounding cities and towns, please prepare to get some tickets to come on out to the ECC to watch one hell of a team bulldoze through the CHL in 2010-2011! 

Speaking of the Jackalopes' training camp, the Jacks have announced their training camp roster which can be viewed here:  http://www.jackalopes.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=484:09story11&catid=69:newstory&Itemid=119.  Five more players have been invited to camp, none of which I really know much about, and to be totally blunt I doubt if we see any of them make the team this season.  But, you never know, if one of those five guys comes in to camp, works their ass off, and shows that he is capable of contributing to the team, then Gillis could very well give them a shot.  I guess we will find out soon enough who makes the Jacks regular season roster, but with all of the talent and depth that has been signed, I can assure you that camp will be very, very competitive to say the least.  The Jacks currently have 25 players coming to camp, with the addition of Bootland, and if I'm not mistaken, I believe nineteen players are allowed to be on the team's regular season roster, with one of those players being a healthy scratch.  So, that means six players will have to be cut, and like I already said, I expect camp to be very competitive, and I sure wouldn't want to be in Gillis' or Cressman's shoes when they have to make the tough decisions on who to cut from the team.  Also, it was mentioned on the Jack's website that more players could be added to the training camp roster at a later date, so keep checking The Enforcer for more updates when it comes to Jackalope related news in the coming days. 

Finally, I plan on giving my proposed forward lines and defensive pairings within the next week or so, as well as CHL standings predictions, so keep your eyes peeled for that.  With all of this said, I'm going to go ahead and wrap things up here and get some much needed shuteye.  Be sure to check out the blog every day as you never know when Jackalope related news will be announced, and you better believe that you'll get my brutally honest opinion every time news pertaining to the Jackalopes is revealed.

In other Jackalope related news

• A big congrats to Jackalope netminder Joel Martin for getting invited to attend the Islander's training camp.  The guy definitely deserves the exposure at the higher levels as he is one helluva goalie, and there is a reason why he was named the CHL's Most Outstanding Goalie last season.  I wish him all the luck in the world, but the selfish side of me really hopes that he will be in between the pipes for the Jacks come October 15 in Independence.
• Also, a big congrats to Jean Bourbeau who is apparently really impressing the big dogs up in Bridgeport.  He has a contract with the Sound Tigers for the second season in a row, and there seems to be a real possibility that he could be staying up in the AHL for quite a while.  Again, we wish Bourbs all the luck in the world up in Bridgeport, but it wouldn't hurt my feelings to see him back in a Jackalope sweater some time this season.  You can read the full article about Bourbeau impressing the folks up in Bridgeport at this website:  http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/hockey/article/Bourbeau-may-have-what-it-takes-for-role-with-678554.php
• Finally, the Jackalopes concessions "taste test" for season ticket holders will be held tomorrow evening at the ECC where season ticket holders will be able to pick up their season tickets, as well as mingle with members of the 2010-2011 team.  I'm probably not going to be able to make it tomorrow, as school has really been kicking my butt here lately, so I will have to pick up my tickets some time next week, which sucks.  Fans interested in becoming season ticket holders are also invited to attend the event, which starts at 6:00 PM, so if you want to become a season ticket holder for one of the best teams in the entire Central Hockey League, then head out to the Jack Shack tomorrow evening for the annual "Taste Test Event."

Until next time Jackalope fans all I have to say is GO JACKS GO!!! and I'm counting down the days until October 15th!