Manitoba Moose

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Moose still waiting for cavalry

Record should improve as regulars begin trickling back

By: Tim Campbell

15/12/2009 1:00 AM | Comments: 0

They've lit a match to 33 of their 80 games, and where are the Manitoba Moose?

Well, at 16-13-4, they could be in a worse spot considering the injuries and call-ups they've had to endure.

But with two, maybe three, dreadful performances in the last two weeks, one can't help but think things could be better.

And they'll need to be, considering that the Moose have played the most games in the AHL so far.

Saturday's blown lead in Norfolk, preventing the Moose from sweeping the two-game weekend, is most recent in the memory banks but head coach Scott Arniel admitted Monday that there have been some unusual things in recent times, especially this far into the season.

"To have had to go back to absolutely Square 1 with some of our stuff like we did last week, walking through our D coverage, walking through our neutral-zone play, walking through our special teams play, we broke things down like we'd never done it before and it was like the beginning of training camp," Arniel said Monday, an off-ice day that saw him conduct regularly scheduled meetings with players.

Fond of saying

That probably makes the Moose more like most AHL teams than they've ever been -- GM Craig Heisinger is fond of saying that most teams just see what they have until Christmas and the good teams get better from there.

With a full stock of veterans and holdover defencemen in past years, the Moose have never experienced those growing pains quite like this.

But with a green and injured (Nolan Baumgartner, Lawrence Nycholat and Mike Funk are still missing) blue line, it's like an AHL reality show.

"Yeah, I think with all the different people we've had in our lineup and all the youth in here, it would have been nicer to have more practices and play less and wait for the cavalry to come," Arniel said.

It's not too late to get on the right track and with some regulars starting to trickle back into action -- Alexandre Bolduc and Guillaume Desbiens are back and Nycholat and maybe forwards Michael Grabner and Matt Pope, both skating, aren't far behind -- nobody expects the inconsistency to continue.

"It's not even halfway through, so we've got the majority of the season left," Moose goalie Cory Schneider said. "We've had the same group here for two or three weeks now. And the guys who are coming back are guys who have played here before and know the system. It's not like we'll be introducing new faces who need to figure it out on the fly.

"It's got to stop being and excuse we've had so many new faces and bodies."

The Moose have used 37 players so far this season, potentially on their way to a third straight year of dressing more than 50 different skaters.

They've also lost a astounding 189 man-games so far to injuries and call-ups.

That they've kept their heads above water and still hold a playoff spot in the North Division might be reason for some optimism.

"We're starting to see where some of the guys understand how we play," Arniel insisted. "These are guys who hadn't played for me before and there are a lot of them this year."

But Schneider warned there are no shortcuts.

"It's great to have some guys back who have been here and we need to help us win but all it takes is a string of injuries up top or some personnel changes or a trade and it directly affects us.

"And guys playing here get hurt, too. It's not just one or two players that have to do it. You go out with who you have, do your best and that's what the system's there for. If we don't play it, then our lack of personnel may catch up to us."

The Moose have just two games remaining before an eight-day Christmas break, this Friday and Saturday at the MTS Centre against Lake Erie.

tim.campbell@freepress.mb.ca

Team wishes impact-player Rome could stay longer

CONDITIONING assignments can be a useful exercise when implemented properly.

The Manitoba Moose have never enjoyed one quite as productive as defenceman Aaron Rome's. The Nesbitt, Man., native played seven games during his 14-day stay, scoring six goals and seven points. Rome, who went back to the Canucks Monday, is now fourth on the Moose in goals and first in both game-winners (three) and shooting percentage (25).

"We were hoping he'd stay a little longer," Moose coach Scott Arniel said Monday. "We've had other guys come in and some have just made an appearance (can you say, 'Hello, Fabian Brunnstrom,') and others who didn't stay quite as long.

"He's the first guy I've had in four years that's stayed the full two weeks. The thing about him (is) that he played as hard as anybody who's been here all year. He fought, he obviously scored six goals and was a big part of our success the last couple of weeks. He probably led our defence in ice time. He was what we needed with (Nolan) Baumgartner going down."

Baumgartner won't be back this week, but there is hope veteran blue-liner Lawrence Nycholat, out since early October, could return to pick up some slack.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 15, 2009 C3

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