When the Flin Flon Bombers hosted the Royal Bank Cup in 2001, head coach Larry Wintoneak’s goal was to never lose back-to-back games.
He knew that even with the team he had that year, you were still going to lose. One loss was acceptable, but two losses meant something was wrong.
Now, it’s not fair to expect this year’s team to live by the same standards. Despite the fact that they have lost six in a row, the team isn’t in danger of missing the playoffs. The regular season is important, and obviously the team would rather be on a six-game winning streak, but it isn’t the end of the world.
At four losses, the coaching staff said it wasn’t time to panic, and they were right. However, at six games, someone’s finger has got to be inching towards the button.
The Bombers have two games left before the Christmas break, and they will be a pretty good measuring stick for head coach Mike Reagan.
The Stars and Bombers have almost identical records. Winning on the road is always tough, but if Flin Flon can find a way to split the series, at least there will be something positive to focus on over the break.
The team will be anxious to come back and work hard to prove that it wasn’t a fluke.
If they lose both games, they will accomplish something that I’m pretty sure hasn’t happened to a team coached by Mike Reagan.
Although I don’t have hard stats, I don’t think the Bombers have gone an entire month without winning a hockey game under Reagan, and certainly not before Christmas.
Losing both games could be disastrous for the team. You can imagine that the players and coaches are already doing some soul searching.
Heading into a two-week break on an eight-game skid won’t make things any easier.
Whether it is this weekend or a month from now, the streak will end, and when it does, the Bombers will still be in a playoff spot.
The Bombers have the keys they need to make a long playoff run, and are just a couple pieces away from doing some real damage the playoffs.
If the team can keep it together and ride this thing out, they will be better off because of it. You don’t face this kind of adversity without learning something about yourself as players and about your team as a whole.
For Reagan, the picture is already becoming clearer. While it may be hard for the players to see the light at the end of the tunnel, the coaching staff will definitely be able to tell which players are mature enough to handle themselves when the going gets tough, and which ones aren’t giving the effort needed to push the team over the top.
The roster will be frozen over the Christmas break, but unlike the Dec. 1 roster cut-down deadline, the Bombers will make some moves to improve their hockey team.
It seems like every year, most teams are looking for a top-two or top-three defenceman and a top-six forward. I don’t see their needs being any different this year.
More than anything right now, though, they just need to find a way to win.
