The Flin Flon Bombers are in the middle of a two week break, but head coach Mike Reagan wants the players to stay focused and not lose sight of the big picture.
“Enjoy the break, but be ready to go,” was what he said to the team before they parted after their big 5-3 win in Battleford on December 20, their last game before the break. “Each and every one of those guys is geared up. Winning is number one for them.”
Reagan knows that he has had some good teams over the past eight years, but the Bombers have yet to make it to a league final since long before he was the coach. In fact, they haven’t made it out of their Division since they won it all in 1992-93.
“I get a different sense from this group,” he said. “They are hungry to win. They are willing to sacrifice more to win. There’s not a lot of guys in that dressing room that, like in the past, it was about other things.”
Those ‘other things’ may come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but typically a good team falls apart when players start playing for the name on the back of the jersey instead of the crest on the front of it.
A team that is focused on one common goal is unstoppable.
“We like our group,” said Reagan. “Are there changes to be made? Yes. We’re definitely going to try and make something happen here before January 10.”
The January 10 trade deadline doesn’t give teams a lot of time to pull the trigger on a big deal, as teams have been on a roster freeze since December 10. That freeze will be lifted on January 1, but you can bet that coaches have been busy testing the trade waters since long before the break.
Reagan hopes to make two or three deals, but a lot will depend on what is available, and more importantly, the price to be paid for a key piece of the puzzle.
Right now, a lot of teams across the prairie provinces are in playoff positions, or at least knocking on the door.
Taking a quick look at the SJHL standings, the bottom three or four teams are within a couple of points of each other. Only two will miss the playoffs, and it is hard to say if they will be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline.
One thing is for certain: we won’t have to wait long to find out what kind of team the Bombers will have as we head in to the stretch drive.
The league returned to action on Tuesday, but the Bombers get an extended break as they will hit the ice for the first time on Sunday, at home against the Humboldt Broncos.
They will host their rivals from Mefort on Tuesday, January 6 before facing the Notre Dame Hounds at the Whitney Forum on the night of the trade deadline.
Flin Flon Bomber player stats as of December 30
GP G A PTS PIM PPG SHG
16 Chris Rauckman LW 33 22 13 35 43 8 2
20 Alex Smith C 33 15 19 34 79 5 2
24 Dean Allison LW 33 10 19 29 29 2 1
21 Parker Evans-Campbell RW 33 7 17 24 92 1 0
23 Austin Calladine D 31 9 13 22 34 7 0
19 Austin Evans RW 32 4 18 22 51 2 0
22 Tyson Empey LW 33 6 13 19 33 0 1
25 Tanner Lishchynsky D 29 5 13 18 89 4 0
18 Danys Chartrand D 30 2 15 17 12 2 0
27 Joel Kocur LW 14 7 7 14 6 1 0
17 Michael Knaub LW 32 4 7 11 94 0 0
39 Brandon Switzer RW 13 3 7 10 12 1 0
3 Tyler Bell D 20 3 2 5 70 2 0
15 Kristian St.Onge RW 26 3 2 5 14 0 0
8 Rob Cameron D 33 1 4 5 4 1 0
44 Brandon Masson D 23 0 5 5 46 0 0
26 Braden Lacoursiere D 26 0 5 5 22 0 0
5 Dustin Perrilat D 11 2 2 4 8 1 0
6 Mason Etter D 24 2 0 2 14 1 0
14 Evan Akkerman RW 30 2 0 2 54 0 0
47 Jason Cohan LW 14 0 2 2 12 0 0
28 Zach Garrett RW 4 0 1 1 34 0 0
Goalies
GP MINS SO W L SOL T SVS %
29 Adam Beukeboom 11 576 3 5 4 0 0 281 0.921
1 Simon Hofley 5 334 0 2 3 0 0 169 0.929
