The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Kelly Carrington Staff Writer The Flin Flon Bombers notched a win on home ice last Saturday night as they welcomed the Notre Dame Hounds for their first game at the Whitney Forum since Dec. 11. Earning the 2-1 victory wasn't an easy feat for the Maroon and White as the Hounds came out hungry and with a stronger effort in the first and second periods. Bomber head coach and GM Mike Reagan gave the credit to goaltender Devin Buffalo for keeping the Hounds to one goal, which came late in the second period. Picking up the pace in the third period, Reagan says the Bombers performed better and were able to earn the win. 'I didn't think we played very well,' said Reagan in a phone interview. 'Notre Dame came out hard and I thought...they handed it to us...in the first two periods.' Reagan says if it weren't for Buffalo, the visitors would have been up a few more goals. Getting better later in the game, the coach says the team really only played one period. 'It was good enough for a win. We'll take it,' he said. Heading into a four-game road trip tonight, the Bombers will face the Melville Millionaires with hopes of bringing a better effort. 'We needed those two points, ' Reagan said of this past weekend's win. 'You're going to have games where you struggle and you have to find a way to win.' The Bombers found their win as Cameron Blair scored the team's second goal of the game _ the first having come from Dillan McCombie in the first period. 'A win is a win,' said Reagan. Taking the momentum from the victory, the coach says the team is feeling confident heading into tonight's game. 'We're happy we got the win. The biggest thing is, we know what we have to work on,' said Reagan. Back from the Christmas break, the team will have to work both mentally and physically to stay above .500 this month. With eight road games and five games on home ice, the schedule is demanding in all ways. Knowing that there will be slumps throughout the course of the month, Reagan says 'you have to be able to get out of the funk as quick as possible.' In total, the Bombers will or have faced off 13 times this month. With plenty of road games, Reagan says the team is going to need to win at least four of them to meet their goal of staying above .500 this month. The coach says he hopes to see at least four of the five home games end in victories for the Maroon and White, as well. Mental Games With the Christmas break lasting nearly 10 days, Reagan says it takes some talking with the players to get them refocused and back on track. 'Sometimes kids come off (the break)...and are in a little lull. Sitting at home doing nothing for nine days, a kid can get lazy,' said Reagan. The coach finds himself with the task of taking the lazy out of the players and getting them to compete hard. 'It's up to them,' Reagan says as to when the team will be back to competing hard. 'They can only decide. We can push them, but you can't force anyone to do anything. It has to be up to them,'he said. Valuable Points The games played at the Whitney Forum are going to be very important for the Bombers this month. See 'Home...' on pg. 5 Continued from pg. 4 'Our mindset is that our home games are very valuable,' said Reagan. Just as important are the road games. If the team can reach its goal for wins on the road, Reagan said 'the home games should take care of themselves.' Reagan sees the pressure on the team this month as a positive. 'I think there is pressure no matter what,' says the coach, noting that all sports come with pressure. 'If you can't handle the pressure in the regular season, how are you going to handle it in playoffs?' Reagan tells his players to 'relish' the pressure. 'It's got to fuel the body, so to speak,' he said. Using the pressure as motivation, the Bombers enter their next four games on the road and hope to continue their success. In Melville tonight, the Bombers travel to Notre Dame tomorrow night. Though hoping for another win in Notre Dame, Reagan says the Hounds are a tough team to beat on home ice. With a larger playing surface than most teams are used to, the Hounds use it to their advantage while teams like the Bombers have to adjust. Following tomorrow night's game the Bombers will prepare for a double-header weekend in Estevan before hosting the La Ronge Ice Wolves on Jan. 20.
