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.
The Flin Flon Bombers returned from Saskatoon's September Showcase tournament with a tie and three more games of experience under their belts. "I think the tournament was a good experience for us," said coach Ryan Hoffman. "It gave us a chance to see everybody early in the year and see where everybody is at, what they've got and how you stack up against them." The purpose of the tournament is to give the league and its players some exposure, mainly to NCAA and CIS scouts. This is especially important for teams like the Bombers, as scouts don't always make the trip to the Whitney Forum to watch one or two players. "It gives the kids a lot of exposure," said Hoffman. "It stirs up some interest in some guys for us, which is good for our program." On the ice, the Bombers didn't get the results they were hoping for, but it did give the coaching staff an opportunity to reevaluate the team and get a better look at some players. "I thought we played excellent first periods against Estevan and Weyburn," said Hoffman. "Both games, they came out and got a real early goal in the second period, and our energy level just dropped. We weren't able to recover in either game. It was disappointing. I don't like to use the word 'quit', but I think we did quit a little bit in those games." In the 3-3 tie against Melville, Hoffman was impressed with the effort his team put out, and was happy to see his team rebound after a poor outing against Estevan the day before. "I thought we played very well and very hard," said Hoffman. "We rolled through our lines as much as we possibly could, and got contributions from everybody." As a result, the line of Ryan Cosgrove, Richard Dupre and Blake Rolston played well and chipped in with a goal. "It was a good solid effort," said Hoffman. "Basically, we blew our coverage down low late in the game, and they buried their chance on us. It was disappointing not to get the win, but if we continue to get efforts like that, we'll get this thing turned around in a hurry." The Bombers will have to find a way to maintain that energy level this weekend when the Estevan Bruins are in town. The Bruins had their way with the Bombers in a 6-1 route on Saturday in Saskatoon. "With Estevan, we have to work to generate a little more offence," said Hoffman. "I think we'll be able to do that with our power play. At the tournament, with the facility we were in, with the weather as nice as it was outside, the ice was an absolute abomination for both teams. Special teams will be able to play more of a factor here, where we've got better ice." Currently, the Bombers have 24 players in camp. Quinn McIntosh has been released since the weekend, and Kevin Burwell has accepted a tryout with the Victoriaville Tigres in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Early indications point to him sticking around for at least the time being. "It's good for Kevin," said Hoffman. "He gets to move up a level. For us, it allows us to get down to a little better number." Also on the weekend, the Bombers moved the rights of 18-year-old goaltender Russel Monette to the Weyburn Red Wings in exchange for a list play and future considerations (cash). Monette spent last season with the Saskatoon Blades, and could be called back to the WHL at any time this year. "For us, to bring a guy in here as a backup goalie who may very well get recalled in two weeks, that doesn't do us much good," explained Hoffman. "We get the rights to a 17-year-old defenceman who is playing Midget 'AAA'. He is a big, tough kid, very physical, and we're real happy to have him." The player in question is Ken Neufeld, and the Bombers tried to get him from Kindersley last year, who had moved him to Weyburn since then. For now, the Bombers will have to prepare for the Estevan Bruins and Melville Millionaires, who will both be stopping in Flin Flon this weekend. The Bombers will play the Estevan Bruins on Friday, while the Melville Millionaires will be in town on Saturday. Both game times are 7:30 p.m.9/29/2004
