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Ferguson Gets Win Number 700!
Urbandale, IA (12.01.01): Head Coach Bob Ferguson got his 700th career victory Saturday night at Metro Ice Sports Arena with a 3-1 victory over Rochester. The victory pushed the home game winning streak to 9 games, and gave the Bucs sole possession of second place in the East Division. The game  was much closer than the score indicates. From the first drop of the puck it was obvious that Rochester came to play, as they put tremendous pressure on Buc goaltender Chris Gartman. Chris kept the Bucs in the game. "We needed a game out of goaltenders ... they have been struggling", said coach Ferguson after the game. Gartman and the Buc defense faced 3 consecutive Rochester power-plays, including a 5 on 3 advantage. The Bucs held and ended the period with a 2 goal lead.
The Bucs first goal came on a Buccaneer 5 on 3 advantage at 15:40 of the first period. Mark Langdon scored the power-play goal, assisted by Alex Matieroukine and Brett Skinner. Five minutes later the Bucs scored what was to be the game-winning goal when Chris Collins took a pass from Brett Skinner and beat Rochester goalie Yen-I Chen. The goal came after a big save from Chris Gartman on a 2 on 1 Rochester break.
 The second period was a defensive struggle as both teams battled it out without scoring a goal. Both teams had some quality scoring chances but were shut down by the goaltending.
Things really heated up in the third period as Rochester made it 2-1 on a power-play. The goal came from Aaron Degerness on an innocent looking slap-shot. Chris Gartman got a piece of it, but it still found the back of the net. Aaron is from Roseau, Minnesota - can anyone tell me why so many great hockey players come from Roseau?
Rochester really turned it up the last 10 minutes of the period, and so did the Bucs. Both teams came close to breaking it open, but could not get it past the goalies. With 1:28 left in the game, Rochester pulled theit goalie for an extra attacker. The Buc defense was solid as they kept the puck tied up in the corners. Finally, the puck got thrown out of the Buc zone and Mark Langdon picked it up. With a Rochester defenseman on him the whole time, he skated to within feet of the Rochester net and then put it in. Their were 10 seconds left on the clock. The Bucs had won 3-1. Next stop? The Omaha Lancers Tuesday night at Omaha. Also, be sure to read the expanded Press Release for this week!
Written by Steve Bendy
| 12/1/01 - At Des Moines. Attendance: 3,281 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| DES MOINES |
3 |
2-0-1 |
37 |
26 |
1-5 |
Gartman (36-37) |
| Rochester |
1 |
0-0-1 |
37 |
20 |
1-8 |
Chen (34-36) |
| DES MOINES: Langdon (2G,PP), Collins (GW) |
| ROCHESTER: Degerness (G,PP) |
| 12/4/01 - At Omaha. Attendance: 4,087 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| OMAHA |
3 |
1-1-1 |
37 |
18 |
2-7 |
Vicari (22-24) |
| Des Moines |
2 |
1-1-0 |
24 |
14 |
1-4 |
Gartman (34-37) |
| OMAHA: Burns (GW,A,PP), Guerin (G), Klann (G,PP) |
| DES MOINES: Nikle (G), Carlson (G,PP) |
| 12/7/01 - At Chicago. Attendance: 2,153 |
| Team |
Score |
Scoring |
Shots |
PIM |
Powerplays |
Winning Goalie (Saves-Shots) |
| CHICAGO |
5 |
1-1-3 |
26 |
30 |
4-6 |
Daigneau (31-33) |
| Des Moines |
2 |
1-0-1 |
33 |
20 |
0-7 |
Gartman (21-25) |
| CHICAGO: Gilbert (HAT TRICK,3PP), Barauskas (GW,PP), Gauthier (3A), Bader (G) |
| DES MOINES: Collins (G), Matieroukine (G) |
Over 1,000 Teddy's Fill The Air
Urbandale, IA (12.15.01): Over 1,000 Teddy's filled the air Saturday night for the first annual Blank Children’s Hospital “Teddy Bear Toss”. The Teddy Bear Toss is a hockey tradition in Canada, and based on the crowd's response, is destined to become a tradition in Des Moines too. Des Moines Head Coach Bob Ferguson said that his former team, the Florida Everblades (ECHL) hosted the Teddy Bear Toss with such success that they’ve repeated it every year since it’s inception. “It was such a great visual, there were thousands of bears just raining onto the ice, and when fans see the toss once, they can’t wait for the next year.”
It seemed like the fans were never going to be able to throw their stuffed animals as Cedar Rapids goaltender Bobby Goepfert showed why he is one of the top goaltenders in the USHL. The Bucs dominated play in the first period, but it was Cedar Rapids that scored on a controversial goal midway through the period to lead 1-0. It was controversial  because the net was dislodged and Cedar Rapids had a man in the crease. It was just one of many "controversial" calls that went against the Bucs on the night.
The Buccaneers came out of the locker determined and tied the game up just 3 minutes into the period. Chris Collins had taken a shot that popped back out to Alex Matieroukine. Alex went high stick-side to light the lamp. The Teddy Bears came down like rain - 1,230 to be exact. After the bears were gathered into plastic bags, play continued and both teams were looking sharp. Cedar Rapids took the lead again 10 minutes later when Adam Olsen found him all alone in front of the net. At the end of the period that Bucs had outshot the Rough Riders 19-12, but were behind 2-1.
The Bucs continued to play solid hockey and it looked like it was just a matter of time until they would score the equalizer. Midway through the period Chris Gartman faced a 3 on 1 break, coming up big by staying in position and then steering the shot to the side and out of harms way. The Bucs again were caught on a 3 on 1 break two minutes later. This time Weston Tardy broke up the centering pass as he laid his stick on the ice. The Bucs quickly broke the puck out and had a 3 on 2 break themselves. The red light went on and the crowd went crazy. The ref was skating around talking to the linesmen and you could tell something was wrong. He had waived off the goal without an explanation to the crowd. The video replay was shown confirming the Buc goal and the crowd roared its displeasure. The Bucs called time-out to talk things over. After the drop of the puck the Bucs were playing with such intensity that Cedar Rapids was forced to take a penalty. It only too the Bucs 12 seconds on the powerplay to score. Michael Hutchins had brought the puck in the zone, and Chris Collins took it to the net. Instead of shooting, he passed to Alex Matieroukine who was all alone on the other side of the net. The crowd errupted as the red light went on. The Bucs had tied the score at 2 each. Chris Gartman had to come up big near the end of the period as the Bucs were caught on another 3 on 1 break. Meanwhile Goephert was stopping the Buc onslaught with apparent ease. As the clock ticked off the last few seconds it was apparent that we were heading into overtime.
With just a minute gone in the overtime the Bucs picked up a penalty and were forced to play a defensive role for the next 2 minutes. The Buc D held strong and the Bucs had 1 minute to win the game. Mark Langdon had a great chance near the end but could not get it by Goepfert. We were heading to a shoot-out. As coach Bob Ferguson has said, shoot-outs are for the fans. Boy is he right, the sold-out arena was on their feet, loving every minute of it. The first five shooters went and only one from each side was able to score - Michael Hutchins and Joe Gasparini. The shoot-out went 4 more rounds when Chase Watson put one past Gartman to win the game.
Written by Steve Bendy
 Box Score
Gartman Gets Shutout in 10-0 Rout
Urbandale. IA (12.28.01): When asked how the Bucs would respond to a 13 day break from play, Coach Ferguson said they were going to look at it as the beginning of a new season. If last night was an indication of how the Bucs  would be playing in the new season, the fans are in for a treat. The Bucs put together one of their best efforts of the year as the offense and defense played 60 minutes of inspired hockey.
The Bucs exploded for 5 first period goals on 20 shots, while limiting Rochester to just 7 shots. Chris Collins opened the scoring on a powerplay 4 minutes into the period, followed by goals from Alex Matieroukine, Michael Hutchins, Kris Bouchard, and Ryan Bennett. Ryan Bennett? Yes, Ryan Bennett is back to give the Bucs some offensive punch. Ryan scored 28 goals last year and had 24 assists. Ryan ended the night with a goal and two assists. Chris Gartman had to come up with a couple of spectacular saves to keep Rochester off the board. ithink his main concern for the night was staying awake as the Bucs kept the puck out of harms way all night.
The period began with an old-fashioned gloves-and-helmet-off fight between Luke Irwin and Bryce Anderson. Luke had the jersey over the head in short order and a hard punch floored the opponent. Both were given 5 minute penalties and the game continued. The Bucs added 2 more goals from hard-working Erik Johnson and Andy Jurek. Both Andy and Erik played for Minot of the AWHL last year.
The Bucs could have laid back and let Rochester get back in the game, but they did not. They kept playing hard and were rewarded with 3 more goals. Luke Irwin scored when he was fed by Matieroukine and had an unhampered shot from the middle of the circle. Jeff Genovy and Ryan Dingle rounded out the scoring. The final goal was a pretty sight as Ryan Dingle stole the puck and raced from his own blue line all alone and lit the lamp. When the buzzer sounded, ten Buccaneers had scored and Chris Gartman had recorded his first shutout.
Collins (PP) (Genovy, Hutchins), Matieroukine (Collins, Stoflet), Hutchins (Dingle), Bouchard (Bennett), Bennett (Langdon), Johnson (Nikle, Langdon), Jurek (Bennett, Genovy), Irwin (Matieroukine, Collins), Genovy (Collins), Dingle (Unassisted) scored for the Bucs. Gartman was in goal and made 20 saves.
Written by Steve Bendy
Box Score
Nelson Gets Hat-Trick in 6-4 Victory
Urbandale, IA (12.29.01): On Saturday, December 29th, the Bucs hosted the Topeka ScareCrows for the first time ever. Topeka is new to the USHL this season as an expansion franchise. They are led by Head Coach Bliss Littler, and are currently ranked 5th in the USHL’s Western Division with a 10-11-4 record (24 points). Des Moines has faced the ScareCrows just once this season, at Topeka on November 24th, and the Bucs came out on top in a shootout. Topeka is led offensively by forward Vince Belissimo, currently ranked fifth in the USHL in scoring with 32 points, just one point behind Des Moines’ Brett Skinner.
The Bucs jumped out to a 2-0 lead early in the second period on powerplay goals by Alex Matieroukine and Andy Nelson. The goals came less than 2 minutes apart, and it looked as if the hard-working Bucs were in control. The Scarecrows did not give up and tied the game up with 3:12 left in the second period on goals from Jon Booras and Toronto native Vince Bellissimo. A minute later Jeff Genovy put the Bucs back ahead for good.
Two minutes into the third period Justin Nikle made it 4-2, and Andy Nelson got a goal on a breakaway 5 minutes later to run the score up to 5-2. Topeka did not give-up; instead they just worked hard and it paid off. With 7 minutes left in the game they scored, and a minute later made it 5-4. The Bucs were on the verge of letting this one get away. With just two minutes left the Scarecrows picked up a penalty for too many men on the ice. They still pulled their goalie and began to put pressure on the Buc net. Skinner got control of the puck and passed to Hutchins who skated it out of the zone. He could have scored the empty-netter, but saw Andy Nelson breaking down the middle all alone. He fed Andy, who skated within a couple of feet of the goal before putting it away for the hat-trick - the first hat-trick for a Buccaneer on the season. The Bucs had held-off a strong Topeka team and had now won two games in a row.
Matieroukine (Genovy, Collins), Nelson (Collins, Skinner), Genovy (Collins, Matieroukine), Nikle, Nelson, and Nelson (Hutchins, Skinner) scored for the Bucs. Gartman was in goal and made 24 saves.
Box Score
Written by Steve Bendy
Genovy Scores Overtime Winnner
Urbandale, IA (12.31.01): A New Years eve Des Moines tradition returned tonight as the Bucs hosted the Tri-City Storm, then after the game, fans enjoyed the post-game lounge party and traditional Skate with the Bucs.
 This years opponent, the Storm, were ranked 6th in the USHL’s Western Division, with an 8-15-1 record (17 points). The Bucs are 2-0 against Tri-City this season; the two teams’ last meeting was on November 17th at the Metro Ice Sports Arena. The Storm are led offensively by forward Konrad Reeder, who currently has 13 goals and 7 assists (20 points). Reeder is ranked 2nd in the USHL for power play goals (he has 7), just 2 fewer than Des Moines’ Alex Matieroukine, in first place with 9.
A group of Tri-City Storm faithful had made the trek from Nebraska. What they should do is bring some frozen Runza's along and sell them to help cover their travel costs. For those of you that don't know, a Runza is beef and cabbage inside of a bread roll. Their are a lot of Runza restaurants in Nebraska and in some other states, but none in the Des Moines area. Their are so many people in Des Moines that like the sandwich that where I used to work people would make a "Runza run" - driving 2 hours to Omaha for their fix!
To get to my point, whenever fans from another team show-up, it always energizes the Buc fans. Less than three minutes into the first period Weston Tardy gave the fans reason to cheer as his slap shot from the blue-line lit the lamp. The Storm are a physical team and their was a lot of clutching and grabbing, and as Coach Ferguson said, they just outworked us for most of the game. The Storm had a 2-1 lead by the end of the first period.
The second period began with a penalty to the Storm and it seemed like that set the tone for the rest of the period as both teams took a slew of penalties and two fights erupted (Katie and Paul - you missed a couple of good ones!). Chris Collins dropped the gloves first, but the real boxing match was between Alex Matieroukine and Patrick Lake. For those of you who keep score on these type of things, Alex won by a knock-down.
Weston Tardy scored his second goal of the night at the same time as he did his goal in the first period (2:47 into the period). The Bucs seemed to regain control of the game, but gave up a heartbreaker with 1 second left in the period as Loren Havemeier scored a short-handed goal to give Tri-City a 3-2 lead.
The Bucs came out strong in the third period and Erik Johnson tied the game with 8:40 on the clock. The Bucs tried to end it before time expired, but could not get it in the net. Chris Gartman came up with a couple of big saves to send the game into overtime.
The Storm came out hard in the OT, and the Buc defense was back on their heels for a bit. Chris Gartman made a heck of a save to keep the Bucs in the game. With 3:47 left in overtime, the Storm were called for too many men on the ice. The Bucs went right to work passing the puck around, looking for the right shot. Brett Skinner faked the shot from the blue-line several times, causing the fans to yell "shoot-it". The Bucs did shoot-it, but it was Jeff Genovy who got the pass and scored the goal. What a way to end the year. The Bucs had won in overtime and were now on a three game winning streak!
Tardy (Johnson, Nikle), Tardy (Bennett, Irwin), Johnson (Irwin, Bennett), and Genovy (PP) scored for the Bucs. Gartman was in goal and faced 31 shots.
Written by Steve Bendy
Box Score
Disclaimer
This is a game summary and commentary from a Buccaneer fan's point of view, and the viewpoints expressed in this column DO NOT necessarily reflect those of the Des Moines Buccaneer's organization.
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