Mavs Win, Brahmas Lose, & More

Mike Clemente stopped 27 of 29 shots - photo by Scott Thomas

The Americans saw a series victory slip away last night as Andrew Courtney scored with 30 seconds left in regulation to tie the game and then again 34 seconds into overtime to lead the Missouri Mavericks to a 3-2 win over Allen. Allen now takes a 3-2 series lead back to Allen for game six and game seven (if necessary).

- The Americans could have used one of those extra goals from the eight goal outburst on Friday. They had several great chances to add to the 2-1 lead in the third period and put the game out of hand including a couple of chances at an empty net goal after Missouri pulled Clemente.

- Speaking of pulling the goalie it seems like we have had trouble with the extra attacker during the playoffs. If I remember correctly we have given up three extra attacker goals.

- Missouri out shot Allen 39-29 for the game and really put the pressure on in the third period outshooting the Americans 13-6.

- Brian McMillin continued his great play and had what looked like the game winning goal until the last second Mavericks heroics. Brian won a battle in the offensive zone and put a snap shot by Clemente unassisted. Brian continues to lead the team in goals (6) and points (12).

- The attendance last night was 4518 which gives the Mavericks an average for the playoffs of 4360 which is the best average in the league. The 4360 average is 1162 below their regular season average.

- Allen is averaging 3732 in the playoffs which is second in the league. The playoff average is 425 below the regular season average of 4157. Allen has been hampered by not having very good dates for their home games despite being the number one seed. Scheduling problems at the AEC is the major culprit. It is going to be tough getting tickets sold for games 6 and 7 (if necessary) with the short turnaround time and Monday & Tuesday dates.

- Despite the disappointing loss it will be great if we can win the series in game six at home.

- The Whichita Thunder defeated the Fort Worth Brahmas 3-1 Saturday night, and swept the Brahmas four games to none. Whichta also swept Arizona in the first round. This is the second time in the WPHL/CHL era that a team has won two consecutive series by way of a sweep. The last time such a feat was accomplished, was in the 2001 playoffs by the Lubbock Cotton Kings. It is worthy to note that the 2001 Cotton Kings were coached by none other than Bill McDonald. It is also worth noting that after sweeping the first two series the Cotton Kings lost in the finals to the  Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs four games to one.

- Here is another piece of information in the ongoing saga of the future of the CHL. This is an excerpt from an article written by Joe Deacon at pantagraph.com

BLOOMINGTON — Bloomington Blaze team president David Holt envisions “a perfect situation” where the U.S. Cellular Coliseum-based hockey franchise has local ownership and a Peoria rival in the same league.
The status of the Peoria Rivermen is in limbo after the St. Louis Blues sold the American Hockey League franchise to the Vancouver Canucks’ ownership group on Thursday. The AHL’s statement on the sale said “no determination has been made on the operation of the franchise” for next season.
“I know that Peoria and that market, they want hockey,” Holt said Friday. “Every league in hockey other than the NHL is talking about getting into that market.”
The Vancouver group still could keep the Rivermen as an AHL team for one year. If not, Holt said “anything is possible,” such as a franchise relocating or a league expanding to Peoria.
“My hope is that we would be able to have Peoria in whatever league we play in,” he said. “To be able to have a natural rival and have them 40 minutes away, there’s just no telling how much that would benefit Bloomington hockey.”
But the Rivermen situation isn’t the only one that must be resolved ahead of any such scenario. Holt said he and the Central Hockey League are actively seeking Illinois investors to take over the Blaze from New Jersey-based owner Sandra Hunnewell and Hockey Sensations, LLC.
“I think it’s really important for us to have a local presence in whatever we do,” said Holt. “Somebody from Central Illinois has got to be invested in this, because having an out-of-state owner, as you can tell from this last year, is just not going to work.

- Happy Birthday to Jason Deitsch who turns 33 today. I hope he remembers growing old is mandatory but growing up is optional.

- Want to close today with a shout out to super fans John Weithman and Mike Stiney who made the long trek to Independence just to see game five and the possible series win. Despite the frustrating loss Mike tweeted it was not the outcome they were looking for but they had a good time, the facility was nice and the Missouri fans were great.

Allen/Austin Wins, Houston to Des Moines, Bootland, Deitsch, and Ludwig Star

Booter Bootland Led They Way As Allen Upended Missouri - photo by Scott Thomas

The Allen Americans pushed the Missouri Mavericks to the brink of elimination last night with a 8-4 victory before a crowd of 4824 at the Independence Events Center. Allen now leads  3-1 and has a chance to close out the series tonight in Independence. Lots of highlights so here we go:

- Bootland was the number one star of the game with two goals and an assist and his leadership was in evidence the entire game.

- After being down 3-1 early in the second period Allen scored five unanswered. They also scored seven of the last eight goals in the game.

- The eight goals were scored on 36 shots as Allen out shot the Mavericks 36-26. The goals were scored by seven different players which shows the balance on this team. The goals were scored against both Missouri goalies as Corbeil gave up three goals on thirteen shots and was replaced in the second period by Clemente who gave up four goals on twenty two shots. There was also one empty net goal.

- The Allen power play unit had its best game of the playoffs going 3-6 with Bootland, Deitsch & Tyler Ludwig getting power play goals. The power play percentage is now over nineteen (19.15%) which is where coach Martinson expects it to be.

- Tyler Ludwig (third star of the game) continues to impress in the playoffs both offensively and defensively. His ten points rank him fourth in the CHL (tied with Brian McMillin)  in scoring and he leads the entire CHL in +/-.

- Allen has the top three +/- players in the CHL with Tyler leading at +12, McMillin second at +8 and Jamie Schaafsma third at +7.


-  I found this nugget  on twitter as a follow up to the penalties called on Missouri in overtime Wednesday. Since 1923 no team in professional hockey has been awarded 2 5-on-3's in an overtime period. Since 1970, only 6 teams have had one 5 on 3 in overtime.

- I found the following information about the Houston Aeros moving in an article posted by Brian Hall at Fox Sports North. I have already been asked if this move will change our affiliation which has been great this season. I think this is a wait and see issue. Here is the article:

Starting next season, the Minnesota Wild's minor league call-ups will be getting fewer frequent flier miles.

Minnesota received permission from the American Hockey League's Board of Governors on Thursday to move its AHL affiliate from Houston to Des Moines, Iowa, beginning in 2013-14. The team, formerly the Houston Aeros, will be renamed the Iowa Wild.

"Our organization has enjoyed tremendous support from the loyal, passionate hockey fans in Houston since 2001," Wild assistant to the general manager/Aeros GM Jim Mill said in a statement released by the team. "There is a great hockey history in Houston, beginning with the Apollos in 1965 and continuing with the Aeros in the WHA, IHL and AHL. We are honored to have been a part of this hockey tradition."

The Aeros' lease with the Toyota Center in Houston had ended, and the two sides were unable to come to an agreement. According to reports, the Toyota Center had tried to raise the rent for Aeros games, believing it was turning away more profitable concerts because of tie-ups with the Aeros' schedule.

"We have enjoyed a very strong relationship with the Aeros dating back to Toyota Center's inaugural 2003 season," Houston Rockets/Clutch City Sports & Entertainment CEO Tad Brown said in the release. "Both parties worked diligently and in good faith during this process, but unfortunately we were unable to reach an agreement. We wish the Aeros continued success."

The Aeros had played in Houston for 19 years. This season, based largely on the strength of the Wild's strong and emerging prospect core, the Aeros are 38-25-5-5 and fifth in the AHL Western Conference standings.

"We were not able to find agreement on terms of a new arena lease which would allow us to continue to successfully operate our franchise," Wild Chief Operating Officer Matt Majka said in the release. "We thank Toyota Center for the partnership we've had since moving there in 2003."

- I found the following information on another site and if these figures are accurate it is obvious the Toyota Center didn't want the Aeros to be in their building.  With the change coming, the Wild had reportedly sought to bring their farm team closer to Minnesota for the frequent trips between the two cities by players and staff. The Iowa Wild reportedly will play at Wells Fargo Arena, which seats 17,000 for basketball games with a slight change likely for hockey.
The new arena in Des Moines will charge the Wild $10,000 per game rent. It’s a major reduction from the $24,000 per game the Aeros were paying in Houston. To stay in Houston, the Toyota Center was asking the Aeros to increase it’s per game rent to $42,000.

-  Finally, here is the headline on the game in the Kansas City Star online site. The article itself referred to Allen but the headline reads:

Austin beats Mavericks 8-4 and takes a 3-1 series lead

COME ON MAN!!

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/04/19/4192342/austin-beats-mavericks-8-4-and.html#storylink=cpy

Thinel Dodges Suspension, Watch Parties, CHL Rumors & More

League MVP Thinel Avoids Suspension & Will Play Tonight - photo by chlphotos.com

Here are some excerpts from an article published by Bill Althuas of the Examiner.net concerning Mavericks league MVP Sebastian Thinel. Gives new meaning to "fear the beard" as it appears the beard played a role in winning the game on Wednesday.

Sebastien Thinel will be in the lineup at 7:05 tonight when his Missouri Mavericks play host to Allen in the fourth game of the best-of-seven Central Hockey League semifinal series against the top-seeded Allen Americans. The Mavericks captain, who is second in postseason scoring with 12 points, was given a five-minute major and 10-minute match penalty for intent to injure with 3:53 left in overtime of the Americans 3-2 victory Wednesday night at the Independence Events Center.
The penalty gave the Americans their second 5-on-3 opportunity in overtime and Trevor Hendrikx scored the game-winning goal at 18:01 to give Allen a 2-1 series lead. The 10-minute match penalty was reviewed by the league and could have resulted in a suspension. "I got a text from (Mavericks coach Scott Hillman) saying I wasn't going to be suspended, which is good news," Thinel said Thursday evening. "Now I can just go out and play and not worry about a suspension. I didn't think I would get suspended, but you never know."
With the Mavericks penalty-kill unit on the ice, a scramble in front of the Allen net resulted in bodies flying. Thinel and Darryl Bootland got tangled up and went down in front of the net.
"Bootland has his hand on my face, jamming it into the ice, and I know Bootland, I've known him a long time," Thinel said. "I reached up and grabbed his beard. I was trying to get up off the ice. I guess the official saw some of his beard on the ice and felt like that was intent to injure.
"I was just trying to get him off me and his beard was there."

- Saw this  Bryce Aneloski  tweet: Got my cast off which was a positive but in a brace for 6 more weeks. Going to be a process,  just wanna be healthy. Good to see Bryce is on the road to recovery. Sure hope he returns to Allen next season.

 - If you didn't watch the Wednesday game on CHL TV you missed a great game. If you didn't watch the game with other Americans fans you missed a great experience. If you want to really get in the spirit join in at one of the numerous watch parties tonight. Here is where you can go:
     1. Boston's (off 121 in McKinney)  - this is the "official" watch party so it is where those connected to the team will be. Details should come out today if there are any special appearances or activities planned.
     2. Allen Wickers Pub (off 75 in Plano) - this group I am picking as the most energetic, rowdy and fun. If you like to hoot and holler, yell and scream this is the place to go. I call this one the "drummer group" and they have arranged for some food and drink specials.
     3. 5th Street Pizza (off 75 in Allen) - this is the watch party for the official Americans fan club group and will also be a lot of fun. These folks are diehard fans really dedicated to the team. Don't have any other details on this one
     4. Heritage Ranch Outpost (off Stacy Rd. in Fairview) - this is the watch party sponsored by the Heritage Ranch Americans fan club. Just go to the clubhouse and ask where the Outpost is located. We had 30 people Wednesday night.

Check back later in the day as I will update this information if I get any thing else from the groups mentioned above.

- Wichita took a commanding lead in the other semifinal last night with a 3-0 victory over Fort Worth at NYTEX Centre. Wichita now leads the series 3-0 and has an opportunity to sweep the Brahmas Saturday night at NYTEX.

- Wouldn't want to have too many days go by without mentioning what might happen to the CHL in the off season. I saw a post on chlforums.com and while there is not anything new here it just reminds me that you hear more and more of this type of information from various team officials. Yes, these are just rumors at this time and I know this happens every year but it is starting to sound like something is going to happen. Anyway, here is what I saw: After the Colorado Eagles lost their last playoff game, there was a post game interview done with coach Stewart. He stated something to the affect that - Eagles fans would be excited about next year, with the renewal of an old rivalry, and closer travel opportunities for away games. He said the information would be coming out soon. I assume soon means after the CHL playoffs are over?

Allen Wins In OT, Ref Controversy Again

Allen Wins 3-2 in OT - photo by Scott Thomas

Allen took a 2-1 series lead last night with an exciting 3-2 sudden death overtime win over the Missouri Mavericks with the winning goal coming with one second remaining in a 5 on 3 power play at the eighteen minute mark of the first overtime period. Trevor Hendrikx was the hero with a great slap shot blast from the left point. It was an unusual overtime period as there were more penalties called in the overtime period (6) than any of the regulation periods. Of the six penalties four were for boarding (three of the four against the Mavericks) and the other two were against Sebastien Thinel who was given a 5 minute major and a match penalty for an attempt to injure.


I am sure Mavericks fans feel like Americans fans did after the first game, that the referee cost them the game.

Here are my thoughts and comments:

- It is unfortunate in any game when the officials become the story. This was true in game one and it was true again in game three. Two different referees (Zak Blazic last night) but penalty calls dominated the post game conversation. Normally the referee lets the teams get away with  more in overtime and the teams settle the contest on the ice. Not the case last night. I have no statistics to back it up but I would think you would have to look a long way back in the record book to find a visiting team get two 5 on 3 power play attempts in overtime.

- Here are some of the comments about the game tweeted by SinBinMavs who I think is reporting what the Mavericks coach (Scott Hillman) said ofter the game. These could easily be the same comments I saw from Allen fans after game one. When asked what he said to the boys afterwards: "Shake it off. You played your hearts out. For that team (Allen) to get 8 power plays tonight, it's a joke." When asked about the emotions in the locker room: "Just frustrated. They (Allen) dove all night, and I guess it just wore down the official to where he can't tell the difference between a call and a dive. They (Allen) claim to be this big, tough team but they dive all over the ice." He (the referee) was fine for 3 periods, where he seemed to be letting both teams play. For some reason, he coughed up his whistle for the biggest period of the series to date. When asked about the two 5 on 3s in OT: "Never heard of it. Never seen it before. We'll probably never see it again in our lives."

- You can sense the frustration just as you could with Allen after the first game loss. I also want to be fair to Hillman as he also said about Allen,  "They're deep. They have 3 good lines. Their goal tending is outstanding. They're the 1st place team ...and there's a reason for that. They have a great hockey club."

- The game was well played by both teams with some great goal tending at both ends of the ice. It was looking as if a Jason Deitsch goal midway through the second period might hold up until Missouri score two quick goals in the middle of the third period. The Americans tied the score with less than three minutes left in the game with a Trevor Ludwig goal to set up the overtime.

- Brian McMillin had an assist and also led the team with six shots on goal. Brian continues to lead the team in points.

- Tyler Ludwig had an assist on his brother's goal and is now a +10 which leads the CHL by a +3.

- While the game winning goal came on the power play the power play is still struggling. The Americans were scoreless on 15 straight power plays before the OT power play goal.The power play percentage for the series is 6.25%.

- The penalty kill gave up one goal in five attempts (including a 5 on 3) and has allow 4 goals in 17 attempts in the series.

- Special teams are going to be key in this series and Allen needs to improve if they are to prevail, especially on the power play.

- Another key stat in this series is the ability to hold a lead. If you recall there was a period during the season where the Americans had trouble holding onto leads. In the playoffs Allen is 4-0 when leading after one period and 6-0 when leading after two periods.

- For the first time in the series the Mavericks had the edge in shots on goal (40-34).

- Not sure what the rule is on an attempt to injure game misconduct penalty but it would be devastating to Missouri if Thinel was to be suspended for the rematch on Friday.

- Attendance continues to be an issue that has to concern the CHL. Missouri has great support as they averaged over 5500 fans during the regular season. They lead the league in playoff attendance but they are only averaging 4200. I know last night was a mid week game and there isn't a lot of time to market playoff games but for a 2nd round playoff game with the series tied 1-1 to only draw 3990 (attendance last night) in one of the best markets in the league is a concern. It will be interesting to see how many more fans show up for the two weekend games.

- My final thought for the day has to do with Aaron Dell. Another tweet from the Mavericks said, "I will say this regarding Allen - Aaron Dell is a terrific goalie. He has nothing but big things in his future." I as well thought he was terrific while stopping 38 of 40 shots and held the Americans in the game during a couple of sustained Mavericks attacks. How could it be possible he was not one of the three stars of the game.
COME ON, MAN!!

Allen vs Missouri From the Mavs Perspective

Allen vs Missouri Game 3 Tonight - photo by chlphotos.com

Don't have any new info for today so thought I would post from another blog so those of you that don't follow Sin Bin Mavs can get the perspective from the Mavericks point of view. Sin Bin Mavs is the official blog of the Missouri Mavericks. I have been following them on twitter for a while and find them to be fair and balanced at least from a home team perspective. If you are on Twitter give them a follow at @SinBinMavs

SIN BIN BLOG: PARTY CRASHERS

The first game of a seven-game series is the perfect opportunity to send a message. However, when you are facing the top seed, on the road nonetheless, forget about it being an "opportunity." It becomes a necessity. The Mavericks needed to go into Allen and punch the Americans right in the mouth (figuratively, or course). The Americans have a reputation of being.....how do I say this......antagonistic, but have the luxury of exemplary special teams, so it's never really caused much of an issue for them. The Mavericks needed to figure out a way to take advantage of the overly aggressive play of Allen, a feat that hasn't been achieved by many teams this season.
From the first drop of the puck, you could sense that every player on the roster knew this. They were flying. The adrenaline was pumping. The Mavericks knew that if they could come into Allen and steal the first game, they would take control of this semifinals series. The offense was clicking, despite only putting five shots on goal in the first frame. Passes were crisp, the movement was continuous, and the traffic in front of Allen netminder Aaron Dell was endless. It was apparent that the Mavs were going to give Allen all that they could handle on their home ice.
It was inevitable. At that rate, the Americans were bound to lose their cool at some point, and lose their cool they did. 57 penalty minutes turned into three powerplay goals for the Mavericks en route to a 5-1 opening game victory on enemy ice. The Mavericks had crashed the Americans' party. Not only did they crash the party, but they ate all the food in the refrigerator, threw a firecracker in the toilet, and spray-painted the cat just for good measure. The best team in the CHL had just been embarrassed on their home ice.
Unfortunately for the Mavs, they experienced a little bit of an adrenaline hangover. Game 2 was marred by sluggish play, heavy legs, and an inept offense. The only bright spot for the Mavericks was the play of Mathieu Corbeil, who was fresh off a 36 save performance in Game 1. While his line for the second game of the series doesn't appear to be as impressive on paper (29 saves on 32 shots), he was equally as impressive as the previous night. Unfortunately for Missouri, the Americans shook off their woes from the opening game, and came out determined, but more importantly, disciplined.
Getting the split in Allen puts the Mavs in a great situation. Now they have the home ice advantage, with the next three games at the IEC. However, the most concerning thing about the 4-1 defeat in Game 2 is not the number of goals that we surrendered, but rather how those goals were scored. A great point was made by my counterpart over at the Allen Americans Blog (@allenamericans1 on Twitter) earlier today. Allen is known for getting the majority of their goals through grit and grind, winning battles at the net. That is not at all how they netted their four goals in Game 2. Allen relied on pretty passing, finesse skating, and accurate shooting in their win, and the Mavs were totally unprepared for that.
Now the series comes back to Missouri, where the Mavericks are yet to lose in this postseason. While that appears to be favorable for the Mavs, remember that Allen went on the road to Denver last round, and swept all three games on the Cutthroats' home ice to win that series in five games. What we've learned in the first two games is that Allen can beat themselves, and hand their opponent a victory on a silver platter if they cannot control themselves, and also that if they can keep their cool, they are the most dangerous team in the league. The Mavericks, on the other hand, need to avoid the perpetual ebb and flow that we've seen so many times this season: dominant one night, and putrid the next. Which team will show up on Wednesday night?

Americans Win, Is It The Refs Fault & More

Sorry for the headline but I just could not resist. The Americans seemed in control from start to finish last night as they beat the Mavericks 4-1 to even the series 1-1 before 3371 at the Allen Event Center.

Photo by chlphotos.com

photo by chlphotos.com

Jamie Schaafsma (left) and Tyler Ludwig (right) each had two goals in Allen's victory.






- Following the same pattern as the first round Allen came back from a poor showing in the first game loss with a great effort and a victory in the second game. Seems like many times at the end of the regular season when they were battling for the Governor's Cup and also now in the playoffs the team needs some pressure such as the opening game loss to play their best hockey. Let's hope the pattern of playing well on the road continues on Wednesday, Friday & Saturday in Missouri.

- I know coach Martinson always says we are a blue collar team and need to get goals by going to the tough areas in front of the net. Last night was an exception to the rule as all four goals were the "white collar" type. On the first goal Jamie Schaafsma made a great individual effort with a deke around the defenseman and a high shot over Corbeil's blocker. Jamie's second goal was a great pass from Chris Doyle and the third goal was a slick pass on the rush from Jim McKenzie to Tyler Ludwig. Even Tyler's empty net goal was fun to watch as it literally traveled the length of the ice. The four goals were "suit and tie" all the way and fun to see!!

- Inspite of all of the goals coming from slick passing and shooting I thought the team did a good job of getting in front of the net and getting shots on goal as Allen had the edge with 33 shots compared to 25 for Missouri. While we didn't get any of those blue collar ugly goals if we keep crashing the net like we did last night they will come.

- Two keys to the game were the penalty kill which did not allow a goal in four chances and holding the Mavericks number one line (Thinel, Tochkin & Miller) scoreless. Thinel only had one shot and was a -3 for the game.

- The power play was held scoreless again and is 0-7 in the series. Having gotten a power play goal in four of the five games with Denver it looked like things were back on track. The power play percentage (15.15%) is now the lowest of any of the teams remaining in the playoffs.

- I kiddingly used the headline for this post because it is true the referee was much less involved in the game than Sunday but it is also true that the Americans came out much more disciplined last night. If it is any consolation to the Allen fans I also heard second hand but from a reliable source that upon reflection after the game Sunday, the referee (Peter Tarnaris) realized he could have handled the situation better. If this is true I give him credit. We have heard many times from Martinson & Mullins the young referees in the CHL are just like our young players and they make mistakes. As long as they learn from them that is all we can ask. Both coaches have said they prefer these young referees that are trying to make it to the AHL & NHL over experienced referees that are on the back side of their careers.

- I have been asked about the fact that the Mavericks flew to Allen while the Americans are riding the bus. It is true that Missouri did fly to Allen on Saturday and are flying home this morning while the Americans took the long bus ride overnight. A couple of things to keep in mind. While the Americans were taking it easy at home after their series ended on April 6 the Mavericks had to travel to Rapid City. There was a big snow storm that delayed their game until last Wednesday (April 10th). To make matters worse they could not leave Rapid City after the game because of the road conditions so they left on Thursday morning and it took a long time to get home. Since this would have created a short turn around back home to get ready to leave for Allen the Mavericks made the decision to fly. The Mavericks will be back on the bus for the remainder of the series.

- Brian McMillin's five game scoring streak ended last night but his five goals place him second in the CHL in goals scored. He is also second in the league with a +7.

- Tyler Ludwig is having an outstanding playoffs as he is 7th in the league (second among defensemen) in scoring and leads the CHL in plus/minus with a +9.

- The Americans have the top three players in the league in plus/minus with Tyler 1st, Brian 2nd and Jamie Schaafsma 3rd.

- Aaron Dell is back on top of the league in GAA with a 2.30.

- If you live in the North Texas area and want the real fan experience watching the away games with other great fans there are several options. The official watch party (that means they pay for the privilege) is always at Boston's off 121 in McKinney so it is where you can find those directly connected to the team. There is also a group (I'll call them the rowdy crowd) that would be a lot of fun that watches the games at Allen Wickers Pub in Plano. This group includes the drummers. The Americans fan club has their watch party at 5th Street Pizza. Everyone is welcome to join in at any of these watch parties.

Americans Lose, Was It The Refs Fault & More

The referee became part of the game last night - photo by SceneByKimberly.com

After eight days between playoff games the Americans started the first game of the second round against Missouri the same way they did in the first round against Denver, with a loss. Last night it was a lopsided 5-1 victory for the Mavericks before 3782 disappointed and in some cases angry fans at the Allen Event Center. Here are my thoughts on the game.

- Like turnovers in football, free throw shooting in basketball, or errors in baseball, in hockey you can usually tell the outcome of a game just by looking at special teams.  Last night was no exception as our much improved power play was 0-4  and our dynamite penalty kill gave up three goals in eight attempts. In addition we missed a penalty shot.You are not going to win many games with those special teams results.

- I have said many times on this blog all home teams think they get the short end of the stick when it comes to officials calls. I am always hesitant to blame the referee as calls even out over time. There are two ways to look at what happened last night with the referee. One point of view is the referee let his emotions get the best of him, took things personally, became the story of the game, and cost Allen the game. The other point of view is the Americans lost their composure and discipline, took away power plays because of retaliation, turned two minute penalties into four minutes with their actions, and forced the referee to take control.

-The truth most likely lies somewhere in between these two points of view. There is an article about the referee, Peter Tarnaris, which I posted on March 5, 2013 with the title, "The Inside Story Of A CHL Referee." I encourage you to give it a read if you haven't done so already. He is a young guy that already has lots of experience as he became a referee in the USHL & NAHL when he was only 15. He is a rostered American Hockey League (AHL) official which puts him on track to move up to the AHL. A referee never wants to become the story of the game and unfortunately last night that is exactly what happened. I think he would have earned more respect from the players on both teams if he would have been a little more tolerant of the chirping that goes on in an intense second round playoff game.

- The penalty minutes in the game were 57 for the Americans and 17 for Missouri. Of the Americans 57 penalty minutes I count 36 minutes having to do with too much chirping, not listening to the referee, and other antics. This is where I thought Tarnaris could have shown some restraint and tolerance. He didn't cost Allen the game, he just became more important to the outcome than a referee should. By the way, the referee for the game tonight (Monday) is Brent Coulombe.

- The Americans out shot Missouri 37-24. I think there has been a trend the last ten games or so where Allen has lost most games when out shooting their opponents by large margins.

- Trevor Hendrikx left the game with a leg injury. It didn't look good as he needed help getting off the ice. This will be a big loss if can't continue to play in the series.

- Anthony Maiani skated in warmups but did not play in the game. Don't know if he suffered a set back with his injury or the team is just being cautious with getting him back in the line up.

- As no surprise to anyone Adam Pineault was placed on the IR slot for this series so is ineligible to play against Missouri. Adam talked to Tommy Daniels on his radio broadcast last night and Adam said he will be ready to go for the finals. He also shared with Tommy that the fundraiser he and Monique had for Martine Durelle has now exceeded $16,000.

- I had the chance to talk to one of the CHL officials before the game last night about the "injured reserve slot" that is part of the playoff roster. This provision, agreed to by the owners, was to allow teams to keep a player who was injured on the roster in hopes of them being able to play in the subsequent round. This is an extra slot that avoids having to cut a player as would be the case if this extra slot was not available. Some teams have chosen to not use this IR slot as it is not intended for hiding healthy players.

- I was also told the amateur rule limits the number of amateur players that can be signed each year to two which means if you have two amateur players and one or both get injured the rule does not allow them to be replaced. Obviously there was some kind of snafu that allowed Alexandre Lavoie to be signed and play but it is the reason he is no longer with the team. While Alex only played one game he made a good impression so lets hope he comes back next year.

- I also had a chance to meet the Mavericks Vice President of Communication, Patrick Armstrong last night and we had a great conversation. He has worked in the CHL for ten years so has lots of history with the league. The best story he told me has to do with the Mavericks top line of Sebastien Thinel, Kellan Tochkin, and Kenton Miller. You have the 32 year old veteran in Thinel playing with two 22 year old rookies. They each had a goal last night and are ranked 1st, 2nd & 4th in scoring in the playoffs. Thinel has two young sons named Maddx & Jett and in a little locker room humor the team has started calling the rookies (Tochkin & Miller) Maddx and Jett.

- St. Charles Chill coach Jamie Rivers posted on twitter that after extensive talks with his family he will not be coming over to the United Kingdom this season. Not sure what this means relative to the Chill but I do find it interesting that neither Rivers or Chill President and General Manager Nicole Kupaks ever mention the Chill in their tweets.

- As coach Martinson often says the best thing about back to back games is you have a chance to redeem yourself if you lose the first game. Let's hope we repeat what happened in the first round and have a great game tonight.

- Is it just me that misses the post game press conferences? I find it strange that coach Martinson and/or the front office has chosen to discontinue these for the playoffs. COME ON, MAN