2 replies to this topic

[Mr Ricochet]

And this is done v three of the top 5 teams in the USHL in win percentage. GB and Indy are the only clubs in the league with a win percentage over .700 and Ytwon at .625 has the 5th highest in the league.

The win in Indy was huge. The Ice is on a 15-1-3 run and to take two points out of there beating the winningest goalie in the league in a 7 round shootout is a real confidence builder. Worth noting that McConnell pulled Dahlstrom in the 2nd, don't know if he was injured or not, and Sakellaropoulos came in and kicked out 19 of 20 and then stonewalling all 7 shooters in the shootout.

The club now has 12 wins on the year, with 24 left to play, after winning 9 all of last year. This coming from a roster that was decimated coming into this season from FIFTY transactions last year and being shunned by players who'd rather not report to the lowly Steel, including the #1 pick in this years draft, Christie. Another being Voltin, who is off to DM after deciding the Steel weren't to his liking, and last year's #1 pick in the entire draft, Adam Krause, who was a bust.

Anyone who has seen the club this year knows these kids come to play, and seemingly don't give a damn about the standings. A group maybe a bit short on talent but long on effort, want to play for the club and are coachable..... Of course the kids deserve much of the credit but not acknowledging Player Personnel guy Giese, Coach McConnell and assistant Enge and Gee would be missing the guys making this possible.

The Pigozzi pick up from the Bucs for Saar is paying big dividends. Kid has 8 points in 9 games with the Steel. A 1994 Denver commit he would look great on the top line next year. Nicely done by management.

Alex Roos. A 1994 2nd round Futures pick, 16th selected, by the Riders in the 2010 Futures Draft who played for Team Illinois plays his first USHL game v The GB Machine. Kid doesn't seem fazed as he scores the games first goal, adds an assist, fires 4 shots and is a +1. Zero idea how he came to the Steel, the USHL way of doing things, but so far so good and another seemingly good move by management.

Alex Sakellaropoulos. The 1994 rookie netminder has all 3 wins in the streak, kicking out 83 of 86 shots and all 7 in the shootout at Indy. Kid started the year slowly as he was over matched by the speed of the league, but he now has a .905 save percentage and is 3-5 over all. You could see the talent the kid had but he didn't stop too many early on, but management stuck with him and the kid has responded. Nicely done management.

Gotta mention Andrew Miller, a 91. Kid was on the bubble in tryout camp and IMO his excellent PK prowess is what allowed him to make the team. But he's now 2nd on the team in scoring and has 5 goals in the last 4 games. Another solid roster move by management.

The Steel are still at the bottom of the league in win percentage. But it looks like management has taken the slow and steady patient approach, identified players who are coachable and willing which has brought them to this 3 game win streak v 3 of the top 5 clubs in this league.

Looks like this fans hope of one drill at a time, one practice at a time, one video session at a time, one shift at a time, one period at a time philosophy has been adopted by the Steel. Nice run for the whole organization.

[The One Timer]

Although Musky has five games in hand, we're no longer in last place! Whatever that magic formula McConnell had to put together was, he's found it. Charlie O'Connor, one of the last pre-season cuts last year, has really come into his own, with smart aggression and amazing defensive prowess at forward. Add that to Sak standing on his head and Jeff Kubiak's consistent addition of a physical aspect to his game, and I'm looking less and less crazy saying this could very well be a playoff team.

[boxcar22]

Make that 4? Nice work Steel