This weekend we have three huge games against the newly acquired Chicago Blaze. The Blaze came together very quickly to save our league and play in place of the Detroit Dragons. Honestly we're lucky that the Blaze were able to pull everything together so quickly and save our league, without the hard work of AAHA people and Blaze ownership who knows what would have happened. We had a very solid week of practice and finished today with a great practice to lead into our pre game skate tomorrow and 3 game series.
I participated very lightly Tuesday and Wednesday in just sweats for skating drills, but did not participate in contact drills. Today I was fully dressed to test out the elbow in my first full practice since Friday night when I slightly tore a ligament in the elbow against the much improved IceMen. The lines were clicking today and I was back on my regular "red" line with Mike Podelnyk and Charles Harvey. Both power play units are looking good and our defense is solid as usual. Both goalies (who last weekend sported Chuck Liddell like mohawks and dyed hair) were on today making several great saves throughout the practice.
We don't know what to expect out of Chicago tomorrow. We got their roster today and most of them have pro experience and I've played with a couple of the players. They look like they have a solid roster and will fit in nicely in this league. Our biggest goal is to not give them their first ever league win in our barn.
So head out to The Rink this weekend, tomorrow and Saturday puck drops at 7:30pm with a Sunday afternoon matinee start at 1pm. Tomorrow night there will also be a Detroit Red Wings ticket give a way to the craziest Revolution fan in the building, so come be loud and have a chance to go watch the Wings play at the Joe!
Hutch
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Good Weekend
After starting 2009 without a win in 3 games we knew we had to turn things around. We had a good week of practice, the boys were having fun at the rink again. Going into the weekend with two home games against Evansville our confidence was pretty high. We have had good luck this season against the Ice Men and wanted to keep it going by getting back on track and back to .500 again.
After our morning skate on Friday we hit some more adversity though. Captain Mark Allen and enforcer Kevin Demers made it official that they were leaving the team for personal reasons. It's tough to lose teammates thru the year, especially this deep into the season. But we were able to pull things together quickly and came out on top with a 6-4 win over a much improved Evansville squad. They brought in 3 guys from Detroit and teamed up with the guys we sent them over Christmas break they've really gotten better. The red line of myself, Mike Podelnyk and Dan Kohanchuk played real well for the first two periods, scoring 3 goals. I say for the first two periods because the red line was without me for the 3rd period after I partially tore a ligament in my left elbow late in the 2nd period.
There really isn't a timeline on how long I'll be out for with this injury. It is my lower hand on my stick so everytime I shoot the torque in my elbow will be really painful, but I might be able to tape it and try to play thru the pain. I'll be off the ice for the next couple of days to try to heal it as quickly as possible so I don't miss too many games. The biggest thing is making sure I don't do more damage to it and miss the rest of the season.
We won again on Saturday against Evansville 11-0. We came out and were all over them all night. We didn't play great in the 1st period but gradually picked it up as the night went on. Nigel Hawryliw led the charges with another hat trick and Justin Grevious picked up the first ever shut out in AAHA history.
This upcoming we face off against the newly formed Chicago Blaze for a 3 game set at home Friday-Sunday. We don't know a thing about them or who is on their team so it's a big mystery. Come by and check out the games if you are in the area.
After our morning skate on Friday we hit some more adversity though. Captain Mark Allen and enforcer Kevin Demers made it official that they were leaving the team for personal reasons. It's tough to lose teammates thru the year, especially this deep into the season. But we were able to pull things together quickly and came out on top with a 6-4 win over a much improved Evansville squad. They brought in 3 guys from Detroit and teamed up with the guys we sent them over Christmas break they've really gotten better. The red line of myself, Mike Podelnyk and Dan Kohanchuk played real well for the first two periods, scoring 3 goals. I say for the first two periods because the red line was without me for the 3rd period after I partially tore a ligament in my left elbow late in the 2nd period.
There really isn't a timeline on how long I'll be out for with this injury. It is my lower hand on my stick so everytime I shoot the torque in my elbow will be really painful, but I might be able to tape it and try to play thru the pain. I'll be off the ice for the next couple of days to try to heal it as quickly as possible so I don't miss too many games. The biggest thing is making sure I don't do more damage to it and miss the rest of the season.
We won again on Saturday against Evansville 11-0. We came out and were all over them all night. We didn't play great in the 1st period but gradually picked it up as the night went on. Nigel Hawryliw led the charges with another hat trick and Justin Grevious picked up the first ever shut out in AAHA history.
This upcoming we face off against the newly formed Chicago Blaze for a 3 game set at home Friday-Sunday. We don't know a thing about them or who is on their team so it's a big mystery. Come by and check out the games if you are in the area.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Ringing in the New Year
2009 is here. Happy New Year and hopefully you haven't broken your resolutions already. We rang in the new year with a 9-1 win over the Evansville IceMen at home after another eventful day at The Rink. The game was supposed to start at 2pm, but would it really be any fun if something didn't go wrong? Evansville's bus broke down on the way and set them back about 3 hours before they got a new one to pick them up and they didn't arrive until 3:30pm. About 250 Revolution faithful stuck around the cold rink, waiting for them to show up. I think the newly acquired beer stand was something that helped them stay.
When things finally got underway we took it to them pretty good from beginning to end. New guys Justin Nattress, Dan Kohanchuk and Battle Creek native Ryan Huggett all helped in the win. Natty and tough guy Mason Cossette both scored their first ever professional goals. Hugger got into his first pro fight at the end of them game, part of a line brawl that broke out with 5 seconds left in the game that even included the goalies. Our goalie Justin Grevious won his fight pretty convincingly and also picked up his first pro assist. The remaining fans definately loved the fight at the end of the game and hopefully will come back to our home games next weekend against Evansville.
After the game guys went off on their own to celebrate the new year, some went over to Kalamazoo to watch the KWings play Muskegon in the IHL. Others went to Kalamazoo to hang out and the rest of us brought in the new year at a small bar up the road from our house.
We couldn't party too hard because we were back at it again yesterday afternoon against Chi-Town in Dyer, Indiana. We loaded up the vans and I was excited to play because they have an Olympic size ice surface, which I have always loved to play on. But, on the way to the game our coach was informed from the league that I was suspended for the game due to my fight with 4:37 left to play in the 3rd period. I got hit from behind, got up and protected myself, but somehow got an instigator penalty. The instigator in the last 5 minutes of a game carries an automatic one game suspension.
It sucked to watch the boys yesterday from the stands and not be able to help. Watching the game with our captain Mark Allen (leg contusion) wasn't easy, knowing that two leaders of the team couldn't do anything was tough to swallow. We lost the game 7-4. Kevin Demers and Cossette tried to jumpstart the boys with a few fights, but it didn't work. We came to life too late and it wasn't enough.
We're back in Chi-Town tomorrow and Sunday, again we will short benched. Allen, Demers and Kohanchuk all have to return to Canada due to visa issues this weekend and we should have them back by next week.
When things finally got underway we took it to them pretty good from beginning to end. New guys Justin Nattress, Dan Kohanchuk and Battle Creek native Ryan Huggett all helped in the win. Natty and tough guy Mason Cossette both scored their first ever professional goals. Hugger got into his first pro fight at the end of them game, part of a line brawl that broke out with 5 seconds left in the game that even included the goalies. Our goalie Justin Grevious won his fight pretty convincingly and also picked up his first pro assist. The remaining fans definately loved the fight at the end of the game and hopefully will come back to our home games next weekend against Evansville.
After the game guys went off on their own to celebrate the new year, some went over to Kalamazoo to watch the KWings play Muskegon in the IHL. Others went to Kalamazoo to hang out and the rest of us brought in the new year at a small bar up the road from our house.
We couldn't party too hard because we were back at it again yesterday afternoon against Chi-Town in Dyer, Indiana. We loaded up the vans and I was excited to play because they have an Olympic size ice surface, which I have always loved to play on. But, on the way to the game our coach was informed from the league that I was suspended for the game due to my fight with 4:37 left to play in the 3rd period. I got hit from behind, got up and protected myself, but somehow got an instigator penalty. The instigator in the last 5 minutes of a game carries an automatic one game suspension.
It sucked to watch the boys yesterday from the stands and not be able to help. Watching the game with our captain Mark Allen (leg contusion) wasn't easy, knowing that two leaders of the team couldn't do anything was tough to swallow. We lost the game 7-4. Kevin Demers and Cossette tried to jumpstart the boys with a few fights, but it didn't work. We came to life too late and it wasn't enough.
We're back in Chi-Town tomorrow and Sunday, again we will short benched. Allen, Demers and Kohanchuk all have to return to Canada due to visa issues this weekend and we should have them back by next week.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Plenty to Talk About...
Finally back and getting back into our normal routine after a week off for Christmas and we're 2 and 0 without even having to play a game yet! Some issues kept Detroit from coming to play us this past weekend and we were able to come away with two wins due to forfeit, bringing us back to the .500 mark. We've been told everything is fine now and the league will continue without a hitch for the rest of the season.
Last week was nice to be able to get away from the rink and now think about hockey. We play hockey because love it, but it's good to get a break every now and then especially with all the happenings going on lately. During our break we made a trade with Evansville and acquired Dan Kohanchuk for Jesse Farley, Aaron Naphan, and Paul Hannah. Danny's a good player and a welcome addition to the team, a good Canadian boy. Naph, Paulie, and Jesse will be missed around here but the move is allowing them to get more playing time and hopefully further their careers as well.
Now that we're back it's all business as we prepare for Evansville and Chi-Town this week on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. Then we go back to Chi-Town Saturday and Sunday, a nice 4 games in 6 nights will be tough after a break, but also will be good to get our timing back. It will also be good to finally see a team other than Detroit, playing the last 5 games in a row was getting old. But it was good also as it is brewing up as a bit of a rivalry, not just on the ice but in the stands and on the message boards as well.
Speaking of the message boards it's always nice to check in and read up on what the fans have to say. Some of it is good, some bad and some just out of this world. I respect it though I like reading what our fans are saying. It's always a good conversation piece amongst the boys to see who the people like and dislike. We love our supporters and we also love the people bash us because either way they are the ones paying to watch us play and paying our salaries.
Over break I was featured in an article on ProHockeyNews.com written by Don Money. It takes you through a bit of my background and highlights my blog. If you have time and haven't already read it here is the link, http://www.prohockeynews.com/hockey/publish/aaha/Hutcheon_living_the_dream_in_blog.shtml go ahead and check it out. Also for you first timers who read the article already and this may be your first time on the blog I'd like to say thank you for checking it out and welcome to the blog.
Until next time, Happy Holidays.
Last week was nice to be able to get away from the rink and now think about hockey. We play hockey because love it, but it's good to get a break every now and then especially with all the happenings going on lately. During our break we made a trade with Evansville and acquired Dan Kohanchuk for Jesse Farley, Aaron Naphan, and Paul Hannah. Danny's a good player and a welcome addition to the team, a good Canadian boy. Naph, Paulie, and Jesse will be missed around here but the move is allowing them to get more playing time and hopefully further their careers as well.
Now that we're back it's all business as we prepare for Evansville and Chi-Town this week on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. Then we go back to Chi-Town Saturday and Sunday, a nice 4 games in 6 nights will be tough after a break, but also will be good to get our timing back. It will also be good to finally see a team other than Detroit, playing the last 5 games in a row was getting old. But it was good also as it is brewing up as a bit of a rivalry, not just on the ice but in the stands and on the message boards as well.
Speaking of the message boards it's always nice to check in and read up on what the fans have to say. Some of it is good, some bad and some just out of this world. I respect it though I like reading what our fans are saying. It's always a good conversation piece amongst the boys to see who the people like and dislike. We love our supporters and we also love the people bash us because either way they are the ones paying to watch us play and paying our salaries.
Over break I was featured in an article on ProHockeyNews.com written by Don Money. It takes you through a bit of my background and highlights my blog. If you have time and haven't already read it here is the link, http://www.prohockeynews.com/hockey/publish/aaha/Hutcheon_living_the_dream_in_blog.shtml go ahead and check it out. Also for you first timers who read the article already and this may be your first time on the blog I'd like to say thank you for checking it out and welcome to the blog.
Until next time, Happy Holidays.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Detroit Series
AAHA Player of the MonthBest Body in the League
Ugliest Player on the Team
As you know we play Detroit 8 times this month and it's getting a little ridiculous. It feels like the movie Groundhog Day right now; we played them twice this past weekend, twice the weekend before that and we played them today. And we have to play them this Saturday at home and again the following Saturday at home. Today we played in Detroit at 11am, it was supposed to be school day for Detroit local schools except someone might have forgotten to tell the schools. No kids showed up. Nothing surprises me anymore. Back when I started this blog I wrote that I know I haven't seen it all....with everything I'm seeing this season that statement could not be more true.
So we loaded up the vans this morning at 6:15am for our departure from "The Rink" in B.C. and were on the way to face our beloved rivals. We're just sick of playing each other and it's starting to show on the ice. Emotions are beginning to run high and you can tell there is a true rivalry brewing. We came out flat in the first period and were down 3-0 by the end of the first. Missing Mark and Nigel hurts us, but we also lost Brett Riley and Kyryll Katrich after the first period and that left us really short on the bench.
Charles Harvey played really well for us today scoring 4 goals, netting a natural hat trick in the 2nd period. Our power play is starting to slowly show signs of improvement, but we haven't been a complete team all season. Whether it's injuries or sickness or not playing a complete 60 minutes, we haven't shown our full potential yet. And when we do pull it all together we're going to be a great team. Young guys are starting to realize their roles on the team and playing more of a pro style game. I think after Christmas you'll see a big turn around from our team.
This Friday will be our team Xmas shindig, I think the boys are headed out to Richland Lanes for bowling and some fun. I'm sure there will be plenty of stories to tell from that night, like who wears the ugliest Christmas sweater and whatnot. While we're on the ugly note, it has been determined that the ugliest player on the team award goes to Nigel Hawryliw. The panel of judges was madeup of girls around the area and other girls who know Nigel, including my girl and some of her friends. Nigel made the mistake of sending out some headshots to the ladies and things were not ruled in his favor.
More updates to come this weekend.
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