|
|
|
 |
| |
CeeBees staying with Diamond
Ken Oliver (koliver@thetelegram.com) From The Telegram
p>There's no denying Thursday's Game 3 of this year's Telegram Herder Memorial Championship Series between the Conception Bay North CeeBee Stars and the Clarenville Caribous will define the remainder of the series.
A win for the Caribous would give them a commanding 3-0 lead. A CeeBees' victory vaults the defending champs right back in it, with a chance to even the series Friday night at Mile One.
While some might view the two wins by the Caribous - 8-2 in the opener, followed by a 6-5 decision in double overtime on Sunday - as indication the CeeBees' Herder run could be coming to a close, C.B.N. captain Keith Delaney suggests otherwise.
"A best-of-seven series is never won after two games," Delaney said definitively. "If we had 60 shots and we lost, we've got to be prepared to come back and get 65.
"Whatever it takes ... we need this game."
To get it, the CeeBees won't be making any changes in goal.
Freddy Diamond struggled in the opener, giving up seven goals in two periods of work. And over the first half of Game 2, he surrendered five goals on 19 shots. But the two-time senior provincial goaltender of the year was outstanding in the third period and both overtime frames Sunday, making 17 saves before Andrew Pearcey's nearly unstoppable breakaway winner.
The only reason Diamond's status for the remainder of the series is being called into questioned is because the CeeBees have Southern Shore Breakers netminder Graham Cook, the Labatt Avalon East goalie of the year, waiting in the wings as their second backup to Bronson Dawe.
But both Delaney and assistant coach Chris Bartlett, a three-time Herder winner with C.B.N., insist Diamond isn't going anywhere but back between the CeeBees' pipes.
"We're not the type of team to say, 'oh yeah, he (Diamond or Dawe) went down with a groin injury.' Freddy is our goalie. We've won three Herders with him. We win and lose with what we have and that's the way it's going to be the rest of the series," says Bartlett.
Delaney says there's no question about who will be in the C.B.N. goal Thursday.
"We hear people talk and we're the first to back him up and let everyone know how we feel about it and that we have full confidence in him.
"Everybody in Newfoundland has seen what Freddy can do and how well he can play. And I know Freddy's personality and know he's going to rebound big for us," said Delaney.
Among the other issues the CeeBees feel the need to address heading into Thursday is minimizing turnovers that result in odd-man rushes.
In Games 1 and 2, the 'Bous capitalized on several breakaways and two-on-ones.
"A lot of times, we were getting stuck down low in the defensive zone with the puck and as soon as their defense would get it, they'd move it up to the wingers and our third man high was getting beat and they'd come down on an odd-man rush," Delaney explained.
"If our defenceman are going to pinch, our forwards have to be covering those guys up. (They) have to get on the same page in that respect."
Even though Sunday's loss certainly stung the CeeBees, Delaney says nobody in the CeeBees' dressing room is ready to hit the panic button.
"No one came in throwing their gear around or yelling or bawling," said Delaney. "Everybody came in, sat down, looked at each other and said it was a hell of a hockey game that could have went either way.
"We responded the way wanted after (the 8-2 loss in) Game 1.
"By no stretch of the imagination do we feel that Clarenville are six goals better than us."
Adding fuel to the optimism fire is the tremendous outpouring of support from the C.B.N. area in the days since. Everywhere Delaney goes, he hears how the diehard CeeBees faithful are confident their team can bounce back and can capture a fourth straight Herder.
The captain says he can't underscore how important that is to a team that plays not only for themselves, but for the people of the Conception Bay region.
"It's something new to the CeeBees to be down 2-0 in the Herder as opposed to being tied or being up. It's a bit of adversity and it's good to know our town and fans are behind us," he said.
|
|
|
|
|
|
