Hey, gearheads.
A quick, interesting read about NASCAR spotters by Reid Spencer of the Sporting News can be found here: http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=479669. Snakes are involved.
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A quick, interesting read about NASCAR spotters by Reid Spencer of the Sporting News can be found here: http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=479669. Snakes are involved.
Reign goaltender Jeff Zatkoff is the Rbk Hockey ECHL Goaltender of for the week of Oct. 20-26. He was a runner-up for the award last week after making 29 saves in his first professional start, a 2-1 win at Bakersfield on Oct. 18.
Selected in the third round (74th overall) by Los Angeles in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft and under NHL contract to the Kings, the 21 year old was 2-0-0 with a goals-against average of 1.50 and a save percentage of .954 against defending National Conference champion Las Vegas.
After making 28 saves in a 4-2 win at Las Vegas on Thursday, Zatkoff had 34 saves in a 4-1 win on Saturday as the Reign won their first game in the new Citizens Business Bank Arena.
In his first three professional starts he is 3-0-0 with a goals-against average of 1.33 and a save percentage of .958. He is tied for the league lead in wins and ranks third in goals-against average and save percentage.
Zatkoff played the last three years at Miami (Ohio) University where he was 55-21-5 with seven shutouts, a goals-against average of 1.93 and a save percentage of .927 in 82 games.
My interview with Steve Eckerson, Citizens Business Bank Arena general manager, is appearing on page B3 of tomorrow's editions of the Sun and Bulletin, but will not appear online. Except here ...
The Lakers won and Kobe played. The Reign won and got into a good ol' fashioned hockey fight. The feedback from the thousands of patrons during opening weekend at Citizens Business Bank Arena was overwhelmingly positive, and there's not much more Steve Eckerson could have asked for.
"People seemed to like the sightlines," said Eckerson, the arena's general manager. "We got a lot of comments about parking. They liked not having to pay as they drive in, and they got out very quickly."
The Lakers packed the house for opening night on Friday -- all 10,316 seats were sold -- and close to game time, cars were backed out onto Concours Drive.
"Not everybody knew exactly where to go, but it's to be expected," Eckerson said. "It's the first time. We're going to look at some traffic signage."
Inside the building, most issues stemmed from changing the seating arrangement to accomodate ESPN's television crews. Eckerson considered it well worth the exposure for the arena, and the city of Ontario, on the cable network.
Yet along with the positive TV exposure came some highly visible patches of empty seats on the south side of the arena, behind the team benches.
"Those are tickets that I believe the Lakers had given people -- I don't know if they're sponsors or season-ticket holders -- that were no-shows," Eckerson said. "It's not like those tickets were for sale."
The crowd was announced at 8,832 for the Reign's ECHL home opener on Saturday night, about 1,000 short of a sellout. The issues reported -- a slow-running elevator, for example -- were relatively minor.
Significantly, there were no arena security problems that came to Eckerson's attention this weekend, and he said the service staff drew complimentary reviews on their first try.
"Of the five arena openings I've been involved in," said Eckerson, who has opened three venues in Seattle and another in Memphis, "this was probably the best."
"WE WIN!" is the flashing mantra on the jumbotron, the "Dark Knight" is waving the Reign flag at center ice, and the players raise their sticks and address the cheering crowd (paid attendance: 8,832.)
David Walker scored 2:44 into the period to put the Reign up 2-0, getting a good pass to the doorstep from Jon Francisco during a 5-on-4 power play. Vegas answered at 5:01 when Matt Beaudoin scored immediately off a faceoff.
The kicker? That one shot by Walker was the Reign's only SOG all period. They were outshot 18-1 in the second period, thanks in part to three short-handed situations (including a 5-on-3) compared to two for the Wranglers.
Again, Jeff Zatkoff bails them out of a few sticky situations.
More to come following the third...
Dan Knapp gets a nice centering pass from Todd Jackson and flicks it past Wranglers goalie Martin Houle with 1:49 left at the first period. Remember this, kids: The first (regular season) goal in Inland Empire history came October 25, 2008 at 7:49 p.m.
Las Vegas did a better job controlling the puck, but the Reign did a better job putting it on net, controlling the shot count 8-7.
As for the crowd, it's not quite the sellout the Lakers enjoyed, but they know when to cheer and when to boo, and sound good doing it.
The Reign lose, 4-1 at the Orleans Arena, but it's not clear who suffered more in a game featuring TWENTY-NINE penalties.
Perhaps the answer is Las Vegas defenseman Gerard Miller, who was hit with a match misconduct penalty for fighting with Dusty Collins at 9:59 of the third period. It's not clear why the match penalty was assessed on top of the 5-minute fighting major (I'll follow up tomorrow) but regardless, it sets up a potentially heated home opener Saturday night between the same teams at Citizens Business Bank Arena.
Backup John Murray got his first start of the season in the middle edition of three games in as many days; expect Jeff Zatkoff to get the call Saturday night. Murray stopped 21 of 24 shots and was outshined by Vegas No. 1 Martin Houle, who also started last night. But Murray couldn't be blamed for the Reign getting outshot, 33-16.
Jon Francisco had the only goal for the Reign, his second of the season.
The Reign avoided a repeat of their preseason finale Thursday, turning the tables on Las Vegas with a 4-2 victory at Orleans Arena.
Geoff Walker, Darren McMillan, Jon Francisco and Brad Mehalko scored goals for the Reign and Jeff Zatkoff stopped 28 of 30 shots.
Las Vegas beat the Reign at Center Ice Arena, 4-1 to conclude the preseason and Karl Taylor warned that the Wranglers, one of the ECHL's best teams the past three seasons, would be a tougher test than the Bakersfield Condors - the only other team the Reign have played thus far.
The two teams get to do it again tomorrow night in Vegas; watch for backup G John Murray to get the start in place of Zatkoff with the Reign playing 3 games in as many days.
Walker is off to a nice start with two goals and five points in two games; so is Zatkoff, who is 2-0 with a 1.50 GAA two games into his pro career. And for what it's worth (not much at this point), the Reign are in first place in the ECHL's Pacific Division.
...of MLB?
No, of ASASTC.
The 48-year-old from Rancho Cucamonga was named Rookie of the Year in the ASA Speed Truck Challenge today. It's quite an honor for the former SPEED World Challenge GT contender. From Bill McCloud of the ASA Speed Truck Challenge:
Bonaccorsi, who currently sits in a remarkable fifth position in the ASA STC Championship points' race going into the dramatic last race of the season at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale, where there is a real tossup for how the top five will finish; took his eyes off of Rookie of the Year title several races ago. "I knew we had a pretty good chance of wrapping it up early," said a smiling Bonaccorsi. "At that point, it was all about trying to win the championship, and if it wouldn't have been for a couple tough things in two races, we may have tested the championship winner, Darren Young."Bonaccorsi, a long-time driver, particularly focusing on road course driving in the past, utilized that sweeping, staying-down-low in the corners motion to make up huge ground on the less experienced drivers in most of the events.
Over the 2008 season, Bonaccorsi showed tough talent on the track as a rookie against many other more experienced drivers by setting Fastest Qualifying once, five Top Five finishes and finishing in the top of the field the balance of the season. He clinched the competition with 53 rookie points over his closest challenger, Joey Licata Jr. in the #71 Throttle Racing Products / Anarchy Clothing Chevy Colorado with 39. Paul continued to show everyone around him that he was not to be counted out of any race and showed a smooth consistency that was very impressive to his competitors and staying out of trouble.
Fans can see the taped-for-television dramatic finish to the ASA Speed Truck Challenge series 2008 season at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale on Saturday evening, October 25th.
I was up there in the Bay Area when Mike Nolan began his head coaching career. To fans and the media, Nolan immediately seemed to be confident, prepared, an upgrade over Dennis Erickson and he bore the right last name (his father, Dick, was once the team's head coach). Seeing the news of his firing today makes me think he was much more overwhelmed than he ever let on.
Nolan had never been more than a defensive coordinator before he stepped in to the GM/head coach role, a role that seemed ill-suited to the demands of each position (as Mike Holmgren had recently discovered up in Seattle). Nolan's first task: draw the right name out of a deep hat of collegiate talent to make the No. 1 pick in the upcoming NFL draft. There was no consensus No. 1 -- not even a Reggie Bush. Nolan decided that it came down to either Aaron Rodgers or Alex Smith. It was the first and most important decision he'd ever make in San Francisco. It also turned out to be possibly the worst; probably the one that ultimately cost him his job.
Hey, at least he didn't pick Pacman Jones!
This is the space where the sports writer pretends he could actually be an NFL general manager, and confidently states who Nolan should have picked instead. I don't think Rodgers would have done any better behind the O-Line (and three offensive coordinators in three years) that Smith inherited. So I'd point to an offensive lineman, perhaps Jammal Brown, who was selected 13th by the Saints and ultimately made a Pro Bowl at left tackle. Did anyone see that coming at the time? Not me or, apparently, 12 actual NFL general managers.
The bottom line is, if Alex Smith succeeds at leading the 49ers back to respectability, Nolan is still the coach and you're not reading this blog right now. Still, it's foolish to say that Smith's failure is a direct result of Nolan -- personally, I attribute Smith's arrested development to Norv Turner's bolting to San Diego -- but Nolan's overall inability to build a team is a direct cause of the 49ers' failure to produce a winning season the last three years. It probably wasn't reasonable to expect him to succeed in the first place. Mike Nolan may very well be a good NFL head coach, but the 49ers did not put him in a situation that was ripe for success. (Turner, by contrast, was a very smart man to walk into that situation in San Diego.)
The closer I looked at his situation in recent months, the worse it looked for Nolan, whose outward appearance was often delightfully dapper. His relationship with the media, and not surprisingly Smith, had soured. Optimistically, he was merely a fall guy for organizational ineptitude.
At least, that's being optimistic for Nolan's future employment prospects. Not so optimistic for anyone whose heart is invested in John York's ability to run a football team.
Tampa Bay's transformation from American League doormats to champions is complete.
For the Red Sox ... well ... it's hard for this blog to feel sorry for a team that's suddenly won two World Series the past four seasons - even after coming back from down 3-1 to tie this American League Championship Series. They'll get it over it.
Jeff Zatkoff was impressive, making 13 saves, and the Reign hold on despite three short-handed situations in the final period. More to come in tomorrow's editions.
Reign forward Geoff Walker scored on a wraparound goal with 1:18 left in the period, giving him two points (on top of his earlier assist) in his first pro game. He's looking like a smart waiver-wire pickup for Karl Taylor. Also looks like the Reign's power play (which has produced both goals so far) is going to be OK.
The Reign seemed to have the edge in time of possession, but it wasn't a pretty period overall. The players finished more checks than passes and there's not much else to report.
Blogging live from the only cold building in Bakersfield, Rabobank Arena, the first period of the Ontario Reign's inaugural season is in the books.
New guy Geoff Walker fed Andrew Martens for a power-play goal with 1:04 left to tie the game 1-1. Unless you count the preseason, it's the first goal in franchise history. (Martens also scored the Reign's first preseason goal, so either way he's your trivia answer.)
The Reign were dominant in most stats; they're actually outshooting Bakersfield 13-6. They were outshooting the Condors 5-0 when Bakersfield defenseman Tyler Scott ripped a slapshot toward the net, it caught a piece of Matt Caruana's stick, and floated over the right shoulder of Jeff Zatkoff to make it 1-0.
The game has already had a goal waved off; the Condors almost scored short-handed on the same power play that produced Martens' goal. The red light and horn and fans all went off, but the refs reviewed it and concluded the Bakersfield skater (I couldn't catch who) batted the puck down and into the goal.
The Reign have also wasted no time getting into the "fight column" - Ryan Bowness and Liam Huculak traded a few quick punches before Bowness sent Huculak to the ice.
Also of note:
• There are at least four mascots in the building right now. I see a Condor, a chicken and a monkey on the ice right now - go figure - and before the game started, the Ducks' mascot, Wild Wing, rappelled down from the catwalks. Like he always does.
• There is at least one former NHL goalie in the building - Kings goaltending coach Bill Ranford - and one current NHL general manager, Brian Burke, who joined Ducks owner rep Jillian Samueli in dropping the ceremonial first puck.
• Today also marks the debut of the Reign's road uniforms, midnight blue jersey and pants with orange trim and white numbers. They look good.
• Karl Taylor's opening-period forward combinations and defensive pairings:
Howe/MacGregor-Kraus-Mehalko
Curran, Francisco, Jackson
Bowness-Collins-G. Walker
Martens-Walker
Starling-Germain
Knapp-McMillan
Print it out and put it on your wall!
Three more Reign contracts to announce:
Center Tim Kraus (stats here) a Garden Grove guy, scored twice in the preseason.
Goaltender John Murray for a moment there looked like he might be squeezed out of a job when the Reign traded for Kellen Briggs, but Briggs got hurt in the final preseason game and was subsequently placed on the 30-day IR. That makes Murray the backup and Jeff Zatkoff the starter.
LW Todd Jackson (stats here) is a three-year ECHL veteran with some AHL experience.
The full press release, which includes the signing of Itan Chavira:
The Ontario Reign announced today that they have signed C Tim Kraus, LW Todd Jackson, G John Murray and RW Itan Chavira.Kraus, 21, joins the Reign roster after playing the past five seasons in the WHL, most recently with the Regina Pats. While with the Pats in 2007-08, Kraus scored 15 goals, assisted on 44 others (59 points) and tallied 86 peanalty minutes. That season Kraus led the Pats in assists and ranked second amongst his teammates in points.
Prior to Regina, the 6-foot 1-inch, 197-pound, Garden Grove, Calif. native suited up with the Vancouver Giants, scoring 162 points (60g,102a) and 216 PIM in 244 games. In 2005-06 Kraus won the WHL Championship with the Giants and ended the season with a +32 rating.
Jackson, 27, skated in 53 games with the Newcastle Vipers (EIHL) in 2007-08. While with the Vipers, he netted 17 goals and assisted on 34 others (51 points). He spent his college career with the University of Maine, playing in 161 games in four seasons (2000-04), scoring 45 goals and netting 54 assists (99 points). While at Maine, the 5-foot 10-inch, 180-pound, left-winger was named to the NCAA-East Second All-American Team in 2003-04, as well as being named HE-Best Defensive Forward and selected to the HE-Second All-Star Team.
Jackson spent three seasons in the ECHL (2004-07), spending two seasons with the Toledo Storm and one season (2006-07) with the Phoenix Roadrunners. He finished with 44 goals, 65 assists for 109 points in his time in the ECHL. The Cortland, NY native was selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the eighth round (#251 overall) of the 2000 NHL Entry Draft.
Murray, 21, appeared in 31 games in 2007-08 with the Kingston Frontenacs (OHL) before signing with the Reading Royals marking his professional debut. While with the Frontenacs, Murray compiled a record of 12-15-1, 3.78 goals-against average and a .901 save percentage. Murray suited up for eight games between the pipes for Reading and was named the RBK Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week for Mar. 17-23, 2008, when he posted a 2-0-0 record, notching one shutout, a .985 save percentage and a 0.50 goals-against average.
He spent the 2006-07 season in the OHL with the Kitchener Rangers where he played in 55 games finishing the season with a 40-9-3 record, ranking second in the OHL with 40 wins and third in goals-against average (2.58). He tied for first in the OHL with 5 shutouts and was named the Rangers most valuable player.
Chavira, 20, joins the Reign roster as the only player stemming from the Reign Free Agent Camp held September 27-28. The 5-foot 8-inch, Duarte, Calif. resident suited up in 52 games with the Yarmouth Mariners (MJAHL) in 2007-08 and completed the season netting 41 goals, assisting on 44 others (85 points) and tallying 52 penalty minutes. In 2006-07 Chavira played nine games with the Ohio Junior Blue Jackets scoring 2 points (1g,1a) with 6 penalty minutes.
The former Chino Hills and Riverside resident will be sponsored this weekend by ... The Federal Communications Commission?
From Jessica Rohlik at Yates Racing:
CONCORD, N.C. (October 16, 2008) -- Yates Racing announced today that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will sponsor the No. 38 entry with driver David Gilliland for a total of three races in the remaining NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule. The primary sponsorship will debut at Martinsville Speedway on October 19th as the No. 38 Digital TV Transition Ford will take to the track. The primary sponsorship is to help educate the American public about the fact that on February 17th, 2009 all full-power broadcast television stations in the United State will stop broadcasting on analog airwaves and begin broadcasting only in digital. Digital broadcasting will allow stations to offer improved picture and sound quality along with additional channels.
So say hello to the No. 38 Digital TV Transition Ford Fusion!
It became official at 3 p.m. today: Itan Chavira, a 20-year-old from Upland who has been playing ice hockey full-time for two years, became an official member of the Ontario Reign after he signed his first professional contract this morning.
"It's just a dream come true, playing in my hometown," Chavira said.
More in tomorrow's editions.
When the Reign held open tryouts in September for anyone interested in playing for the Inland Empire's first pro hockey team, it's no stretch to say Mike Thomson went out on the biggest limb.
"I just decided it was time to move away from school," Thomson said, "and I decided to come out here and play for this team."
That's easier said than done. Of the 69 tryout participants, only six were invited to training camp. Of those six, only two (Thomson and Itan Chavira) remain on the roster three days before the Reign's regular-season opener in Bakersfield.
Thomson is here as a result of both skill and serendipity, but to the 24-year-old it really doesn't matter.
"This is the only (tryout) I did," Thomson said. "I had a couple other backup plans, but this is where I wanted to be, what I wanted from day one."
Two forwards expected to start the season with the Reign, Denny Johnston and Jon Rheault, remain with the Kings' AHL affiliate in Manchester, N.H. on pro tryout contracts. Their absence, Reign coach Karl Taylor said, was "very unexpected."
But it created an opportunity for both Thomson and Chavira, an Upland resident who had a goal and an assist, as well as a spectacular shootout goal, in the preseason. Thomson has been kept off the stat sheet and his fan base has been less vocal, but his unexpected contributions have been no less notable than Chavira's.
"He seems to be smart on the ice," Taylor said of Thomson. "It's a stretch for him to be here but he's shown some things; he skates well enough. He's got a long way to go, but he's shown enough to stick around above the other guys we released, in my opinion."
Thomson had a solid Division III college career, scoring 26 goals and 58 points in 74 career games for the Cardinals. But he never played more than 30 games in a season and is relishing the opportunity to prove himself over a 74-game ECHL campaign - even though he "didn't really expect to" still be here.
"It's a day-to-day thing, you never know what's going to go on," Thomson said. "You just try to stay here as much as possible."
The longtime sportscaster called 'em as he saw 'em.
Hats off to the following season champions, crowned Saturday night and relayed to the blogosphere from OSS's Robert Gates:
Three 2008 season championships were on the line in Saturday night's main events. San Bernardino's Stevie Smith captured the honors in the Lucas Oil ASA Late Model division 50 lap main event. Pole sitter Ron Daniel took the early lead until Smith made the pass in lap three to take first. Several laps later, the top four points leaders were running in the top four positions with Smith leading, Big Bear's Jim Conklin in second, Grand Terrace native Brian Malone in third and fast qualifier Ryan Daniel in fourth. 36 laps into the race, Conklin made his move on Smith and took the lead in his My Irish Pride sponsored Grand Prix, holding it for the remainder of the race to take the checkered flag. Smith's second place finish in his Tri-City Towing/Golden West Tire Monte Carlo was good enough to clinch the championship.
Lancaster's Jessie Cottrell took the early lead and held it for the entire 35 lap main event in the CEC Embroidery Street Stocks division. Big Bear's Johnny Russo and points leader Kyle Meyer ran second and third. Cottrell earned his first main event win in the Will Cottrell's Sales and Service/ZOOprinter.com sponsored Camaro. Highland's Kyle Meyer had a big enough lead in the points to earn the championship with a third place finish in the SJ Meyer Properties sponsored Chevy Nova.
Highland's Jim Edmiston made it back-to-back championships in the ASA Stock Pony division with his third place finish. Edmiston missed qualifying and had to start at the back of the line-up. Linny White, who usually drives in the BSR West Super Late Model division, was behind the wheel of the L & A Proformance Muffler #03 and rocketed to an early lead. Yucaipa's Jim Gebhart was driving the #81Hot & Nasty/Sinister Motorsports ride and quickly assumed the second place position. Another Yucaipa native, Robby Hornsby was running third until he passed Gebhart on lap 11 and White on lap 14 to gain the lead. Hornsby stretched his lead until a caution on lap 24 put Wildomar's Matt Goodwin and Edmiston right behind him. Hornsby was able to hold off the veterans for the remainder of the 35-lap event and earn his first main event win in the Tarbell Realtors/Third Street Station sponsored Pinto. Hornsby will also capture the Rookie of the Year
award.
Darren Amidon's nine race win streak was finally broken by teammate and El Cajon native Chase Catania. Santee's Matthew Hicks led most of the first 20 laps of the 35 lap race while Catania battled for second with Amidon and Oak Hill's Chad Schug. Catania eventually won the battle and then passed Hicks on lap 20 for the lead. Amidon and Schug also got around Hicks to take second and third, but neither driver could catch Catania who took the Tel Data #22 to Victory Lane for the first time this season.
During the heat race in this division earlier in the evening, Mark Borchetta hit the crash wall on turn four of the ¼ mile banked oval. A race official on the other side of the wall instinctively jumped to avoid the car and injured his shoulder and head. He was reported to be conscious and responsive but was transported to the hospital by ambulance as a precaution.
Words cannot do justice to Itan Chavira's goal in the shootout, but I'll try in tomorrow's editions of the Sun and Bulletin. He and Andrew Martens scored in the shootout, John Murray only allowed one shootout goal, and the final Condors shot hit the post to seal it.
Chavira pointed to the crowd after his shootout goal, and they responded with a ton of love.
More to come tomorrow morning.
We're going to the shootout at Center Ice Arena. Itan Chavira's goal with 5:20 left tied it up, and no one scored in overtime, despite a few good chances on both sides.
Update coming as soon as it's over.
With just a few seconds left on a 5-on-3 power play, Bakersfield scored 46 seconds into the period to make it 3-2. With 8:54 left, Bakersfield defenseman Chris Kaufman scored when it seemed he was the only one on the ice who saw the puck, with Reign goalie John Murray leaving the glove side of the net wide open.
There were more fisticuffs than sweet plays in the middle period, but somehow no 5-minute fighting penalties were assessed. The first punches were thrown at 9:05, between the Reign's Dusty Collins and Bakersfield's Scott Balan, which brought out the first chants of "Let's Go Reign!"
The Reign have their work cut out for them in the third. More to come.
The Reign got off to an ugly start, allowing the game's first two goals and not managing a shot until 6:12 into the game (a slapshot by Upland's Itan Chavira).
Then Andrew Martens beat former Kings goalie Yutaka Fukufuji not once, but twice, on the power play. Martens' first came at 3:52, his second at 2:00.
The Reign have been prone to the penalty box, hit with four minors in the first period alone. But they've looked good killing the penalties, including a 5-on-3 that yielded one shot on goal (by my count).
The Zamboni is circling the Center Ice Arena floor. More to come after the second period is in the books.
I wanted to be able to go with a round number, like "24 hours," but here's the skinny from Reign camp, five hours early:
- Goaltender Kellen Briggs' mysterious preseason journey will indeed bring him to Ontario. As a rookie, Briggs was fifth in the ECHL last year in goals-against average (2.36) for the Idaho Steelheads. The 25-year-old is the all-time shutout leader in University of Minnesota history. Trying to get a beat on his preseason has been tough; the Houston Aeros announced two days ago that they had released him from their camp, but that was six days after the Steelheads announced they'd traded his rights to the Reign. I hadn't seen him in camp, and I'm not sure what the full story is. Will update when he arrives in town. Looks like the Reign will be nothing if not stacked in goal, with Briggs and Kings prospect Jeff Zatkoff, who hasn't arrived yet either. (UPDATE: read the official release here.)
- 21-year-old John Murray will be the starter tomorrow against Bakersfield. He's looked good in practice but might not be good enough to crack the opening-day roster with Briggs and Zatkoff in tow.
- There's 22 guys in camp and only 20 can dress for the game. The odd men out: Open-tryout signees C.J. Tozzo and Alex Redmond, both forwards.
Head coach Karl Taylor has never seen Jeff Zatkoff play, but he has this advice for fans curious about the newest member of the Ontario Reign:
"He was number one in save percentage, number one in goals-against average, playing for the highest level of college hockey in America. Usually that means you're pretty good."
Zatkoff (stats here) hasn't hit the Inland Empire yet, and Taylor doesn't expect him here in time to play Friday's exhibition opener at Center Ice Arena against Bakersfield. When he does arrive, Taylor said he will not keep three goalies on the roster, meaning former Long Beach Ice Dogs backup Dennis Cook is the likely odd man out.
Taylor said that defenseman Dustin Collins has arrived from San Antonio.
Sunday's drag-racing finals at Auto Club Speedway were delayed a day by rain, but enough of the field stuck around to finish up today that we have some official results.
From Jerrie Foss at the NHRA:
FONTANA - It took a day longer than planned, but the third annual NHRA JEGS Pacific SPORTSnationals presented by K&N at Auto Club Dragway is in the books. Racers came from across NHRA's Pacific and Northwest divisions to compete in this national event which features NHRA's sportsman competitors. It was the last of three JEGS SPORTSnationals events held across the country this year. The final rounds were highlighted by local racers includingLa Verne's Dave Moreno who won in Stock Eliminator.
Moreno wheeled his '69 Mustang to the win over Mark Faul, Tacoma, Wash., who was driving a '69 Chevelle. Faul, however, did get a win when he took his '98 Grand Am to the winner's circle in Super Stock. The Super Stock runner-up was Bob Bales of Chino.
In Comp Eliminator, Doug Lambeck of Corona Del Mar, Calif., earned the win over Upland's Ross Wilson. Mike Ferderer, Buckley, Wash., grabbed the win in Super Comp, beating out Chris Lindsay, Peoria, Ariz. Rosemead, Calif., racer Ed DeStaute won the Super Gas title over Daniel Beresford of Calimesa, Calif., and in Super Street, Matt Blodgett of Signal Hill, Calif., behind the wheel of his '72 Vega, ousted Harlan Tucker of Miranda, Calif., who was driving a '70 Challenger. Larry Scarth, Manhattan Beach, Calif., beat Wayne Silvia, another Upland resident, in the Top Sportsman final and the win in Top Dragster went to J.R. Leerkamp, Olympia, Wash., over Tom Yancer of of Chandler, Ariz. Leerkamp's father, Stanley, won the NHRA JEGS Cajun SPORTSnationals in Belle Rose, La., in April of this year.
The following are the final results from NHRA JEGS Pacific SPORTSnationals presented by K&N at Auto Club Dragway at Auto Club Speedway:
COMP ELIMINATOR
Doug Lambeck, Corona Del Mar, Calif., '06 Sunfire, D/SMA, 8.489, 157.19 def. Ross Wilson, Upland, Calif., '05 Sunfire, C/SMA, 8.337, 162.53
SUPER STOCK
Mark Faul, Tacoma, Wash., '98 Grand Am, GT/EA, 10.365, 123.52 def. Bob Bales, Chino, Calif., '98 Grand Am, GT/BA, 9.864, 131.18
STOCK ELIMINATOR
Dave Moreno, La Verne, Calif., '69 Mustang, C/S, 11.097, 118.16 def. Mark Faul, Tacoma, Wash., '69 Chevelle, C/SA, 11.266, 112.07
SUPER COMP
Mike Ferderer, Buckley, Wash., '05 Grand Am, 8.922, 172.87 def. Chris Lindsay, Peoria, Ariz., dragster, 8.888, 166.17
SUPER GAS
Ed DeStaute, Rosemead, Calif., '62 Corvette, 9.911, 140.99 def. Daniel Beresford, Calimesa, Calif., '74 Vega, 9.890, 141.76.
SUPER STREET
Matt Blodgett, Signal Hill, Calif., '72 Vega, 10.905, 128.82 def. Harlan Tucker, Miranda, Calif., '70 Challenger, 10.834, 125.32
TOP SPORTSMAN
Larry Scarth, Manhattan Beach, Calif., '05 Cavalier, 7.825, 174.44 def. Wayne Silvia, Upland, Calif., '04 Cavalier, 7.305, 187.83
TOP DRAGSTER
JR Leerkamp, Olympia, Wash., dragster, 7.441, 167.20 def. Tom Yancer, Chandler, Ariz., dragster, 7.265, 184.95
A rain delay? In Southern California?? At this time of year???
Yes, it's true. From Jerrie Foss of the NHRA:
FONTANA, -- The late rounds of eliminations at the NHRA JEGS Pacific SPORTSnationals presented by K&N at Auto Club Dragway have been pushed back until Monday. Eliminations were scheduled to start at 8 a.m. but officials had to contend with a wet track after rain showers on Saturday night so things got rolling about two hours late. Then rubber peeling up from the racing surfaced caused another lengthy delay while it was repaired by NHRA and track officials."It's not the ideal situation for anybody," said NHRA Pacific Division director Mike Rice. "But there's not a lot that we can do but run as many cars as we can and come back tomorrow to finish up."
The NHRA JEGS Pacific SPORTSnationals features racers in eight categories vying for points leading to national championships and a share of the purse worth nearly $65,000. More than 400 cars started the event and only eight will be left standing in the winner's circle.
Each class got at least two rounds of eliminations completed. Racers still in competition will return Monday at 8 a.m. and run through to completion.
They beat the Cubs, 3-1, to sweep the three-game division series. This from the team that's famously won one postseason game in the last 20 years. Go figure.
From Jerrie Foss at the NHRA:
Qualifying is complete at the NHRA JEGS Pacific SPORTSnationals present by K&N despite being shortened by a rain shower near the end of the day. Racing action will pick up at 8 a.m. Sunday with eliminations, as scheduled.
Jim Cowan, Dewey, Ariz., leads the Comp Eliminator contingent, followed closely by Claremont racer John Edward and Ross Wilson of Upland. Frank Grossi, another Upland resident, is the No. 1 qualifier in Super Stock and Brian McClanahan of Alta Loma is in second place and Fred Moreno of La Verne is in third. Riverside racer Don Forester wheeled his '80 Delta 88 to the top spot in Stock Eliminator while Robert Broguiere, Wildomar, Calif., heads the Top Sportsman class and Chip Rumis, Ramona, Calif., is No. 1 in Top Dragster.The final rounds of the Top Sportsman/Top Dragster Shootout were washed out with the last rounds of qualifying. Division officials will finish the Shootout in conjunction with eliminations tomorrow.
Tickets for the NHRA JEGS Pacific SPORTSnationals present by K&N are $20. Kids 12 and under are admitted free with a paid adult.
Auto Club Dragway is located on the grounds of Auto Club Speedway at 9300 Cherry Ave. For more information call the track, (909) 429-5060, or visit www.AutoClubSpeedway/Dragway.com.
The following are Saturday's final qualifying results from the NHRA JEGS SPORTSnationals presented by K&N at Auto Club Dragway:
COMP ELIMINATOR
1) Jim Cowan, Dewey, Ariz., '08 Cobalt, I/AA, 8.185 seconds, -0.605 (under index)
2) John Edwards, Claremont, Calif., '99 Neon, C/AA, 7.426, -0.594
3) Ross Wilson, Upland, Calif., '05 Sunfire, C/SMA, 8.311, -0.549
4) Tom Mettler, Bakersfield, Calif., '01 Dakota, PST, 7.461, -0.549
5) Dan Fletcher, Churchville, N.Y., '08 Cobalt, C/EA, 8.117, -0.543
6) Doug Lambeck, Corona Del Mar, Calif., '06 Sunfire, D/SMA, 8.468, -0.532
7) Tom Brown, Riverside, Calif., dragster, F/ED, 8.319, -0.511
8) Dean Carter, Glendale, Ariz., dragster, A/ND, 6.959, -0.501
9) Mike DePalma, Glendale, Ariz., '08 Cavalier, A/SM, 7.929, -0.501
10) Alan Freese, Salinas, Calif., '00 Firebird, C/AA, 7.539, -0.481SUPER STOCK
1) Frank Grossi, Upland, Calif., '05 Sunfire, GT/AA, 9.135 seconds, -1.265 (under index)
2) Brian McClanahan, Alta Loma, Calif., '67 Camaro, SS/GA, 9.702, -1.148
3) Fred Moreno, La Verne, Calif., '69 Mustang, SS/GA, 9.727, -1.123
4) Jeff Lane, North Bend, Wash., '08 Cobalt, SS/BS, 8.861, -1.089
5) John Schiess, Granada Hills, Calif., '91 Calais, GT/CA, 9.621, -1.079
6) Eric Bell, Chandler, Ariz., '70 Challenger, SS/EA, 9.580, -1.070
7) Darren Smith, Palmdale, Calif., '68 Dart, SS/FA, 9.684, -1.066
8) Steve Wann, Modesto, Calif., '69 Barracuda, SS/IA, 9.962, -1.038
9) Mark Viera, Turlock, Calif., '68 Dart, SS/AH, 8.728, -1.022
10) Jack Bystrom, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., '68 Camaro, SS/FA, 9.729, -1.021STOCK ELIMINATOR
1) Don Forester, Riverside, Calif., '80 Delta 88, M/SA, 11.950 seconds, -1.200 (under index)
2) Jimmy DeFrank, Thousand Oaks, Calif., '69 Camaro, B/SA, 10.477, -1.073
3) Peter Dodge, Redding, Calif., '68 Camaro, B/S, 10.447, -1.053
4) Jeff Lane, North Bend, Wash., '96 Corvette, C/SA, 10.647, -1.053
5) Jim Durham, Stonyford, Calif., '72 Duster, F/SA, 11.114, -1.036
6) Andy Durham, Chino, Calif., '70 Camaro, B/SA, 10.518, -1.032
7) Andy Kimball, Henderson, Nev., '66 Fairlane, E/S, 10.935, -1.015
8) Harry Doolittle, Wickenberg, Ariz., '02 Firebird, N/SA, 12.288, -1.012
9) Bryan Phillips, Alta Loma, Calif., '67 Firebird, D/SA, 10.848, -1.002
10) Dean Feiock, Surprise, Ariz., '81 Malibu, L/SA, 12.005, -0.995TOP SPORTSMAN
1) Robert Broguiere, Wildomar, Calif., '06 GTO, 6.944 seconds, 198.06 mph
2) Gary Ross, Trabuco Canyon, Calif., '05 Grand Am, 7.010, 196.07
3) Chip Rumis, Ramona, Calif., '07 Cobalt, 7.011, 195.85
4) Joe Roubicek, Westlake Village, Calif., '63 Corvette, 7.182, 192.22
5) Wayne Silvia, Upland, Calif., '04 Cavalier, 7.234, 190.35
6) Brad Wagner, Henderson, Nev., '97 Cutlass, 7.286, 190.43
7) Val Torres Jr., Valinda, Calif., '08 Cobalt, 7.304, 189.23
8) Chris Newman, Lancaster, Calif., '08 Cobalt, 7.406, 185.33
9) Gary Forkner, Temecula, Calif., '06 GTO, 7.451, 183.57
10) Rich Takahashi, San Gabriel, Calif., '04 Cavalier, 7.488, 186.10TOP DRAGSTER
1) Chip Rumis, Ramona, Calif., dragster, 6.777 seconds, 199.17 mph
2) Joe Roubicek, Westlake Village, Calif., dragster, 6.820, 197.97
3) Will Boxold, Orangevale, Calif., dragster, 6.870, 197.02
4) Del Cox Jr., Downey, Calif., dragster, 6.878, 196.24
5) Don Steed, Fallbrook, Calif., dragster, 6.883, 203.55
6) Tom Koenen, North Bend, Ore., dragster, 6.917, 194.18
7) Stewart Koch, Mountain View, Calif., dragster, 7.021, 193.16
8) Ryan Priddy, Chino, Calif., dragster, 7.071, 189.07
9) Roy Cracraft, Mesa, Ariz., dragster, 7.079, 191.59
10) Dave Morgan, Concord, Calif., dragster, 7.083, 191.29
From Jerrie Foss down at the track:
The NHRA JEGS SPORTSnationals presented by K&N kicked off today at Auto Club Dragway at Auto Club Speedway. The three-day event is an NHRA national event designed to highlight sportsman racers. More than 400 of the best drivers in eight categories from the West Coast are on hand vying for points leading to national championships and a share of the purse worth nearly $65,000. It is the last of three NHRA JEGS SPORTSnationals events scheduled across the country this year. Claremont resident John Edwards set the pace in Comp Eliminator while Upland's Frank Grossi leads the Super Stock qualifiers.
Edwards slipped his '99 Neon in just .533 seconds under his 8.02 index. The No. 2 qualifier is Dan Fletcher of Churchville, N.Y. This is veteran racer Fletcher's first season in Comp Eliminator, driving the entry of longtime Pacific division racer Rick Braun, and he is in contention for a national championship.
Grossi is just ahead of Fred Moreno of La Verne in the Super Stock field. Don Forester of Riverside wheeled his '80 Delta 88 to the top of the Stock Eliminator field. He is followed closely by Jimmy DeFrank, Thousand Oaks, Calif., and Alta Loma racer Ryan McClanahan. In Top Sportsman, Robert Broguiere, Wildomar, Calif., leads the field in his '06 GTO. Chip Rumis, Ramona, Calif., is No. 1 in Top Dragster.
Racing continues Saturday and Sunday at Auto Club Dragway. Qualifying and time trials resume at 8 a.m. Saturday. Top Dragster, Comp Eliminator and Top Sportsman qualify at 10:30 a.m. The Top Sportsman/Top Dragster Shootout starts at 1 p.m. Eliminations start Sunday at 8 a.m.
Tickets for the NHRA JEGS SPORTSnationals presented by K&N are $20 Saturday and $20 Sunday. Children 12 and under are admitted free with a paid adult.
After completing their physical exams Thursday, 21 players were cleared to take part in the Ontario Reign's first official practice Friday in Riverside. Two players haven't gotten physical clearance to skate yet, and six (Denny Johnston, Andrew Martens, Ryan Card, Johnny Rose in Manchester; Kellen Briggs, Houston; Dusty Collins, San Antonio) were still at AHL camps across the country.
The remaining crowd completed an unremarkable practice from a visual standpoint - more guys tripped over themselves than scored highlight-reel goals. Taylor had to jump in to demonstrate a couple of the drills himself.
They'll be back at it again at 1 p.m. tomorrow at Center Ice Arena in Ontario.
Karl Taylor's post-practice quotes:
We've got lots of work to do, there's no question about it. We've got seven guys in the American Leagues right now and when they come, they're going to push guys out of jobs. We treat everyone the same. We've got some tryout guys who haven't been coached in a long time, don't know what they're doing. Some of our own guys haven't skated in a while. So it's a work in progress.What's the goal on Day 1?Today still was a success. We got some physical conditioning in. We wanted them to learn and know what we had to do. They didn't execute it perfectly all the time, but they definitely know what they need to do.
We just did physicals late last night, chalk talk in the morning. When we do physicals at this level, you're not allowed to do anything physically with them whether it's testing or any of those things - you can't do it if someone has a pre-existing injury. They check 'em out head to toe - past injuries, history, what's the matter with you, do you have bad shoulders, whatever. We know everything that's wrong with the player physically. The doc checks 'em out like we would have a physical - blood pressure, checks his bones, knees, ligaments, shoulders, make sure we have a real strong history on the player so there's no surprises when we get into the season.
You want good practice habits. I want them to learn what I expect. The first day is less about teaching, more about work, and having them understand what my expectations are, how I run a practice, how we do things. These guys don't know. There's four guys on the ice that have played for me before (Jon Francisco, John Germaine, Ryan MacGregor and John Murray). None of these guys know anything about me. We're moving through drills quick, they don't know what's going on. They'll catch up or else they'll be left behind and looking for work.
Is it like football, where you give players a playbook?
No. Some hockey coaches will do that, but this game's not that complicated. I don't feel you need to do that. The systems, I'm not a big playbook guy. What we do is simple enough that we teach it day to day. Most of the guys have been doing what we're doing for a long time. I saw a quote from Sean O'Donnell, he got traded from Anaheim back to the Kings, it's his seventh team. He said, 95 percent of what the coaches do is pretty similar. There's small things and small adjustments each guy likes. That's it. The game's a simple game. The team that competes the hardest usually wins.
When do you get the AHL guys back?
Manchester plays two exhibition games. They'll be making some releases on Monday. The NHL started really late. Usually the American League is done now. This is the first year it's set up this way. A lot of teams on our level (ECHL) have waited until Monday to start camp til their guys come back. I couldn't wait.
Will you make cuts before the first exhibition game next Friday, or try to get everyone into a game?
We're gonna see. If someone sticks out that we think doesn't deserve to be here, then they won't be here. We'd like to give everyone a game, that's not always the case; we only have two games to prepare for the season. Yeah we'd like to evaluate, but we want to make sure we use them for making our team better and play regular-season games. Our opening-day roster has to be submitted October 15.
He's going to the AHL camp in Iowa City for the time being, probably not so much to work out any kinks as to save salary-cap room. The Ducks can finally breathe now, with about $2 million to spare under the $56.7 million cap ceiling. How long will they want to keep Ryan in Iowa City may depend on how well the remaining 16 forwards in camp perform.
Camp kicks off tomorrow with six open-tryout invitees on the ice (names in tomorrow's editions). The first practice is open to the public at Riverside Ice Town (10450 Magnolia St., Riverside)
Here's the schedule:
Pro mascot "exit strategies"? Trading Thunder for a player to be named later? Brenda Bolt and Charles Charger?
Individual Reign tickets are on sale this Saturday at noon with a bunch of other cool stuff.
(By the way, hit me back if you have a nickname for "Citizens Business Bank Arena" or "CBBA" because, well, it's what writers live for...)
From ontarioreign.com:
The Citizens Business Bank Arena Box Office will hold a grand opening celebration on Saturday, Oct. 4, to mark the first official day that the box office is open to the public and the first time that the public may purchase single-game Reign tickets. The box office will open at noon and will remain open until 6 p.m.
Reign single-game tickets begin at only $10, Sun.-Thur., and $12, Fri.-Sat. and offer great seats to catch all of the in-your-face action! Reign single-game ticket prices are as follows:
• Club - $21 Weekday/ $25 Weekend
• Lower Center - $19 Weekday/ $23 Weekend
• Lower End - $17 Weekday/ $21 Weekend
• Upper Center - $14 Weekday/ $17 Weekend
• Upper End - $10 Weekday/ $12 Weekend
Reign merchandise will also be available for purchase at the box office on Saturday only, which marks the first time that fans can pick up merchandise other than purchasing through the Reign Gear E-store on the Reign's website.
Fans also have the chance to win great prizes just for showing up at the box office on Saturday! Win a chance to ride the Reign Zamboni, signed merchandise and other great prizes!
