Mid-week Update

The Scorpions take to the ice tonight against the Arizona Sundogs in a crucial four-point contest. This is the perfect opportunity for the Scorps to capitalize on a huge weekend performance and gain some much-needed momentum going into the all-star break. As most of you know, the Scorps have had their troubles putting together back-to-back performances like they did this past weekend, so here's to hoping Randy Murphy's got his guys where he needs them.

In other news:

• Chris Robertson is named the Oakley/CHL Player of the Week after posting 6 points (4g, 2a) in 3 games last week. It seems to be right around this time every year that Robo absolutely goes berserk.
• The CHL names its all-star starters as well as the reserve crew that will take on the Colorado Eagles on January 14. Aaron MacInnis is the Scorpions' lone representative, but it's a much-deserved nod for big Mac, who's been overshadowed a bit in past years by the point totals of Rob Guinn and Vladimir Hartinger
• Lastly, here is top NHL prospect John Tavares' unbelieveable goal from the World Junior Championships. Sign him up!

The Peoples' Blog!

Apparently I picked a good weekend to miss Scorpions hockey, and I only mean that half-sarcastically this time. I didn't see any of Friday's game (thankfully) and I was only able to tap into about 30 minutes of streaming audio from Saturday before my shoddy wireless crapped out again. Alas, I'll be in flight for today's matinee against Odessa, so I'd like to open up the floor to any readers to post their own blog-style analysis of this weekend's games. Do me proud!

On a sidenote, is Marco Emond really going to win goaltender of the week? I could see it with Colorado's defense in front of him, or Laredo's, but not with Arizona's porous back line. Maybe he's found a home in sunny South Dakota

Merry Christmas

Hope the Scorps faithful and anyone else around the CHL has a very safe, merry Christmas. I will be sending out a Scorpions-themed Christmas card as soon as I get my hands on it. In the mean time, rest assured that there will be hockey in Rio Rancho this holiday season, as promised by Adam Minnick. I will join in his plea to grab some friends this the holiday weekend and get some happy butts in the seats at the SASC. Now stop reading this and go have some fun!

Eagles 2, Scorpions 1 (OT) ... ?

Sorry for the delay... holiday travels plans got in the way of blogging about this, far and away this season's most noteworthy game -- for several reasons. Obviously the big talk is the end-of-game controversy, and we'll touch on that later. What I will say, however, is that this was one of the best hockey games I have ever been to and, regardless of the outcome, it deserved a decisive finish. These guys don't battle for 60-plus minutes to watch the game end with a conference. This makes a pretty compelling argument for video review.

Observations:

• This was the most complete performance top-to-bottom the Scorpions put together this season. I know a lot of people won't be too pleased by the 0-for-7 powerplay line, but a 7-for-7 PK line is exponentially more important against the league's top powerplay. Aaron MacInnis and Jamie Herrington were the big reasons for that number, as they anchored the penalty kill with incredible veteran poise. I have those two marked as my two most consistent performers this season. As for the Scorpions' defense as a whole, they were great about getting in the passing lanes and denying the Eagles those quick bang-bang passing plays they burn so many people with. When the Eagles did manage to cycle the zone, which they are so efficient at doing, the Scorps again did well to limit it to just puck possession and not allow the Eagles to generate quality chances
  
• A nice goal by Ed McGrane, but the attention once against has to focus on Justin Greene. Mitch Stephens had the puck and skating out of the zone when either Reimann or Pankewicz took his feet out from under him. McGrane scooped up the loose puck, dangled around for a bit and scored about 10 seconds later. There are two situations as a ref where, by definition, you almost HAVE to call a penalty -- one is when a player is denied a clear scoring chance, and the other is an infraction that directly creates a scoring chance for the infracting team. A trip that keeps the puck in the offensive zone should constitute the latter...
• In the games where the Scorpions have played team defense in front of him, Jason Wolfe has been MVP-worthy this season. If he gets confidence early in a game, he's almost unbeatable. There was a series of post-to-post saves he made early on that was worthy of any highlight reel. The man they howl for deserved better fate
  
• Even though he was held off the scoresheet, Seth Leonard once again had his dancing shoes on against his former team. He was creating chances every time he touched the puck and was clearly one of the Scorpions' best players out there.
• Speaking of Leonard, I thought the game was in the bag when he set up Robertson on that breakaway late in the 3rd. I'll admit, I was surprised and a bit puzzled that a shoot-first guy like Robo opted to throw a deke at Andrew Penner. He made a nice move and had Penner going the wrong way, but he just couldn't settle the puck down on the late-period ice
• Ok -- now for "the call." First, let me say that I am in no place to say definitively whether the puck went in. I was seated at the opposite end of the arena at ice level, so I actually don't think I could have had a worse perspective. However, here is what I did see -- first, I saw Jared Ottenhof give an immediate washout signal, which is pretty hard to mistake for anything else given his 20-foot wingspan. Next, I only saw one Eagles player react on the play. Now, this could just be coaching -- "never stop until the whistle blows" -- but three of the four guys in the attacking zone began to follow the play the other way before Greene blew play dead. Hockey players know a goal when they see one, and I'm not too confident that those guys saw a goal. There is plenty more discussion to be had, but those are the two things I could CLEARLY see from my point-of-view. I don't know how great the angle would be from the camera platforms, nor do I know if the cameras can provide quality evidence one way or the other, but I'm sure I'm not alone in hoping the league takes a look at the tape anyhow
• Lastly, happy holidays to all. If travel is in your plans, make it safe. If you're staying put where you are, enjoy yourself. If you're at the SASC this weekend, cheer loud and let me hear it via CHLTV!
  

Eagles 4, Scorpions 3

The only thing Randy Murphy could've asked for out of this game was three more minutes of quality hockey. For the second time this season, the Scorpions went toe-to-toe with the league's best team, and for the second time this season, they came out on the short end. All in all, a solid effort that shouldn't leave Murph with too much to build on for tomorrow.

Observations:

• The lead, albeit short-lived, was a first for the Scorpions this season against the Eagles -- it's definitely a building block though. You knew a one-goal lead wasn't going to do the trick, and credit Morgan Cey with only allowing Stephens' goal in what I thought was a very strong start to the second period for the Scorpions
• A couple of observations about Greg Pankewicz -- first off, his goal to open the contest was unbelieveable. We've known for a while that he has one of the hardest slappers in the league, but he beat Andrew Martin clean on a simple snapshot from the top of the circles -- that thing was moving! On the other hand, and this is far less complementary, of course, but you have to ask yourself how deserving a guy is of the captain's C when clearly cannot control himself. After the Scorpions went up 2-1, Pankewicz was flying around with wreckless abandon, more like he was trying to hospitalize someone than give his team a spark. In my opinion, he was lucky to only come away with 2 PIM in the opening half of the second period, as he took runs at just about everybody and had three hits from behind in the course of one shift. The guy's lucky his team has a stellar PK, and he's lucky that he hasn't seriously injured someone (yet) in one of his fits -- and that's just his behavior on the ice. This basically personifies conduct unbecoming of a captain/role model. Funny how an organization like Colorado can keep the DUI arrest of a former playoff MVP under the radar, but the Scorpions get raked over the coals for a bar fight during rookie hazing. Is it just me, or should the league have a zero-tolerance policy for behavior like this? I don't care if it's a known face in this league and I don't care if it's a misdemeanor DUI charge -- that's unacceptable
• Absolutely gorgeous powerplay goal from Seth Leonard, Jamie Herrington and Craig Macdonald. That was a textbook example of opening up the ice on the powerplay. Any team at any level would be happy with puck movement like that
• Congrats to Andrew Smale on his first goal of the year, and what a blast it was. Getting goals from guys like Smale can really lift a team, and it certainly gave the Scorps the momentum, as they responded immediately and almost tied the game on the next shift
• Andrew Martin had his second straight strong outting, despite giving up four goals. It's hard to fault him on any of them, and although McGrane's goal seemed to be moving in slow motion, that was a deflection that no goalie could stop. Unbelievable hands by the CHL's best skullet
• I usually don't like to point to officiating as a turning point, but there is no avoiding it tonight. The Scorpions had all the momentum after Smale's goal, only to have it killed just over a minute later on VERY soft offensive zone penalty to Craig Macdonald. On the ensuing penalty kill, Seth Leonard was off to the races after blocking a shot at the point, only to have Kevin Ulanski essentially bear-hug him from behind on the breakaway. Leonard did bobble the puck, which gave Ulanski a chance to catch up, but Ulanski was never between Leonard and the goal and it's pretty hard to play the puck cleanly from that position
• Also, in case you missed the pregame show, Tyler Fuller broke his thumb on Grant Goeckner-Zoeller's face last Saturday and is out for 4-6 weeks. The Scorpions were even thinner on the back end with Lyon Messier absent due to a death in the family. At least for the short-term, Randy Murphy signed Swedish defenseman Henrik Ivarsson, who was waived by Arizona to make room for Derek Legault. Ivarsson, who carried an even rating through 10 games with the CHL's lowest-ranked defense core, is expected to be in the lineup Saturday
  

Elsewhere:

• Karl Sellan completes the patented "Karl Sellan Hat Trick" with a goal, a fight and a diving penalty
• Corpus halts Odessa's winning streak at 11. As Rajan noted, the Jacks broke out the champagne a tad bit early
• Shreveport gives up three goals in three minutes to Tulsa, then hangs on to take the two points. That's not very Mudbug-like
  

Since it's the thing to do...

It's getting close to that time of year again, and should you please, you can find all-star ballots from the likes of Greg Rajan, Brian Sandalow, and Adam Dunivan on their respective blogs.

I am not actually a member of the media, thus what you see below is by no means official, I just figured I would follow suit and name my starting lineup selections for the mid-season classic.

Forward

Jeff Bes - Laredo
Joel Irving - Arizona
Kory Karlander- Odessa

Defense

Russ Moyer- Odessa
Justin Kinnunen- Texas

Goaltender

Andy Franck- Oklahoma City

Now clearly this is slanted just a tad bit towards the Southern Conference, but in all fairness, these seem fair picks to be. Obviously Bes and Franck should be no-brainers, although a few guys have argued that Laredo's Darryl Smith should start because of his sensational rookie season. I just can't part with the assist numbers Bes has put up during the first half.

As for Irving, his numbers have undoubtedly been bolstered by the arrival of Adam Perry in Prescott Valley (he and Perry both have 23 points in 14 games). Still, I think Irving can easily rival Ryan Tobler as the top power forward in the Central Hockey League. He doesn't quite have the mean streak that Tobler does, but Irving rarely loses a battle in the corners and he has deft touch to go along with that brutal shot.

For his part, Kory Karlander is one of this league's ageless wonders, alongside Greg Pankewicz, Jeff Christian and Bes. The guy is in his late 30s and can still anchor a top line for any team he plays for. He's been exceptional on the draw (just ask Chris Robertson, who's one of the league's best faceoff men in his own right) and there aren't many guys in the league who can finish better from around the blue paint.

Karlander's teammate on the blueline, Russ Moyer, has impressed me since day one. He's shown that he can be one of the league's best two-way defensemen and has been one of the main cogs in that Odessa machine. Eleven of his 20 points have come on the powerplay, but he still boasts a team-leading +13 rating, which means he's equally invested in his own end. A strong second half and this guy will challenge for defenseman of the year.

Then there's Justin Kinnunen, who basically personifies the forgettable defenseman. He's the kind of player who's doing his job best if you don't even notice him. He's always in the right place, especially at the big moments in a game, and he's the perfect anchor on the blueline for Dan Wildfong's airtight Texas defense.

Andy Franck is just Andy Franck. It doesn't hurt that he has the league's best defense in front of him, but he certainly doesn't ride their coattails. Franck's a proven AHL-level goaltender, as is his likely all-star foe, Andrew Penner, and he's not the type to let in soft goals. Oh yeah, did I mention that he's carrying a .949 save percentage against Colorado this year?

As far as the Scorpions go, I have seen Aaron MacInnis on a couple of ballots, and I'm sure that he'll get the nod, possibly as a starter. He's right in there with Moyer and Kinnunen as one of the league's premier blueliners. If the Scorpions get a nod at forward, it's going to be very tightly-contested, given the change in the ASG format this year. With five guys averaging a point-per-game or better, it's basically a toss-up. Right now, my vote would go to Seth Leonard, as he has been the best player on the ice for the Scorpions over the past month and arguably one of the best players in the league. Of course, there's always the lure of that fairytale matchup against his former team in the all-star game, too.

Wednesday "Reeding"

Here's a story the Loveland Reporter Herald's Adam Dunivan wrote about Konrad Reeder's trials and tribulations in Europe this past summer.

It touches a bit more on the family side, although it seems like fact-checking is optional at the Reporter Herald, and I mean no offense to Dunivan in saying this. That's what copy editors are for. Still...

Reeder signed with a Dutch team, the Frederikshavn White Hawks, soon after
the 2007-08 CHL season was over and spent the entire summer getting his wife,
Katie, and young son, Wyatt, settled into their new environment.

After scoring 108 points last season with the New Mexico Scorpions, which was
second in the league behind Leavitt (128), expectations were high coming in.
After all, he scored 41 goals the prior season and was the All-Star game most
valuable player, to boot.

Not to be picky or anything, but Frederikshavn is based out of Denmark, not the Netherlands, and Leavitt was the all-star game MVP for the South, not Reeder (Scott Wray picked up the honors for the north)

Day game no more...

While I'm among the happiest in the 505 to see that white stuff on the ground, unfortunately it meant that the Scorpions' annual matinee kid's day game was postponed. I always enjoyed going to these games, and it was going to be a welcome respite from finals week. No word yet on when the game will be made up.

In other league news, Rio Grande Valley waived Rob Voltera, who was essentially the face of that organization. I guess it's the definitive sign that the Chris Brooks era has started. I'd be surprised if a few teams weren't already clamoring to get Voltera in a free vet spot, assuming he plans to continue playing

Lastly, the Sundogs find a new owner with a hockey pedigree. Now the question is this: with Eric Lacroix completely phased out of the organization, how long will Karl Sellan last before someone says enough is enough?

Night and day: Scorpions 4, Killer Bees 2

I didn't get a chance to catch Friday's game, but the box and the boards told me all I needed to know. I watched most of Saturday night's game on the CHL Network, and I think it's safe to say that the fans in Hidalgo, Texas know how the Star Center faithful felt last weekend. Oh what a difference a night can make...

Observations

• I would give the edge to RGV in 5-on-5 play tonight, but the Scorpions finally managed to win the special teams battle and -- go figure -- they won the game. The puck movement on the powerplay looked far crisper than it had been the past three games. It seems to me that the PP unit just has to work on getting into the zone and getting set up. Congrats to Michael Beynon on his first professional goal, as well. That was an absolute bomb, and it came on a play that I really liked from last season, which was that shortside one-timer from behind the goal line. I'd like to see that play a lot more on the man advantage
• Great bounce-back game from Andrew Martin after getting shelled in Laredo on Wednesday. The win was Marty's first in his last six appearances. He was his usually active self in the crease, but he was stopping the shots he had to stop and, more notably, making a few saves he had no business making, too. Hopefully he and the rest of the Scorpions can carry that momentum in Tuesday's day game against Amarillo
• A pair of very nice goals in this game. That setup from Robin Bouchard to Jesse Bennefield was absolutely gorgeous -- great vision by the veteran to basically corral the puck along the boards the puck and fire it to the slot in one quick motion. Seth Leonard's first goal, on the other hand, was one of those goals that can only leave you laughing. This guy is a serious hockey player, folks

Elsewhere:

• Instant classic in Wichita
• Odessa wins the battle of the Southern Conference. Could there be yet ANOTHER goaltender injury for the Jacks? Dan McWhinney gets the win, having relieved Alexandre Vincent after just one period
• Amarillo beats Colorado, in Colorado, then gets wasted at home by Corpus
  

Bucks 6, Scorpions 1

Don't get me wrong...Laredo is a great team. Terry Ruskowski's squads have been stacked since the Bucks set foot in the CHL. Still, efforts like this from the Scorpions can make anyone look like a title contender. The head-scratchers continue to pour in, and the Scorpions' special teams continue to underacheive.

Observations:

• The Scorpions are 0-for-19 on the powerplay in the past two games. Now, I have to give credit to Centomo on this one because he single-handedly killed a few of those Laredo penalties, but something's gotta give already. Couple that with a sub-50% penalty kill, and those numbers are nothing short of terrible. What's worse is that 3 of Laredo's 4 powerplay goals were goals they had no business scoring. Not to take anything away from Alex Goupil, who is a great player, but guys shouldn't score from parallel to the goal line. But while Martin was at fault for that one, there wasn't much else he could do on the other two. Even when you're a man down, you can't let the other team outnumber you around your own net. I don't know if the PK was sleeping or what, but Goupil had all day to wander in and hack that rebound past Martin. As for Darryl Smith's goal, right place, right time. The guy celebrated like he'd actually done something to earn that goal (it hit off a skate about 2 feet in front of Martin and kicked right onto Smith's tape), or like the goal was actually of some significance (it made it 5-1, and last I checked, a 3-goal lead in Laredo wasn't the worst lead in hockey). But oh well...here's to a fine rookie season and being linemates with Jeff Bes
• Where is the backchecking? Someone has to have been called out on the god awful two-way play we've seen with this team. That's not a blanket statement, but I'm by no means singling out just one player either

¡Bienvenidos a South Texas!

Tonight begins the infamous South Texas swing that has been less than kind to the Scorps over the past two seasons.

Last season the Scorps were a combined 2-3-1 on the road against Southeast Division foes (not counting Austin). Those two wins came in the second half against struggling Corpus and RGV squads. The Scorps managed just one point in their four-game swing during late November.

In 06-07, the Scorps went 0-3 in their only trip down south, getting outscored 14-5 in the process.

Add to all of this that the Scorps have never won a game at the Laredo Entertainment Center, and I say that it's time for some change! Randy Murphy's guys definitely have the odds stacked against them this weekend, but if that game in OKC is any indicator, this team is capable of defying those odds. Also, as Joy Lindsay noted, tonight is the first meeting between the two sides since youtubefest last year (see below). All of the main parties have since departed, but you know Murph would like to improve on his club's 2-8-1 record against the Bucks, and if that memory provides the spark, sobeit.

Gorillas 6, Scorpions 3

In a word, ugly. Apparently Tom Coolen's "closed-door meeting" reached his guys.

The Scorpions should know firsthand how motivated guys get when they're playing for their livelihood.

Observations:

• The Scorpions seemed content to pick up right where they left off Friday night, which was watching Mike Gorman fish the puck out of his net. The problem was that they abandoned their defensive posts about 50 minutes too early. That left plenty of time for the Joe Guenther show, as the mammoth winger effectively sunk the Scorpions in under 8 minutes flat
• I was talking to a fellow blogger/reader during the 1st intermission, and she 100% correctly called Gorman's right leg injury. I hadn't noticed it at all but, sure enough, Goreman had to be helped off just 22 seconds into the 2nd period. As much as I hated watching Gorman dominate the Scorps in his Odessa days, I do feel bad for the guy. Not only do I wish him a speedy recovery, but part of me hopes the Gorillas turn things around a bit so Gorman doesn't fade into obscurity into what is likely his last season. A legend of the game at this level deserves better than that
• Saturday night's special teams were the Jekyll to Friday night's Hyde. The stat of the night has to be 0-for-10 on the PP, especially with that two-minute 5-0n-3 late in the third. The passing on the PP was stale and off-target, and the movement off the puck was even worse. If you're having a tough time finding another guy's tape, the last thing you want to be doing is trying to thread the needle or go through clogged up lanes. I'm sure Randy Murphy would've liked to see his guys play a simpler game.
  
• I'm guessing the guy who came in to relieve Gorman was this Ryan Scott, not this Ryan Scott. For a guy with such shoddy numbers, he looked awfully good, especially when it counted. With how labored Gorman's exit to the dressing room was, I'm guessing Scott will have a starting job for at least the next few weeks
• Not a bad scrap between "Big Ben" Chaisson and "St. Nick" Theriault. Theriault's a soda machine on skates, but you're taking a risk any time you fight a guy with like a 12-foot wingspan. I hope those enforcer-starved fans out there are happy
  

Elsewhere:

• Kevin Harvey scores in his second game with the Syracuse Crunch. Well done, Harv
• Four one-goal games in the league on Saturday, highlighted by this Southern Conference showdown between Laredo and Texas
• Wake me up when Colorado loses
• Wake me up when Arizona wins without Adam Perry

Let's see what he can do...

Nothing Scorps or CHL related here, but I'm a huge Nathan Gerbe fan, and today he was recalled by the Buffalo Sabres, meaning the 5'6" Boston College product will play in his first NHL regular season game tonight against Tampa Bay. Not only does this guy make Konrad Reeder look big, but he almost makes him look slow!

Scorpions 8, Gorillas 2

For 40 minutes, this was a hard-fought, well-contested divisional game. Although the third period by no means followed that script, you certainly won't hear me complaining. This was finally the performance the Scorpions were looking for the follow up last week's win at Oklahoma City.

Observations:

• Congrats to John Mazzei on a hard-earned hat trick. His first goal was an absolutely beautiful setup and I have no idea how he scored his second, but it just seemed to be one of those nights for speedy No. 10. The irony in all of this is that I did a phone interview with Mazzei yesterday, and one of the big things he said was that his adjustment to the pro game was coming along a lot slower than he wanted, and that he wished he were putting up more points. Well, ask and you shall receive!
• Jason Wolfe was once again on fire in goal. He very well could have had his second consecutive shutout if not for a couple fortunate bounces that went Joe Guenther's way. He continues to see the puck well and, for the first time this season, his teammates are helping him out too. Oh, and that post-to-post save he made in the third off the feed from Sam Ftorek? WOW
• I'm just going to copy and paste my previous statements to all Seth Leonard doubters. The guy was all over the place out there and probably should have had a hat trick of his own. He's now up to 13 points in his last 6 games
• My hat's off to Tyler Fuller. That was the ultimate team play to stick up for Lyon Messier after Weitzel drilled him hard into the boards in the second. I'm sure Weitzel was hurting for more than just those 5 minutes from the whipping Fuller gave him
• Speaking of Messier, a respectable Scorpions debut for the 21-year-old. There were a few places where he didn't quite seem to be on board with Randy Murphy's systems, but you can't expect much with just a few days' practice under his belt. He looked pretty solid on both PP and PK, and he even showed that he's happy to stand up for himself against Lynes. I'd have to score that round 10-9 for Lynes, but it was good to see Messier get fired up.
• Torren Delforte picked a nice time and and even nicer way to break out of his mini scoring slump. The way he was putting up points early on, I didn't think we'd see a four-game pointless streak from this kid all season. Great job by the rookie to get back on track
• I think it's safe to say that tommorow night's game could be pretty chippy. Nick Theriault was a thorn in the Scorps' side all night, and while he had a few good, clean hits (namely that crunch on Leonard in the third) he pulled a few fast ones too (namely a cross-check to the chin of Mitch Stephens that went uncalled)

Elsewhere:

• For those of you at the Star Center who were wondering, the score of Corpus vs. Rio Grande Valley was never 13-4 -- merely a type-o. Rio instead rallied from a 4-1 deficit to win 5-4 in OT
• Odessa keeps its nine-point lead with a 3-1 victory in Tulsa
• Laredo's line-of-death keeps on truckin'
• David Cacciola beats up on his old team. Hmmm...haven't heard THAT one this season
  

"Harvey" and "Crunch" go well together

Congrats to Kevin Harvey on signing a professional tryout contract with the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL. The Crunch are the top affiliate for the Columbus Blue Jackets, and this is definitely a great opportunity for Harves. I'll definitely be scoreboard-watching...or should I say PIM-board watching?

Here is the Scorpions' official press release.

And here is the Crunch's team release

Right on cue

Just when I was finished saying that the absence of Nick Theriault could put a damper on the fireworks between the Scorps and the Gorillas, I stumble upon these noteworthy transactions:

Amarillo	12/05/08	ADD Theriault, Nick (D) activated from IR
Amarillo	12/05/08	DEL Frick, Matt (D) waived

Not only is the big boy back, but Matt Frick is once again without a job. The poor guy can't seem to catch a break, and all I hope is that he's happy wherever he ends up, be it on the ice or not. He's one of the league's all-time gentlemen, and for all the heat he's taken for his statistical decline over the years, not once could someone question his heart. That image of him sitting back against his locker stall after the Scorps were eliminated by Laredo in 06-07 is still one of the most profound I've seen in my (limited) time as a journalist

Early candidate for goal of the year?

Johan "Moose" Franzen did some work against the Habs last week. Between this and last week's own goal, Ryan O'Byrne is having a tough welcome to the NHL.

Defensive foot forward

With a pair of four-point games coming up this weekend, it's safe to say that Randy Murphy will be fielding the strongest defensive unit he has had all season. Not only do the Scorpions get some much-needed spark in Lyon Messier, but they also get Michael Beynon back off the 14-day IR. It'll once again be interesting to see how Murphy pairs guys up on defense, but I certainly don't see any potentially "weak" pairing. Ben Chaisson seems to have settled down a bit in his past two games and Tyler Fuller has looked great since coming off a short stint on the IR. And get this little bit -- Aaron Schneekloth got a good deal of attention for his 17-game streak with an even rating or better. Now, that's on a 15-3 Colorado team. Adam Blanchette is currently on a 16-game streak of the same variety, but the Scorpions have won just 4 games in that span. The results can make that stat pretty easy to overlook, but there's no denying that Blanchette deserves some credit for being one of the few bright spots on an otherwise shoddy defense core.

Now, with seven defensemen active and Sam Bowles having been waived, my best guess is that Andrew Smale might share time at forward with Mike MacDonald alongside Jamie Herrington and John Mazzei. That gives Murphy a nice option of size versus speed in that fourth forward slot, and with the way Jamie Herrington has been feeding the puck so far this season, that's a checking line that's liable to put up some points too.

Welcome, Mr. Messier

Sam Bowles and Dylan Row are gone... best of luck to a couple of classy guys. I'm a bit surprised Murphy let go of a defensive-minded player in Bowles, although his -10 rating was far from appealing. For his part, Row had shown flashes of maturity but was still too inconsistent on the back end.

So who, you ask, was Murphy making room for?

That would be Lyon Messier, son of none other than Mark Messier. This is a move that is obviously going to come with a lot of hype, but I think anyone would be happy to see a few fresh faces on the back end -- and no one's going to argue with the bloodline.

For anyone who's curious, here's a taste of the big boy on the blue line. I assume we should expect to see him in uniform on Friday against Amarillo

Around the league...

Juha Toivonen collected goaltender of the week honors for the second time this season (third time in 7 weeks for an Odessa goaltender), while Jeff Christian became the second Tulsa Oilers player to garner player of the week honors, joining Michael Beausoleil (week 5).

Also, as most of you may have heard from around the blog community, the big controversy of the weekend is surrounding this hit that left Rio Grande Valley's Trevor Weisgerber unconscious on the ice. Sandalow, Rajan, Bochinni, et al have had plenty to say about this in the past few days. So let's open up this forum as well. Thoughts? Was it a clean hit? I don't know as of yet who it was that hit Weisgerber (one reader speculated that it was Troy Ofukany), but if you check out Rajan's blog, I think Matt Turek's comparison to the Mark Bell/Daniel Alfredsson hit is pretty accurate. The hit on Weisgerber wasn't blatantly late, and he did get caught watching the play. Still, I'm in no position to say whether the hit was dirty because the camera is too far away to see exactly how he gets hit. Even shoulder-on-head is deemed clean, but it looks a bit like there is an elbow that comes up on the play, and putting your elbow to a guy's temple is not only illegal, it's dangerous -- dangerous enough to warrant a suspension.

UPDATE: according to Kollen Long's blog, it was Thunder defenseman Curtiss Patrick who laid the hit on Weisgerber. The league reviewed the hit and it was passed down via director of communications Bob Hoffman that "the hit was clean."