Tony Hrkac Update

Every now and then we like to check up on former Aeros, and today we're checking up on Tony Hrkac, one of the unexpected heros of the 2009 playoff run. Hrkac came out of retirement -- and a new career as college coach -- to join the roster at the tail end of that season.

News comes today that Hrkac no longer has to worry about that career as a head coach as he was dismissed from his job as head coach of Concordia. That frees him up, however, to join the Aeros roster. And with the way the Wild are going through Aeros players left and right, it's possible that he could still end up as the Wild's leading scorer this season (that was said with tongue firmly in cheek. Please use your own sarcasm font) .

2/25/10 -- Aeros v. Manitoba -- We Need Some Help Edition

I'm short on time, so straight to the talking points from tonight's 3-2 loss to Manitoba.

Barry Brust took the loss on himself.

"I think the onus is on me. I’ve got to come up with a save. The second goal, they got a big break and hit our d-man’s stick and went right down the ice. The third goal, I thought I had it, but obviously I didn’t. That’s up to me. I’ve got to buckle down and be better."

But buckle down and be better is something that can be said of the entire team. It wasn't just Brust who lost focus after the tying goals. Those goals didn't just happen in isolation. It's been a season long problem that the team has to find a way to address.

*******************************

And speaking of season long problems, the injury bug hit again. Max Noreau took a shot off of his right ankle. He came back out to play, but I saw it after the game, and it was swollen. They're going to x-ray it tomorrow, and he's hoping that it's not broken -- if it is, you can probably kiss what playoff chances the team has left has nil.

As for why he came back out -- he scored the team's final goal -- he said that it was because they checked the ankle, and said that it couldn't get any worse if he played on it. The hockey boot keeps everything kind of tight. But we should know more tomorrow.

Constantine is hoping that Brandon Rogers can return this weekend, but he's suffering from a concussion, so the team isn't going to rush anything.

********************************

And for those of you who weren't following on Twitter -- shame on you -- the rumor is that the Aeros might be getting some help next week. The guys up in Milwaukee who handle the Admirals Short Shifts blog tweeted during the game that Tony Hrkac has signed a contract and is returning to the team next week. That will definitely increase the team speed from slow to even slower. Hrkac was a great presence on the team last season -- especially during the playoffs when the team was battling through tough playoff series after tough playoff series, and he showed that he still had some gas left in the tank. Hopefully, he can help the guys keep their focus on their games after they score a goal.

We checked with the Aeros, and all that we could get was a no comment.

The Aeros play in Texas on Friday, then host the Stars on Saturday night. With a record of 28-25-6-1 (63 points), they definitely need to get two wins this weekend.

And though I know I've played this song already this season, I thought it was apropos of the night. So here's The Beatles with "Help."

Round 3, Game #5: Aeros vs. Moose -- The Get Back Edition

“In retrospect,” Kevin Constantine said after the Houston Aeros 4-3 double overtime victory over the Manitoba Moose. “I think it was a bad coaching decision not to call the timeout. If we’d lost, it would have been a long, long summer for me.”

But luckily for Constantine, and for the Aeros, the summer is not starting. Yet. As once again the Houston Aeros held off playoff elimination and live to see another day.

And looking back at the first 59:39 of the game, it’s hard to believe that this game came down to overtime and the failure of Constantine to call a timeout. Yet it did as the Aeros and Moose played one of the most entertaining and exciting hockey games seen in Toyota Center in a long time.

The game got off to a great start for the Aeros when Maxim Noreau converted on the power play at 2:56 to put the Aeros up 1-0 in the first period. And just under two minutes later, Tony Hrkac found himself in the perfect position to get his stick on the rebound of a Robbie Earl shot and sink the puck in the net to put the Aeros up 2-0 at 4:22. Then at 17:24 of the second period – topping a nearly 15 minute barrage of non-stop, high-speed hockey – a streaking Matt Beaudoin got the pass from John Lammers and put the puck past an out-of-position Cory Schneider to put the Aeros up 3-0.

Then the unthinkable happened. The Moose came out to start the third period with a new goalie as Curtis Sanford took the place of Schneider, the ace number one Moose goalie who’d played every minute of every playoff game for the Moose. But though the Aeros got several good opportunities, they couldn’t get the puck past Sanford. The Moose, however, had better some better luck.

The first Moose goal came at 2:29 of the third just seconds before the Aeros were about to kill off a penalty. But Michael Grabner got the puck past Matt Climie to make the score 3-1, and that’s where the score remained for the next 17 minutes. But as the crowd was roaring and the players were preparing to jump off of the bench and celebrate the sure-awarding of the number one star to Climie, the Moose, on the power play and using the six-on-four advantage, surrounded the net and kept shoving the puck at Climie as the Aeros failed to clear the puck. So at 19:39, Jason Krog got the puck past Climie to make the score 3-2. Then came that time in the game that had Constantine wishing he would have called the timeout as with just two seconds remaining in the game and the victory within their grasp, former Aero Mark Cullen got the puck past Climie to send the game to overtime.

“I felt good the whole game, but I caught a couple of unlucky breaks at the end there, Climie said. “They had a couple of lucky goals to tie it up. I just wanted to keep the boys in it and give them a chance in overtime. The third goal was a kind of weak one to give up, with just two seconds left. And I wanted to do my part in overtime to shut the door.”

So for the next 24:19, Climie did, indeed, shut the door, stopping 18 Manitoba shots in the two overtimes. Trouble was, Sanford, was just as good as Climie, stopping 16 shots. Until, at 4:19 of the second overtime, Robbie Earl found Tony Hrkac in the slot and Hrkac found a way to get the puck in the net to give the Aeros the 4-3 victory.

“Benoit [Pouliot] made a nice play behind the net to get it in,” Hrkac said. “Robbie [Earl] got it in the corner, and their forwards were kind of on me, but then they spread out because they were thinking about Robbie going to the point, and there was a little lane there, so Robbie saw it and I saw it, and he gave me the puck, the goalie went down and boom, over the shoulder.”

The Aeros then stormed the ice and the crowd erupted.

“I thought it was a great play,” Constantine said. “Robbie had enough patient and poise to wait till the pass was there. Like a coy veteran, you wonder how Hrkac put it in.”

And suddenly, Manitoba’s seemingly insurmountable 3-0 series lead didn’t look so insurmountable as, wonder of all wonders, the Aeros found away to get this series back to Winnipeg for a Game Six on Monday night.

SOME MISCELLANEOUS NOTES:

Matt Climie was solid in this game, despite the last 21 seconds. Except for some mop-up duty in two games, he’s barely played, and recently, with Nolan Schaefer’s return, he’s not even had as much ice time with the team. Then again, it’s not every AHL team that has a fourth string goalie who actually played three games in the NHL this season. And when the time came tonight, he was ready.

“It’s the AHL playoffs,” he said. “It’s a dream come true to play this caliber of hockey. I just wanted to make sure I was prepared and ready to go tonight. I just wanted to make the most of this opportunity, and the guys inside here have really welcomed me and I just wanted to do my part to them win.”

Jesse Schultz, who also returned to action tonight, stressed that the team has confidence in all of their goalies, then he mentioned how difficult tonight was for Climie. “He was unbelievable,” Schultz said. “He didn’t travel with us on the road last time. It’s tough to skate with four or five guys here and not see a lot of shots.”

Kevin Constantine called Climie’s play solid, and it looks as if he’ll be getting the start on Monday night.

*********************
Jesse Schultz returned to action for the first time since injuring his ankle in Game Six against Peoria almost four weeks ago. And from the press box vantage point, he looked really good out there.

“I feel pretty good, actually,” he said of his ankle. “It held up real well. It was four weeks tomorrow since it happened. I wasn’t sure what to expect getting back in there. It’s felt pretty good the past couple of days, and it’s held up, so hopefully it just keeps getting better.”

*********************
With his two assists, Corey Locke has now tied Mark Freer for the most points by an Aero in a playoff season. Freer got 22 points in 1999 (11-11=22), and Locke also has 22 points (11-11=22). Matt Beaudoin’s goal gives him 17 points (8-9=17) for the playoffs.

And how about a little appreciation for the old man. Tony Hrkac’s two goals gives him 14 points for the playoffs (4-10=14), including three goals in the past two games. Hrkac told us after the game that while he knew he could still play when he got the call from Troy Ward, he still didn’t expect anything like this.

********************
During the game, we found out that Tom Lynn, the Wild’s assistant GM and the Aeros GM would be staying with the team in his same capacity to work under new GM Chuck Fletcher. And if anybody has a right to be happy about the Aeros right now, it’s Lynn, who during the offseason added Krys Kolanos, Corey Locke, and Jesse Schultz to the team and who, during the season, added Matt Beaudoin and Tony Hrkac, traded for Robbie Earl, and even though the playoffs had already started, was able to get Matt Climie from the Dallas Stars for the remainder of the team’s Calder Cup run.

So I just want to congratulate Tom on the job he did with this Aeros team, and for keeping his job with the Wild since often, when people from outside an organization take over a team, they bring in their own people to work under them.

********************
The quote of the season definitely goes to Kevin Constantine who, after it was all over, was asked his thoughts on the game. “I always look at President Obama – or any president,” he said. “I look at how they age. I started the playoffs at 50 and I’m 73 years old already.”

********************
The Aeros are making the trip to Winnipeg tomorrow. They’ll fly to Minneapolis tomorrow morning. From there they’ll fly to Fargo, ND. And from Fargo they’ll take a three-hour bus ride to Winnipeg, arriving sometime late tomorrow night. They’ll probably practice on Sunday, and they’ll play on Monday night.

And for those of you (like Danny Irmen) who are wondering if I’ll be making any of the games in Winnipeg, the answer, unfortunately, is no. I’d love to be there, but damn, the cheapest airplane ticket I could find was around $1300, and I couldn’t even guarantee that I’d make the arena by game time. I’d love nothing better than to be there, but I’m unemployed at the moment, and there’s no possible flight combination I could use that could get me there on my frequent flier miles.

So guys, you’re just going to have to do it without me this time. Sorry.

*******************
There’s no way, after Monday’s game, that I thought the Aeros were going to get this series back to Winnipeg. No way. So I thought that, to play us out tonight, I’d go with a little classic rock and The Beatles playing, appropriately enough, “Get Back” – and Paul’s even got him a playoff beard going.

Round 3, Game #5 -- Aeros vs. Moose -- Photos

What a game!!! The Aeros started off with a bang, 2 quick goals and then a second period that was simply amazing, 14 or 15 minutes of dominating hockey without any stoppages. Maybe the single best period I've ever seen the Aeros skate at Toyota Center.

Here is the Noreau goal, it dribbled through 5 hole.

Lammers celebrates

D-men Brandon Rogers and Maxim Noreau celebrate

This is an amazing series of the first Hrkac goal. Cory Schneider almost got it with the blocker but there was enough on the shot to flip the puck up in the air and fall into the net. I've circled the puck where it ts difficult to see. The puck is in every photo in the series.

Here you can see the puck between the blocker and the arm.Some celebration of the goal

Here is the Matt Beaudoin goal.

And here is the 2OT Tony Hrkac goal with some celebration.

All Photos:Fred Trask

Round 3, Game #5: Aeros vs. Moose -- Some Quick Thoughts

Wow. Wow. Wow.

After Monday night's loss, I never thought the Aeros would be returning to Winnipeg. Never.

So wow.

Andrew will post our View From the Press Box in a bit -- those get delayed because of other items we have to get done. So I just thought I would post some quick things.

First, for those who missed it...the Aeros won 4-3 in double overtime. That the Aeros won the game to send this series back to Winnipeg is one thing. That the Aeros won this game in double overtime is another. And then there's the fact that the Aeros had a 3-1 lead with 21 seconds left in the game and had to win the thing in double overtime.

Major props tonight go to Tony Hrkac. Another impressive outing with two goals -- including the game winner -- to lift his playoff point total to 14 points. Nice work from Robbie Earl who set Hrkac up for both of his goals. Matt Climie, except for about 30 seconds in the third period, was impressive, especially for someone's who barely played the past month or so.

So we'll have much more later, but just wanted to get this up. Game Six, believe it or not, is a reality, and it will take place in Winnipeg, Manitoba on Monday night.

Round 3, Game #4: Meanwhile, Over At The Mothership

Here's my Houston Press write-up of last night's game. So, as always, go give it a read. I think it captures the spirit of last night's game.

And if any of you are wondering about my focus on Tony Hrkac after last night's game instead of Matt Beaudoin who had a game for the ages, there are three reasons, kind of. First, I talked to Hrkac after yesterday's morning skate, and I thought it made a nice bookend to get to him afterwards and follow-up on what we had talked about earlier in the day. Second, I wasn't around for much of the Matt Beaudoin interview, so I didn't really have the quotes from him. Third, Hrkac is just a few months younger than I am, so an old guy out there keeping up with the kids, especially an old guy who hadn't played in four seasons, just fascinates me.

But make no mistake, the deserved number one star of last night's game was Matt Beaudoin, and I hope the Aeros/Wild are doing something to get this guy locked into a contract for next season.

Round 3, Game #4: Aeros vs. Moose: Nobody Told Me

After Wednesday morning’s skate, Tony Hrkac said that the team had to avoid making mistakes, they had to play smart, and that they had to focus on just winning this one game. Most importantly, he said, they needed to at least be tied at the end of the first period.

Things looked good for the Aeros (and for Hrkac’s prediction) when Corey Locke knocked in a rebound past Manitoba’s Cory Schneider at 1:26 of the first to put the Aeros up 1-0. But then the mistakes and dumb play began and the Moose got two goals – including another short-handed goal on the penalty kill – to grab the 2-1 lead after one period.

But the thing about the Aeros is that they just don’t quit. They came out in the second and tied the game at two-all when Corey Locke fired a cross-ice pass to John Lammers who then found Robbie Earl coming up the middle of the ice, and Earl buried the puck in the net at 13:58 of the second. Then the team got stupid again, and allowed Manitoba to score 25 seconds into the third period to take the 3-2 lead.

Enter Matt Beaudoin and Tony Hrkac.

Beaudoin took a pass from Benoit Pouliot at 13:31 of the third and slapped the puck past Schneider to tie the game at three. And seconds later, at 14:29, Beaudoin made a great play under the net to find a streaking Hrkac who tipped the puck past Scheinder to put the Aeros up 4-3.

“I got a good pass from Pouliot right outside their blue line, and I knew I had a winger going,” Hrkac said, “so I wanted to get the shot on the net for the rebound, and [Beaudoin] got the rebound, and from my angle I thought he put it in. But it went behind the net, and I just went straight for the net and he saw me and threw it out to me and I put it in the net.”

But the Aeros don’t do things the easy way. Anton Khudobin found himself badly out of position at 17:21 and Mario Bliznak got the wraparound to tie the game at four and send the game to overtime.

It was during the intermission leading to overtime that word filtered up to the press box that Khudobin had gotten injured in the third period and that Nolan Schaefer would be coming out to take over at goal.

“I just didn’t want to let the team down,” Schaefer said. “I wanted to get in there and give them the chance to win, and I didn’t even have to do that.”

He didn’t have to do that because the Aeros came out on the attack in the overtime and at 2:01, Matt Beaudoin scored his second goal of the night (and got his fourth point) to give Houston the 5-4 lead and to keep them alive in this best of seven series with the Manitoba Moose.

“Tonight we got our bounces,” Beaudoin said after the game.

But to stand a chance at winning this series, the Aeros are going to have to keep getting the bounces. And the next chance to get the bounces will come on Friday night as the Aeros and Moose go at it in Game Five from Toyota Center.

SOME MISCELLANEOUS GAME NOTES:

It's going to take a bit of a miracle for the Aeros to win this series. In the entire of the AHL, only two teams have ever come back from 0-3 deficits to win a series. Those teams were the 1960 Rochester Americans and the 1989 Adirondack Red Wings.

Tony Hrkac says that in this instance, the cliche has to win out, meaning that the Aeros can't focus on winning three games. They just have to focus on the next game and the next period. "The next game is the biggest game of the year. If we lose we’re done," he says. "But we’ve got to go out there one period at a time and hopefully get the next goal. We need to build off this win. It’s a big win for us. They’re a good team. They’re not going to be rattled."

********************
Corey Locke's first period goal tied the team record for playoff goals in one season with 11, tying Mark Freer who also scored 11 in 1999. Locke's 20 total points (11-9=20) is second all-time for playoff points in one season. He is behind only Freer who had 23 points in the 1999 season. Locke is also the AHL's points leader for this Calder Cup race.

Matt Beaudoin's four points (2-2=4) tied the Aeros' all-time playoff record. This has happened twice before, the last time being in 2001 when Shawn Carter got a goal and three assists.

"I think it was his best game of the year for us," Kevin Constantine said. "He’s been a real nice addition to our power play, but tonight he was also a really good five-on-five player, he did a little of both. It was his best game. It was good to see."

*******************
The Anton Khudobin injury was rather surprising news to those of us in the press box. It was also, it appears, rather surprising news to Constantine and the rest of the coaching staff.

"At some point in the third, I don’t know when," Constantine answered when asked when the injury occurred. "It was during the third, he did play the end of the third injured. It was something the coaching staff didn’t even really know about. But it was brought to our attention that he was hurt, so we had no choice but to put Schaefer in at the end of the game."

And while we're on the subject of goalies, it should be noted that this was the first time that Cory Schneider's ever allowed more than four goals in a playoff game for his career.

"The stat was that prior to this game he’d given up six goals in the third and we had three of them," Hrkac said. "So we knew were good in the third period. We knew we could get to them in the third, and we did that and we got them in overtime."

********************
And I've got a note for Booker, or whatever the hell his name is. Hey, moron, when the goalie's in the net and action is about to start back up again, don't go shouting out his frigging name and trying to grab his attention. As hard as it might be for you to believe, Anton Khudobin's got more important things to focus on that your inane activities.

********************
And to play us out tonight, I thought I would do something a little different and play a song for the Moose. So to help you get over the loss of your 10-game post season winning streak, here's John Lennon with "Nobody Told Me."

Round 3, Game #4: Aeros vs. Manitoba, Some Quick Notes

Sorry for the delay. It's taking us a little extra time to film the video segment -- and Andrew will be posting that in a bit. And I've still got a post for the mothership to write, but...

The Aeros won 5-4 in overtime. Who saw that coming? It was the Matt Beaudoin show tonight, as he was in on four of the five goals with two goals and two assists. Tony Hrkac and Corey Locke also had nice games.

We're not sure what the injury to Anton Khudobin is, though I did see him in the trainer's room after the game. Kevin Constantine told us that Khudobin injured himself sometime in the third, but the coaches weren't even aware of it at the time and didn't know about it until the intermission, at which point, he said, they had no choice but to go with Nolan Schaefer for the overtime.

There'll be more to come later, but I just thought I would go ahead and throw that information out. Make sure to come back in a bit because Andrew will be posting video and all of us will have more informative posts to come.

Observations From The Morning Skate -- The Cliche Edition (with numbers)

Excuse the lateness of this posting, but I was busy with some breaking news for the mothership. That said, I’ll just combine the observations from the morning skate with inside the numbers for just one post.

So…

You’ve already seen the big news from the Morning Skate about Anton Khudobin getting the start tonight at goal for Houston. Kevin Constantine said it was nothing that Nolan Schaefer did wrong, but more that Khudobin is the guy who has gotten the wins for the team in the playoffs.

“We’re going back to Anton. He’ll start tonight,” Constantine said. “We really, with Anton in the playoffs, didn’t have a lot of choices because the other goalies were hurt. Then you get back to where Nolan and Barry are healthy and you start to have choices and the decisions get harder. We’d gone into our last game having won only one of our last five, so we thought we would try something so we tried Nolan. He didn’t play a bad game. He didn’t make some big saves in some situations where we needed big saves, but at the same time we gave up really, really high quality chances that you wouldn’t look at those as goalie mistakes but as we gave up too big a chances. We don’t think he played bad. At the same time, Anton seems to be the guy who’s gotten wins in the playoffs for us, so we’re going back to him.”

As for this being the ultimate do-or-die game for the Aeros, Tony Hrkac, while apologizing, went with the clichés. “You take it period by period,” he said. “I know it’s all of the old clichés, shift by shift, but our backs are against the wall so we have to take it like that. That’s got to be our mentality. We’ve got to play our game. Play hard. Play smart. We really have to do things right because they’re a good team. Any mistakes and we’re done.”

Constantine isn’t even looking at it as one game at a time or just winning a period. To him, none of that matters. “When you start worrying about wins and losses you’re way ahead of yourself,” he said. “You’ve got to get into the process that turns you into a winner and focus on that.”

And the process is one of learning from game to game and applying the good things from the last game to the next game while cutting back on the bad things. “All we’ve talked about is how have the first three games gone,” he said. “What did we learn from the first three games, how did Game Three go as opposed to Game Two, and what did we learn from Game Three. All of those things trying to prepare us to do our best job in Game Four. That’s all we’ve talked about.”

As for the guys during the skate, they looked loose. They didn’t appear uptight, and they didn’t appear worried about tonight’s game. They worked on their shots. Khudobin and Schaefer worked on blocks and rebounds.

Danny Irmen says he’s trying not to focus on Manitoba: “They’re an experienced team, and a lot of them have been here before. We’ve just got to worry about ourselves and not worry about them. We’ve got to focus on what we’ve got to do right.”

As to the actual game, Hrkac says it all comes down to the first period: ‘We have to have a good first period. Tie it at least.”

I think Mr. Hrkac has been looking at the numbers, because, while kind of bleak, the numbers speak truth. Manitoba is 9-0 when it scores first, and it is 7-0 when it has the lead after the first period. The Aeros are 1-7 when they let the other team score first, and they are a miserable 0-8 when trailing after the first. But if the Aeros can get the lead or a tie at the end of the first, they’re 8-1.

So forget all of the other numbers. The numbers at the end of the first period are all that matters. If Houston can get on the board first and at least hold it to a tie, then they just might be able to pull out at least one game of the series. Otherwise, it’s all over.

Pre-game Media Roundup; Hrkac article in the Pio-Press

Here's a good article about Tony Hrkac in the St. Paul Pioneer Press today. What a genius addition to the team that guy has been.

From Winnipeg:

• In the Winnipeg Sun, we learn a little about Jason Krog, who really can't retire soon enough for my taste. Unless we want to sign him for next year. Then he's awesome and should play for another 10 years. Otherwise, he's just a pain in the ass, especially in the playoffs.
• And here's the Moose wallowing in the admittedly impressive glory of a 10 game win streak in the playoffs.
• The Freep reporters will be live-blogging the game tonight. Great idea.

From Houston:

• Andrew's game preview in the Chron. Really? Anton may start?
  

Round 3, Game #3 -- Aeros vs. Moose -- Photos Part II

A few more from game 3, Clayton Stoner.

Marco Rosa

Mitch Love

Cory Schneider

Tony Hrkac

Matt Kassian and Maxime Fortunus

Mitch Love

Robbie Earl

All Photos:Fred Trask

Observations From The Morning Skate -- The Power Dancers Edition

"This is great," Tony Hrkac said this morning. "This is unbelievable. It’s a great bunch of guys. Not too many guys get a chance to do this. When you retire you think oh yeah I can play, I can play…I’ve got a chance to do it, and this has been a terrific experience."

I talked to Tony Hrkac after the morning skate for what I consider to be obvious reasons. He's the old guy on the team who was brought on for his experience, especially his Calder Cup and Stanley Cup experience. So if there's going to be an elder statesmen on the team, some one who's going to be Mr. Serious and keep the guys focused on winning, it's got to be Hrkac.

Well, yeah. Kind of.

The thing is. I don't think the guy can be too serious. He's having too much fun playing hockey, doing what he thought he would never get the chance to do again. And not only is he playing, he's contributing, with nine points (1-8=9) in 10 games.

But that said, one would also think that games like tonight's Game Five with Milwaukee, a game that sends the Aeros to the next around against Manitoba should they win, would be rather routine for a guy like Hrkac who has played on a Stanley Cup winning team as well as a Calder Cup winning team. If there's anyone who doesn't get butterflies in his stomach for a game like this, it would be Hrkac, right?

Well, no.

"Oh yeah. I think you should," Hrkac said about the butterflies and being nervous. "It means you’re into it and ready to play. This is a fun game. But you want to do well, so when you’re nervous a little bit, that’s a good sign."

I don't know how nervous all of the guys are about tonight's game, but they did appear to be having a good time on the ice this morning. Justin Falk is a bit of the comedian. He lets out this loud whoop whenever one of his shots gets close to the net, then he goes into this goofy dance which is part Krys Kolanos and part Marco Rosa. Other guys are banging around or trying to get the pucks into the stands. So if this morning is any indication, they're not gripping the stick too hard.

"You know their backs are against the wall," Hrkac said of Milwaukee. "They’re going to come out flying, so you just have to match or be better than them. We know we can play well. We know we can beat this team, but it’s going to have to be our best game. They’re going to come out flying. They’re a good team. They’re just not going to give it to us. We can’t go out there squeezing our sticks and being overly nervous and not making good plays or mental mistakes. It’s still the same game, but probably a little higher tempo. You’ve got to keep guys relaxed a little bit and ready to go."

So based on what I saw this morning, and based on the criteria from Hrkac, I say they're ready to go tonight.

**********************
I've been reading that the Admirals aren't exactly having fun out on the ice. Tuesday night, it was the officiating. Thursday night, it was supposedly the heat and humidity and the condition of the ice. If they didn't like the ice on Thursday, then they're really not going to like it tonight.

The Rockets played a late game last night, which means the ice was covered by the wood floor and stands really late into the night. And I'm sure Toyota Center officials weren't too concerned with keeping it cooled down. The building itself, this morning was warm and very humid, more so than it's been the other times this week.

So I was curious. In the past, I've asked Kevin Constantine about the ice, and how it affects the team, and his response has always been that it affects each team because each team has to play on it and each team has to deal with the humidity. But I got to thinking, the Aeros are used to this, and judging by the statements coming from Milwaukee, they're not used to it, and they're not liking it. So I asked Constantine if this could, actually, be giving the Aeros a special home ice advantage. He said no.

"During the regular season, I think that answer would be a yes because we’d be here and we’re used to it," he said. "But I think when you go into the playoffs with both teams spending an equal time in each city you’re all under the same conditions. So I don’t think it’s as much an advantage in the playoffs."

As for the game tonight, Constantine, who despite the wins hasn't been entirely pleased with his team's play, expects Milwaukee to come out on the attack. So he'd like for his guys to respond by becoming the aggressor and attacking the Milwaukee zone instead of laying back on defense.

As to how he wants his team to handle this game with the possibility of playoff advancement just waiting for them, he's also hoping for the team to be attacking. "We just talked about taking an aggressive attitude into the game," he said. "Sometimes you get in these situation, and you just kind of hope it works out because you don’t feel the pressure to make it work out."

********************
The definite scratches for tonight are Dane Crowley, Tomas Mojzis, Jesse Schultz, John Adams, Nolan Schaefer, and Barry Brust. Once again, Albers was skating, and he looked good. I've got nothing to back this up with, but I'd expect to see him back on the ice tonight taking Mojzis's spot. As to Mojzis, Constantine says he is day-to-day but will return before Jesse Schultz.

I talked to Nolan Schaefer briefly. He says his knee is feeling good and he's ready to play. He was frustrated earlier because the rehab wasn't going as expected, but he says he's in good spirits now because the knee doesn't hurt and because the team is winning.

********************
The referee for tonight's game is Jeff Smith. He doesn't believe in blowing the whistle. So who knows who this will help or hurt tonight. That could mean that the Aeros won't get nailed for some of those stupid penalties they like to commit, but it could also mean that the Admirals are just going to whale away on whichever Aero is handy.

********************
As to the photo...I suppose I knew this and forgot, but while waiting for Constantine to emerge from the locker room this morning, I noticed the sign for the Rockets Power Dancers, and it dawned on me that the Aeros share the same locker room with the Power Dancers.

I bet that locker room could tell some stories.

And I'll be back with Inside the Numbers later this afternoon.

Round 1, Game #4 -- Aeros vs.Peoria -- Photos 2

Here are a couple of shots of Matt Climie, he's a big one at 6' 3".

Ms C. has been touting the play of Justin Falk. Here is a big hit on Peoria's Julian Talbot.
Here is the hug from Robbie Earl on the Hrkac goal. You can see Legace is already yelling at the ref.
As the Aeros celebrate, referee Frederick L'Ecuyer explains to Manny Legace that the goal is good.
Anton Khudobin comes across the crease hard to stop the shot of Steve Wagner on the Peoria power play.
Unfortunately, he didn't make a solid stop and Peoria ties the game at 2.
This one was a back breaker. On a shot that looked high and wide, Khudobin got a glove on the puck only to have it flop to the ice behind him and trickle in before he could locate it.
Jesse Schultz gives the shot everything he has, as he stretches out airborne, on the back end of a 2 man penalty. He beats Manny Legace to bring the Aeros back within one goal.

All Photos:Fred Trask

Round 1, Game #4 -- Aeros vs.Peoria -- Photos 1

Just some commentary and a few quick photos tonight, I'll have more tomorrow.

First off, once again Anton was not THE reason the Aeros lost this game but he was not sharp at all and couldn't keep the Aeros in the game. It was clear he was not sharp and not seeing the puck well from very early on. Coach stayed with him a goal too long in my opinion as I would have removed him after the end of the 2nd period since the 3rd Peoria goal was a joke where Anton got a piece of the puck with his glove and then lost all sense of where it was. Unfortunately it was on the ice behind him just sitting there waiting to be knocked in by Peoria. It was one of those goals that just made you sick. But the real story was the rest of the team. Benoit Pouliot was a turnover machine. I swear he turned over the puck more times that the Aeros got the puck on net. The team defense did not take care of business and did not clear away pucks that sat there after the juicy rebounds or they were misplayed by Anton. The offense was disjointed and at least 3 empty nets were missed. It was a team loss for sure. On the way home the family told me it looked like Anton was very upset when he was pulled after a joke of a goal made the score 4-2 Peoria. They said he went directly to the locker room and Coach joined him not long after. Anton, I'm happy that you cared enough to be emotional but you deserved to be pulled.

Tonight I'll give you the good, the bad and the ugly.

The Bad

The first goal was a shocker. Mitch Love was in a bit of a tussle with several Rivermen and I thought for sure there was going to be something developing off of the face off to the left on Khudobin. For that reason, I wasn't watching the net when the goal was actually scored. Since the Aeros are too cheap to show replays in the arena on weekdays there was no replay for those who missed it to see what actually happened. Andrew and John have one theory, the Aeros press release has another. Who knows.

I did catch this shot of Paddock's reaction as it went in. You can just see the puck poking up above the skirt about 3/4 of the way in the net on the near side.

The Ugly

Jesse Schultz and Matt Beaudoin managed to get Manny Legace way out of position and Beaudoin had an completely open net. Unfortunately he never got complete control of the puck and a fantastic scoring opportunity was squandered.

The Good

And finally, the good. Tony Hrkac had a fantastic tip in of a Paul Albers shot to tie the game at one. (See the puck circled in red) Manny went into a crying act with referee Frederick L'Ecuyer but L'Ecuyer was having none of it. It was clearly a good tip in and a great boost to the Aeros when they needed one.

More tomorrow.

All Photos:Fred Trask

Dear Aeros: Letters to the team in response to Thursday's suck-minus performance

Dear Riser,

Please don't come to Houston and bring all your brass friends when we're in a critical stretch. The boys lose their ever loving minds when they know you're in the barn and now's just not the time. Or be a little more ninja-stealth next time.

Also, your big club is done. D.O.N.E. Stop taking our players. They weren't good enough for you when we could afford to be without them. Don't make like they're good enough to save you now, or that you haven't gotten a sufficient look at them. Malarkey. Let one team in this organization have a fighting chance.

Sincerely,
Ms.C

Dear KC & staff,

What was up with those line combinations? The boys looked half the time like they'd never met each other; they didn't have a clue what their linemates were doing; there was no chemistry whatsoever. I imagine you were trying to spark something there, but yeesh. No mas.

To wit, Madsen on the fourth line with Jay and Mitch is just ... it's just... just awful. Please stop it.

Respectfully,
Ms.C

Dear Brusty,

Oh sweet mercy, how nice it was to have your puck playing, poke checking, player whacking self back on the ice. I've missed you so much.

Now look, we're both goalies here so we can be honest with each other, right? Dude, you were Mr. Delayed Reaction last night. Gotta chug those Red Bulls or whatever and get moving out there. We'll chalk it up to rust. But please don't think that was good enough.

The glove hand got going, though (show off). And the insane poke check attempt... ahhh... I know it didn't work exactly like you planned, but it's one of my favorite guilty pleasures when you pull crazy ass moves like that. It's like eating one of those Monte Cristo sandwiches. It's messy and you shouldn't do it and it may cause a heart attack but it's just slap-yer-mama delicious.

Your comrade in big, swinging sticks,
Ms.C

Dear Rejean,

I got you a t-shirt. ;)

Most sincerely,
Ms.C

Dear Benny,

The brass is in the house and that's what you give 'em? Ya just gotta protect that puck better. And where was the hitting and toughness and ferocity you've shown over the last couple of months?

Lookit -- I know it sucks that KK got called up and you didn't, but this team needs you to hunker down and focus and bring the noise. Be a pro, Ben. Play like the NHLer you think you should be. Use your teammates. Don't be a cowboy. You're better than this.

Cheering you on but ready to throw you under the bus if you keep playing like last night,
Ms.C

Dear Equipment Fellas,

Thanks for putting the boys in the darks. That was really nice.

Take care,
Ms.C

Dear Tony,

Sorry I doubted you. That goal last night was sick sick sick. I can only imagine the cred you have with your team back home as they watch you take this challenge on and succeed.

Keep it up,
Ms.C

Dear Brennan Evans,

Spearing (attempt)? Ha ha! Next time you cost your team 4 minutes in the box, you might actually want to connect with your victim, tough guy.

FU,
Ms.C

Dear Nolan,



Yours in puck stoppage,
Ms.C

Oh damn, I just remembered I was given license to drop all the f-bombs I wanted in my post-game and I dropped nary a one.

But if last night's "level of compete," as KC says, continues through the weekend, I'll make up for it. Hockey scouts and sailors will blush. Chuck Norris will cry. Don Cherry will wear a t-shirt and jeans. You don't want that on your doorstep, boys.

Aeros v. Rockford 3/27 - Photos Part 1

It was Lyme Disease Awareness night and it was good to see the guys support Nolan Schaefer and his wife Lisa in their fight against the disease and to educate the public (as well as doctors) about Lyme Disease. Please take a trip over to Unmask Lyme and educate yourself. You'd be wise to read the horrific story of Lisa's struggle with the disease, the horrors she went through in getting it properly diagnosed, and her struggle to cope with this terrible disease. Keep Nolan and Lisa in your prayers.

Unfortunately Nolan had a slight injury tonight and didn't get the start. Here you can see he has his entire stick wrapped in the green tape the team used to show their support. Several players kept some tape on themselves or gear throughout the game.

Here is a shot of Brandon Rogers - The Aeros finalist for the AHL Man of the Year. It would have been nice if someone from the Aeros had informed Brandon of this honor. Congratulations and good luck in your bid to win the Yanick Dupre Memorial Award Brandon

Benoit Pouliot has really turned it on since his return from the NHL. He's been very physical, hit the score sheet regularly and his play has been notably better. Great job Benoit, your hard work is definately being noticed.

Anton Khudobin had a great night. He was outstanding in the shoot out and one of the biggest reasons the Aeros were able to get a point out of this one. Here he is locked in on a shot from Rockford's Tim Hambly

This one made a funny sound when it hit his stick and I thought perhaps the stick had broken.

Antti Niemi had a big night for Rockford after an easy first period.

Here is the Albers goal reaction from Pouliot, Kolanos, Niemi and Hambly.

This is the Robbie Earl goal that put the Aeros up 2-1 in the 3rd period.

There was discussion on some of the calls made, and not made, by Nygel Pelletier in this one. Here you can see a "no call" of what I think is a pretty clear holding offense by Robbie Earl.

Literally 2 seconds later Earl was hit with a goaltender interference for this. (Forgive the focus on this one it's a crap photo but it still clearly shows there was no penalty) He was skating through the top of the crease and Niemi clearly steps up into him, obstructs him with the stick and sticks his leg out. If there was ANY penalty to call here it was on Niemi. My guess is this was a make up call for not calling the obvious hold.

Earl pleads his case, to no avail.

This was the "no call" on Schultz. It looked to me like there was a penalty to be called here but I've not watched it on TV yet to see for sure, it could have been a good no call though. In any case, Schultz showed great effort to stay with the puck and make the play here.

And here is a Tony Hrkac for the Circus Hrkac crowd.

I'll have more photos later, especially some fantastic shoot out saves.

All Photos:Fred Trask