A great NFL coach once said in a rant in front of a scrum of reporters - "You play to win the game!  You play to win the game...!" and he went on and on with this rant.  Certainly if you've watched any TSN, you've seen this rant.  It was a classic and still one of my favourites ever by a coach.  But the point was duly noted. 

The Eastman Selects followed a winning blueprint on Wednesday night, when they played behind enemy lines in Kenora.  They battled hard, skated hard, were disciplined committing only 4 infractions and made their opponents pay on the powerplay as they went 3 for 7.  And ultimately they won the game... They played to win the game.  

Vs Brandon Wheat Kings

Fast forward to Friday night, the Selects hosted the Brandon Wheat Kings and deviated greatly from what has brought them any success this year.  The game was a chippy penalty filled affair as a combined 108 minutes in penalties were assessed by the officials, including 2 majors, 2 ten minute misconducts, 3 game misconducts and 4 unsportsmanlike conducts as well as a bunch of roughing and hit to the head penalties. 

The Selects were still in a position to win as the score was tied at 1 (on a pp goal by Mistelbacher) after two periods of play.  But with 12 minutes to go, the score still tied at 1, the Selects took 5 consecutive penalties which ultimately sealed their fate.  When the dust cleared, the Wheat kings were able to convert on one of two 5 on 3 man advantages against the Selects in the last ten minutes of the game, to propel them to 3 – 1 victory.

On Saturday afternoon, at Gateway, the Selects would have to play a real disciplined brand of hockey to compete against the East division second place Thrashers team, which had beaten them 3 times this season.  

Vs Winnipeg Thrashers

The Selects came out skating strong and played hard against the Thrashers on Sunday, not giving them an inch, staying disciplined in both their defensive zone system and staying out of the box.  When they took their lone penalty in the first, the PK unit was strong and goaltender Miner made some saves for his squad.

Seemingly satisfied with a 0 – 0 first period, the Selects came out in the second and reverted back to taking penalties and a parade to the box ensued.  They held the Thrashers at bay until 11:48 of the second, but the Thrashers, who are not the Wheat Kings, moved the puck crisply and quickly on the powerplay and converted 4 seconds into their first powerplay in the second. They followed up with an even strength marker and then another powerplay goal on a 5 – 3 advantage to take a 3 – 0 lead into the break.  The Selects took 5 minors from the 11:52 mark on, in the second.

In the third, the Selects came out as if they had had the wind taken out of their sails.  They gave up 2 more even strength goals, but did manage a powerplay marker late by Brody Anthony to make it a 5 – 1 final.  The Selects finished the game 1 for 3 on the powerplay and the Thrashers were 2 – 7 on their own man advantage.  The Selects were outshot 44 – 17.

The Selects will look to get back to playing a winning brand of hockey on the weekend as they take on the Pembina Valley Hawks on Sunday afternoon at 2pm at the Sun Gro Centre.  In the words of that future Hall of fame NFL coach, lets hope that the Selects come out on Sunday “to play to win the game!”.   

The Eastman Selects drove out to Kenora for a tilt with the Thistles last night.  The Selects powerplay was clicking as they went 3 for 7 (43%) on the man advantage.  They were also a disciplined bunch last night, only taking 4 minor penalties in this game, and killing them all.  In today's game, with way more penalties being called by the officials, winning the specialty teams battle, more often then not, will generate success, as it did last night for the Selects as they eked out a victory 4 - 3 in the shootout. 

The Selects welcomed back forward Evan Hansen after several weeks on the shelf.  He took little time letting his mates know he was out there as he scored 3 minutes into the first period on a play by Troy Blad, to give the Selects an early lead.  The Selects had no issues with bus legs as they came out fast, skated hard and managed 10 shots on goal in the first (Thistles had 9).  Friesen got the nod between the pipes for the Selects and was steady throughout the game, turning aside 26 of 29 shots fired his way. 

In the second, the Selects gave up an even strength marker at 15:36 of the period to tie the game up.  The Selects continued to play their game, pressuring the Thistles into taking penalties and capitalizing on the powerplay.  At 12:08 of the second, Troy Blad scored his 8th of the season, on the pp, from Smith and Magne, to give the Selects their one goal lead back.  The Selects continued to push the Thistles in the second as they outshot them 15 - 7.  But with a mere two minutes left in the period, Kenora tied it up, on a short handed goal.   

Heading into the third, with the game tied at 2, the Selects had played a good road game and were looking to seal the deal and earn a road win.  In this period the Selects were outshot 12 - 8 and gave up a goal at 14:09, giving up the lead for the first time in the game.  Once again, the Selects battled through the adversity, drew a penalty and were able to tie it up, less than 2 minutes later, on a goal by Riley Welsh, from Tetrault and Anthony, to lock this game up at 3.

 Overtime solved nothing and the Selects were headed to a shootout.  It has not been kind to the Selects this season as the team is 0 - 2 in the games settled in this fashion.  However, Tanner Friesen was able to stop all three Kenora shooters and Juice Baudry, playing in his third game since returning from injury, was able to get a slick one by the Thistles tender to give the Selects the extra point in the standings.

The Selects will look to carry the momentum from this victory into Friday night, as they take on the Brandon Wheat Kings at the Sun Gro Centre at 8 pm.  Friday night is NOISE NIGHT, so lets all join in the festivities and cheer on your Eastman Selects!