|
Cover
News | blog
Music | blog
Lazy I
Film | blog
Theater | blog
Art | blog
Sports
Lifestyle | blog
Dish | blog
Books | blog
Culture
8 Days
Heartland Healing
Hoodoo Blues
MoJoPo
News of the Weird
Television
Letters
|
|
|
Home - Cover Stories
|
Omaha's Two Top Hockey Teams Look to Blast Their Competition
|
Omaha Lancers
return to Omaha
by Brian S. Allen
For seven years the Lancers have made their home at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs. Upon that jump across the river, the Lancers re-branded and called themselves River City Lancers. To my surprise, only two years later the team reclaimed its original name. And now, finally, our boys are back in town.
Omaha’s Civic Auditorium (luckily without a gaudy sponsor’s name attached to it) will be the first-class facility the revamped Omaha Lancers call home. This location is arguably the best hockey barn in the area and will come alive regularly with the roar of new and old dedicated fans. That was the case last Saturday for the home opener against the Tri City Storm, where the Lancers won, 3-1. Ticket officials had said 4,066 seats would sell out the place. Opening face-off was pushed back 15-minutes to accommodate a crowd of 4,399.
Did you know the Omaha Lancers have earned 13 championships, more than any other USHL (United States Hockey League) franchise?
In a recent phone interview with second-year Coach Bliss Littler, I asked if he could describe the team in three words. He took the few seconds any leader would, then responded: “Fast, skilled, and optimistic.” Now, this is a great combo to think about. Fast on skates is one thing, but skilled enough to be dangerous is another. After talking with Littler, I’m sure the attitude comes from the top down. Bliss Littler is not just a coach, but a teacher and mentor.
With over two decades of coaching experience, Littler knows he has to find a balance to keep these kids (USHL age group is typically 16-20) focused, not only building their hockey skills, but also their character as citizens and soon-to-be college student athletes.
“The team needs to be disciplined on and off the ice,” he said. “They need to have fun and enjoy their host families. These guys make a lot of sacrifices and it is hard because when it stops being fun they stop getting better. I can not suck out the fun for them.”
Compared to a year ago, the 2009-10 team has a more veteran group.
“We expect to be able to score goals and be more disciplined than last year,” Littler said.
The staff is also excited about the newcomers and thinks they can have an immediate impact.
Erik Haula, from Pori, Finland, was first to answer the call this week. Haula received a pass from Joe Lavin in the second period and scored the first goal in the Lancers’ home opener. Haula was a seventh-round selection of the Minnesota Wild and tallied five goals in five preseason games. Second-year Lancer and co-captain, hailing from Camarillo, Calif., Troy Power scored the next goal, and newcomer Stefan Demopoulos (Avon, Conn.) scored the third goal in the victory.
Matt White, a forward from Whittier, California, in his third year as a Lancer, was recently voted an alternative captain by his teammates. White is the highest returning scorer with 47-points (17 goals, 30 assists) from last year, so expect bigger numbers from him. In his rookie year, White tallied 10-points (2 goals, 8 assists) in the 13 postseason games and helped the Lancers win the Clark Cup. Local fans will be happy that White, with forward Nick Oddo, will stick around; both are committed to join the UNO Mavericks.
Another youngster everybody expects to see great things from is Seth Ambroz (New Prague, Minn., and brother of Matt Ambroz of the UNO Mavericks). Ambroz played in all 60 games last year and was the youngest player in the league. At 16, Ambroz may still be the youngest of the Lancers, but isn’t the smallest. At 6’3” and 205-pounds, Ambroz is known to stand toe to toe with the toughest, and has a rocket for a shot.
“He’s a freak,” Littler told NHL.com. “He’s a special kid. To think he started on our third line last year and ended up on the top line with Louis Leblanc and Pat Mullane. He’s on one of our top two power-play units and he’s killing penalties.”
At goaltender, returning veteran Jeff Teglia (Bloomingdale, Ill.) anchors a stronger, more experienced defense. In the home opener, Teglia stopped 25 of 26-shots from the Storm. Defensive player and co-captain CJ Ludwig (Dallas, Texas, son of former NHL player Craig Ludwig), returns for a second year along with Joe Lavin (Shrewsbury, Mass.), Dennis Brown (Cypress, Calif.), and Mike Chiasson (Henderson, Nev.). Like the offensive unit, the defense is not without young prospects that can have an immediate impact. Mathieu Brisson, (Longueuil, Quebec) is committed to Cornel University. “We are really excited about him,” said Littler.
Overall, the Lancers have 15 of 26 players committed to universities at this time.
“We expect every kid on the team will get a scholarship at some point,” said Littler.
As the Lancer organization, the USHL, and local host families help shape the future of these young players, we, the fans, will support the premier junior level league hockey team as they battle it out in the heart of downtown Omaha.
Welcome home Omaha Lancers.
The USHL, governed by USA Hockey, is the only Tier 1 junior league in America. 1290 AM KKAR will be the new radio home of the Lancers with Lancers’ broadcaster Dan Fremuth to have all the action whether the team is at home or on the road. For more information, visit the web at ushl.com. For tickets and discount information visit lancers.com or call 344.PUCK.
UNO Mavericks
Blais-ing a trail in Omaha
by Adam Froemming
Perhaps you’ve been living off the land in Appalachia, or otherwise out of communication with the world during the past four months. You’d have no clue that a major change in command occurred within the athletic department at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Movin’ on up is former hockey head coach Mike Kemp, who sits at the administrative table as Associate Athletic Director, and back into the fold is Don Leahy, who returns to 60th and Dodge as one of three Associate ADs. Oh, and the gentleman at the head of the table? That’s Trev Alberts. With equal parts charm, charisma and good ol’ fashioned Nebraska elbow grease, he’s trying to get the Maverick ship sailing straight after years of neglect and scandal.
Next comes the matter of the hockey team. More specifically, if Kemp’s not running the show … well then, who is?
That new mug behind the bench belongs to Dean Blais. If you believe local media accolades, Blais is the Roy Williams or Mike Krzyzewski of college hockey.
While Joe Sportsfan might not know Blais (pronounced: blaze), his resume speaks for itself. He took the University of North Dakota to seven NCAA Tournament appearances in 10 years, winning a pair and finishing runner-up on another occasion. He also spent 2004-07 on the bench with the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League, and the past two seasons with the Fargo Force of the United States Hockey League, taking them to the Clark Cup Finals in their first year.
Five years removed from his last college coaching gig, and Blais isn’t missing a beat.
“I’m pretty excited about coaching here in Omaha,” Blais said. “Every level of coaching is different, going from North Dakota to Columbus then back to juniors to work with younger players and now here at UNO. We’ve got a lot of good kids here and I’m looking forward to working with them.”
In Blais’ corner is something that his predecessor Kemp seemingly struggled with at times, full support from the administration to make hockey the flagship sport at UNO. As one of UNO’s ‘Four Horsemen’, Blais feels a special connection to the administration that’s giving him tools needed to secure the Mavericks among the nation’s elite hockey programs.
“You look at a guy like Don (Leahy) as someone who was the driving force behind starting this program over a decade ago and has invested so much here,” Blais said. “You add in Mike (Kemp) has been such a big help for me coming in and toss in Trev (Alberts) who’s been probably the best athletic director that I’ve ever worked for and it’s just been a great transition.”
One of those tools is an on-campus facility. Long-rumored for the former Chili Greens Golf Course near 63rd and Center, the project appears to be moving along with the recent announcement of the fundraising for a feasibility study.
“The Qwest is a great place for hockey,” Blais said. “But to have our own on-campus arena would be great as well. We’re really happy where we’re at, but our own rink would make scheduling practice a lot easier, and then there are the little things you get as well, like controlling revenues and advertising.”
A large part of coaching the college ranks is recruiting. While Omaha has thousands of passionate hockey fans, it’s not quite considered a hotbed for recruiting players. That still falls with states like Minnesota, Michigan and the New England area, where kids seemingly are born with skates latched to their feet.
If there’s one thing Blais knows, it’s finding talented players. Among his star pupils at North Dakota were NHL stars Eddie Belfour, Jason Blake, James Patrick and Zach Parise. Blais welcomes the challenge of convincing kids to skate in the River City, and isn’t afraid to dig to find the right players who will become the next NHL stars.
“A lot of recruiting is giving a player an opportunity to play,” Blais said. “Omaha is a great hockey community that supports its teams. Look at the success that the Lancers had for years before UNO added this team into the mix. We’re not close to a lot of traditional hockey markets, so we’re getting kids that are from other non-traditional markets like Texas or California. As the NHL has grown over the years, the footprint of hockey across the country has grown, so you’re finding more and more kids across the country who are playing the sport and growing that pool of players you can recruit from.”
The Mavs opened the 2009-10 campaign Monday night at the Qwest Center Omaha with a 2-1 exhibition win over the University of Lethbridge, a Canadian college barn-storming across the Midwest for a series of exhibition games. Despite out-shooting the Pronghorns at a 36-12 clip, UNO managed just two markers.
“I was happy about us only giving up 12 shots,” Blais said after the game. “We had a lot of chances that we didn’t finish tonight, and we’re going to get better at that as the season progresses.”
One of the biggest things that he’s learned since arriving in Omaha this summer is how much he enjoys living here.
“It’s a really great city,” Blais said. “And I’m fortunate that we’ve got such a great University and support staff. From the assistant coaches to the secretaries to everyone else involved with the school and program.”
UNO opens the regular season with the Mutual of Omaha Icebreaker Tournament this weekend at the Qwest Center Omaha. The Mavericks will face the Army Golden Knights at 7:35 p.m. on Friday, with St. Lawrence and UMass-Lowell battling in the early game at 4:05 p.m. One ticket grants admission for both games. The four teams will trade dance partners and do it all over again on Saturday, with the winners of both games advancing to the championship game at 7:05 p.m., and the losers skating at 4:05 p.m.
|
|
|
|
|
|
