Archive for the ‘Phantoms’ Category

Friday, The Curtis Carr Era was officially kicked into ‘go‘ mode.  Unfortunately for the Youngstown Phantoms, the opponent was the Western Conference leading Omaha Lancers.  The Lancers beat the Phantoms earlier in the week, 6-1, in Omaha.  Much had changed since that game.  Bob Mainhardt was out, Carr was in, and Troy Loney’s son was now a Phantom. 

All of the changes were not a factor as Youngstown dropped their sixth consecutive home game, 4-1.  Matt White had a pair of goals for the Lancers and Jeff Teglia turned away 24 of 25 Phantoms shots to garner the win between the pipes. 

Carr thought that Youngstown played better than they have in awhile.  “We had opportunities to win the game and that is all you can ask for.  I’m very happy with the effort of the guys and they battled until the end.”  In reality, a goal was taken away and a couple of bad breaks were the difference in a very hard-fought game.

Action was fast in the first period.  It seemed like most of the opening stanza was played between the blue lines near center ice.  Matt White, tied for the league lead in goals scored in the USHL coming in, missed a wide open net, but about three minutes later, at the 18:12 mark of the first period, White made up for it.  Erik Haula picked up the assist, his 38th of the season.  For White, it was goal 27 on the season.  At the end of one, the Lancers were ahead of the Phantoms 1-0.

Jiri Sekac appeared to tie the contest after a controversial goal chance at the 9:20 mark of the second period.  Sekac was just on the border of the goal crease and Lancer Goaltender Jeff Teglia was close to having possession of the puck when Sekac knocked it barely over the line.  The goal was not allowed after a five-minute delay and discussion as the referee, Boone Bruggman, ruled the play was dead before Sekac got the puck over the line.

Dan Senkbeil couldn’t handle a puck cleared to center with 4:56 left in the second period, and as a result White had his second goal of the game, a beautiful breakaway that beat Jordan Tibbett.  Seth Ambroz picked up the assist on White’s 28th of the season which put Omaha up 2-0.  The pair of goals by White broke a tie atop the USHL Goal Leaders with Green Bay’s Anders Lee and in all probability was enough to claim the top spot in that category.

Omaha’s Teglia opened the third period looking for his fourth shutout of the season having stymied the Phantoms to this point of the game.  With 11:42 left in the game, the former Pittsburgh Hornet, Dylan Margonari, collected his first Phantoms goal to cut the lead to 2-1, breaking up Teglia’s shutout bid.  Cody Strang got an assist on the goal.

A minute later, the Lancers reclaimed the two-goal lead and went up 3-1 when Tom Craig snuck a short drive past Tibbett off of a faceoff.  Camden Wojtala was credited with an assist.

With 6:03 left in the game, Omaha pushed their lead to 4-1 as Seth Ambroz’s wrist shot snuck in just under the crossbar.  Dakota Eveland and Greg Wolfe were given assists on the score, an even-strength tally.

The Phantoms (15-28-2) were outshot by the Lancers (31-12-3), 30-25.  The two teams will reset the scoeboard and face off again on Saturday.

Richard Yound Tilt-O-Meter:

Coming into 2-19 game vs Omaha:  149 penalty minutes (USHL leader).

After 2-19 game vs Omaha:  151 penalty minutes.

Richard Young barely played Friday night, but still managed to head to his Summer home for a couple of minutes.  Young picked up a two-minute minor for boarding in the second period.

Alex Zoldan announced on Tuesday that Coach Bob Mainhardt and the Youngstown Phantoms have parted ways.  The seperation seems to be mutual.  If the situation were an outright firing, the Phantoms surely would have selected someone other than Mainhardt’s right-hand guy for the past four years, Curt Carr, to replace him.  Further proof that Mainhardt was not hastily sent packing is the fact he will remain a consultant to the team.

“In a situation like this, you really learn who your true friends are.  I am grateful to have met so many hockey fans and to have had the opportunity to work with such a great bunch of people.  I am also thankful to the Zoldan family for allowing me the opportunity.  I would have hoped this had ended a little differently, it’s not what I envisioned”, said Mainhardt Thursday morning via telephone.

Having interviewed Mainhardt after every home game, I gained alot of respect for the way he conducted himself both on and off the ice.  There were no gimmicks or surprises, no bells and whistles, and the only mystery was what kind of entertaining quote he would furnish after a game.  I can only hope that he is well and he is to be commended for his efforts this season.

Things haven’t been right since this new decade started.  The Phantoms are 2-13-0 in the year of 2010.  No one is sure why things have gone so sour, so quickly.  Mainhardt was often quoted after a loss as saying, “There are still guys not buying into the system and doing their own things”.  Seems like Mainhardt may have grown tired of selling.

Phantoms President, Alex Zoldan, commented on the move Friday.  “I consider Bob [Mainhardt] a very good friend and I think he has a bright future in the hockey business.  Seven years with any organization is a long time and I think we needed a fresh start.  We’re still working together on some things and I have all the respect in the world for Bob.”

Curt Carr, the former Director of Player Development, has been named the new coach on an interim basis.  Carr is plenty capable and surely has mixed emotions about the opportunity.  The Phantoms have 16 games remaining on the schedule and have pretty much been eliminated from thoughts of a postseason.

Good luck to Coach Carr in his new role!  Big thanks to Bob Mainhardt for being a good guy and a person some people could learn a thing or two from about life.

The Youngstown Phantoms went into their crucial matchup with Waterloo in an unfamiliar place, last. For the first time all season, the Phantoms were in the basement, trailing Team USA by two points. The Phantoms are 1-10-0 in 2010 and if they lost one or even both games to Waterloo, the postseason could be very hard to reach.  The time was perfect to make a push.

Waterloo was in playoff position before this one started and did nothing to hurt their standing. The Black Hawks earned a hard-fought 3-1 victory to send the reeling Phantoms to their sixth consecutive loss.

The Phantoms and Black Hawks skated a scoreless first period. Waterloo took ten shots against Jordan Tibbett and Youngstown had nine stopped by CJ Motte.  The play was physical as both teams were hitting hard.

In the second period, Taylor Holstrom put the Phantoms in front 1-0 with his eleventh of the season.  The goal came at the 9:43 mark as Holstrom connected at even-strength.

Tyler Barnes picked up an unassisted powerplay goal that tied the contest.  For Barnes, it was goal number 20 on the year.  The Phantoms had just finished wiping out a two-man Black Hawks advantage and yielded the goal down one skater.

With 9:57 left in the game, Derek Arnold slid a shot through the crease and into the twine past Tibbett whose momentum was taking him away from the direction the puck was headed.  Brock Montpetit made the cross-crease pass and was awarded an assist on the beautiful feed that gave Waterloo a 2-1 lead.

Arnold got an empty netter, officially his second of the game, with 30 seconds left in the game to close the scoring with Waterloo ahead 3-1.  The Phantoms took 33 shots as compared to Waterloo’s 31.

Richard Young Tilt-O-Meter:

Into Waterloo 2/5 Game: 126 Penalty Minutes (USHL Leader).

After 2/5 Waterloo Game: 130 Penalty Minutes.

Young had a couple of games he missed due to injury.  He pretty much was not allowed to fight against Team USA 17 & Under and had not played many minutes in recent contests.  Young snagged a two-minute minor for elbowing in the second.  In the third period, Young got another minor for a delay of game penalty.  Four minutes, modest night.

When an outsider meets a guy like Curtis Carr, they usually scratch their head and wonder what exactly he does for the Youngstown Phantoms.  His official title in the media guide is Associate Coach / Director of Player Development.  To actually talk with him about his role with the team unveils so much more about what it is that prompts this blog to say that Carr is underpaid.

For as open and forthright as Bob Mainhardt is, you would think he would pick someone with the verbage to alleviate his public headaches.  Coach Carr is the first to admit that he is not a talker, especially to the public sector.  Yet, to have a conversation with Carr was surprisingly refreshing and not at all what I expected.  He hides his intelligence and his emotions but came off as very articulate and passionate about hockey.

Paneech:  As the Director of Player Development for a team in a developmental league, what exactly do you do?

Carr: I help out with the scouting in the offseason. As far as the guys that are here, I work with them before and after practice on their individual skills. I also monitor their off time as far as weight training, dealing with the kids that are in school as far as their academics, and keep track of their transcripts to send to recruiting colleges.  I also maintain profiles for the players for pro scouts.  I also review videotape with the team and players individually so they can pinpoint the things they need to work on.

Paneech:  What is the best thing so far about this year as well as the worst thing.

Carr: The best thing about this year is being in this league [USHL].  It’s been pretty impressive to work with kids at this talent level.  We have a great bunch of guys in our locker room that want to make something of themselves and they really work hard.  The most negative thing about this year is the current losing streak that we are on, but I think we are close to getting it turned around.

Paneech:  Being a married man, how does this all play out with the wife at home?

Carr:  I’m really fortunate, my wife met me when I was already doing this so she knew what she was getting into.  She is a teacher and very passionate about her job so she understands my passion for this.  When I go home, I try my hardest to shut this off and focus on my life away from hockey.  Usually, I will come home three nights a week and concentrate on the things I should at home.  I go to dinners and the movies, you know, just things to let her know that I care about her.

Paneech:  Talk about your one-game suspension.

Carr:  It was my first penalty as a coach. We were in Waterloo and the refs made a couple of questionable calls late in the game that I disagreed with.  I let my opinion be known after the game and got penalized for it.

Paneech: I know Coach Mainhardt wears his heart on his sleeve.  You seem much more reserved, how is the chemistry between the two of you?

Carr: I’ve worked with Bob [Mainhardt] for four years and consider him a very good friend.  We do have alot of the same opinions and similar feelings on things, but you are right he does wear his heart on his sleeve and can be a little more animated than I am.  He is very emotional and uses that to get the players going.  I hide in the back and take a couple of deep breaths before I speak, and I just say things in a different matter.  Good cop, bad cop would be a good way to put it.

Whatever the method, and regardless of the record, Carr and Mainhardt make a very strong tandem that will hopefully anchor this franchise for years to come.

Matt Gajtka, the Director of Media Relations for the Phantoms also speaks highly of Coach Carr.  “Curt is a very quiet guy until you get to know him.  Once you break through that exterior, you meet a quality individual who is genuine and concerned with the players in all phases of their lives, as well as hockey.  He does a great job on helping them as they try to get to the next level.”

The Youngstown Phantoms got embarrassed on their home ice Friday in dropping an 8-1 decision to Sioux Falls.  The Stampede beat the Phantoms in every phase of that game.  As Classic Rock legends Foreigner once sang, That Was Yesterday, and Sunday offered fresh zeroes on the scoreboard.

Unfortunately for the home team, the zeroes turned into bad numbers again.  The goals scored section read Sioux Falls 8, Youngstown 3.  The shots on goal column for Sioux Falls had a 38 underneath it, too many quality attempts for the Phantoms to give to a high-powered juggernaut like the Stampede.

The Phantoms got a goal from Taylor Holstrom (above) at the 9:35 mark of the first period.  Both teams had a man in the penalty box, so it was an even-strength chance.  Brett Gensler picked up an assist as the Phantoms took the 1-0 lead, quite a contrast from Friday when they were down 3-0 at this point.

Sioux Falls tied it up as Michael Voran connected when Matt Lindblad’s shot deflected off of Phantoms Goalkeeper Matt Mahalak.  Voran was in the right place at the right time as he picked up the easy goal.

Matt Zarbo gave Sioux Falls the lead when he connected on an assist from Voran just about a half-minute later handing Sioux Falls a 2-1 lead.

Matt Farris connected just 18 seconds later, and just like that, the Phantoms had dug themselves a hole at the end of the first period and trailed 3-1 at the intermission.  Sioux Falls took the big lead scoring three quick goals in the last 1:19 of the frame.

At the 9:09 mark of the second period, the Phantoms broke into the Sioux Falls zone with a three-on-two advantage.  Jefferson Dahl unloaded the puck to Ryan Jasinsky who nailed the shot from in between the faceoff circles, beating Stampede netminder Clay Witt (top photo).  The goal shrunk the Sioux Falls lead to 3-2.

Conor Allen pushed the Stampede margin back to two goals when he scored from in between the circles. The goal came with 5:38 left in the second period and anytime the Phantoms seemed to gain a little momentum it was yanked away.

Linblad got his second point of the game when he took a rebound and stuffed it past Mahalak.  For Linblad, it was his twelfth goal of the season.  The powerplay goal was scored with 1:19 left in the second. Voran and Anthony Day picked up assists.  After two periods, Youngstown trailed Sioux Falls, 5-2.

Clark Cristofoli drilled a slapshot past Mahalk from the farthest part of the right faceoff circle.  The goal came at the 2:34 mark of the final period.  Jacob Johnstone was credited with an assist on Cristofoli’s second goal of the season.  Sioux Falls seemed to be having all of the fun again as they opened the lead to four goals at 6-2, their largest margin on the afternoon.

With 15:18 left in the game, the Stampede struck again as Josh Holmstrom let loose at an empty net. Mahalak dove right to stop a shot seconds earlier and Holmstrom was able to buzz it by before the Phantoms goaltender could reload to make it 7-2.  With 11:31 left, Holmstrom again hit the twine to push the lead to 8-2, and the route was on.

Scott Mayfield picked up his seventh goal of the season at the 11:14 mark of the third to ease the sting and make the score 8-3.  Stuart Higgins tallied an assist, his sixth of the year.  Unfortunately, it was the last murmur of the game and when the horn sounded signifying the end, the Phantoms were on the short end of the stick.

Goaltender Clay Witt may want to call Howard Hanna Real Estate to see if there are any homes for sale because he plays well when he hears the word Youngstown.  Witt has only give up four goals in three starts against the Phantoms (14-21-2) this season.

The Phantoms return to the ice Wednesday morning to play defending champion Indiana with a special early start time of 10 AM. 

Cody Strang was named the Reebok USHL Offensive Player of The Week.  Strang recorded the first hat trick in Youngstown Phantoms history against Team USA in a 7-3 triumph.  More impressively, the three goals were scored consecutively. 

Strang has already signed the magic letter to play at The University of Wisconsin following the season.  Strang was dominant in high school and scored 39 goals in his senior year.  Strang is only 19-years-old and seems to have a bright future in the sport of hockey.

Wrist injuries plagued Strang for the early part of the Youngstown Phantoms season and he could be found running video equipment in the pressbox.  Once the wrist started to heal, Strang started resuming his normal practice routines and after a week he was dressed and playing again.  “The wrirst still hurts sometimes.  I am playing through it and it is getting better”, remarked Strang after a recent game.

Look for Strang to continue his offensive run if the Phantoms will be able to make any kind of push down the stretch.

Congratulations Cody Strang!

The Harlem Globetrotters were set to share their magic with Youngstown at The Covelli Centre  on Saturday.  Somehow the script was flipped and the Youngstown Phantoms took on the role of the Washington Generals, the team that was the patsy forced to play the Globetrotters and look foolish in losing badly.  Sioux Falls and Youngstown did their absolute best to provide a Globetrotters vs Generals matchup a night early as the Stampede pounded the Phantoms, 8-1, in front of a large crowd. 

The pregame fireworks left plenty of smoke.  Before the smoke could even clear, Sioux Falls scored a goal. Jacob Johnstone beat Matt Mahalak (see top picture) to a rebound and knocked the puck home to give the visitors the lead at the 16:52 mark.  The Stampede’s Michael Voran and Matt Zarbo picked up assists.

With a small cloud still lingering over the ice, like something from a Charlie Brown Halloween Special, Sioux Falls picked up a second goal. At 14:19 of the first, Voran connected with assists from Matt Linblad and Clark Cristofoli, and the fireworks were just starting.

With 9:39 left in the first period, Johnstone scored his eleventh goal of the season to put the Stampede up 3-0.  Matt Bailey picked up the assist.

Just 29 seconds later, the Stampede continued the offensive onslaught.  The larger-than-usual crowd was silenced as their hometown Phantoms looked totally outclassed in the early going and trailed this one 4-0. Coach Bob Mainhardt tried a switch between the pipes, switching to Jordan Tibbet, as Mahalak was ineffective.  The fourth goal was scored by Anthony Day with assists from Ryan Misiak and George Michalke.

Sioux Falls connected for a powerplay goal with 2:47 remaining.  Conor Allen connected on a nice pass from Johnstone who recorded his third point of the first period.  The five goals scored against the Phantoms were a season high.

The first period would mercifully come to a close with Youngstown trailing Sioux Falls, 5-0. The Phantoms were outshot 14-5 and of the 14 Sioux Falls shots, better than 33% resulted in goals.

Sioux Falls picked up where they left off to start the second period as Day picked up his second goal of the game, a powerplay chance.  The goal was scored with 16:43 left in the second period and Michalke and Chad Ruhwedel gathered a point each for assists.  With 5:26 the Stampede got their seventh unanswered goal.   Jamie Oleksiak recorded his first of the season, assisted by Linblad.

Another powerplay goal came with 7:24 left in the game.  Sioux Falls used only five seconds of a man advantage to find the net.  Linblad and Voran piled up their stats with an assist each. 8-0 Stampede.

Luke Eibler got the Phantoms on the scoreboard and broke up the shutout bid of Stampete Goaltender Clay Witt with 2:22 left in the game.  Adam Berkle nabbed an assist on the goal which made the score 8-1.  The Phantoms were outshot 27-21 but the shots on goal were not the difference, the pace and play went the way of Sioux Falls.

After the game, a dejected Coach Mainhardt said this one hurt.  “There will be some changes.  I did not have these guys prepared tonight.  I have been cutting corners as I coach and try to make exceptions and that never works out well, so I have learned a pretty important lesson here this season.”

The Phantoms get another crack at Sioux Falls on Sunday, the puck drops at 3:00 PM, see you there!

The Youngstown Phantoms don’t want to come off as an unpatriotic group of people, but they broke a six-game winless streak and set records of a positive nature in their destruction of Team USA, 7-3.  Cody Strang (pictured) collected the first hat trick in Phantoms history as the home team scored seven unanswered goals to post their first win of 2010.

The Phantoms had lost to the 18 & under version of Team USA, 6-1, two nights earlier.  The trend looked to continue as the Michigan-based Team USA jumped out to a 2-0 lead. 

Monday, the 17 & under version of Team USA got their shot at the struggling Phantoms who had not yet posted a win in the year 2010 (0-5). 

Rocco Grimaldi (pictured) connected at the 10:50 mark to put Team USA up 1-0.  For Grimaldi, it marked his sixth point of the season against the Phantoms.  Grimaldi’s goal was unassisted and came on a Team USA powerplay chance.

It didn’t take long for Grimaldi to find the net again as he connected at the 16:19 mark of the first period.  Austin Wuthrich picked up an assist on Grimaldi’s second goal of the night and seventh of the season.

Tom Serratore got Youngstown on the scoreboard at the 17:27 mark, still in the first period.  Serratore was assisted by Ryan Jasinsky on the even-strength chance.

As the first period closed, the Phantoms had 15 shots on goal compared to Team USA’s nine, yet trailed the Under-17 USA group 2-1. 

With 9:15 left in the second priod, Adam Berkle tied the game with a powerplay goal, his eighth of the season.  Berkle took his shot from the left faceoff circle and beat Matt McGee.  Assists on Berkle’s goal went to Taylor Holstrom and David Donnellan.

Three minutes later,  Holstrom connected as Team USA goaltender McGee was laying on his stomach in the crease.  Holstrom fired from about 15 feet away and grazed the top bar of the goal as his shot hit twine and gave the Phantoms a 3-2 lead.

The onslaught continued as Cody Strang snuck the puck past McGee at the 14:27 mark of the second.  Jefferson Dahl and Luke Eibler snagged assists on the beautiful shot that Strang had from a tough angle.  The Phantoms stayed  hot as they picked up another goal a few moments later to go up 5-2.  Strang redirected a Luke Eibler slapshot and picked up the powerplay goal with an assist from Dahl.  It was the Phantoms third powerplay goal of the period and fifth in a row.

Strang, who was hurt for a good part of the season with wrist problems, knocked home his third goal of the game, a hat trick.  When asked about the wrist, Strang replied, “It felt pretty good tonight.  Some nights it gets sore, other nights it feels good.  It was a month ago I last got a goal, so I was really happy to get three.” 

The hat trick was the first in Phantoms history.  Strang was assisted by Dahl, his third helper of the game.  Mercifully, the second period would close with Youngstown ahead of Team USA, 6-2.

After two periods the shots on goal heavily favored Youngstown 37-13.  The 22 shots on goal in the second period were the most by the Phantoms this season.  The five goals scored in the period were also a new franchise record. 

Jiri Sekac, a Czech Republican Phantom, scored his first career USHL goal.  The goal pushed the lead to 7-2 in favor of the Phantoms.  Brett Gensler collected an assist, and the  Phantoms had their seventh unanswered goal.  The seventh goal was the highest output on offense for Youngstown since November 19.  The Phantoms also set a season-high for shots on goal in a game with 44, breaking the old mark of 42.

JT Miller, of nearby East Palestine, scored a goal for Team USA to close out the scoring at 7-3.  Robbie Russo snagged an assist to close out the game scoring.

Coach Bob Mainhardt was happy to get back on the winning track.  “I thought we played pretty good in the last few games but we still drifted from the gameplan.  Tonight showed that when we play 60 minutes, we are a really good team.”

Mainhardt also sang the praises of Cody Strang.  “He is a natural goal scorer.  He is headed to the University of Wisconsin, and Wisconsin doesn’t take too many slouches.  We had very high hopes for him coming in and he has done a great job.” 

The Phantoms hit the road for a Friday game with Waterloo.  The puck drops at 7:05 and you can catch all of the action on AM-1240 with Matt Gajtka, the best in the USHL – give him a listen.

The Youngstown Phantoms have struggled to find consistency this season.  Two individuals who have been good night in and night out have been rewarded for their efforts.  Nick Czinder and Taylor Holstrom have been named to represent Youngstown at the USHL All-Star Game to be held in Indianapolis on January 26.

Taylor Holstrom has appeared in all 31 Phantoms games so far this season.  Over that span of games, he has racked up some pretty impressive numbers.  Holstrom leads the team in scoring with 23 points (8 goals, 15 assists) and impressive plus/minus ratio of +11.  Beyond the numbers is the intangible bursts of speed that Holstrom flashes.  The guy is a hustler and is very deservant of the honor.

Nick Czinder has put up numbers to be proud of.  Czinder has nine goals and five assists and a plus/minus ratio of +10.  Czinder is a highly-touted prospect who also plays hard every single game.  He is one of the few guys Coach Bob Mainhardt has praised consistently all season.

Congratulations Nick and Taylor!!

The Youngstown Phantoms seem to have lost their mojo over the last couple of weeks.  Friday, they did little to regain the promise shown in December as Fargo rolled into town and captured a 4-2 victory.  The loss was the fourth in a row for the slumping Phantoms.

The Phantoms wasted little time getting on the scoreboard as Tom Serratore put the rebound of an Adam Berkle shot into the opponents net.  Dan Senkbeil also picked up an assist on the goal, scored at the 4:28 mark of the first.

Garrett Allen tied the game when Phantoms Goaltender, Jordan Tibbet, got tangled up with a Force player trying to retreat back through the crease.  Allen’s goal was a rebound off of a Matt Leitner shot.  The goal, which came at the 11:37 mark of the first period was Allen’s 12th of the season.

With 14:37 left in the second period, Force Captain Chase Grant connected on a shorthanded chance.  Grant’s goal was his 15th of the season and was unassisted putting Fargo on top, 2-1.

With 11:27 left in the second period, Fargo took a 3-1 lead when Corey Leivermann  beat Tibbett from close range.  Garnering assists on the goal were Colten St. Clair, and Grant, who scored three minutes earlier.

With 1:13 left in the second, Youngstown sliced the two-goal Fargo lead in half when Brett Gensler connected unassisted.  Gensler had been so close so many times in recent games to scoring a goal.  He finally broke through with his eleventh of the season.

In the third period, Nate Condon extended the Force lead to 4-2.  Chad Demers and Johnnie Searfoss picked up assists on the Condon goal.  Condon snuck the puck past Tibbett who stopped a Demers drive that deflected to the front lip of the right faceoff circle.

Fargo held off a late powerplay chance to preserve the victory and raise their record to 21-9-1.  With the loss the Phantoms fell to 13-15-2.  Fargo outshot the Phantoms 31-27.

After the game, a dejected Coach Mainhardt reflected on the recent problems of his team.  “A couple of bad apples are spoiling the whole bushel.  Most members of each line play well and do their jobs, but there is a guy on each line not sticking to the plan.  We will give them an opportunity to do the job again tomorrow, and if those couple of guys continue to let the team down we will definitely be shortening the bench and giving the ice time to the guys who are on the right page.”

Richard Young Tilt-O-Meter:

Coming Into 1-8-10 Game vs Fargo: 120 penalty minutes (leads USHL).

After Game:  Still 120 penalty minutes.

Young was a scratch from Friday’s game and has missed the last three with concussion symptoms.  He sat next to me in the pressbox during the game and stayed busy videotaping and charting shots for the team.  The injury took place when he was checked simultaneously by two Green Bay defenders on the recent roadtrip.