Friday 18 October 2013

Smoke Eaters Press On

The post-Bill Birks era starts Friday night in Trail when the Smoke Eaters play host to the Coquitlam Express.

This after Trail lost their fifth straight game Tuesday night that evidently became the tipping point for change.

"This is strictly a business decision" explained team President Tom Gawryletz about the Board of Director's decision to relieve Birks of his duties just 15 games into the season. "Bill and I have had a good relationship over the three and a half years he has been [here]. This hockey club has missed the playoffs the last two seasons [and] it's imperative to us to get into the postseason and when it is all said and done, friendship aside, you have to win".

"I agree it is very early, but we had great expectations going into the season."

And apparently so far those expectations have not been met with The Smokies' 4-9-1-1 record and their single win at Cominco Arena this season.

The team dropped three straight at home, being out scored 17-1 in the period, after a promising outing at the season opening BCHL showcase where they earned 3 out of a possible 4 points.

Gawryletz referred to the home-stand as "embarrassing".

Its been a bit tumultuous since then. Trail has just a single point in their last seven outings but last Sunday's match against the league's best Powell River Kings (10-1-0-1) serves as a good case study.

Heading into the game nine points separated the two clubs in the standings, but Trail pushed Powell River to the limit in a 3-2 loss.

It was a great effort that saw them fight back from a two goal deficit using power plays and hard work to create scoring opportunities.

Bursts of brilliant play that shows Trail can in fact play the elite in this league.

However, that unsuccessful sixty minutes against the Kings sat between two games where the Smokies allowed five goals in each third period.

It is the perfect example of arguably the orange and black's biggest problem so far this season, playing mistake-free-hockey for a full sixty minutes.

"They are a better hockey club than they have shown as far as I'm concerned. I'm not sure what the problem is,".

Gawryletz says a large part in the change behind the bench is the product on the ice.  "The old saying, 'It is a lot easier to fire one guy than 22 guys and I think they have to look in the mirror and realize they need to start [producing].'"

This is echoed by Captain Adam Wheeldon after I ask him if he expects more from the team.
"Yeah definitely. I wasn't on Bill. Us, as players, need to get going and do what we are suppose to be doing out there.

Wheeldon admitted he was surprised Birks was let go. "I didn't expect that to happen but we still have to [keep] moving forward with the season and keep our heads up."

Move on they must.

Coquitlam is coming off a 5-4 loss to Surrey Wednesday night, their first regulation defeat of the campaign.

They currently sit second in the Mainland division, three points behind the Langley Riverman.

Express forward Adam Rockwood is the BCHL's scoring leader with 4 goals and 23 points in 13 outings this season.

It's going to be a good test for this unstable Smoke Eaters team and Wheeldon says they have to pick up their game.

"We've been struggling lately and it is just not acceptable. We have to be better,".

We are just over 25% through the season with 43 games remaining for Trail and let's face it...that's a lot of hockey.

So we move into Chapter Two of the Trail Smoke Eaters' 2013-2014 season. The scene has been set and wouldn't it be poetic if the orange and black could rebound and snap a seven game winless streak on home ice, somewhere they haven't found much luck recently.

Surely that would keep people reading.



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