Central Hockey League Preview (Continued)
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El
Paso Buzzards Southern Conference Southwest Division Last Year's Record – 36-24-4-76 Affiliation – TBA Head Coach – Craig Coxe |
Coaches Cut – “We are going to be a bigger and stronger team this year”, says Coxe. The players that the Buzzards will put on the ice this season will be the proof in the pudding.
Most if not all of El Paso’s squad will stand very tall. Coxe will bring a style of play that will be very aggressive and physical on both offense and defense.
The club will also have forwards with a lot of hockey skills. With more signings on the horizon for the buzzards the team should be well stocked with a good mix of young talent and veterans.
This will most likely result in a post-season appearance
Impact Change – With the hiring of new Head Coach/Director of Hockey Operations Craig Coxe the El Paso organization will have a breath of fresh hockey air.
“We are proud to announce the signing of Craig Coxe to the position of head coach of the Buzzards,” said Bill Davidson, Buzzards’ owner and president.
“As a former player in the National Hockey League, Coach Coxe is well positioned to recruit quality players for the Buzzards.
This is the first former National Hockey League player to coach the Buzzards.
With his NHL experience, Craig brings with him not only a wealth of hockey knowledge, but also his extensive contacts with coaches, and management in the NHL, and the American Hockey League. Obviously, this will be a huge asset to our organization.”
Knocking On The Door
Players with potential to play at the next levelAaron Bowe – Jason Tessier– Derek Reynolds
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New
Mexico Scorpions Southern Conference Southwest Division Last Year's Record – 33-25-6-70 Affiliation – TBA Head Coach – Pat Dunn |
Coaches Cut –The man that will be behind the bench for the Scorpions this year says, “We will be solid in all three domains, with a lot of punch up front”.
Dunn will look to for his squad to play a pure team game. The Scorpions defense will get significantly stronger this year.
The squad has implored what most minor league hockey teams have found to be a necessity.
A team needs two solid goaltenders to make it through the grind of a CHL campaign.
Luciano Caravaggio and Scott Myers will provide the acrobatics in net for the Scorpions in 2002/03. This due provides a tough task for any “gunslinger” in the league.
With players like Peter Ambroziak and Chris Richards the Scorpions are on stride to get back to where this team is used to being.
Providing a painful sting to CHL post-season participants.
Impact Change – Pat Dunn will put an impressive stamp on his first full season as Head Coach of the Scorpions.
The first year New Mexico Head Coach has a solid core of team players and young talent. This mix is primed to showcase an unselfish attitude.
When minor league teams buy into this attitude good things will happen. The team also benefits from a solid fan base year in and year out. Home contests at “stingley coliseum” are more than a handful for the a visiting team.
Knocking On The Door
Players with potential to play at the next level.
“Mr.X’ will be a player that is on the rise. This up and comer has yet to sign with the Scorpions.
He is allegedly a polished player with good skills and plenty of potential.
The team is close to sealing the deal. If and when this transaction happens, the club should be ready to announce an affiliation with an American Hockey League team [[AHL] and an NHL team.
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Oklahoma
City Blazers Northern Conference Northwest Division Last Year's Record – Affiliation – TBA Head Coach – Doug Sauter |
Coaches Cut – “With Jonathan Dubois and Blair Manning, we have improved down the middle”, Sauter says. These players will be major factors in Oklahoma dominating on offense and defense.
“I also have at least 5-rookies pressing for roster spots up front”. These two dynamics will add up to wins for the Blazers.
Sauter’s club will be a very hard team to handle this year. The Head Coach will not panic in any situation and neither will his troops.
Impact Change – The Blazer’s pre-season camp is going to be very competitive. A number of jobs will be up for grabs. This will create a do or die atmosphere amongst the players.
The team is will end up with a strong line-up from top to bottom.
Each man will contribute to the success of the Oklahoma run at the Presidents Cup.
The team will also move into a brand new state of the art facility this season.
The Ford Center in downtown Oklahoma City is an 18,500-seat building ready to rock.
With top-notch talent on the ice, the Blazers will be beneficiaries of some wins due to pure adrenaline from the stands.
Knocking On The Door
Players with potential to play at the next levelPeter Arvanitis-Marty Standish- Ryan Campbell
| Page Four |
Division and League Previews:
AAA: AHL | AA: CHL,
ECHL, WCHL
| A: ACHL
