And Now it Begins...

As it does to the players, it probably also comes as a big relief to the biggest area hockey fans as well, that the Phantoms are finally back to action this coming weekend against the U.S. Under 17s after nearly three weeks off.

While the break was great, and it was much-needed by the players to heal from some injuries and just get a mental break from the game, it is finally back down to business. The Phantoms will not have another weekend off until April.

Think about that: April… by the time the players get another weekend off, rain will have taken the place of snow, the NHL will be ready to start the playoffs, March will have had it’s Madness, The Masters will have been played (and probably won by Tiger), and the MLB regular season will be under way. It is at least 12 consecutive weekends of hockey, probably even more with a playoff run – and it all begins right now.

In case you forgot, the Phantoms are 19-9-3, good for 41 points, and, as suspected, they have dropped to third place in the NAHL North Division during their layoff – one point behind Marquette in second, and one point ahead of Alpena in fourth. The Phantoms have 12 points to make up in the race for the North Division title with St. Louis.

Practices started last Thursday through Saturday, started back up again on Monday and will continue through until the morning skate before Friday’s game. They have been shorter, but harder, skating-oriented practices. Today, most likely, will be more systems-oriented.

Every player that I have talked to is just happy to get back to business… they love the game and just want to be playing and getting back into the routine. Getting glimpses of the practices over the past week, the boys look to be hitting on all cylinders and hopefully there won’t be too much of a lull on Friday to get readjusted to game speeds.

As far as injuries go – Ringel is nearly back to full steam and should be in the line-up for the first time since November 24. Washnock is healthy and skating again as well – his status is still to be determined. Kramarz is still out.

The big news of the past week is the acquisition of defenseman Carl Nielsen from Alpena in exchange for Zack Barbis. Nielsen has the distinction of being the biggest player on the team, checking in at 6-foot-4, 215 lbs., and will hopefully not only bring some more physicality to the blue line but also be big weapon on the power play as well.

The Phantoms top line of Graham, Hirschfeld and Blakey has combined for 100 points this season. Graham is currently on a six-game point scoring streak, and is now third among NAHL scorers with 47 points. The line of Boeckman, Winter and Salituro is formidable as well, combining for 80 points this season.

The U.S. hasn’t played NAHL games since their 6-1 loss on December 22 here at the Ice Zone against the Phantoms. They have, however, been competing and doing well internationally. They are still at an even .500 (15-15-2, 32 points) and in fifth place in the North, but are sporting the NAHL’s fourth best power play unit.

The coaching staff feels that the final pieces of the puzzle are in place and this weekend should be a good chance for the Phantoms to start showing some more consistency as they are now in the grind of the season and getting prepared for their playoff run.