A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

PART IV

There are many that look at the Minnesota Warbirds defense and cringe. Last year the group swept the BHL defense awards with Kristian Marosi taking the Best Offensive Defenseman award and Greg Ezell taking the Best Defensive Defenseman award. This year, the Birds get stronger (if that’s possible) with the addition of Chris Hie, an offensive defenseman who can put the puck in the net but also put an opponent on the ice.

#14 – Eric Baily

This year, Eric will wear the A for the Minnesota Warbirds for the first time. Last year, Eric really stepped his game up and became a big part of what the defense did. GM Greg Ezell has openly decreed that he views Eric as an integral part of the Warbirds’ organization and sees him as the future in Minnesota. Also, Eric is switching roles from an offensive defenseman mindset to a more defensive defenseman mindset.

Last year Baily posted 1 goal and 8 assists (9 points) which was a step up from his S4 total of 3 goals and 5 assists (8 points). What the third year player needs to learn is discipline as he was second on the team with 18 penalty minutes.

Baily will be paired with either Kristian Marosi or Chris Hie. If Baily is paired with Marosi, it will be a speedier tandem, but how will they play against big, powerful forwards? With Hie, it will be a stronger tandem, but can they hold their own against the speedsters?

#36 – Chris Hie

Hie came over in a trade that saw center Charlie Hooker go to San Fransisco and center Jon Desouza go to Castlegar. Hie has always been on Ezell’s radar, dating back to when the two began playing against one another in the now defunct F-L.

Last season, Hie played for the Toronto Vipers and was a big reason why they made it to the Thundercup Finals. In 22 games he posted 0 goals and 15 assists (15 points), but also had 70 hits. Many believe that being paired with either Greg Ezell or Eric Baily will allow Hie to open his game up a little more as he will have a seasoned veteran to back him up.

Hie just doesn’t bring great defensive skills to the table, he brings a proven coaching ability as well. He was the one behind the bench in Toronto and that should prove valuable to head coach Kristian Marosi and new assistant coach Eric Baily.

#41 – Patrick Ng

Last year Ng was drafted by the Warbirds to shore up a defense that lost some key players. By most accounts, he did an excellent job and the sophomore was rewarded with a contract that will see him in Minnesota until S8 is finished.

Ng posted respectable numbers as a rookie, matching Eric Baily’s 1 goal and 8 assists (9 points). Ng, a smaller defender, will have to work on toughness as he only had 39 hits in the season.

Ng will be paired with Jaime Shimbashi and the two should make for an excellent 3rd pairing. Although these two will go under the radar because of the talent that precedes them on the depth chart, both Patrick and Jamie can learn from the best in the BHL at playing the position.

#44 – Jamie Shimbashi

Shimbashi is in his 3rd year now and is looking to have his defining breakout season. Shimbashi will remain in Minnesota until the end of season 7, but there are rumblings that GM Greg Ezell would like to extend his contract.

In Season 4, Shimbashi posted 1 goal and 6 assists (7 points) and in Season 5 saw his totals drop has be posted 0 goals and 5 assists (5 points). Shimbashi also saw his plus/minus fall from +5 in S4 to +2 in S5.

Many within the organization believe that Jamie had an off season and has been working very hard to regain the type of number he had in season 4. He will be paired with Patrick Ng and the two should make for an excellent 3rd pairing.

#56 – Greg Ezell

Ezell is your quintessential defensive defenseman. Last season he had a BHL record 128 hits in 22 games (5.88 hits a game) and was promoted to GM of the Warbirds in the off-season. On and off the ice, Ezell is one of the team leaders as well as one of the defensive group leaders.

In S4, Ezell had 0 goals and 4 assists (4 points) with a plus/minus of +14 and 91 hits. He improved in every category in S5 (excluding goals) with 0 goals and 12 assists (12 points) with a plus/minus of +17 and 128 hits.

The real question is Ezell’s speed. Though his technique is top notch, his lack of speed has left him out of position at times. By his own accord he has been working to lower his weight of 250 last year and is believed to be in the 235 range, which should lighten the load on the skates.

#90 – Kristian Marosi

Last season, Marosi made the switch from right wing to defense to compensate the loss to Pete Giebler and Antti Kuttenin. The move paid off as Marosi became one of the best offensive defenseman and took home the S5 Best Offensive Defenseman award.

Marosi had 3 goals and 12 assists (15 points) and a plus/minus of +2 last season. His biggest area of work will be in the penalty department as Marosi led the team with 20 penalty minutes. His saving grace was Minnesota had a penalty kill that ranked 3rd in the BHL.

As head coach of the Warbirds, Marosi has a tall task in front of him, but he has surrounded himself with great assistant coaches. Marosi will be leaned on as one of, if not, the best defenseman in Minnesota due to the stats he posted last year.

All in all, the defensive corps is one of the best the BHL has seen in a long time and should help Robi Albert see less shots than last year. Next up, the goalies.

A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

PART III

A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

PART III

As we continue our look at the Minnesota Warbirds, we now focus our attention on the left wingers. Overall, this group is one of the most experienced groups on the team. Kemppinen, Mahoney and Edmonds have been long-time Warbirds and positive influences in the locker room.

#09 – Scott Edmonds

Edmonds is easily the clown of the locker room. He is always around to keep the locker room light and lift the spirits of the team. Last season Edmonds produced respectable numbers in Minnesota, posting 3 goals and 8 assists (11 points) in 22 games.

This season, Edmonds will be paired with Kenneth Lehtinen and Ryan Sassman (last season’s leading scorer) and will look to be staple on the third line. Edmonds will have to learn some discipline however as he was 3^rd in the team in penalty minutes with 14.

Edmonds always provides the laugh in the locker room, but will he provide the spark the Warbirds need? To be successful, Minnesota will need to roll out 4 lines of consistent hockey, is Edmonds up to the task? Some may question his skill but they can’t question is heart, this long time Bird won’t stray from the flock.

#73 – Miika Kemppinen

If you looked up Warbird in the dictionary, you would see a face of Miika Kemppinen next to the definition. Miika has been the only captain in Minnesota and will continue to be until his contract expires after Season 7 (should he not return). Miika is everything that Minnesota embodies: hard work, leadership, toughness, and scoring ability.

After an extraordinary S4 where Miika led the BHL in scoring (14 goals, 27 assists for 41 points) and was the driving force behind Minnesota’s Thundercup Finals run, Kemppinen didn’t disappoint in S5. Though his numbers may have dipped, Miika was the 2^nd leading scorer for the Warbirds, piling up 18 goals and 11 assists for 29 points.

This season, Miika has moved from center to left wing where many suspect he will be able to put the puck in the back of the net more. He is paired with Pat Albanese and Chris Coogan, a line which, on paper at least, should dominate other teams’ first lines.

Will this be the year where Kemppinen gets to raise a Thundercup above his head? Many would believe so and with Kemppinen’s drive and leadership, they may be right.

#89 – Matt Mahoney

Mahoney is in his second year as an alternate captain in Minnesota and last year proved that he deserves it. In S4, Mahoney was 5^th on the team, posting 8 goals and 13 assists for 21 points. In S5, Matt’s totals flipped (13 goals, 8 assists for 21 points) but his penalty minutes went down and his +/- went up from a season ago.

Matt is another long time Warbird and isn’t afraid to speak his mind when something seems out of place. During a poor stretch last season for the team, Mahoney was the one preaching positivity and teamwork.

Matt will now have totally new linemates in Adam Stevens and Chris Bell. The big question here is how he will gel with his new pairing? Will he be able to produce along side a potent scorer like Stevens and a sophomore in Chris Bell?

#91 – Sawyer Withers

Sawyer, much like his line mate Priscilla Williams, is a relative unknown right now. Drafted in the 1^st round, there is some pressure on Withers to make an impact on the 4^th line.

Ezell is very high on Sawyer and is looking at him to stay with Minnesota for at least the duration of his contract. As mentioned earlier, he will be paired with Abrams and Williams and has a great group of left wingers to learn from.

Next we examine the deepest and strongest position for the Warbirds, the defense.

A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

PART II

Welcome back to the Art of War and our on-going breakdown of the Minnesota Warbirds, position by position as they get ready to start S6. Last week we went over the center position and now we’ll talk about the right wingers.

#5 – Kenneth Lehtinen

Lehtinen and Dylan Withers should purchase airline miles together because they’d have about 5 free flights by now.

Lehtinen began the offseason in Minnesota, but was then shipped to Toronto in a package deal that included rookie Ryan Van Vuren and veterans Johan Eriksson and Brad Klein on January 15, 2009. Coming to Minnesota were Chris Bell and his girlfriend Priscilla Williams, who are both looking to make an impact with the ‘Birds.

A month later, Lehtinen was packing his bags and heading back to a familiar place as Toronto dealt the Finn for rookie BK Kim, Kyle Kujawa (coming from an earlier trade with Castlegar) and Minnesota’s 1st round draft pick in the S7 draft.

Lehtinen is a gritty winger who is slotted to play on the 3rd line along Ryan Sassman and Scott Edmonds. Lehtinen will provide some goals during the year as he posted moderate numbers in S5 (8 goals, 6 assists, 14 points and a +3).

#8 – Zac Abrams

Abrams is coming into his second year with the Warbirds and is looking to make a bigger impact than he did in the prior season. Abrams admittedly put up some disappointing numbers (1 goal, 2 assists in 15 games) and is looking to come back in a big way.

Many may look at his linemates, rookies Priscilla Williams and Sawyer Withers, and use that as an excuse should he produce similar numbers. Abrams, who is a great power forward, provides depth for the team and provides experience for the younger linemates on the team.

#26 – Chris Bell

Bell was brought to Minnesota in a deal that saw Kenneth Lehtinen, Ryan Van Vuren, Johan Eriksson and Brad Klein head to Toronto. Bell had a very slow regular season in S5 (4 goals, 5 assists, 9 points) but really turned it up for the playoffs where he netted 4 goals, 7 assists and 11 points, including a hat trick in the Thundercup finals with Castlegar.

Bell is slated to begin the season playing with assistant captain Matt Mahoney and Adam Stevens. Bell brings toughness to an otherwise finess group of right wingers. Chris was brought in to provide a presence in the locker room, because he’s a power forward and to score goals.

Will Ezell’s gamble pay off? Bell is certainly a great clubhouse guy, but how does that pertain on the ice? Only time will tell…

Warbirds to hold annual pre-season tournament

Throughout all the trouble in the BHL offseason, it seems one thing will remain a constant, the Minnesota Warbirds will conduct their annual pre-season tournament.

Owner Chris Coogan and General Managers Greg Ezell and Robi Albert had a small round table meeting in the Minnesota media over the weekend to announce the tournament, some changes and the teams who are scheduled to play in the tournament.

"We're very excited to announce that the Warbird Memorial Cup will be played this year, however, it has been re-named to the Frank Barron tournament." Chris Coogan told the press.

"Mr. Barron was one of the found fathers of hockey in Minnesota. We feel that naming our arena and this tournament are just a few of the small things we can do to thank him." Mr. Albert said.

For those not familiar with the tournament, it has been held for the past 3 seasons in the BHL/DMSL. Last year, Minnesota won their own tournament, defeating Brisbane and Montreal in the process.

This year it seems that there will be another team added to the fold.

"We're pleased to announce that Brisbane and Montreal both expressed interest in coming back and participating in the tournament. We also decided to add a third team to the fold and the Castlegar Castors have shown interest. We feel that the more teams that participate, the better this tournament will be." Ezell said.

There have been some changes to the rules as well.

"In the past, we wore our current season's uniforms. To make things more interesting, we've taken player suggestions on creating a tournament uniform. This year we're proud to announce that we will be using a submission by our captain Miika Kemppinen. Also, because we're hosting the tournament, we will be wearing our home uniforms throughout the duration." Said Chris Coogan.

"It should be an exciting time. Brisbane and Montreal will be looking to get some revenge while Castlegar wants to show the world that nothing has changed in the regime change." Said Albert.

The tournament looks to be starting on Saturday 5/2.

A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

A Look At The Season 6 Warbirds

PART I

The BHL is currently enduring a regime change and with it comes the hope of Season 6 getting started. It is clearly noted that both GMs and players are feeling frustrated with the lack of leadership that has been shown since the close of Season 5. That frustration is about to change into anticipation after word from new Commissioner Miren Makwana stating that Season 6 is right around the corner.

With that being said, The Art Of War is going to take a look at the FINAL roster that Greg Ezell and Robi Albert has put together. An early power ranking done by Mr. Ross has the Warbirds just barely edging out the Gem City Aviators as the top team in the league, but with the recent retiring of superstar Chris Walters, the gap may have widened.

We are going to start with the guys up front where winning and losing a face off could make the difference in a particular game. The center position has certainly changed from a year ago where players have moved to a different position, as with Miika Kemppinen moving to the left wing position.

The position, however, is far from decimated even with the captain changing places on the ice. During the S6 entry level draft, the Warbirds grabbed Charlie Hooker in a trade from New England that saw Jordan Swance and Tumous Kuiru buying plane tickets to Boston.

Hooker, however, didn’t get a chance to play as a Minnesota Warbird when the opportunity came to strengthen their defense. In a 3-way trade that saw Jon Desouza go to Castelgar, Charlie Hooker go to San Fransisco and Chris Hie come to Minnesota, it was clear that the Warbirds had one to many starting defensemen on the roster.

Enter “Captain Castor”.

Minnesota and Castelgar were able to pull off a shocker of a trade, one that shook the core of the Castors. Castlegar, looking to supplement the loss of Chris Hie traded their ex-captain Pat Albanese for Dylan Withers.The move was a shocker, but both teams benefited by filling up holes created from their previous trade.

Now it’s time to break down the centers:

#7 – Chris Coogan

The 6’1”, 185lbs center is what the Warbirds are all about. Hell, he’s the one who brought a professional team to Minnesota. Although technically a center, Chris will be playing a lot of wing to make way for Priscilla Williams to get a shot with the 4^th line. Chris provides the ‘Birds with versatility as he is able to take draws in the faceoff circle, play the wing and even have to play defense if needed.

Last year, Coogan finished with 13 goals and 6 assists (19 points), and a plus/minus of -3. The biggest concern with Chris will be his health as some offseason health issues made him relinquish his GM role and pass it on the Greg Ezell. The reports from the Warbirds are that Coogan has made great strides and is ready to begin training camp.

#4 – Pat Albanese

Captain Castor is now a Warbird in one of the most shocking and questioned moves this offseason. Pat brings a multitude of abilities to the table – faceoff wins, scoring, leadership and character being just a few of them – that should help the Warbirds’ chances in obtaining a Thundercup.

It was noted throughout last year’s sub par season that the team lacked any real scoring threat, outside of center Ryan Sassman, and Albanese is a player who can put the puck in the back of the net.

In Season 4, Albanese was 6^th in the BHL in scoring, putting up 17 goals and 15 assists (32 points) and a plus/minus of +11. Season 5 was a better season for Albanese, who still finished 6^th in the BHL in scoring, but saw his goal scoring and assists increase (18 and 18 for a total of 36 points). His plus/minus also shot up to a +20, which was in the top 3 in the league.

There are some questions with Albanese however. Will he be able to maintain this level of consistency in a new city? How will he fare with new line mates? One thing remains certain, Albanese has the ability to bring a cup home to the nest.

#84 – Adam Stevens

When everyone thinks of Adam Stevens, most remember him for being removed as the Toronto Vipers GM. What Greg Ezell remembers him for is leading the BHL in scoring during Season 5. The 6’1” 195 lbs center was an absolute force last year putting up 25 goals and 14 assists (39 points) and ending the season a +12 in plus/minus.

Stevens not only brings a scoring touch, but also leadership in both a player and GM role. Stevens took Toronto (who was 9^th overall in Season 4) to #3 overall in Season 5, a #2 seed in the Wilen Conference and a trip the Thundercup finals.

After a tumultuous offseason, Stevens is now with old friends Greg Ezell and Chris Hie, but the questions do remain. Can Adam put behind the Toronto fiasco and focus on hockey? Can he remain an elite player in the BHL with some new line mates? Whatever the case may be, Adam was on of the offseason’s prized free agents and will help Minnesota as they make a run in the Wilen Conference.

#20 – Ryan Sassman

When your leading scorer is slated to be the #3 center, you know you have depth. Ryan Sassman, along with Miika Kemppinen, carried the Minnesota offense a season ago. Ryan posted 20 goals and 13 assists (33 points) last year and ended the season with a plus/minus of +8. Ryan was also one of the most disciplined players, logging a mere 4 penalty minutes in the entire season.

Ryan will most likely be paired with Kenneth Lehtinen and Scott Edmonds, a pair he is already very familiar with. Many within the organization see the last year’s play as a shooting off point as he won many of the team awards (S5 MVP, Best American player of the season and Best forward of the season).

The expectations of “Sass” will not diminish based on where he sits on the depth chart. His gritty, tough attitude, team leading 16.5% shooting percentage (min. 50 shots) and locker room presence proves that he has the ability to be a great player on and off of the ice.

#21 – Priscilla Williams

Priscilla is the wild card amongst the group. The 5’2” 135 lbs rookie came to Minnesota in a trade that also saw boyfriend Chris Bell don the brown and wheat. Williams has great talent in front of her to learn from and will be used on the 4^th line with Abrams and fellow rookie Sawyer Withers.

Williams had a great run with the Brooklyn Comets last season in the BMHL and her activity within the locker room was a big reason why Ezell wanted her on the team. She is pegged as the future center in Minnesota and should have a bright career.

The next group that will be analyzed are the right wingers.

Ezell resigns as GM of Minnesota

Amidst the controversy surrounding the BHL with the Castlegar Castors imploding, Randy Geralt stepping down as BHL commissioner and with the 2009 World Cup, there was one place that always seemed like a ray of sunshine. There was always one place where the players of Minnesota could go to get away from the press, the lies and the politics surrounding the league they played in. That place is the Warbirds locker room.

That place no longer exists.

A shocking announcement will most likely send players picking their jaws up off of the ground. GM Greg Ezell took the podium today in what many thought would be a short announcement regarding a police investigation involving a stripper and a cake.

"I called you all here because I am announcing my retirement as both the GM of the Minnesota Warbirds and as a player. I've put this team together so we could win a Thundercup, but the outside issues have become to much for me to handle.

I would like to thank Chris Coogan and Robi Albert for giving me the to opportunity to hold some sort of management position. However, I have know realized that this is no longer the place I want to be anymore, I have no passion for the BHL."

Ezell left the podium and headed to an exit. What will happen with Minnesota? No one really knows but the Birds will most likely be reeling after this announcement.