Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, December 25, 1994 TAG: 9412290051
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-6 EDITION: HOLIDAY
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR. STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
It is an old sporting concept: team loses star; emotionally charged players turn it up a notch; role players suddenly become key players; and - voila - it's as if the star player never went away.
Of course, as the old sporting concept goes on to say, that only works in the short run.
So far, Roanoke is coping with the loss of Ferschweiler, who was called up by the International Hockey League's Kansas City Blades on Dec.15. Heading into Friday night's 5-2 victory at Raleigh, the Express was coming off back-to-back six-goal performances, including a 6-3 victory over the Charlotte Checkers on Tuesday that featured a franchise record-tying five power-play goals.
Several players have picked up the slack. Roanoke got at least one goal from all three lines against Charlotte. The ``Russian Line'' provided three of the goals, two by Oleg Yashin and one by Rouslan Toujikov.
``That was the definition of `team' tonight,'' said Derek Laxdal, the Express' player-assistant coach, following Tuesday night's game. ``Guys are beginning to sense they're going to have to chip in. Everybody who hasn't been scoring goals is [now] scoring goals.''
Those guys are going to have to keep scoring those goals, because it doesn't appear Ferschweiler will be coming back for a while. Kansas City signed him to a 25-game tryout, although the Blades could terminate the deal at any time and ship him back to Roanoke. That won't happen anytime soon if Ferschweiler continues to play the way he's been playing. He had two goals, including a game-winner, and two assists in his first three games with Kansas City.
The Express, which has the third-best winning percentage in the ECHL, also is waiting to hear if the Blades plan to send anyone to Roanoke to replace Ferschweiler. Express management is not holding its collective breath.
RUSSIAN ROULETTE: The Express picked up defenseman Andrei Kozlov from the Erie Panthers on Thursday to complete the trade that sent Carl Fleury to the Panthers.
Although the deal was completed before Roanoke's game at Raleigh on Friday, Kozlov had to miss that game as part of a 10-game suspension he received for a high-sticking incident that occurred while he was with Erie. He will make his Express debut Tuesday when Roanoke entertains Charlotte.
Kozlov, a 6-foot-3, 220-pound left-hander, becomes the fourth Russian on the Express roster, joining wings Yashin and Toujikov and center Ilya Dubkov. He's a physical defender, as evidenced not only by his weighty suspension but by his 95 penalty minutes in 11 games.
It took Kozlov 17 games to reach to reach that total last season with Erie, where he was teamed with current Roanoke defenseman Jason Clarke.
Coincidentally, Clarke will end a two-game exile Tuesday. He was suspended after receiving a game misconduct - his fourth of the season - in the waning moments of Roanoke's 6-3 victory over Greensboro on Dec.17.
With Clarke and Kozlov in the fold, the Express once again will have a full roster of 18 players.
EXPRESSIONS: As of Tuesday, the Express was averaging 5,408 fans per game at the Roanoke Civic Center, an increase of 1,244 when compared with the same date last season. In the 18-team ECHL, only Richmond is experiencing more of an increase in attendance than the Express, and only five other teams - Nashville, Knoxville, Huntington, Johnstown and Raleigh - are drawing more fans than a year ago. Last season, Roanoke's average attendance increased dramatically in January and February. ... The Express is 37-0-3 when leading after two periods.
AROUND THE ECHL: Charlotte has stayed near the top of the East Division by amassing a 10-1-2 record at home. The Checkers are 6-7-2 when the play away from Independence Arena. ... Huntington goalie Chris Gordon saved all 30 shots he faced in a 3-0 victory at Nashville on Thursday. The loss was the first regulation defeat in 10 games for the Knights, who trail the South Carolina Stingrays by two points in the South Division. ... Raleigh broke an eight-game losing streak to the Greensboro Monarchs with a 5-3 victory in Greensboro, N.C., on Wednesday. The IceCaps suffered a relapse Friday with their 5-2 loss to Roanoke in Raleigh, where they are 2-9-2 this season.
by CNB