ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, October 13, 1996 TAG: 9610150021
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-13 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR. STAFF WRITER
ROANOKE LOOKS to a group of newcomers to spark the offense. Goalie Dave Gagnon and a core of veterans anchor the defense.
Youth will be at the center of the Roanoke Express' retooling.
If the young forwards coach Frank Anzalone has recruited can fill the void left by three departed centers, the Express could be exciting offensively. If not, Roanoke once again will have to rely on a stiff defense to keep games low-scoring.
That may not be a problem, especially since East Coast Hockey League veteran Dave Gagnon is back with the team for which he earned All-Star honors in 1994-95. With a solid core of defensemen in front of him, the Express should be stout in its own end.
The season's outcome may hinge on the other end, though.
``Can we go with three young centermen? That's the question we need to answer,'' said Anzalone, who enters his fourth season in Roanoke. ``That's going to take time to find out. Will we score enough to take a lead?''
The answers to those questions should be interesting. Through a new working agreement with the NHL's Calgary Flames and their American Hockey League affiliate in Saint John, the Express has gotten some young players, including 21-year-old center Bobby Brown and 20-year-old wing Jeff Cowan, both of whom are on Calgary's 50-man roster.
Brown, who had 42 goals and 46 assists for Brandon of the Western Hockey League last season, is one of four young guys who could be seeing time at center ice. The others are Jeff Loder, 20 (36 goals, 46 assists for Beauport of the Quebec Major Junior League); Chris Lipsett, 22 (nine goals, 14 assists for Clarkson University); and Chris DeProfio, 23 (22 goals, 30 assists at Colgate University).
All three centers from last season are gone. Ilya Dubkov returned to Russia, although he recently has indicated an interest in returning to Roanoke. Karry Biette and Dave Holum, both rookies last season, signed with teams in other leagues.
Only two forwards return from last season's 36-28-6 squad that finished fourth in the East Division: leading goal-scorer Jeff Jablonski (39 goals, 22 assists) and ECHL All-Star Tim Christian (24 goals, 26 assists).
``We have a pretty good blend of young guys and experienced guys,'' said Jablonski, who at 29 is Roanoke's oldest player. ``I believe this is a team that could have a lot of guys around the 30-goal mark. We're going to have a lot more guys involved in the scoring.''
That would be good news to a defense that boasts four returning regulars: Dave Stewart (13 goals, 28 assists), Michael Smith (10 goals, 38 assists), Tim Hanley (five goals, 12 assists) and Duane Harmer (five goals, 13 assists).
The defense may have more size and strength than any team in Roanoke's four-year history. Doug Searle, who was acquired in a trade with Knoxville, is a rock-solid 6-3, 220-pounder who had 38 points last season.
Other invitees to training camp who could contribute on defense are Pat Hanley (Tim's 6-1, 195-pound brother), Matt O'Dette (6-5, 220), Jason Payne (6-0, 200) and Bill Holowatiuk (6-1, 201).
``I expect us to be physical,'' Anzalone said. ``We should have better team toughness. We don't have guys pretending they want to be here. We have guys who want to play and want to learn.''
There was a sense that last season's team became complacent and lost its work ethic. That squad featured 11 players who had spent time with Roanoke in previous seasons, but many of those skaters are gone.
Tough guy and fan favorite Jason Clarke was traded to Birmingham in September. Record-setting goalie Daniel Berthiaume signed with an upstart league based in Texas. Others, such as Jeff Jestadt, Chris Potter and Craig Herr, hung up their skates.
``It was time to step forward as an organization and take some chance,'' Anzalone said. ``It just seemed natural to do these things.''
LENGTH: Medium: 76 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: 1. ERIC BRADY/Staff. Right wing Jeff Jablonski,by CNBRoanoke's leading goal-scorer a year ago, returns to the Express for
the 1996-97 ECHL season. 2. STEPHANIE KLEIN-DAVIS/Staff Defenseman
Dave Stewart had 13 goals and 28 assists in '95-96.