ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, January 14, 1997 TAG: 9701140044
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: EXPRESS NOTES
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR. STAFF WRITER
The Roanoke Express picked the wrong night to play a bad game.
The Express was on a great run, having won four consecutive games and 10 of 11. It had beaten perennial East Coast Hockey League heavyweight Hampton Roads on the road Friday night.
Unfortunately for the Express, it returned home and was beaten 4-3 by those same Admirals on Saturday in front of the season's biggest crowd at the Roanoke Civic Center.
What was worse, in Roanoke coach Frank Anzalone's opinion, was the way the Express lost. Hampton Roads physically handled the Express and set the game's tone from the outset. Roanoke never led in losing to the Admirals for the fourth time in six meetings.
``We have simply stopped being physical,'' Anzalone said. ``We looked afraid. They challenged us, out-hit us and out-worked us.''
The loss raised the possibility that the way to beat the Express players is to simply beat them up.
Express center Ilya Dubkov, in particular, was roughed up Saturday. So was leading scorer Jeff Jablonski, who was hammered by Alexei Krivchenkov, then tossed out of the game merely for trying to keep from being pummeled with 5:15 left and the Express trailing by a goal.
``I'm not happy with our players being run'' by opponents, Anzalone said. ``We have to have guys stand up to the challenge. The last three weeks, our chain of togetherness has been broken.''
With the Express having passed the halfway point of the ECHL regular season, Anzalone is concerned about the team hitting a lull at an inopportune time. Roanoke is trying to stay in the upper division of the ECHL East and position itself for a run at the top spot.
``The young people are not pulling their weight right now, and they need to understand the commitment this league requires,'' Anzalone said. ``Yeah, we've had a good run, but you can't just beat the anybodies, you've got to beat the somebodies. We lost to a somebody on Saturday. If you can't beat the somebodies, call your agent, demand a trade and pack it up.''
RENEGADES RUMBLINGS: The Express has a chance to catch a team it trails in the East Division when the Richmond Renegades come to the Roanoke Civic Center at 7 p.m. today.
Roanoke has had the Renegades' number this season, going 4-0 against them. Head coach Scott Gruhl's team is coming off a difficult week that included a fire at the Richmond Coliseum that forced the postponement of its game with Roanoke on Sunday.
It's possible the coliseum won't be re-opened until February. If so, Roanoke's game at Richmond on Sunday also will have to be re-scheduled or moved to another site.
KEEPING THE MINUTES: The Express' Dave Gagnon is close to most of the franchise's career records for goaltenders.
This past week, Gagnon became the franchise leader in minutes played when he passed the 3,305-minute mark set by Daniel Berthiaume from 1995-96.
Gagnon, who played part of the 1994-95 season with Roanoke before returning this season, has played a league-high 1,763 minutes this season and is tied for the league lead in victories, with 19. His next victory will be the 37th of his Roanoke career, tying him with Berthiaume for the franchise lead.
ICE CHIPS: The Express is offering a discount to employees of General Electric for tonight's game. Employees showing a GE identification at the civic center box office can purchase tickets for themselves and family members at a cost of $3 per ticket.... A victory in regulation time tonight would tie the Express with the Renegades for third place in the East Division, with 47 points. Richmond has dropped its past three games, all on the road.
LENGTH: Medium: 69 linesby CNB