2011 - 2012 Bantam Team
Ron MacKinnon
Head Coach
Recent Bantams News
On Sunday the 20th the Ice Wolves’ bantam team travelled to Stoughton to take on the Vikings. The Ice Wolves have a smaller than average team, with only nine skaters and a goalie. Ideally in hockey you have at least ten skaters so that you can make a line change and give all five skaters on the ice a break, but the Ice Wolves get by just fine with nine skaters. During their first game of the season they played with only eight and were victorious. For the Stoughton game, two of the players elected to go deer hunting rather than play with their team, leaving only seven skaters. The bulk of the extra work fell to Kayne Lincicum and Caleb Chappell who played defense all by themselves the entire game. The stamina and poise that they displayed during this heroic accomplishment is beyond description. The Vikings were the first to score in the game when they blasted a shot over the shoulder of Ice Wolves’ goaltender Jake Cipri with just less than ten minutes remaining in the first period. Unfortunately for the Vikings, it would be the only time they fooled Cipri. The rest of the game he was unbeatable. So far early in the season, Cipri has raised the bar in each subsequent game and is starting to play at mid-season form. The Vikings would keep their lead until only six minutes remained in the second period. At that point, despite not having had a single break the entire game, Kayne Lincicum found the energy to single handedly dominate the game. He took the puck deep in the Ice Wolves zone and skated it the length of the ice. After weaving through, around, and over the entire Vikings team, he slipped the puck right passed their goalie and the game was tied. Once the game was tied, the Ice Wolves seemed to find a new reserve of energy. While the two defenseman had themselves a spectacular game, the forwards made their coaches extremely proud as well with what was their most complete game in recent memory. Generally speaking the forwards have to skate more during the game and can get pretty worn down. Playing shorthanded, the forward squad of Evan Rusch, Josh Berg, Brock Nolden, Mike MacKinnon, and Zachary Campbell did not have the luxury of getting a shift change every time they got on the ice as they normally would, so their conditioning was put to the test. As a result of their ever improving passing, the Ice Wolves found themselves with numerous scoring opportunities. However, despite having outplayed the Vikings for most of the game, the offense did not get a goal until the third period. With the game tied at 1-1 entering the third period, the Ice Wolves put the game away with three third period goals. Zachary Campbell, Josh Berg, and Evan Rusch all tallied, with Rusch (2), Campbell, and Chappell all earning assists as well. While not getting a goal or assist, Mike MacKinnon and Brock Nolden were an integral part of the offense and both stood out for their tenacity in keeping the puck in the Vikings zone. Final Score: Ice Wolves – 4 Vikings – 1.
The Ice Wolves will travel to Middleton to take on the Wings for their next game on November 27th. The Ice Wolves season record now stands at 3-0.
On Saturday the 12th, the Ice Wolves bantam team (13-14 year olds) played their first game of the season at Ley Pavilion in Dodgeville. Their opponent was the Southwest Eagles from Verona. The game started in a unique way because the Eagles’ goaltender had driven to the wrong rink. Until he arrived at the game early in the second period, the Eagles were forced to play with six skaters and no goalie. The Ice Wolves took advantage of this situation by scoring four first period goals. Trevor Gilbertson got the scoring started when the puck slid back to his defensive position on the blue line and he blasted the puck right into the loosely defended goal. The second Ice Wolves goal came when Evan Rusch made a pass to Zachary Campbell. The Eagles then cut their deficit to only a goal by slipping the puck past Ice Wolves’ goaltender Jake Cipri. The Ice Wolves tallied the next two goals, with the first set up by Mike MacKinnon on a nice pass to Evan Rusch. The next goal was an unassisted one by Zachary Campbell. After a goal by the Eagles in the waning seconds of the first period, Campbell would strike again with another unassisted goal early in the second period to finish off his Hat Trick. The second period would see another goal by each team, with Patrick Husom scoring for the Ice Wolves. The third period featured only two goals, both by the Ice Wolves. Kayne Lincicum took the puck the length of the ice and lasered a shot past the Eagles’ goaltender. The final goal was another by Patrick Husom. Final Score: Ice Wolves – 8 Eagles – 3.
On Sunday the 13th, the Ice Wolves travelled to Waunakee for an early morning game. It turned out that the Wildcats were no match for the Ice Wolves. It was a quiet day for Ice Wolves’ goaltender Jake Cipri, who only faced 17 shots during the game. He was able to turn aside all but one. The Wildcats scoring one goal had little impact on the outcome of the game as the Ice Wolves had an offensive explosion. They were able to get 12 goals past the Wildcats. The Ice Wolves were led by Evan Rusch’s Hat Trick of goals (3), while Caleb Chappell, Patrick Husom, Josh Berg, and Zachary Campbell each scored twice and Mike MacKinnon added another. With the great passing the Ice Wolves had on display, there were plenty of assists earned as well. Zachary Campbell led the team with five assists, while Mike MacKinnon, Caleb Chappell, and Evan Rusch all had two apiece. Brock Nolden, Patrick Husom, and Josh Berg each recorded an assist as well. Final Score: Ice Wolves – 12 Wildcats – 1.
The bantam team’s record now stands at 2-0 on the season. They travel to Stoughton on Sunday the 20th for their next game.
