Archives for October 4, 2011

‘Jochen Hecht made with the shaft and the fans threw pucks into the crowd. But when it became serious, he had to leave the ice – the game of his NHL clubs Buffalo Sabres in his hometown of Mannheim, the former national hockey player, was only a spectator.’

‘Despite the sharp 3:8 defeat against the Buffalo Sabres, the 13 600 spectators attended the sold-out SAP Arena in a big hockey festival. Alone the guest appearance of the NHL clubs in Mannheim was a remarkable event, crowned by the victory lap of the injured Jochen Hecht during warm-up and not least by the presence of Rene Corbet. The former captain of the Eagle was the first third of the game with on the ice and was allowed to move into the second break his shirt number 20 under the roof of the hall of the SAP ARENA.’

‘Tyler Ennis showed Adler Mannheim why he is one of the premiere playmakers in the NHL. Ennis finished off his night with 3 points (2+1) and spent the majority of night tormenting the opposing skaters. The highlight of Ennis’ night was his first goal that came after an Adler turnover. The loose puck found Luke Adam at center ice who fired a pass across the zone to a streaking Ennis. Ennis made two moves and slide the puck past Mannheim goaltender Frederick Brathwaite.’

‘The Buffalo Sabres get an 8-3 win to wrap up their exhibition schedule. Next up, the Sabres open up their season against the Anaheim Ducks in Helsinki, Finland.’

‘Ennis scored twice in the first period and Luke Adam added a power-play goal in the frame to put Buffalo ahead 3-0. Brad Boyes, Christian Ehrhoff and Thomas Vanek had goals in the second, and Jason Pominville and Ville Leino scored in the third to complete the rout.

‘Drafted 83rd overall, MacKenzie has 18 goals and 80 assists for 98 points, and 180 penalty minutes in 225 games split between the Western Hockey league Calgary Hitmen and Tri-City Americans. From New Westminster, British Columbia, the 19-year-old MacKenzie is preparing for his second season with Tri-City.’

‘”My goal all summer was to be on this trip,” Adam told NHL.com after Monday’s practice at SAP Arena. “This is where I wanted to be and this is what I worked toward all summer.”‘

‘”I got a couple bad habits over the summer, but I kind of worked that out of my system mostly,” he said. “I was down in [Rochester] there for almost a week, and it’s the same deal: run very professionally. I’ve been very blessed to play on some very good AHL teams, some of the top teams in the league, and so far [Rochester] has been nothing different. Buffalo is getting a good reputation for a reason.”‘

‘”Being American, these are the real warriors,” Sabres defenseman and Pittsburgh native Mike Weber said. “It puts what we do for a living in perspective when you come and see these men and women who lay it on the line for our country and for all of us to be doing what we do.”‘

‘”One can even imagine that I’m currently not doing so well,” says Hecht, who yesterday shortly before the end of the public comes his training NHL clubs onto the ice. The only one he is wearing a gray shirt that his teammates should give the signal: No physical contact, please! The 1,000 fans in the sold-out auditorium next door to the SAP Arena do not care. They cheer as the local hero makes his first round. Hecht waving at the audience, he has stirred. His teammates knock with the bat on the ice – a sign of appreciation. You know what miss pike.’