Tendler and Doucet strike to help Stingrays battle back against Steeldogs in pre-season

Sheffield Steeldogs 5-5 Hull Stingrays (Pre-season)

In the second of four pre-season fixtures, the Hull Stingrays tonight came from behind thanks to a hat-trick from Jereme Tendler and two goals from Guillaume Doucet to tie 5-5 with the Sheffield Steeldogs in the first leg of the Bradfield Brewery Cup on Pad 2 at Ice Sheffield.

The Stingrays lost 4-3 in the first leg of last season's pre-season challenge game against Andre Payette's side before rebounding to win 4-1 and 7-5 on aggregate in the second leg at Ice Sheffield and they again struggled early on against a well-drilled Steeldogs team.

The Steeldogs held a 3-1 lead heading into the second period tonight thanks to goals from Steven Duncombe (8.17), Ashley Calvert (PPG - 12.31) and Lubomir Korhon (17.22) with Tendler (10.15) leveling the score with his third of pre-season at 1-1.

The Canadian added his second of the game and fourth of pre-season at 3.43 into the second period but the Steeldogs would again take control of the game. A lack of discipline saw the Rays - who were without Derek Campbell - give away a number of powerplays throughout the night and penalties against Martin Ondrej and then Lee Bonner allowed the Steeldogs to extend their lead to three with goals from former Stingray Andrew Hirst and Calvert - who recorded his second goal on the man advantage.

Three goals down, Sylvain Cloutier got a big response for his side early in the third period with the visitors netting three goals in the opening four minutes of the final period.

Doucet played a big part in the comeback, adding two more goals to his pre-season tally with a short handed goal on 41.10 and then a powerplay goal at 43.07 with Lee Haywood sitting in the box.

25 seconds after the Rays fourth from Doucet, Tendler bagged his third of the night to level the scores at 5-5.

Things had simmered between the sides all night, with Steeldog and former Hull junior player Craig Elliott generally at the centre of the Stingrays ire. That boiled over with less than ten minutes remaining as Matt Suderman was thrown out of the game for fighting with new Steeldogs enforcer Callum Pattison while Bobby Chamberlain dropped the gloves with Elliott.

The Rays killed off the resulting five minute powerplay with Suderman dismissed thanks to a 2+2+5+game penalty but there was still time for Tom Squires - who had a number of chances throughout the night - to go agonisingly close to winning the game with 1.20 left only to ring the iron.

With the tie finely balanced the two sides will meet again in the second leg next Wednesday to decided the winners of the pre-season Bradfield Brewery Cup.

Before that though the Rays travel to Scotland on Sunday night for the second of two challenge games against Edinburgh following Wednesday's 9-0 thrashing of a poor, understrength Capitals side.

Stingrays cruise to comfortable pre-season victory over short-staffed Capitals

Hull Stingrays 9-0 Edinburgh Capitals (Pre-season)

After a five month break, the Hull Stingrays tonight returned to Hull Arena ice for their first pre-season fixture ahead of the 2013/2014 Elite League season and ran out comprehensive 9-0 winners against an understrength Edinburgh Capitals side.

The Scottish side travelled to Hull with just seven imports and were forced to borrow three players from the Stingrays NIHL side including Jamie Cobley and Kieran Beach in order to fill out their roster.

They started the game with back-up netminder Craig Holland between the pipes and he was soon forced to fish the puck out of the net as debutant Gulliaume Doucet attempted a neat set up which eventually found its way to Jereme Tendler - who continued where he left off last season and scored from an acute angle.

In an understandably scrappy and disjointed first period, the Rays went close again in the dying stages as Derek Campbell - who unsurprisingly linked up with Jason Silverthorn on the second line - rang the cross bar.

The home side again scored early in the second period with the first line of Doucet, Tendler and Matty Davies combining well to move the puck swiftly from behind Ben Bowns' net to the Caps zone before Davies scrappily fired home the second of the night.

Given their short bench, the Caps would have been happy with the 2-0 scoreline at the halfway point and, as seemingly agreed prior to the game, replaced Holland - who stopped 23 of 25 shots - with number one netminder Tomas Hiadlovsky.

With the Edinburgh side in front of him tiring due to their lack of numbers the Slovakian stopper quickly found himself under fire and 5-0 down as the Stingrays barraged him.

Shortly after Hiadlovsky's arrival the Rays made it 3-0 following some good work in the defensive zone from British debutant, and a player expected to surprise many this season, Jamie Chilcott. The defenceman persevered in the defensive zone and eventually found Davies, who combined with Doucet before Tendler was put through on goal and added his second of the night.

Less than a minute later, the puck was worked out from the corner to another debutant, Omar Pacha - thought to be the Stingrays number one offensive defenceman in the coming season and a replacement for former captain Kurtis Dulle - who bulleted a slapshot high over the glove of the Caps netminder for a 4-0 lead.

Five minutes later, the Rays completed a horrible return to action in the UK for Hiadlovsky as Doucet tapped home his first goal as a Stingray on a two-on-one with Tendler at the backpost giving the netminder a  save percentage of 50% having allowed three goals on six shots.

Capitals head coach Richard Hartmann was clearly unhappy with his sides performance, not just in the second period but throughout the game, and publicly and loudly berated a number of his players.

On his way to a comfortable 24 shot shutout, Stingrays keeper Bowns made his biggest contribution to the game in the third period, denying the an Edinburgh attack with a wonderful sprawling kick save.

Doucet and Davies - whose top line with Tendler scored six of the nine goals on the night -then added their second goals of the night with two fortuitous finishes.

Bobby Chamberlain then rounded off the party with two of the standout goals of the evening. First, the returning Brit sniped home a wristshot in off the crossbar with Hiadlovsky none the wiser before being put in on a breakaway to slot backhanded past the netminder having faked a forehanded wristshot.

Though the 9-0 drubbing is a positive from a Stingrays point of view, it is extremely difficult to judge either side on this opening pre-season fixture, particularly given the Capitals lack of depth. With imports Les Reaney and Martin Cingel both missing from the lineup and two further imports to sign, the Capitals will surely offer the Rays a far sterner challenge as they near full strength, although it appears that may yet take some time.

As far as Sylvain Cloutier's side is concerned there are no worries so early in pre-season as the side regain match fitness and match sharpness. Indeed, six goals from the club's new first line of Doucet, Davies and Tendler is encouraging while the Silverthorn and Campbell again proved they will continue their brilliant partnership from 11/12 alongside Tom Squires - who himself looked improved. Two goals from returning hometown favourite Chamberlain late in the day was a big a bonus.

Defensively, a shutout for Bowns will do no harm and Pacha's offensive ability and shot from the point will . On a final note, Chilcott and Scott Robson proved that they are capable of playing at Elite League level, albeit against a somewhat limited Edinburgh side .

The Stingrays are back in pre-season action tomorrow night against the English Premier League's Sheffield Steeldogs at Ice Sheffield (7.30pm) where they will continue preparations for the upcoming season.

Huttel injury hits Stingrays on eve of pre-season

Hull Stingrays player-coach Sylvain Cloutier is on the lookout for a second late replacement ahead of the 2013/2014 Elite League season following the news that American defenceman Chad Huttel has been sidelined with a shoulder injury and now will not join the club for the upcoming campaign.

Photo - Sheffield Steelers

The revelation that Huttel will now not be joining up with his new squad comes just 24 hours after it was announced that Sean Muncy had been replaced by Carl Lauzon due to as yet unknown issues.

24 year old Huttel was due to join the Stingrays after a season out of the sport having sustained a shoulder injury prior to last season while on a try-out with the Central Hockey League's Fort Worth Brahmas.

It would appear that the former Sheffield Steeler has recently suffered a setback with that shoulder injury thanks to a freak accident and now faces up to three months out. Whether he will return to the sport following what will be more than a year out of the sport a remains to be seen.

Of the disappointment for both club and player, Cloutier told the Hull Daily Mail:

"Chad was ready and everything was going well but he had a freak accident. I think he'll be out for two or three months with a shoulder problem. It's disappointing for him and for us but at least he was honest and told us he was injured and not going to be able to come over."

He also added that, while he has had at least one deal for a replacement defenceman fall through and does have one option readily available to him, he may yet opt to replace Huttel with another forward.

That decision would leave the Stingrays with four import defenceman - Matt Suderman, Martin Ondrej, Omar Pacha and Jeff Smith - and three Brits - Scott Robson, Jamie Chilcott and two-way signing Tom Ralph.

Though that is a relatively healthy defensive stable, an injury or suspension to one of the imports exposes either Chilcott or Robson to significant ice time at a relatively young age. Both players are highly thought of by Cloutier and the Stingrays, and they may yet be good enough to handle that ice-time were the situation arise, however, it is a big risk to take.

A lot will surely ride on how Chilcott and Robson perform against the Edinburgh Capitals and Sheffield Steeldogs in pre-season prior to Cloutier making a decision on who to bring in.

An extra import forward would give the Stingrays real depth offensively with 12 players or four lines but it seems unlikely they would regularly utilise four lines with 16 year old Lee Bonner being one of those three. The alternative to that were another forward signed would be to potentially semi-regularly bench three forwards.

If that were to occur, unless Cloutier spends more time on the bench as he nears potential retirement, that would more than likely mean least experienced forwards Bonner, Sam Towner and Bobby Chamberlain would spend increased time on the bench.

In the case of Chamberlain - who has continued his progression and has notably bulked up during his season away  - that seems particularly unlikely.

With defenceman Smith able to revert to forward if required for injuries or suspensions - provided it is a defenceman added for Huttel - all signs point to a like-for-like replacement but, for Cloutier, it may depend on what is available, for what price and in what time frame.

Meanwhile, new signings Suderman, Pacha and forward Guillaume Doucet all took to the ice with their new squad today.

Photo - Hull Daily Mail

The trio will make their debuts tomorrow night against the Edinburgh Capitals at the Hull Arena, although yesterday's addition Lauzon is still awaiting his visa to travel to the country and may not make his debut until next Wednesday at home to the Sheffield Steeldogs.

Cloutier also revealed to the Hull Daily Mail today that Lauzon - who he sees as "more of a set-up guy" - may ice alongside Guillaume Doucet and Jereme Tendler.

That could potentially leave a line of Jason Silverthorn, Derek Campbell and Matty Davies, and a third line of himself, Tom Squires and Bobby Chamberlain with Bonner and Towner the two extras.

Rays swap Muncy for Lauzon in late switch

The Hull Stingrays have been forced to make a late switch to their roster ahead of the 2013/14 Elite League season with import Sean Muncy being replaced by Carl Lauzon.

The reasons for the switch are as yet unknown, however, it is believed that 28 year old forward Muncy informed the club he would not be joining them for the upcoming 13/14 season - which begins in two days with a pre-season fixture against the Edinburgh Capitals.

Nevertheless, the Rays have moved quickly to fill the void left by Muncy's departure with the signature of, arguably, a better player in 26 year old Lauzon from Chamonix of the French Ligue Magnus.

Of course, whether that is the case remains to be seen but what is true is that Canadian forward Lauzon will move to the UK from a more reputable league (three years in France v 1 in CHL, German fourth tier and Holland), with a better goalscoring record and with more professional experience - despite being two years younger - than the player he is replacing.

In fact, the only area whereby the Rays may lose out in this switch is the club's perceived lack of height with Muncy standing at 6'0 and Lauzon at 5'9.

Lauzon's pointscoring pedigree is by far the biggest bonus in the switch though. In both his junior and professional career, the Montreal, Quebec native has never failed to drop below point-a-game form .

As a junior Lauzon racked up 325 points in 183 games in the Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League, although, admittedly, the QJAAAHL in the second tier of junior hockey in Quebec, one below the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Regardless of the level, Lauzon dominated with closing in on two points a game.

In his first two seasons as a professional, Lauzon went above and beyond that two-point-a-game level recording an astounding 72 goals and 126 points in 52 games, albeit in the second tier in France with Avignon - where he unsurprisingly topped the league's points scoring chart in 08/09 with 71 points and was named league All-Star during both seasons.

His impressive scoring rate in the French second division earned him a contract with French top flight side Chamonix in 2010 and he went on to continue that form in league, cup and playoff competition.

During his first year in the French Alps, Lauzon hit 21 goals - a three year high and fifth most in the league - and 39 points from 26 games as his side finished eighth of 14 sides in Ligue Magnus. He re-signed for a second season in 11/12 and added a further 14 goals and 33 points as Chamonix finished third in the league before losing out to Grenoble in the playoff semi-finals - with Lauzon recording five goals and seven points in eight games.

In what would turn out to be his fifth and final season in France, the French-Canadian played alongside fellow new Stingray Omar Pacha, scoring 11 goals - a three year low - while also hitting a three year high in points (45), ending the year as fourth highest pointscorer in the country. Chamonix again progressed to the playoffs having finished fourth but - despite Lauzon recording nine points in seven games -  were shocked in the Quarter Finals losing their five game series 3-2 to 12th seed Epinal.

He ended a very productive spell in the French top flight and indeed France with 46 goals and 117 points in 78 games, giving him an outstanding points-per-game ratio of 1.5 in a league of similar stature to the Elite League albeit significantly shorter in length at 26 games.

An undoubted scoring force at every level he has played at so far, Lauzon's agent, 9 Hockey Management, describes notes his strengths:

"Carl Lauzon is good smooth skating forward who has very good open ice awareness which allows him to bring his team-mates into the game. With a natural touch around the net, Carl has excelled in every league he has played in. A finesse type player, Carl also is fast and uses his quick foot speed to accelerate away from opposition players."

On what will hopefully be his final signing for the 13/14 season, Stingrays player-coach Sylvain Cloutier said:

"I am really pleased to be able to pick up Carl. He played on the same team as Omar Pacha last year and he is a skilled player who will add a lot of offence to the line-up. He also played against Guillaume Doucet last season and both players had nothing but good things to say about Carl. He is someone who competes every night and I'm delighted he is joining us."

There are no doubts that Lauzon has been brought in to provide the Stingrays with additional offensive punch. The only questions around his signing will no doubt be how will he compare to Muncy, where in the line-up he will fit in and, indeed, how the side will line-up?

Jason Silverthorn, Derek Campbell and, to a lesser extent, Jereme Tendler all perfectly linked up during the 11/12 campaign, so the inclination may be for Cloutier to reunite them for the upcoming season.

That would leave Lauzon, fellow signing from France Guilllaume Doucet and last season's British revelation Matty Davies at 5'9, 5'9 and 5'6 respectively. That lack of height may dissuade any such line-up and force Cloutier to break up the Silverthorn-Campbell-Tendler partnership. Although it will surely be difficult to break up Silverthorn and Campbell after their chemistry last time around, that may be required in order to spread the club's offence throughout the line-up.

It seems unlikely that the answers to those questions will come and also that Lauzon will make his debut in Wednesday's first pre-season fixture against the Edinburgh Capitals given the timing of his signing announcement. Nevertheless, he should play a part in pre-season prior to the Stingrays 13/14 Elite League season facing off on Saturday 7th September against the Nottingham Panthers and those questions will, no doubt, also be answered in due course.

CARL LAUZON by kikinou84