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Ftorek: Expect 'exciting'


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Ftorek: Expect 'exciting'

Scrimmages show coach early positive signs

By MATT GRAVES, Staff writer

First published: Wednesday, September 29, 2004

WEST ORANGE, N.J. -- They switched jerseys, but the same team won the intrasquad scrimmage for the second day in a row as the Red Team directed by Devils assistant Bobby Carpenter took a 2-1 decision over the Gray in the two-period session.

Coach Robbie Ftorek said he was more than pleased with what he has seen the first two days of this camp.

"I think it might be a good idea for people to get their tickets," Ftorek said. "They're going to see some nice hockey. We've got some really good hockey players. ... It's going to be exciting; it's going to be fast."

Defenseman Krisjanis Redlihs knocked in the winner against Matus Kostur with 2:52 left after Tuomas Pihlman had tied the score at 1-1 six seconds earlier with a wrister against Ari Ahonen.

Cam Janssen gave the Red a 1-0 lead in the first when he put back a rebound against Scott Clemmensen. A total of 28 skaters and three goaltenders participated in the scrimmage, which included a brief scuffle between defenseman Phil Cole and Aleksander Suglobov.

Trimming to do: Ftorek is the kind of coach who doesn't like to carry a big roster, which means at least one goaltender (probably Matus Kostur) and seven or eight skaters won't be coming to Albany on the team's expected arrival date of Oct. 6.

"We can only dress 20 (for games), so that's what I'd like to carry," he said. "But that's me. That's the number that I like. If a guy's sitting in the stands, he's not getting better. Sometimes you have to carry some extra guys, I understand that (injuries), but I'd much rather play with 16 guys than 21 or 22 or 23."

Shootout coming back: The AHL has reinstituted a shootout rule to decide games still tied after a five-minute overtime. The rule was tried in the 1986-87 season, then abandoned.

"I hate it, but that's just my opinion," Ftorek said. "Hockey's a team sport, not an individual sport."

Forward Ryan Murphy, who played with the rule in place in the East Coast circuit, and teammate Rob Skrlac disagree.

"I think it's a good rule," Murphy said. "It's good for the fans. Every team's got five guys who can score goals, so it comes down to the goaltender."

Teams will be awarded two points for a win (in regulation, in overtime or in a shootout), one point for an overtime loss or a shootout loss and zero points for a regulation loss.

In shootouts, each team will get five attempts to score on a breakaway starting at the center red line. The visiting team will shoot first, and each team's five shooters will be determined by the respective coaches prior to the shootout. Once a team has mathematically clinched a victory, it will be declared the winner. If both teams are tied after five rounds, the shootout will proceed to sudden-death rounds until a winner is determined with the same shooters.

"Anything that's good for the fans is good for the game," Skrlac said. "If it puts people in the stands, I'm in favor of it."

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All these people living in New Jersey and not one report on some players? Pretty sad if you ask me.

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Damn. I'm working a full-time job and am a full-time student. Gee, I shouldn't be doing either of those things...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yeah me too, guess we all can't be cool like Jason ... or leeching off our parents :P

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