Roller hockey attempts to overcome losses
Commentary
Joe Bell
Issue date: 10/22/09 Section: Sports
The Truman roller hockey team has been fantastic the last three seasons. A solid group of talented players under the tutelage of the Canadian coach made it to the national tournament three years running.
Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, dynasties cannot survive forever.
During the offseason, the Bulldogs have had not only a major roster turnover, but a team turnover as well. Former head coach Joe Nedelec, who played a major role in the success of the teams he coached, departed during the offseason. The 'Dogs also lost seven of the 11 starters who comprised their Div. II team, including vital members of the offense, defense, bench and goalie.
Truman has fielded two teams, a Div. II team and a B Div. team, for a long time. But this year, the Bulldogs had to worry about whether they were going to be able to field a Div. II team, let alone a B team. Truman promoted the remaining members of its B team to fill the holes on the Div. II team, and with the addition of one freshman in the offseason, it has brought its numbers back up to 11. But, Truman still has only seven or eight skaters available at any one time. Junior Zach Rohne is unable to play this semester because of an offseason shoulder surgery, and senior Truman Patterson will be graduating in December.
What this all amounts to is that Truman is no longer the king of the Great Plains region. After losing most of its players and the coaching talents of Nedelec, the success the team practically was assured from the start of its past seasons is gone.
"Years past, we've always thought of, we're here to win this division, hands down," Rohne said. "No one in this league should beat us, no one in this league should touch us. But this year, we're definitely going to have to work harder than we've worked any time before. And I think a lot more games are going to be more competitive than in years past.
"We have the skill to win our division and go to nationals. It's just going to take a lot, a lot of work."
Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, dynasties cannot survive forever.
During the offseason, the Bulldogs have had not only a major roster turnover, but a team turnover as well. Former head coach Joe Nedelec, who played a major role in the success of the teams he coached, departed during the offseason. The 'Dogs also lost seven of the 11 starters who comprised their Div. II team, including vital members of the offense, defense, bench and goalie.
Truman has fielded two teams, a Div. II team and a B Div. team, for a long time. But this year, the Bulldogs had to worry about whether they were going to be able to field a Div. II team, let alone a B team. Truman promoted the remaining members of its B team to fill the holes on the Div. II team, and with the addition of one freshman in the offseason, it has brought its numbers back up to 11. But, Truman still has only seven or eight skaters available at any one time. Junior Zach Rohne is unable to play this semester because of an offseason shoulder surgery, and senior Truman Patterson will be graduating in December.
What this all amounts to is that Truman is no longer the king of the Great Plains region. After losing most of its players and the coaching talents of Nedelec, the success the team practically was assured from the start of its past seasons is gone.
"Years past, we've always thought of, we're here to win this division, hands down," Rohne said. "No one in this league should beat us, no one in this league should touch us. But this year, we're definitely going to have to work harder than we've worked any time before. And I think a lot more games are going to be more competitive than in years past.
"We have the skill to win our division and go to nationals. It's just going to take a lot, a lot of work."
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Joe Nedelec
posted 10/22/09 @ 2:03 PM CST
Go get 'em boys! Nice article as always, Joe.
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