Mouth of the South: Week 4; Games 6,7,8

Grade: D
Player of the Week: Trevor Karasiewicz (2g, 5a)


As 3,258 IceGators fans looked on, the Gators managed to erupt for 4 goals in the final period of game 7, securing their badly needed win at the home opener.  With a final score of 7-5, IceGators fans could excuse their team's loss on Friday and looked forward to reaching 4-4 in game 8, which was held on Sunday afternoon. The Fire Antz, however, weren't going to lay down lightly and take two losses in one weekend. Sunday's game was by far the worst game of the season, which is inexcusable due to the thrilling win on Saturday evening. Defensive breakdowns, bad passes, and lack of shots made the game almost unbearable to watch.

Game 7
Your Louisiana IceGators returned home to the Cajundome for the first time in five years on Saturday for their much-anticipated home opener. The night opened with John Spoltore's family and former teammates taking to the ice. Spoltore's brother thanked the IceGators Organization for their dedication of their 2010-2011 season to his brother, "Spotty." Following the moving statements, fans watched a video-tribute to Spoltore, which featured highlights of his gameplay during the Gators' ECHL days. After the video-tribute, John Spoltore's jersey was retired and hanged in the rafters of the Cajundome.


The first period opened with explosive gamplay from both teams, resulting in an early tie of 1-1. By the end of the second period, Fayetteville was up, 5-3. As fans led the infamous Gator Chomp in the third period, the IceGators scored two goals in the first five minutes of the period. As soon as it looked as the game may go into overtime, the Gators took advantage of a powerplay opportunity, putting them up 6-5. Fayetteville's gamble of pulling their goalie, to get an extra attacker resulted in the IceGators scoring an empty-net goal, putting them up by 2 points. With a 7-5 victory, Friday night's loss seemed to be insignificant. Fans left the Cajundome, astonished at the amazing comeback and ready to watch their team take on Fayetteville the following afternoon.


Game 8
In short, Fayetteville scored, scored, and scored another five times. The Gators' defense decided not to show up and could do nothing right. Thanks to the defense's piss-poor perfomance, the offense did not possess the puck long enough to score but two goals. I wish there were more positives to highlight on for game 8, but none exist.

Frozen Chomp's Player of the Week is Trevor Karasiewicz. Even though he was dealing with a nagging upper-body injury, he managed to score 2 goals and put up 5 assists during the three game weekend. He has continued to show great puck-control, especially on the powerplay, where he is the apparent quarterback. Most players play at full speed, rushing the play, which usually results in a lack of awareness. But Karasiewicz often slows down and executes great passes to get his team mates involved. If anything, he should have probably had more assists this weekend.

On Friday, November 19, the IceGators will face Fayetteville once again. Hopefully, the IceGators will decide to bring a little defense and effort on the trip and come away with a win.