By Mike Cadarette (Contributor) – Email
Print Edition: January 23, 2013
The midway point of the Abbotsford Heat’s 2012-13 season has arrived. There have been highs and there have been lows throughout the first 38 games of the 76-game season. The Heat started the first month-and-a-half of the campaign as the best team in the AHL. Then injuries hit. The offence dried up, but the defence did not. They have since fallen from the podium in an awful losing streak that began in December. Yet, despite the nature of the NHL lockout taking many of the Heat’s key players and having a rough month to finish 2012, Abbotsford remains one of the top teams in the Western Conference.
The second half of the season is always the most difficult in any pro sport. The pressure to finish out the season with consistency is integral. When the Heat look back on the first half of the season, there are certainly some things they should try to forget, while there are others they need to continue.
Goaltending
Rarely in life can you come in first and second place at something simultaneously, but the Heat have found a way — at least in the goaltending category.
Barry Brust and Danny Taylor continue to put up the stingiest numbers in the American Hockey League. Brust, sporting a league leading 1.45 goals against average, has been nothing short of spectacular. The one they call “The Ninja” beat NHL legend Johnny Bower’s AHL consecutive shutout streak of 249 minutes and 51 seconds. Brust did not allow a goal in 268 minutes and 17 seconds.
Yeah, he’s good.
Danny Taylor is having an equally impressive season. Second only to his teammate, Taylor has played 20 games this season and is maintaining a 1.68 goals against average. The 26-year-old veteran may not have broken any records, but he’s been air tight as one half of the double-headed dragon coach Ward has at his disposal.
Special Teams
Special teams has been something the Heat have both thrived with and struggled at. Their power play at home is top five in the AHL, but on the road they’re second last with the man advantage. Penalty killing has been a strong suit for the Heat at home as they are the second best team in the league when they’re down a man. They have only allowed 18 shorthanded goals all season.
If the Heat can find a way to pick up their power play on the road, they could become one of the premier clubs on special teams in the American League. Whether a man up or a man down, the Heat should be able to continue their outstanding penalty killing and power play in the second half of the season.
Offence
From October 12 to November 30, the Heat scored 54 goals in their first 19 games (2.8 goals per game). Since December 1, the Heat have scored just 30 goals in their last 20 games (1.5 goals per game). It’s clear that the Heat started off as an offensive juggernaut in the AHL, but rapidly declined when December hit.
It was an odd dynamic that swept over the team. From scoring almost at will to being one of the worst offensive teams almost over night, there are only a few possible explanations. On November 30, Sven Baertschi (the team’s leader in point per game) suffered a whiplash that kept him out of the lineup for over a month. In addition, the NHL lockout ended and all of the best players left for Flames training camp. Then there’s a matter of plain old cold streaks. Players who are expected to get points can’t buy a goal to save their lives.
All of these factors amounted to the biggest offensive drop off in the AHL. It’s something the Heat hope to look back on as simply a bump in the road.
Attendance
While attendance is not something the team particularly has influence over, it is something that can have influence over the team. Few things are better in sports than having a loud, supportive crowd in a hockey arena. Feeling the energy of the crowd not only helps the experience off the ice, but on the ice as well.
Unfortunately, the Abbotsford Heat and its 2000 or so regular attendees haven’t been able to have that experience in a while. If it weren’t for six sellout crowds to watch the Chicago Wolves and Oklahoma City Barons, the Heat would be on pace to have their worst attendance record in their four-year history. The good thing is, the Heat players have adjusted to having little to no fan emotion at the AESC. Their record at home this season is 13-6-2-1, which is good for second best in the league.
Defence
The outstanding goaltending from Brust and Taylor is evident, but team defence has been a hallmark of the 2012-13 edition of the Abbotsford Heat. In the first half of the season, the Heat have only allowed 81 goals (2.07 goals per game). To put that in perspective, the teams with the next fewest goals allowed are the Binghamton Senators and Springfield Falcons with 93.
It seems that head coach Troy Ward and staff have mastered “trap” defence. A big reason for that result is the emergence of towering blue-liner Chris Breen as the Heat’s premier shut-down defender. Breen, in his third season with the Heat, has proven why he should be a leading candidate for most improved player. Accompanying Breen on the blue line are a collection of sturdy veteran defenders Joe Callahan, Steve McCarthy and Joe Piskula, who all do their part in stopping the other teams’ best players.
Looking ahead to the next half of the season, the Abbotsford Heat look to increase their offence all while maintaining the stingiest defensive numbers in the league. With players returning from NHL training camp, the Heat will return to a sense of normalcy by having most of their old roster back. That static roster should give the Heat enough consistency to secure their third post-season appearance in their first four years.
