| Robbie
Ftorek remembered how it felt when he took the ice in Phoenix during his days with the
defunct Roadrunners. "I owned the ice there," he said. The all-star center who
was the World Hockey Association's most valuable player last season is trying to establish
that same feeling in Riverfront Coliseum. He wants the Coliseum to feel like home.
"The Roadrunners felt like they owned the ice in Phoenix," said Ftorek after a
grueling two-hour practice Wednesday. "We didn't win every home game, but we always
had the feeling we could come back from four or five goals and win." Ftorek was thinking about the one-goal losses the Stingers have experienced
enroute to their 4-11 record, worst in the WHA. "We're looking for that same feeling
here.," he said. "I've been working to get the feeling that I'm at home here.
You have to enjoy playing at home." Ftorek said he hates to lose "and I always
will. But I would rather have lost this one-goal games by three or four. You can't walk
away from a big loss when you get blown out and just figure you had a bad night. But those
one-goal games grate. There's always the possibility that if we had tried a little bit
harder we would have won."
Ftorek disclosed that the players met prior to the game in Quebec
November 12 and decided to start from scratch, forgetting the previous losses and
beginning a new season. "This is a new season now and we're 2-2," said Ftorek.
"I think you're going to see a different team. We're going to have a little different
look and things are going to change." Froth predicted that the change would be
apparent when the Stingers take the ice here tonight (7:35 p.m.) against the league
champion Nordiques.
Coach Jacques Demers may have given a hint as to the new look of the
Stingers when he remarked after the practice session that the Stingers would concentrate
more on offense. "I told the players not to think defense so much," said Demers,
who has favored deliberate, defensive hockey. "We're going to have more accent on
offense. With the young players we have, I think we have to try this approach. The player
have worked with my style of hockey long enough now that they should play defense
automatically.
In an attempt to generate more offense, Demers has once again
juggled his forward lines and, at the same time, created a fourth line that will make its
debut tonight against Quebec. "I have Ftorek (Del) Hall and (Jamie) Hislop on one
line, and I have a muscle line with (Rock) Dudley, (Willie) Trognitz and Jeff Allen,"
said Demers, adding that the other two lines are Dennis Sobchuk centering for Dennis
Abgrall and Claude Larose, and Rich Leduc with Blaine Stoughton and Peter Marsh.
NOTES - The Stingers will go with five defensemen again tonight as
Barry Melrose is still not fully recovered from a groin pull...forward Jacques Locas also
will not suit up for the Quebec game because of a groin injury...winger Peter Marsh said
his back is much better and Demers is starting him tonight. Marsh didn't make the last
road trip, remaining in Cincinnati for rest and treatment. |
