For a team that has three of the last five Goodall Cups and have made the last 10 straight AIHL Finals, the Melbourne Ice seem to have somewhat flown under the radar this season.
The perennial finalists enter the 2015 AIHL Finals presented by Air Canada having finished second on the AIHL ladder. It’s the way they’ve gotten there that is impressive.
Having conceded 83 goals for the season, the Ice is the equal best defensive team in the competition, while their offence sits in fourth on 121. But with the high-flying North Stars, the surprising Thunder and the resilient Brave joining them in the finals, the Ice have been able to go about their business with minimum fuss.
Most impressively, the Ice’s record has been perfect in August, winning all five games, while holding a 7-1-3-1 record over the last 12 games. It shows a team that’s working well together and working towards the same goal.
With the Finals on the weekend, Ice coach Brent Laver said the Ice would be continuing to work at training during the season on the systems they’ve been developing.
“It’s all about consolidating what we know and sticking to the plan,” Laver said. “I think everything is there, it’s just whether or not the pieces of the puzzle can come together in one weekend, which is always tough. It’s the tough but exciting thing about a playoff weekend because it’s just two games.”
More impressive for the Ice in the current five-game streak is that all but their last start were away from home with a trip to Sydney to take on the Ice Dogs and Bears, before going on a second double-header road trip to Perth the following week.
To Laver, the timing came as a blessing in disguise and has the team better prepared for the Finals.
“I think we’re in a good place,” Laver said. “The Perth trip was perfectly placed for us because it brought everyone together and because we went Sydney, then Perth we were on the road together for that whole period. It was good timing. I think we’re ready.”
The Ice produced some great individual performances in 2015 with local players playing a big part in the success of the team. Leading the scoring for the team in 2015 has been the evergreen Tommy Powell. In his 12th season in the AIHL, Powell has hit 50 points for the first time in his AIHL career, reaching 52 (21 goals, 31 assists) to be the leading Australian point scorer in the league.
Matt Armstrong’s sixth season in the AIHL saw the fourth time he passed 50 points in a season. While other imports have contributed, it was youngster Mitch Humphries that rounded out the top three for the Ice with 30 points, a personal best season for the 22-year old.
On top of this, the Ice have used three goalkeepers who have been strong in net, including the New Zealand national team goalie Jaden Pine Murphy (3.33 GAA, .893 SV%), talented youngster Nicholas Novysedlak (2.85 GAA, .891 SV%) and talented import Alex Leclerc (2.00 GAA, .939 SV%), who maintains a perfect record after nine games.
Set to take on the Thunder in the second semi final on Saturday night, Laver said they would be wary of the Western Australian who are hunting the state’s first Goodall Cup.
“I think the thing with Perth is that we know they are not going to go away,” Laver said. “Even the start is going to be important because I think they’re a team that really plays on momentum and plays with a lot of spirit. I think that’s the best thing about what they’ve done this year. They feel a real belief that they’re in every game that they play. We know it’s not going to be an easy ride; it’s going to be a really, really tough game and it’s going to be the team that can sustain it for the longest that’ll win through and get a chance to play in the show.”
The Melbourne Ice take on the Perth Thunder in the second semi-final on Saturday night at 6.30 at the Medibank Icehouse.
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BEARS
RHINOS
ICE DOGS
ADRENALINE
THUNDER
ICE
BRAVE
LIGHTNING
NORTHSTARS
MUSTANGS
