The Scope

The IceCaps returned from another triumphant road trip (they have yet to lose in regulation on the road this season, 8-0-2-0) to go mano-a-mano with the Anaheim Ducks’ farm team, the equally sillily named, Syracuse Crunch.

The series began with the news that the IceCaps second best player all season, Carl Klingberg, got the call to join the IceCaps best player, Jason Jaffray, in Winnipeg. A loss that was lessened by the re-arrival of a jet-lagged Ben Maxwell.

Maxwell began the season earmarked for the IceCaps, but started the season with the Jets. After four games with the Jets they tried to send him down to St. John’s, but the Anaheim Ducks claimed him off of waivers (players with certain kinds of contracts have to clear waivers when they are sent up or down between NHL team and farm team). He played a half-dozen games with the Ducks before they tried to send him to Syracuse and the Jets claimed him back, sending him, at last, to St. John’s. It’s enough to make a guy dizzy. But Maxwell, who had been travelling for about 36-hours solid to get to Mile One from Anaheim for game time, proved to be, along with tiny Kevin Clark, the IceCaps best player over the two game series. Which is good, because defacto captain Jason King went down with a mysterious “lower-body injury” in the second game is still out of the line up.

Morgan Murray was there to Live Tweet all the action, and Colin Peddle was there to shoot it.

Tuesday’s Game Live Tweet-by-Tweet

IceCaps 4 — Syracuse Crunch 3

Hey Hockey Tweet fans! Morgan Murray back at Mile One for the live tweet-by-tweet of #IceCaps vs the Syracuse Crunch.

It’s opposite day. The Caps are in their road blues. Hopefully their 8-0-2-0 record on the road will haunt them.

It’s wild and crazy times in Caps land. @CarlKlingberg is up, Festerling is down, Maxwells Ben and Tommy are back in the fold

Garth “Vader” Murray has signed a real contract, no more of this try out business. It’s for Caps mgmt own good don’t mess with Garth

Garth Murray doesn’t sign on the dotted line, he punches a hole right through it. #garthmurrayfacts

The Caps also signed Daniel Kroger to a try out contract. Kroger hails from, get this, Szekesfehervar, Hungary.

No, I didn’t just fall asleep on my key board. Szekesfehervar is the 9th largest city in Hungary, about 101K. A Hungarian St.Johns

Instead of cod and moose they have salami and paprika in Szekesfehervar. Other than that it’s pretty much the same. Welcome Kroger.

In other news, there is a hockey game going on right now too. Not much has happened in the first 7 minutes.

The Syracuse Crunch are wearing jerseys that look like old school Phily Flyers. They are Anaheim Ducks’ farm team #figurethatoneout

They are also named after a breakfast cereal #figurethatoneout

And the crowd goes silent. Crunchy Arnold Palmeri shoots one through Aebischer (yes he’s still alive) on the wraparound. 1-0 Crunch.

Bad news: The Caps have looked, shall we say, under-organized so far. Good news: The Crunch haven’t looked much better. #makeapass

The view of the Caps loosing a face off on the pp from the cheap (shot) seats. http://pic.twitter.com/dk3UcRJT

Postma hits the post. Too bad his name isn’t Netsma.

Machacek almost sneaks one in, but Iiro Tarkki makes the save. #notasumowrestlerafinnishgoalie

Iiro Tarkki has the best Finnish goalie name since Kari Takko. Mmmmm… Takkos.

Them scrambly tables, they’ve turned. The Caps have taken it to the Crunch for the last few shifts. Nothing to show for it yet.

The first ends 1-0 Crunch. 16-6 shots for Caps.

And now, the frozen t-shirt race. I don’t know what everyone is laughing at. That’s like me getting dressed http://pic.twitter.com/tL50OEZh

Dance Cam! Wherein the PA guy makes marginally inappropriate comments about young girls dancing. #ew http://pic.twitter.com/VynAyKnD

The Caps are barely recognizable with their bare naked baby faces. So long Movember.

The 2nd period is the Caps worst enemy at Mile One. Nearly 6:00 into this one they don’t have a shot. But now they’re on the PP.

Speak of the Devil! Gagnon bangs home the rebound. 1-1. PP goal. #ohyeah

Caps D Desantis had the original shot on Gagnon’s goal. Giving him 15 pts in 14 games. Who does he think he is? Bobby Orr?

Deja Vu all over again! Gagnon bangs home a rebound off a Desantis shot (that was tipped by King). 2-1 Caps. PP goal. #ohyeah

Holy jumpin’! I hope the roof of Mile One is screwed on tight. Cormier tips in a nifty pass from Clark on a 2-on-1. 3-1 Caps. #ohyeah

The Crunch take a time out. They’ve lost all their snap, crackle, pop. Like they’ve sat in the milk too long. #breakfastjokes

Change on the Caps 2nd goal. McArdle from King and Rosa. K-Mac’s 22 looks a lot like A-Gag’s 25 from the cheap seats.

Kevin Clark is showing off mad dangles, draws not 1, but 2 penalties (and takes one himself). Who does he think he is? Marco Rosa?

And another! Redmond scores with a pass-shot off the post. Tarkki must have thought they are playing with the smaller Finnish nets. 4-1 Caps.

Kiss cam! And the PA guy is being creepy again. Since when did Larry from Three’s Company start doing PA for the Caps? #oldtv

Crunch take another penalty. Sssh-OW-Zzzz (Schaus) according the PA guy.

LOOK OUT! Wiebe takes an innocent looking wrist shot that shatters the glass behind the net. http://pic.twitter.com/Rs1ckTYL

It looks like someone(s) got hurt by the broken glass. This is the second time in 2 months. Danny might want to buy some new glass.

Injured fans won’t stop grown men in helmets from racing down the ice to throw a giant chip through a hole. http://pic.twitter.com/keEWh8BH

So we’ve got an early intermission. It was Caps Dads vs Crunch Kids that period. It wasn’t even close. The shots are 30-13.

Danny should toss the home whites in the harbour. These road blues are doing the job. #oppositeday

The last 2 minutes of the 2nd end with a Ramsay roughing penalty. Somebody said something unsavoury to Aebischer.

Caps deadly power play goes back to work.

It’s raining potato chips in section 101. Forget Christmas. This is the happiest day of the year!

How do you say “aw snap!” in Swiss? Aebischer misses a high wrister from Palmeri. Crunch back within 2. 4-2 Caps. #ohno

Kroger siting! The pride of Szekesfehervar gets–I think–his first shift of the game. Even gets to touch the puck.

50/50 jackpot is $13,531. Someone also wins a trip to Winnipeg in January. I use that word “win” loosely. #brrrrr

Oh-oh. Oh-oh. Crunchy McMillan jams ones past Aebischer. We’ve got a one goal game with 3:30 left. 4-3 Caps. #yikes

Tarkki to the bench for the extra guy. 1 minute left. Breath holding time.

Aebischer might not be sure where the puck is, but he keeps it out. 4.7 left. Faceoff in Caps zone.

Hooooonk! Caps win. Caps win. Hang on by the skin of their teeth for a 4-3 win. http://pic.twitter.com/QNPcpKC2

Mary Brown’s Hardest Working fry chef: Kevin Clark “Kent”

3***: 3. Iiro Tarkki 2. Paul Postma 1. Jason King.

That’s it, that’s all for tonight. Tweet ya tomorrow night with the rematch between the Caps ‘n Crunch.

Wednesday’s Game Live Tweet-by-Tweet

IceCaps 3 — Syracuse Crunch 5

Hello Tweet fans! Morgan Murray at Mile One with the IceCaps n’ Crunch, part 2. The Caps won last night, 4-3. It wasn’t that close.

A handful of Rotarians (Rotatoes? Rots?) drop the ceremonial face-off. King won it. #settingthetone http://pic.twitter.com/f1ENRllQ

Let’s hope Buddy the Ref’s ill-fated attempt to skate on dull skates isn’t a sign of things to come. http://pic.twitter.com/4g5JMA7G

Line-up notes: Festerling is back from the ‘peg, Ben Maxwell is back from Anaheim. Hungary Kroger is a scratch. Pasquale in net.

Ben Maxwell was to be a Cap from day 1. But he got hurt in WPG camp, then claimed by Ducks on waivers, then reclaimed by Jets later.

Whoa! A squeaker gets through Pasquale and tinks off the post. Close call.

Shoot! A smattering of polite boos as the Crunch score first. A size mismatch behind the net leads to a Palmeri one-timer 1-0.

Cormier gets his face planted into the glass courtesy Cumiskey’s elbow. Hopefully a PP will wake the Caps and this quite crowd up

It don’t. #zzzzzz

The guy with the duck call in 104 is the loudest fan in the place. Complete opposite of last night.

Crunchy Palmeri wins the lottery. He trips Garth “Vader” Murray and lives to tell about it. Caps PP.

Ramsay takes a stick in the chaw, in 30 seconds Caps’ll have a 2-man PP.

Ooof. The 5-on-3 sputters and ends with Machacek taking a wimpy hooking penalty. #somuchforthat

Cue the Tub Thumpin’. Palmeri scores. Again. A tricky wrister from the face-off dot. 2-0 Cruncheroos. #pissingthenightaway

The first ends 2-0 Crunch. Shots 9-4 Crunch. The only bright spot so far is Ben Maxwell. Good player.

The kids are back! It’s like watching Blades of Steel. http://pic.twitter.com/nDWVEO1T

Red #11 got 2 breakaway goals. Rumour has it the Caps offered him a contract after. He is holding out for more $$. http://pic.twitter.com/ZSjzlyJq

The 2nd starts with a Crunch tick-tack-d’oh! Maroon whiffs on an empty net tap in. Sparing the Caps. For now.

Holy save Batman. Pasquale makes a spectacular Cirque de Soliel-like save on a tipped shot.

Zing! Kevin Clark Kent whistles one top-shelf of the rush to give the flat Caps hope. 2-1 Crunch. #ohyeah

Clark Kent promptly takes an iffy hooking penalty. #somuchforthat

Did some one say hope? It’s a Crunch shooting gallery and somebody other than Palmeri scores from in tight, Holland on the PP. 3-1.

BMax, ODell, Wiebe line shows a bit of life. Them and the kids in the party box are the only Caps awake it seems.

A seeing eyed wrister from the point by Marto finds post. CLANK. #ohsoclose

GOAL! Postma through a bit of traffic on a great pass from Redmond. We’ve still got a hockey game here. 3-2 Crunch. #ohyeah

The Doyle Theme Goal Song woke up a few fans. The sound has gone up a few notches.

That’s it for the 2nd. 3-2 Crunch on the scoreboard. 21-14 Crunch on the shot board. The Caps don’t get outshot often. Says a lot.

And now Tick-tack-goal. The 3rd most complicated intermission sport going. The kids hockey was so much better. http://pic.twitter.com/Fhowuit6

Oh no! The intermission guy tries to start a wave while everyone is off taking a pee. Wasted a perfectly good wave. #whatashame

Caps defacto cap’n Jason King was slow to get up in the corner in the 1st period, and I don’t think he’s played since. Not good.

In happier news, Postma looks like he’s getting back to his old self. He’s been pretty ordinary since Winnipeg sent him back.

Well if that don’t just… Festerling shoots it into Palmeri’s shinpads he goes down and scores his hat trick goal. 4-2 Crunch.

It’s gone back to dead in here. And the Caps are standing around watching each other stick handle. Too bad it’s a team sport.

Ramsay takes a roughing penalty. It’s make or break it time for the Caps.

Oh! OH! Garth “Vader” Murray takes matters into his own hands, but gets stopped on a short handed breakaway.

Desantis hits the post on the power play. Caps get good pressure for the first time really all period.

50/50 is $13,000 even. About enough to pay for 3 beers at Mile One. #congratulations

Just when you thought it was over the Crunch take a delay of game pen. And Aaron Gagnon tips in a Desantis shot. New game! 4-3.

Now the place is jumping. They’ve been saving it for 58 minutes. Machacek rattles one of the goalies mask. #cuethefinalcountdown

The Caps net is empty. 1:37 left. Hang on to your hats!

Zut Alors! Cue the mass exodus. Crunchy McMillan scores an empty netter. 5-3 Crunch. #ohno

Buzzzz. Crunch win 5-3. The Caps split yet another home series to stay at .500 at Mile One. #suchatease. http://pic.twitter.com/88QXuQyJ

Queen Mary’s hardest worker: Aaron Gagnon

3***: 3. Kevin Clark Kent, 2. Crunchy Holland, 1. Crunchy Hat Trick Scoring Palmeri.

Aw well. Can’t win ‘em all. Tweet y’all Friday night when Worcester (pr. woooooo-ster) is in town. Can’t wait.

More Photos by Collin Peddle