Chiefs persevere despite multiple setbacks
Tim Speltz said he’s never seen anything like it during his long tenure as general manager of the Spokane Chiefs.
The Chiefs’ roster has been devastated recently by (to steal a title from a book and movie) A Series of Unfortunate Events: namely, five major injuries to regular starters.
“We’ve gone from a team where we were feeling pretty good about ourselves (with 24 players two weeks ago to shorthanded this week against Kamloops) … We finished that game with just 18 guys,” said Speltz.
It unfolded like this:
“Seth Compton broke his ankle in a Feb. 2 game against Calgary;
“Drayson Bowman broke his wrist in practice on Feb. 8;
“Justin Falk broke his wrist against Everett on Feb. 9;
“J.P. Szaszkiewicz underwent an emergency appendectomy Wednesday in Kamloops; then
“David Linsley suffered a shoulder injury in Wednesday night’s game.
Things could be worse. Assistant captain Chris Bruton has been banged up, missing half of the Kamloops game, but will remain in the lineup.
“It’s something you can’t control,” Speltz said of the injury bug, “but, just with three broken bones at one time, it’s very unlikely and too bad.”
The Chiefs haven’t become so desperate as to hold open tryouts, but Spokane will have only 19 players available for tonight’s home game and 18 players for three more Arena games next week.
They are carrying 24 players on their roster, five are injured, and defenseman Mike Reddington will be representing Team B.C. at the Canada Games next week. Reddington will miss five games in all.
Szaszkiewicz is resting at home in Canada for the procedure he underwent at Kamloops. He is expected back in Spokane early next week and could resume physical activity in seven to 10 days.
The other injured players are out “indefinitely” – which means an undetermined number of weeks, not days, depending on how each injury heals. Bowman, Falk, and Linsley could possibly return before the end of the regular season (March 18). Compton could return for the playoffs, most likely after the first round.
The loss of those particular players had an exponential effect. Each has played in varied situations: regular shifts on offense or defense, plus time on the power play and penalty kill. Szaszkiewicz, a forward, was versatile enough to also play defense.
The Chiefs and coach Bill Peters will have to be creative in making their lineups.
Curtis Kelner, acquired from Calgary as a two-way player, has been spending some time back on defense. It also means that younger forwards such as Levko Koper and Chris Langkow – who were often healthy scratches – are getting a chance nightly.
The Chiefs have five more games this month and it may be the toughest stretch. Their call-up options are essentially zero, for a couple of reasons.
First, they would need a coach’s permission to bring up a listed player and “that’s not easy to get this time of year,” Speltz said. Those teams are starting their own playoffs.
Second, some of the players the Chiefs would want to call up will also be playing in the Canada Games. Foremost among those is defenseman Jared Cowen, the team’s No. 1 overall pick for whom Speltz saved three games of eligibility. But he will play as an underage for Team Saskatchewan.
“You always want to win every game you play, but this time of year, with what you have, you have to be realistic about where we’re at,” said Speltz, whose team is fighting for playoff positioning.
On Wednesday, the team saw a blueprint for how to get things done.
The Chiefs defeated Kamloops, the Canadian Hockey League’s seventh-ranked team, 4-3 on the road. They did it with solid goaltending, solid team play, and scoring from veteran leaders Michael Grabner (two goals), Adam Hobson, and Derek Ryan.
They will need a similar effort tonight against Kootenay, ranked No. 4 in the CHL.
“We lose those guys (in the Kamloops game) but then get the winner shorthanded with 5 minutes to go,” Speltz said. “That changed the mood yesterday (Thursday, a day off). The guys realize they can still win that type of game.”