Copyright © 2000 Team ZOG Enterprises
DATE: 10/3/00
ZOGS GET DOWN TO BUSINESS
PORTLAND, ME - Today marks the start of the ZOGS third season in the Portland Ice Arena's Men's Industrial Hockey League. With the new season comes a new beginning. The heartache from last year's early playoff exit has been replaced by the hunger of a young organization eager to prove to itself that it can win when it counts.
Returning to the ZOGS this year are the core members of from last year's team that set a team record with 10 wins. Rob Carrier (#9), Andrew Bradford (#27), Greg Perry (#18), Nick Gordon (#15), and James Gilbert (#47) headline an offense that scored the second most goals in the league last year. The core defense has stayed together for two years now, which brings a uniformity to the task at hand . Setting the tone at the blueline from last year are Bill Reynolds (#7), Ian Gould (#33), Joe Marshall (#32), Rick Magnuson (#5), and Peter Kelley (#31).
The ZOGS have worked extremely hard this offseason to improve their consistency in the clutch. The two goals they have set for this year are to finish with an above .500 record and to make it beyond the first round of the playoffs. To this end, a number of transactions have been made that hope to eliminate the talent drop-off that existed last year across the lines. Newly acquired players include Chad Mack (F, #21), Steve Van Rensselaer (F, #00), Dave Ahlers (F, #13), Dave Whiting (C, #16), and Brian Haight (D, #44). These players should bring depth to a team that had 61% of the offense provided by five individuals.
Opening game for the ZOGS is tonight, Tuesday, October 3rd @ 10:10 PM against Boulous. With twelve weeks of exhibition games under their belts, the ZOGS are ready to begin another campaign, and this year, it's all business.
TRANSACTIONS: The ZOGS acquired Chad Mack, Steve Van Rensselaer, Dave Ahlers, Dave Whiting, Brian Haight, and John Dalbec.
NEWS OF NOTE: The ZOGS website is still humming (www.zogs.com). Be sure to check it out all season long to stay up to date with all the team's exploits. New features will be added throughout the season.