Batch's Blog #1

Hey Devils fans,

I’ve been asked to do a blog for the Inferno this week so hopefully I can do something that meets the high standards set by the other guys so far (with the exception of Benny and his poor grammar).

Last week saw the departure of Phil Osaer for pastures new, and he will be sorely missed. Phil epitomised what it is to be a true professional. Every morning he came to the rink ready to work and improve his game, and he always did so with a smile on his face. I think I speak for all of the guys in saying that we wish him the best of luck in Norway and the rest of his career.

Phil’s departure opened the door for Joe ‘deadpuck’ Myers to start in goal for our game against Edinburgh on Saturday and did a fantastic job for us. He gave us an opportunity to win the game but unfortunately we could only convert on 4 of our 50 shots on goals, and eventually we were beaten by a penalty shot in Overtime. Joe has a lot of respect in the room for what he does, working full time whilst also playing hockey, as well as being the team DJ, is a lot to handle, but he does it well. Despite limited playing time he has a great attitude and is always upbeat in the locker room, everything you could ask for in a backup goalie. Seeing him hold his own last Saturday was a real pleasure to watch. It was also great to hear the ovation that the Red Army gave him during player introductions; I know that he appreciated that a great deal.

G and Franny have acted very quickly in finding a replacement for Phil and I think they have done extremely well to secure the services of Chris Whitely in such a short space of time, especially at this time of year. I remember Chris being a very strong goalie for Dundee last year, an even greater accomplishment when you consider the strength of their squad. I think he will do a great job for us down the stretch and will backstop us to many wins, starting this weekend where he will be thrown right into the thick of things, traveling to Sheffield on Saturday and playing at home to Nottingham on Sunday. He will have jet lag to overcome but he is familiar with the UK so hopefully that will help him acclimate quicker than if he was a complete stranger to these wonderful isles.

As previously mentioned we have a tough weekend approaching with games against Sheffield and Nottingham. We have beat Sheffield in the Motorpoint arena already this year, so that gives us a big confidence boost heading into their building Saturday night. It will also be the first time we have faced the Steelers since their acquisition of Chris Frank, hopefully he won’t enjoy the experience too much, but it will be good to catch up with him after the game. We have also beaten Nottingham at home this year so again we go into the game knowing that we have what it takes to win. If we play our game and capitalize on our chances then we will come out on top, and it would be great if we could welcome Chris to the BBT with a big win.

Well, that’s it for now. I’d just like to say thanks to all the fans for your continued support, we all love playing at the BBT but it would be nothing without the atmosphere created by you guys, it can really be the difference in a close game.

In the words of Ben Davies,

Cheers, Cheers

Josh