Thursday Catch-up...

Once again we go with the regular daily update-apologies there haven't been many longer posts this week but job-search-related events in my own life mean I've been somewhat busy for the majority of it...Anyway...

"On a knife-edge" just about covers it: The Steelers and Devils battled out a tense eight-goal draw in the Big Blue Tent last night in the first leg of their Challenge Cup semi, scoring four each in a see-saw tie which also saw Ashley Tait score his 800th point in British hockey with the Steelers' third goal, which came just eight minutes in (the game saw five goals scored in the first ten minutes before the scoring slowed down a little). The only certainty in this tie is that the second leg is going to be an absolute humdinger as the two sides battle for the right to meet Nottingham or Newcastle in the final (that semi will be decided tomorrow night).

Stingrays add muscle: Hull have beefed up their roster today with the signing of Marlon Joseph, a 22-year old Canadian who, lets just say, isn't the goalscorer the Stingrays need but is more of a replacement for injured enforcer Cole Byers-the press release, as appearing in the Hull Daily Mail, is here. Mean-looking, isn't he?

Rumours that the same person was offering two CD's of unknown origin for sale are, however, unfounded: The Government have involved themselves in the use of hockey forums-specifically The Cage (Nottingham Panthers, which is one of the most respected forums on the net related to British hockey), after it was revealed that a poster (who ironically is a Sheffield Steelers fan and has posted the same information on the Steeltalk forum) was posting the names of new signings before they were released after obtaining them from work-permit applications to the Department of Work and Pensions, which are strictly confidential. The article covering this, and appearing in the Nottingham Evening Post today, is in full here.
Must admit this worried me for a few minutes, as I'd also posted this information on the blog after reading it from the original forum. However, after asking a few people on the Cage, it appears that posting information after it's already appeared in public, whatever the source, is OK...so there'll be no interruptions in posting due to your good writer meeting the gentlemen of the law...:)

That's your lot for now...check back tomorrow afternoon for the traditional weekend preview, and keep keeping your eye on the puck...

News and Nibbles..

First, the news-there's not a huge amount of it today, however, apart from this..

Slava Koulikov to Hull: No, you haven't entered a time-warp-the Brit with the Russian name is returning to his old stamping ground in Humberside after being released by Basingstoke, in his fourth attempt to become a proper valuable Brit for Hull rather than the third-liner he's been up until now.

Another name to throw into the Panthers pot. And it's a doozy. David Van der Gulik. This comes from no less a source than the son of Neil Black, who decided to blast it out on a Facebook group. So you never know...

At some point, they even played a bit of hockey: Nice to see the LNAH doing its best to get rid of the "bush-league" stereotype it holds...fight fans just might find themselves in nirvana by clicking here.
By the way, all these fights took place in the same game...all nine of them, including four in the first six seconds! I've heard of sending a message, but that is just ridiculous...

And now, the nibbles: Given that it's around lunchtime, my thoughts have turned to food, and in searching for a column idea today, I decided that, for all you epicures out there (that means one who likes food for those of you who are wondering)-the top five rink food delights I've had the pleasure of experiencing in my years watching the beautiful game...

5: Pork and Stuffing Batch (Newcastle): The pig roast at the Metro Radio Arena (though us old-time (ie from the BNL days) Blaze fans call it the Telewest after the previous sponsor) is fast becoming something of a legend around the league...it's the perfect way to keep out the cold of a Tyneside winter's day. Make sure you get the applesauce with it, though-it just adds to this meal-in-a-batch...

4: Stovie (Edinburgh): It's essentially corned-beef hash in a roll, but by God does it go down a treat when you're freezing your rear-end off in the cavern that is Murrayfield. Some fans I've spoken to say that the prospect of a stovie alone is worth the trip up there...

3: Fish Supper (Fife): Sadly, with the Flyers dropping down to the SNL I haven't had chance to get up there in several years. But if you do, head for the chip-shop near the rink (which from memory, you get to by turning right out of the car-park and heading straight on through a lovely dark Scottish winters' night after the games), and experience the legendary fish-suppers. Huge in size, piping hot, melt-in-the-mouth chips-just the thing to force down on the coach back to the hotel...

2. Marmorkuchen (Duesseldorf): Hang on-selling cakes?! In an ice-rink? In Dusseldorf they do, given that the DEG Metrostars have one of Germany's biggest bakeries (Kamps) as their major sponsors. If you fancy something a little different to the hot-dog and coffee fare you usually get at rinks, then head for the second-best city in Nordrhein-Westfalen (and pair it with a Schlosser Altbier as well) Given that DEG play in the DEL, the hockey ain't too bad either...

1: Gilden und Currywurst (Cologne): Like Calder and Carlson, Gretzky and Kurri, this pairing is just meant to be enjoyed at a hockey game. Perfect German beer which you can drink like water before suddenly realising that you've had far too much to get home, and a tray of nuclear-hot curried sausage which has as much bite as the team's namesake shark will satisfy any hunger you might have, while also making you wonder just how you've managed to spend that ten euros you were saving for the post-match taxi home.

And on that note, I'm off to make my own lunch...feel free to share your own culinary delights in the comments, either those found in the rink or just down the road...

Keep keeping your eye on the puck...

Locker Room Chatter: Rosters, They Are A-Changin'

With apologies to Bob Dylan for that mutilation of his song title, here's your daily burst of Tuesday rumours, updates and general strangeness...

Panthers to announce Donald Maclean as new signing: No, not the aging singer of that karaoke classic American Pie, but the high-scoring centre who in recent years has torn up the AHL for Grand Rapids and made occasional appearances in the NHL for Detroit and Columbus. I mentioned his name as an outside chance when it appeared that Dan Tessier was the front-runner, but now all the talk in the East Midlands has the 6'3, 216lb centre as their man, after the Canadian left Zurich (Swiss Elite League) last week. On paper, Maclean looks scarily good-it'll be interesting to see how he'll fit in if he is indeed the man Nottingham are looking to to resolve their woes on the forward lines.

Changes imminent in Hull: Now, it seems, the patience of Rick Strachan is finally running out. With power-forward Jake Riddle missing last weekend after being involved in an "off-ice incident" which left him with a "facial injury" (draw your own conclusions), he would seem to be on slightly shaky ground, and indeed, according to some on Humberside has already been released. The Hull Daily Mail has published an article all but stating that changes are due, blaming injuries, but surely poor performance will be a factor. We shall see.

Panic in Bracknell: With David Taylor narrowly averting a wholesale strike by the Bees squad last weekend, one wonders just how deep the problems have sunk in the off-ice management of the EPL powerhouse. The events going on are eerily similar to the whole Basingstoke saga, so with statements being released almost daily, and conflicting reports of just who's been paid and how much depending on who you listen to, it'll be a while working out just what is going on in Berkshire...

Dagenais and Matsos under pressure?: Sheffield, you'd think, are cruising along nicely. But with Dave Matsos reportedly saying that he fears for his job, Steelers fans are looking for scapegoats, and much-hyped d-man Randy Dagenais is the name coming up again and again on the forums...perhaps a situation to keep an eye on rather than an immediate change, but interesting nevertheless...

And that's your lot this Tuesday...keep keeping your eye on the puck..

More Swings and Roundabouts...

Quiet week because of no midweek games? It would appear not...

Panthers release P.C Drouin: This one comes right out of left-field...we knew that there was a chance the Cats would make changes, but releasing a returning Panthers legend, one of their top earners and an assistant coach to boot is a drastic change, which has split the Panthers fanbase right down the middle. My thoughts are the same as a lot of others in that it's more a case of needing the money than Drouin himself not performing-there are several players on the Panthers roster that were rumoured to be for the chop ahead of the Quebec native. Of course, this does make the return of Dan Tessier, as mentioned here , a little more likely-although with the Panthers' main woes this season in conceding goals rather than really scoring them, a big d-man is also another possible option. Knowing the Panthers crowd, though, the calls for a natural centre such as Tessier (or indeed Trevor Gallant, who performed so well for them in the playoffs last season) in order to kick-start Sean McAslan and Johan Molin will be growing louder and louder...Drouin himself, meanwhile, is apparently being courted by Manchester, who just happen to be in the market for a speedy goalscorer...

Colin Hemingway to Vipers?: Things continue to look a little less than rosy for the Capitals, with their best player this season linked this week with a move just south of the border to Newcastle. Sergiy Rublivskiy has been taking some heat for not scoring as often as expected, and Hemingway would be an ideal replacement for the Russian. With Caps' prolific centre himself supposedly saying he's prepared to stay and ride out the storm in Scotland, however, this one may be on the back burner.

Bison saved by Swede?: The Bison saga takes another twist, with a fans' forum being called unexpectedly for this Thursday. Rumours are yet flying around of a takeover bid by an owner new to this country-one who is rumouredly also interested in the Cardiff Devils. The weary Bison fanbase are finally allowing themselves to hope for some good news-we shall see on Friday morning whether there will be celebrations or wailing and gnashing of teeth in Hampshire...

That's all for now-keep keeping your eye on the puck...

Locker Room Chatter: Swings and Roundabouts...

It's been a weekend for player movement, with several players now appearing in a new uniform for next weekend-here are the moves and some rumours, and reactions to them...

Ben O'Connor to Edinburgh: As predicted last week, the young British defenceman, who has been very impressive so far this season playing for the struggling Basingstoke Bison, has moved north of the border to shore up the Caps blue-line. This is a superb move by the Caps, because O'Connor is big, fast and ridiculously polished for an 18-year old at this level. He may not turn the Scots' season around by himself, but he will be able to step in and add some bite to the defence immediately. And boy, do the Caps need it after a 4-0 loss this weekend...

KC Timmons to Coventry: This is...interesting. The Manchester Phoenix released him after yesterday's meeting with the Hull Stingrays, and he immediately (well, as of this morning) ended up on the Blaze blue-line, at the expense of a former teammate in David Vychodil. Given that he's switched back and forth between forward and d regularly in his time in the UK, he's certainly versatile, but he's never really stood out in the numerous times I've seen him on the opposition. As a fourth d-man who tends to just quietly get on with the job and do it competently but not spectacularly, perhaps he'll prove me wrong and prove a much better fit than the big-shooting Czech. To some degree this seems to be more tinkering for tinkering's sake rather than any urgent need on the Blaze's part, however-certainly Vych never did anything wrong in his time at the Skydome...We shall see.

Bison dead in the water?: It gets worse for the situation down south-I've been hearing in chatter round the ice-pads that the Hampshire side will be "lucky to survive two weeks" at the current level of spending, which raises the question of whether the EPL's Bracknell Bees will also be affected, since the two clubs are owned by the same company and thus the same directors. The Basingstoke faithful had something to cheer over the weekend as their team forced out a 5-4 win against the Belfast Giants on Sunday, but this, if true, will certainly put a damper on things...

Bison Problems: The Taylors Hit Back

Well, it appears that something has finally stirred down south, and the Bison fans' constant calls for answers from the management have borne fruit. The Taylors have released a long statement through the forums which can be found in full here. However, if I were a Bison fan there would be several quotes in that statement which I'd be questioning...The Taylors' statement is quoted in italics from now on...

At this moment we are sitting 1 point off the bottom of the Elite league, if we lose to Belfast tonight we will be bottom, we have put together a high profile team with one of the highest wage bills in the league, we were the only Elite team to reveal our wage bill to the board at the July meeting, hence the comments from some of the teams via their websites and local press.

Fair enough. So far, so standard "put the blame on the players for not performing"

It goes on to what will be the meat of the statement for many Bison fans-the financial questions...

The position with regard to the long term viability of the club is as follows, we believe that professional Ice Hockey is viable from the Basingstoke Arena, we gave our assurances to the board last week and stand by those assurances, Sharon and I have been financially supporting the club to the tune of £6,000 per week together with a pre season investment of £10,000, the reason for the wage cut of £1,500 per week was to firstly secure the long term financial viability of the club and to bring down the costs to a manageable level for us as owners, which at the same time allow us to develop the product,

So on the one hand, "developing the product" meant signing an expensive, highly-skilled team, but on the other hand the wages now need to be cut in order that this "developing the product" didn't cost the owners more than they can afford? Notice also that there's no mention of them putting money into the Bees-are we talking about the Bison as a team here or are we talking about putting money into the company? The obvious question here is, how exactly is making the product poorer by losing two of its top players developing it?

we are currently working with 2 corporate agencies specialising in sports sponsorship with the outcome being realised during this season,

Fair enough. But why, if this is going on, was nothing said about it earlier when fans were questioning the lack of marketing? All you have to do is say "the Bison are working with XYZ plc in order to explore new avenues of sponsorship", and people go "fair enough". I freely admit that you can't release details of actual sponsors until the deal is done, but why not at least say something to this effect earlier, rather than waiting until matters well and truly come to a head and it can easily be read as "telling the people what they want to hear?" I know if it were my team in the same position, I'd be asking a question or two about just why the owners saw the need to pay two consultancy agencies in order to find sponsorship rather than simply having employees of the club go out and do it themselves-or indeed simply by inviting companies along to a game or two and saying "look, here's a market"

the second reason was due to the performance of the team in recent games, it doesn’t take a genius to work out that changes have to be made to the team to return us to winning ways and to do justice to the Basingstoke Bison name, the new wage level is just below the wage cap and will allow Ryan (Aldridge, the Bison coach) to get the team back on track.

Read the bit I've highlighted again. Is this the owners effectively admitting they've broken the wage cap and thus league rules? Not the smartest thing to do in a press release.

The article from Ryan was based upon his request that if he can raise x amount per week from various fund raising concepts can he be allowed to spend that directly on strengthening the squad, my answer was yes he can, hence his comments about the money going to him.

So, effectively they're now making it sound like the fans are being asked to pay even more for a better team and to replace the two imports, by the coach, because the owners are putting in all the money they can. It seems a strange way to run a hockey club (I am aware that the Blaze have done it before by getting a small group of fans to subsidise the wages of certain players, but never thought it would be done in public...

As the owners we have expressed our concerns to and have been met with agreement from Ryan that 3 wins from 11 games is unacceptable, Ryan and I met Monday evening to decide the best way forward, the first instance was to look at our current squad to identify where the problems was, the decision was taken to release Peter Campbell and allow him to accept the offer he received from Belfast last week (whilst under contract to Basingstoke) and look immediately to replace him with a new playing partner to Steve Thornton, the players met on Monday evening again to confirm their commitment to the club, Tuesday morning Ryan woke to Stevie Lyle packing his suitcase (they share a flat together to keep the costs down) Stevie requested his release so he too can accept the offer and contract again put onto the table to him by Belfast last week.

This smacks of something of a smear campaign against both Peter Campbell and Stevie Lyle, particularly the "coach waking to find his starting goalie packing a suitcase" line. If the players wanted to leave then fair enough, but there is no need to make them out to be some sort of villains of the piece. Presumably, also, it is a coincidence that the two players who decided to leave were two of the highest-paid, and that Belfast only made approaches to them AFTER the rumours of financial trouble in the Silverdome came out, even according to the article, which quotes "last week" as when the offers were made.

The statement then makes reference to "vicious and uncalled-for personal attacks" which has made the Taylors decide not to appear at any public event for fear of it being turned into a witch-hunt. This is a fair decision-although their attempt to take the moral high-ground is somewhat harmed by this next section, referring to the Bison fans discussions of the issue on forums...

much of it is complete rubbish mixed in with some extremely un pleasant personal attacks on me by a large number of supposed supporters of the team, because of the vicious nature of this comments we will not be entering into any off ice event which runs the risk of being turned into a witch hunt against Sharon and I.What is required now is for all the persons who clearly seem intent on driving us from the club to shut up, get off our backs and get behind the team, we are in much better position financially now than we were at the start of the season and fully intend to build upon our current league position.

So, you're basically telling the people you need to get on your side to "shut up, stop behaving like idiots and sit down, children"-the language used is guaranteed to inflame the situation rather than calm it. No-one in any of the forums that I've read (THF and the Elite Forum) has openly made threats against the owners-a few have strongly expressed their dis-satisfaction but there is certainly no movement to "drive the Taylors from the club"

Finally...

Ryan was informed once our Accountants were able to confirm our exact income and outgoings we informed Ryan of the trading position, who in turn appraised the players hence the calls from some players to other clubs to possibly line up other options, with hindsight this may not have been the best course to take.I have raised the fact that 3 clubs have made offers to a couple of our players whilst they remain under contract to Basingstoke with the Elite League Board, we do not hold the players responsible for that but we are very disappointed with the clubs for not only negotiating with the players involved but also making offers to them, at the end of the day the players must do what they feel is best for them and their families.

Paraphrased as "we told the players what was going on, they did what they thought best, but our Elite League rivals behaved unfairly". How on the one hand can you not hold the players responsible for telling other clubs they could be available, but then criticise them for making offers? Either you criticise both or neither...

I have a feeling that this debate has some way to run yet, somehow-it will be interesting to see what effect this statement (even if it is somewhat contradictory and can be reads as covering of backs/blame-shifting in parts) will have on the situation. I shall keep monitoring things from up here in Coventry...

Keep keeping your eye on the puck...

Bison Problems Begin to Surface: Campbell and Lyle leave

Remember this post yesterday, and this one last week? It appears that all the rumblings about the Bison problems are true-BelfasatGiants have officially announced today that sniper Peter Campbell and starting goalie Stevie Lyle have left the Basingstoke Bison and signed for them, and all hell has broken loose on the forums around the EIHL.



Personally I feel a bit confused by this-both the destination of the two players and the fact that there are indeed problems at the Bison in the first place. Firstly, the pressing issue-the problems at the Bison: As I mentioned last week, Bison are traditionally a well-run club, and although not having the biggest crowds in the league are one of the best-supported-you can always guarantee that their rink will be pretty full when you travel down there, especially for the Saturday night games. As recently as two weeks ago, owner David Taylor released a statement via the official website in response to the original story in the South Wales Echo, in which he was quoted as saying:



"Nothing has changed full-stop, financially or team-wise. Our team remains the same, we are still 100 per cent behind our Coach Ryan Aldridge in bringing success to Basingstoke in the Elite League. It's a shame these sort of rumours are allowed to be bounded around."



This was then followed up by the Elite League meeting this month being told that Bison would be around until at least the end of the season in their current form, again, allegedly by Mr Taylor himself.



Do they sound like the words of an owner whose team is losing (allegedly) two thousand pounds a week? Not to me they don't...and many Bison fans were reassured by this. However, two weeks down the line this argument is blown out of the water by his team releasing two of its highest-paid players, who immediately sign for another EIHL team, which says to me that either the club owners have been aware of this and monitoring the situation closely, or that the players are unsettled and have actively been looking for new jobs, in which case there is nothing to say that we won't see more players leave the Bison in the near future. Either way, it doesn't look good for either Bison or, by extension, the other teams in the league-not so much because of the money problems themselves (those, we can at least hope, are isolated in Hampshire and easily solvable) but because the clubs actively sought to keep this quiet and keep taking money from a very loyal and long-standing fanbase who, as has been shown by their reaction, will do anything to help save the hockey team they love.



The problem with this situation is that it's followed the classic path taken by Ayr, Manchester and the London Racers when they folded-unfounded rumours which were then denied by the club and indeed the league right up to the point where players were suddenly leaving and an entire fan-base were going "oh, s...., we've got problems here". Why do owners seemingly not learn from other mistakes?



This couldn't have come at a worse time, with the Elite League making inroads into mainstream media with the Sky coverage, awareness of British hockey being helped no end by the NHL games which took place in late September in London, and a league which has reached its most competitive since being founded four years ago.

Like me, every British hockey fan is looking at the events in Basingstoke thinking "there but for the grace of God goes my team", and it's not a pleasant feeling for any of us...

Needless to say, the Breakaway's best wishes go out to the Bison, along with an offer to help publicise any fund-raising efforts...

Tomorrow comes Round the Rinks, where we'll assess what impact these changes will have on both the Bison and the Giants as far as the matches this weekend go, so check back then-especially as the Giants play Cardiff with both Lyle and Campbell slated to make their debuts tomorrow night...

Bison fans especially, I hope you'll keep keeping your eye on the puck...

Locker Room Chatter Update: They've had Tait-could Lyle be next?

Those Basingstoke money rumours just won't go away. Now it seems that Stevie Lyle is on his way, if you believe the chat on forums. People just can't seem to agree on where he's ending up though-in this post I mention the rumour that he's Emerald-Isle bound to play for the Giants, but now Nottingham have thrown their hat into the ring, according to this thread on the Cage Forum, with the two sides being involved in a bidding war for his services. Meanwhile, the latest to come from the Bison rumour mill is that the club needs to chop two thousand pounds or two players from the weekly wage-bill in order to ensure their future, with Lyle being one to go and Peter Campbell the other.

This is a strange one for me-only a few weeks ago, the Panthers re-signed Rastislav Rovnianek as their starter, and have given no indication that they're particularly unhappy with his performances. Now, anyone who's seen "Rasto" play will admit that at times he can be a little, shall we say, unconventional, but unlike Phillipe deRouville in Belfast, he hasn't been letting in goals left right and centre, and thus is somewhat less likely to be cut based on his performance. About the only reason I can see for this one is that it'll free up an import spot for the Big Cats to either add more firepower (although this seems a bit greedy given that they've got three of the top forwards in the league in McAslan, Molin and Drouin, and that's just the top line-Bergin and Wallenberg on the second are no slouches either), or, more likely, bring in a steadying hand at the back, where their d does look somewhat light compared to, say, Newcastle's.

As far as other rumours go, there's nothing happening-rumbles continue to float around about changes at Belfast, but so far only Shane Johnson has resolved things, joining the Giants in time to be in the line-up tomorrow when they face the Bison. It will be interesting to see if Lyle and Campbell play, and if they do, whether they give any clues as to what's going on. Certainly the Bison fans want answers...

Meanwhile-I shall be trying to make this site more user-friendly in terms of being able to see when it's been updated, so you may notice the odd layout change or a few tweaks in the sidebars...

Still-Keep your eye on the puck...

Locker Room Chatter Extra: Bison release two?

Just goes to show how much I know. Trawling the forums today in search of news, I find out the following:

Shane Johnson signs for Belfast: Not really the most surprising move in the world, given that he wasn't in Cardiff long term (although, as I say below, that was looking more and more likely), but still seems like the equivalent of a sticking plaster on the hull of the Titanic for the problems it'll solve.
No doubt Todd Kelman will use his usual PR skills to spin this signing, which, if we extent the Titanic metaphor, will be the equivalent of the captain saying to his crew: "yes, the ship's damaged, yes, we're going down because we can't fix it, and yes, you'll all die a horrible freezing death. But look-at least you won't have to refill the ice-machines!"
Not to say that this puts the Tessier rumour to bed just yet, but it's looking a sight less likely...

Basingstoke in trouble: Depressing rumours from Hampshire say that they've released goalie Stevie Lyle and top goalscorer Peter Campbell, according to the Elite Forum. At the moment this is still very much "friend of a friend" stuff, which unlike the Johnson signing isn't confirmed by the club, but coming hard on the heels of more and more questions from Bison fans, this could be an uncertain time at the Silverdome. Campbell and Lyle are reportedly both on their way to Belfast, who have been linked with more new men than Lindsay Lohan recently. It makes slightly more sense now given that Shane Johnson could fill in on their blue-line, but still is confusing given that it would still leave Troy Neumeier as a big part of the defence, despite most fans in the league seeing him as an absolute cart-horse of a player. Although carthorses are probably quicker.

Cardiff to sign new centre shortly: Surely, surely it can't be Steve Thornton? If it is then that will be confirmation that there is indeed something seriously wrong down south, but bearing in mind that ECHL and European teams release players almost every day, the chances of it actually being Thornton are just as good as any other...the South Wales Echo says
"The Devils know the player they want on their first line and (Gerard) Adams is ready to step up negotiations.It has been a tough start to the new season for Cardiff, but those hard-earned back-to-back wins against Basingstoke Bison last weekend have lifted the team."

With Shane Johnson moving to Belfast and Sylvain Deschatelets now gone, there's room for two new faces at the Bay-interesting times ahead.

And one I missed from the post below:

Rod Hinks to return to Newcastle: Interesting one, this-once again it's nothing more than "friend of a friend" stuff-although the source quoted on the forums is the player himself, who said to a Vipers fan in conversation that he would be returning "sooner than you think" after leaving the Vipers to play in Switzerland. The Vipers fans are well pleased about this, with Sergei Rublivskiy reportedly the man on the hot seat should the speedy playmaker, who carried the Vipers offence on his back at times last season, comeback to the North East.

I shall be keeping an eye on how things develop, and of course, will post it straight on here when anything does...

Keep your eye on the puck...

Locker Room Chatter

It's time for the weekly dose of rumours, as I've trawled Britain's hockey forums so you don't have to, in order to find the mix of the plausible, the possible and the just plain wacky which make up your average week of rumours in the EIHL...we start with the big one...

Dan Tessier to Belfast: You can't deny that everyone who watches their hockey at the Odyssey will be licking their lips at this one-the speedy centre has already proved himself as one of the most prolific scorers of the Elite League era in his stints at Nottingham and Sheffield, and with his ex-Steeler linemate Shaun Sutter already in teal, white and red, the fans screaming for changes, and a less-than-stellar start in Duisburg for the DEL Foxes after his move there this season, "Tess" would certainly be a HUGE boost to the Giants. However. with EIHL teams only allowed to use 15 ITC cards (cards which must be filled in whenever a player moves club internationally) through the season, of which eleven are already used including that of Todd Kelman, and the fact that Giants are at their full quota of imports already (only ten are allowed to ice at any one time), it would mean one of the current imports has to go...and if you listen to the Giants fans, there are many candidates. Trouble is, this would leave the Giants with eight import forwards-at the moment Mark Dutiaume is playing as an offensive defenceman (and doing well, by all accounts), but would Ed Courtenay really gamble on playing him there for a whole season? This is definitely one to keep an eye on...

Speaking of rumours I will keep an eye on-this one for a slightly different reason:

Stevie Lyle to Belfast: I hope this doesn't happen. Not so much because I bear Belfast any particular ill-will, but because it would give substance to the rumours I dealt with last week about financial problems down in Basingstoke. On the surface this is plausible in itself-Phillippe deRouville hasn't made the greatest start to the season after his heroics in the playoffs last time out, and Lyle is the best British goalie out there by some distance now that Joe Watkins is languishing in the EPL and taking Guildford's shilling-not to mention that it would free up the import space needed for the Giants to sign Dan Tessier without Ed Courtenay having to cut one of the current Belfast forwards. However, with everything coming out of Basingstoke pointing to the fact that the Bison will not lose any players and will continue the way they're going, I can't genuinely see this one happening.

Steve Thornton to Cardiff: Another case of an ex-player being linked to the club where he had most success due to the Bison cash rumours, this seems to me more wishful thinking based on hearsay than anything concrete, particularly with the Bison adamant that there is nothing for their fans to worry about. This is not the only rumour involving an ex-Devil, however...

Sylvain Deschatelets to Belfast: Possibly the most plausible of the lot so far. The Quebec native hasn't set the league on fire, and the Devils have decided that they're not prepared to wait and given him his two-week notice, which ended on Sunday, making the big centre a free agent. However, Deschatelets has impressed recently for the Devils with both his attitude and his work-ethic, and has been seen in conversation with Belfast coach Courtenay when the two have met on opposing sides. Much will depend on how true the Dan Tessier rumour is as to whether this goes ahead, but it's not the most far-fetched rumour by any means...

Shane Johnson to Cardiff: Shane Johnson can't make his mind up. After leaving Belfast for Sheffield last season, retiring from the EIHL to return to Belfast as player-coach their newly-formed Irish League side, and then deciding that he missed the EIHL too much and acting as a rent-a-player for Sheffield while Jeff Legue was injured, the utility player is now filling in on the blue-line for the Devils. Originally signed as a temporary measure, Johnson has impressed in his time in South Wales, and with the Devils missing out on David Vychodil (signed here in Coventry, and fast becoming a fan favourite) and ex-Bison Kevin Bergin (signed in Nottingham), there are rumblings they may be asking the #74 to stay on for the rest of the season to bolster their blue-line. But given that Johnson has moved house more often than your average hermit crab, this is by no means a done deal just yet.

And so there we have the locker-room chatter for this week. Interestingly, it involves the two clubs who've been the most disappointing this season so far, and both of them picking the bones of one in supposed financial trouble. Personally, I'm not sure that any of them will come off (with the possible exception of Deschatelets or, at a long shot, Tessier) but hey, it's always nice to speculate...

Keep your eye on the puck until next time...