Oslo Set Back by 2-Game Skid, Volcano
Oslo - The Vikings were glad to be home, finally. "We came home on the train across the Swedish border, which was a nice change from some of the craziness we had to deal with getting back and forth across the Baltic," said a bleary-eyed GM Kasim Husain.
When Eyjafjallajokull, Iceland's volcano that has wreaked havoc with the European aviation industry, first erupted, the Vikings happened to have just flown back to Oslo from a road trip to Las Vegas. The happy coincidence allowed them to play out a homestand against the Aces and Reds, prior to their own divisional road trip to play the Gladiators and Cougars.
"We weighed taking the trip by boat or bus, because all planes were grounded. I was in contact with the other GMs of European division teams, as we tried to figure out how to avoid cancelling games - the SICHL's schedule is so tight that we really can't afford to reschedule games. We eventually decided to take the bus across the Øresund Bridge from Sweden to Denmark, and drive down to Hamburg," explained the GM. "I still don't know how the hell Sylvain [Tremblay, GM of the Reykjavik Riders] managed... must have some friend with government connections to be able to fly out of there these days."
"Let me tell you, to begin with, the boys weren't thrilled to be on the bus" laughed coach Bruce Boudreau. "But you know what? Soon they were swapping stories from when they were in juniors, the minors, what have you. It's a twelve-hour drive, and we got to do some bonding on the trip."
Whatever the upside of the situation, there were none in evidence on the ice. The Vikings returned home, losers of 4-2 and 3-2 decisions to the Glads and Cougars, respectively. "Well, I don't like to make excuses, but our game-day rituals are based around air travel," Boudreau commented. "Guys missed naps, meal times weren't bang on, all those little things were messed up. But a little adversity a few weeks before the playoffs shows the coaching staff what we need to work on. Overall, I think we'll look back on this as an important moment in our season, and also as a chance to remember there are other things out there besides hockey."
It is an important time in the season, as the race for first in the league heats up during the final stretch. Sitting one point back of the league-leading Fire Ants, the Vikings have two games in hand on their American rivals. "It's been a battle with Philly all year long," offered captain Chris Pronger, "and we need to pick up wins now because we finish up on a pretty hectic note." Pronger refers to the four consecutive games on the road his team plays to close out the season, crisscrossing North America. "It's a tough time to be playing so much on the road, especially with all the travel disruptions. But I think this has been a great opportunity for the team to dig deep. God knows on the ferry back, we discovered the power of nature to bring up [Rick] "Nasher" [Nash]'s lunch!" Wind warnings were also in effect the night the team crossed the Baltic en route from Hamburg to Stockholm, but seasickness doesn't account for the star forward's continuing goal-scoring drought, now stretching to eleven games.
Despite the close race for the Commissioner's Trophy, and while 5 of the Vikings' final eight games are against .500 or better teams, the team is very close to besting their previous record of finishing 55-22-8 for 115 points, as they currently stand at 54-15-5 for 113 points. "All we care about is home ice for as long as we can have it," grunted Pronger, when informed of the standings. "We aim to go all the way this year, so that's all the regular season counts for as far as we're concerned."
With up to the minute coverage of your Oslo Vikings, this is J. Bjorgaard for Aftenposten.
When Eyjafjallajokull, Iceland's volcano that has wreaked havoc with the European aviation industry, first erupted, the Vikings happened to have just flown back to Oslo from a road trip to Las Vegas. The happy coincidence allowed them to play out a homestand against the Aces and Reds, prior to their own divisional road trip to play the Gladiators and Cougars.
"We weighed taking the trip by boat or bus, because all planes were grounded. I was in contact with the other GMs of European division teams, as we tried to figure out how to avoid cancelling games - the SICHL's schedule is so tight that we really can't afford to reschedule games. We eventually decided to take the bus across the Øresund Bridge from Sweden to Denmark, and drive down to Hamburg," explained the GM. "I still don't know how the hell Sylvain [Tremblay, GM of the Reykjavik Riders] managed... must have some friend with government connections to be able to fly out of there these days."
"Let me tell you, to begin with, the boys weren't thrilled to be on the bus" laughed coach Bruce Boudreau. "But you know what? Soon they were swapping stories from when they were in juniors, the minors, what have you. It's a twelve-hour drive, and we got to do some bonding on the trip."
Whatever the upside of the situation, there were none in evidence on the ice. The Vikings returned home, losers of 4-2 and 3-2 decisions to the Glads and Cougars, respectively. "Well, I don't like to make excuses, but our game-day rituals are based around air travel," Boudreau commented. "Guys missed naps, meal times weren't bang on, all those little things were messed up. But a little adversity a few weeks before the playoffs shows the coaching staff what we need to work on. Overall, I think we'll look back on this as an important moment in our season, and also as a chance to remember there are other things out there besides hockey."
It is an important time in the season, as the race for first in the league heats up during the final stretch. Sitting one point back of the league-leading Fire Ants, the Vikings have two games in hand on their American rivals. "It's been a battle with Philly all year long," offered captain Chris Pronger, "and we need to pick up wins now because we finish up on a pretty hectic note." Pronger refers to the four consecutive games on the road his team plays to close out the season, crisscrossing North America. "It's a tough time to be playing so much on the road, especially with all the travel disruptions. But I think this has been a great opportunity for the team to dig deep. God knows on the ferry back, we discovered the power of nature to bring up [Rick] "Nasher" [Nash]'s lunch!" Wind warnings were also in effect the night the team crossed the Baltic en route from Hamburg to Stockholm, but seasickness doesn't account for the star forward's continuing goal-scoring drought, now stretching to eleven games.
Despite the close race for the Commissioner's Trophy, and while 5 of the Vikings' final eight games are against .500 or better teams, the team is very close to besting their previous record of finishing 55-22-8 for 115 points, as they currently stand at 54-15-5 for 113 points. "All we care about is home ice for as long as we can have it," grunted Pronger, when informed of the standings. "We aim to go all the way this year, so that's all the regular season counts for as far as we're concerned."
With up to the minute coverage of your Oslo Vikings, this is J. Bjorgaard for Aftenposten.
Oslo Vikings