Generals Need Miracle, Down 0-2 to Fort Vancouver

The Eugene Generals need a miracle this weekend. The Generals trail Fort Vancouver Pioneers 0-2 in the best of five NOR PAC Pacific Division Finals, and cannot afford another loss. The Generals have been put in a similar situation that the Boston Red Sox were in with the New York Yankees in the 2004 ALCS, and will be hoping for a similar result. The Generals will try to match that feat starting this Friday at 7:35 PM at Lane Events Center-Ice.

One can easily compare the two rivalries, but being a diehard Red Sox fan Generals Head Coach Chris Hartly might have the best perspective. “I actually worked for the Sox when I was playing college hockey in Boston,” Hartly stated. “I was in Texas trying out for a CHL team when they [Boston] made their incredible comeback, but I was able to watch every game. I remember not being stunned that they came back to win the series. I saw how they played, and just took it game by game. I don’t think I’ll use the exact analogy with my boys, but I will tell them to just worry about the game in front of you. Three games in a row can be incredibly tough, but winning one game at a time takes the burden off a little. I know our boys can do it, but they have to have the mentality that they only need to win the game that is directly in front of them.”

The Generals could easily be seen as the self proclaimed idiots with the incredibly ridiculous hair experiments of Ryan Schank, Justin Adams, Justin Kern, Troy Mytinger, Drew Griffith, Steven Slattery, and Tyler Tymchuk, and the continued suspension of eleven players for the first game of the Division Finals. It is a little more difficult to explain the “Evil Empire” Yankees and Fort Vancouver correlation, but a former Pioneer Michael Frei relayed the sentiment best when he said, “I have a hate hate relationship with Fort Vancouver.”

If the Generals do want to bring a miracle on ice to Eugene they will have to get big games from their biggest players. Lucas Romero, Ryan Schank, and Micael Frei will have to continue to put up a lot of numbers. Romero is second in scoring in the NOR PAC Playoffs with 15 points, Schank is tied for fourth with 12 points, and Frei tied for eighth with 10 points. The Generals will also have to get a big game in net from their goaltender. Nick Maynes played spectacularly throughout the first round, but has struggled in the second round. Dylan Woodring has only played twenty three minutes of playoff hockey and allowed three goals on nineteen shots. The only thing for sure is that it is now do-or-die tome for the Generals, and they must play like it on Friday.

The game this Friday against the Fort Vancouver Pioneers will be broadcast on GiTV. If the Generals are able to force a game four it will be held at 7:35 PM on Saturday, March 10 at Lane Events Center-Ice and will also be broadcast on GiTV. For more information on upcoming games or GiTV please visit eugenegenerals.com.

For more information:
Chris Bilder, Public Relations/Marketing, Eugene Generals
541-359-4154 (office)
541-680-6222 (cell)