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Guppies Ready for Summer
Season By Stuart Scott |
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The Guppies started off the Spring 2003 season like gangbusters and
appeared to be a legitimate contender for the B League championship,
despite taking one season off. But a funny thing happened on the way to the
Championship. The Guppies were at times a Jekyll and Hyde team. They
were Mediocre early, awful in the middle and then great the
rest of the way.
The Guppies
decision to go with a "fingers-crossed, let's hope this works"
goaltending philosophy looked like it would crashed and burned. .
Neither Joe Linskey nor Marc Crayton was the answer early on.
Eventually, Linskey stepped up and played strong in the Guppies
net. He did well, adding two more shut outs to his career totals and almost
winning the championship game single handed. The Spring 2003 Guppies lost the Championship in Overtime which has left a
very bitter taste in many of the players mouths. However, despite the
way they lost the game, the Guppies don't talk about it much these days. In a
game that left the small town in disarray after riots filled the streets many
players on the team like to look forward. Looking at next season The Guppies are solid on defense. They return regulars John
Carroll and Tom Mierkiewicz from last season. --With both Brian Kelly
and Rob Murphy moving back to their forward positions -- spots open up
for prospects Brendan Leahy and Dan Pequita, who arrived in a
late off season deal with the Maple Leafs. Leahy has played with the Gupps in
the past but is famous in Killingworth for all the wrong reasons.
Pequita played in the Zrink C league for several season and looks ready and
able to play in the higher level. However, the Defensive responsibility
will fall on the shoulders of the two veterans Carroll and Mierkiewicz. The club's strength is clearly at the forward position, although there
will be some shuffling. The Guppies opted not to resign
forwards Brian Mulcahy and Jason Zito after the two suggest that their
softball commitments were more important. Mulcahy and Zito's absents will
leave a dent in the Guppies offensive punch, considering that the two were
main stays on the top of the Guppies stat sheets. The Guppies are hoping for another huge year out of Crayton and Tim
Poulin. Crayton came out fast last season scoring 14 goals in his first
eight games but later cooled down in the playoffs. The hopes are that he can
get to the level again and maintain it. The Guppies are expecting 2nd
year forward Tim Poulin to bounce back strong after being limited to
just seven regular-season games due to a shoulder injury. Despite
his injury Poulin was a top goal scorer through out the season and was a
leader during the Guppies playoff drive. Logic would dictate that Forward Dave Armenia can't possibly
have many seasons left in him, however, logic was never one of Dave's
strong points. Quite like Joe Sakic, Steve Yzerman, and Mark Messier,
Armenia has no side effects from age. In many cases people believe that
the older he gets the better he is. Dave will continue his roll as the
Guppies resident tough guy, much like Toronto's Tie Domi, striking fear
into the hearts of his opponent and in fellow teammate Rob Murphy. The Guppies have even higher hopes for their offense
this season as both Murphy and Kelly move out of their defensive rolls
and get back to more familiar waters. Murphy was the teams MVP last
season and lead the team in scoring for most of the year, all while being an
major force in the Guppies defensive scheme. Kelly, who was Murphy's
defensive partner, was the top point scorer in Spring 2003.
However, it was obvious to many that Kelly was at times a
liability on defense. As the Guppies have allowed one high-priced talent after another
walk, they've maintained that they don't want to commit to rich, long-term
contracts. Buried in the woods of Connecticut, Killingworth is a small town
and their team is a small market team. Despite this the Guppies have been
able to develop competitive teams through out the years thanks to sponsor and
fan support. Much like the Green Bay Packers, the Killingworth Guppies are
the fans team. The Guppies have many familiar faces and a few newer ones but
despite the personnel the goal hasn't changed since 1995. The Guppies work to
win championships and so far, it doesn't look like that situation has
changed a bit. |
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The Killingworth Guppies
A division of Killingworth Guppies Sports Net
and K-Town Sports Entertainment- www.killingworth-guppies.com