2008–09 Guildford Flames season

Guildford Flames
Season 2008-09
League EPIHL
GM/Head Coach Paul Dixon
Home Ice Rink Guildford Spectrum
League position 3rd
Premier Cup Runners-up
Play-Offs Semi Finalists
Average attendance 1499

During the 2008-09 season, the Guildford Flames participated in the semi-professional English Premier Ice Hockey League. It was the 17th year of Ice Hockey played by the Guildford Flames and the second season under Paul Dixon as head coach.

During the summer Dixon worked to improve the defensive line by shipping out Dominic Hopkins and Ben Johnson, replacing them with 17 year old Steven Lee[1] whom had already played two seasons with Elite League side Hull, and bringing toughness to the team in the form of Mark Williams[2] from Romford. Other departures included fringe player Ben Duggan who was replaced by Matt Hepburn[3] from the juniors. The main talking point over the summer was the departure of long time top goal scorer Jozef Kohut,[4] leaving the team with what many believed was a weak offence.

After an indifferent start to the season with 3 wins and 3 losses, it was announced on the 9th October that the Flames would travel to Slovakia and take part in an exhibition against Extraliga side Poprad in a game opened by the Queen during her state visit to the country.[5] After a poor run of results in November and a multiple game ban for import Vaclav Zavoral, the decision was taken to sign Czech Martin Bouz.[6] A surprise departure was the main feature of January with Mark Williams [7] leaving to pursue work commitments and to play closer to home with the Romford Raiders.

Contents

League table

Final Table

Team Pld. W OTL/SOL L GF GA Pts.
Peterborough Phantoms ** 54 38 3 13 275 166 79
Milton Keynes Lightning * 54 34 6 14 221 159 74
Guildford Flames * 54 34 3 17 230 173 71
Slough Jets * 54 31 2 21 217 179 64
Bracknell Bees * 54 30 1 23 176 148 61
Romford Raiders * 54 27 3 24 197 259 57
Sheffield Scimitars * 54 22 5 27 187 202 49
Swindon Wildcats * 54 23 2 29 157 194 48
Telford Tigers 54 17 5 32 186 245 39
Wightlink Raiders 54 14 2 38 189 321 30

[*] Secured Play-off Berth. [**] EPL League Champions

Peterborough are EPL League Champions 2008/09

Premier Cup Table

Final Table

Team Pld. W OTL/SOL L GF GA Pts.
Peterborough Phantoms * 18 13 1 4 88 54 27
Guildford Flames * 18 12 1 5 80 56 25
Slough Jets * 18 12 1 5 77 51 25
Bracknell Bees * 18 11 0 7 62 44 22
Sheffield Scimitars 18 9 2 7 63 55 20
Telford Tigers 18 9 2 7 68 70 20
Milton Keynes Lightning 18 8 2 8 59 58 18
Swindon Wildcats 18 9 0 9 53 54 18
Wightlink Raiders 18 5 0 13 53 99 10
Romford Raiders 18 2 1 15 48 110 5

[*] Secured Semi Final Berth.

Premier Cup Finals

Aggregate Scores

  Semi-finals Finals
                 
1  Peterborough Phantoms 6  
4  Bracknell Bees 4  
    1  Peterborough Phantoms 9
  2  Guildford Flames 7
2  Guildford Flames 5
3  Slough Jets 3  

Playoffs

Aggregate Scores for Quarter Finals

  Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
                           
  1  Peterborough Phantoms 10  
8  Swindon Wildcats 4  
  1  Peterborough Phantoms 4  
  4  Slough Jets 2  
4  Slough Jets 7
  5  Bracknell Bees 5  
    1  Peterborough Phantoms 5
  2  Milton Keynes Lightning 4
  3  Guildford Flames 11  
6  Romford Raiders 5  
  2  Milton Keynes Lightning 3
  3  Guildford Flames 2  
2  Milton Keynes Lightning 8
  7  Sheffield Scimitars 6  

Results

Legend:       Win (2 points)       Loss (0 points)       Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

September

Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Competition Man of the Match
20th Bracknell Bees Home Won 4-1 1,737 League/Cup Joe Watkins
21st Romford Raiders Away Won 8-2 Not Reported League/Cup N/A
27th Swindon Wildcats Away Won 3-2 Not Reported League/Cup N/A
28th Wightlink Raiders Home Lost 4-6 1,157 League/Cup Paul Dixon

October

Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Competition Man of the Match
4th Milton Keynes Lightning Away Lost 6-5 (OT) 1,093 League/Cup Lukas Smital
5th Telford Tigers Home Lost 3-4 1,538 League/Cup Lukas Smital
11th Sheffield Scimitars Home Won 3-2 (SO) 1,249 League/Cup Joe Watkins
12th Peterborough Phantoms Away Won 7-3 526 League/Cup Joe Watkins
15th Peterborough Phantoms Home Won 4-2 945 League/Cup Joe Watkins
18th Slough Jets Away Won 6-5 649 League/Cup Lukas Smital
19th Wightlink Raiders Home Lost 4-5 1,424 League Stephen Lee
24th HK Aquacity ŠKP Poprad Away Lost 6-5 4,500 Exhibition N/A
25th Bracknell Bees Home Won 1-0 1,542 League Nick Cross
26th Telford Tigers Away Won 4-3 (OT) 675 League/Cup Rick Plant

November

Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Competition Man of the Match
1st Slough Jets Home Lost 2-3 1,308 League/Cup Lukas Smital
2nd Slough Jets Away Lost 5-6 (OT) 320 League Paul Dixon
8th Swindon Wildcats Away Won 6-3 754 League/Cup Lukas Smital
9th Swindon Wildcats Home Won 4-2 1,568 League/Cup Neil Liddiard
15th Sheffield Scimitars Away Won 7-4 364 League/Cup Rick Plant
16th Milton Keynes Lightning Home Lost 2-4 1,161 League/Cup David Savage
19th Romford Raiders Home Won 6-2 1,016 League/Cup Alex Mettam
22nd Wightlink Raiders Away Lost 5-4 509 League/Cup Stuart Potts
23rd Telford Tigers Home Won 4-2 1,368 League Alex Mettam/Mark Williams
29th Romford Raiders Home Won 7-2 1,238 League Martin Bouz
30th Bracknell Bees Away Won 4-0 Not Reported League/Cup Joe Watkins

December

Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Competition Man of the Match
6th Milton Keynes Lightning Away Lost 2-5 809 League N/A
7th Sheffield Scimitars Home Won 4-3 1,568 League Lukas Smital
14th Peterborough Phantoms Away Lost 2-4 542 League Joe Watkins
26th Bracknell Bees Away Lost 1-2 910 League David Savage
27th Peterborough Phantoms Home Won 6-5 (OT) 1,623 League Lukas Smital
28th Telford Tigers Away Won 5-4 Not Reported League Ollie Bronnimann

January

Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Competition Man of the Match
1st Bracknell Bees Home Won 4-1 1,753 League Martin Bouz
3rd Slough Jets Away Won 7-3 751 League Joe Watkins
4th Slough Jets Home Lost 5-3 1,421 League Nick Cross
11th Wightlink Raiders Home Won 7-2 1,552 League Neil Liddiard
17th Romford Raiders Home Lost 3-4 1,535 League Stuart Potts
24th Swindon Wildcats Away Lost 2-4 902 League Lukas Smital
25th Swindon Wildcats Home Won 8-2 2,124 League Vaclav Zavoral
31st Wightlink Raiders Away Won 6-5 (SO) 560 League Lukas Smital

February

Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Competition Man of the Match
1st Milton Keynes Lightning Home Won 5-4 1,336 League Terry Miles
8th Bracknell Bees Away Won 4-3 (OT) N/A League Ollie Bronnimann
14th Peterborough Phantoms Away Won 4-2 493 League N/A
15th Slough Jets Home Lost 3-2 1,634 League Joe Watkins
19th Slough Jets Home Drawn 1-1 2,057 Cup Semi-Final (1st Leg) David Savage
21st Peterborough Phantoms Home Won 5-3 1,551 League Ben Austin
22nd Sheffield Scimitars Away Lost 5-4 627 League N/A
25th Slough Jets Away Won 4-2 702 Cup Semi-Final (2nd Leg) N/A
28th Wightlink Raiders Away Lost 3-2 (SO) 582 League Stuart Potts

March

Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Competition Man of the Match
1st Milton Keynes Lightning Home Lost 4-2 1,442 League Milos Melicherik
7th Telford Tigers Home Won 4-1 1,923 League Rob Lamey
8th Romford Raiders Away Lost 3-2 382 League Paul Dixon
14th Telford Tigers Away Won 5-3 450 League N/A
15th Sheffield Scimitars Home Won 4-2 1,332 League Taras Foremsky
18th Peterborough Phantoms Home Won 4-3 1,347 Cup Final (1st Leg) Rick Skene
21st Milton Keynes Lightning Away Won 4-3 (SO) 965 League Nick Cross
22nd Swindon Wildcats Home Won 6-1 1,252 League David Savage
26th Peterborough Phantoms Away Lost 6-4 (Lost 9-7 on Agg) N/A Cup Final (2nd Leg) Unknown
28th Sheffield Scimitars Away Won 4-2 757 League Unknown
29th Romford Raiders Away Lost 8-6 N/A League Ollie Bronnimann

April

Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Competition Man of the Match
4th Romford Raiders Away Won 6-4 N/A Play-off Quarter-final (1st Leg) Lukas Smital
5th Romford Raiders Home Won 5-1 (Won 11-5 on Agg) 2,126 Play-off Quarter-final (2nd Leg) Rick Plant
11th Milton Keynes Lightning SkyDome Arena Lost 3-2 (SO) N/A Play-off Semi-Final Ollie Bronnimann

Points for the 2008/09 season

Final Standing

Name Pld. Goals Assists Points Pims PP SH GW OT EN
Milos Melicherik 57 22 56 78 40 5 3 6 1 0
Lukas Smital 59 31 45 76 80 5 3 5 0 0
Taras Foremsky 53 33 37 70 78 6 2 4 0 0
Rob Lamey 60 25 34 59 20 4 0 3 0 0
Rick Plant 55 19 34 53 79 0 1 5 1 0
Stuart Potts 61 10 37 47 43 1 1 1 0 0
Ollie Bronnimann 60 21 18 39 16 2 1 3 0 0
Paul Dixon 57 7 30 37 32 3 0 0 0 0
David Savage 61 17 19 36 102 6 0 0 0 0
Vaclav Zavoral 46 14 18 32 215 2 1 2 0 0
Martin Bouz 26 12 15 27 32 0 0 3 1 0
Nick Cross 29 13 11 23 74 3 0 0 0 1
Neil Liddiard 58 7 17 24 96 1 1 0 0 0
Steve Lee 56 11 12 23 61 4 1 2 0 0
Terry Miles 50 5 16 21 26 0 0 0 0 0
Rick Skene 52 3 11 14 80 0 0 0 0 0
Mark Williams * 30 1 3 4 62 0 0 1 0 0
Ben Austin 61 1 3 4 16 0 0 0 0 0
Matt Hepburn 38 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Callum Best 35 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Joe Watkins 54 0 1 1 6 0 0 0 0 0
Andrew Sumner 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Alex Mettam 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

[*]No Longer On Active Roster

Goaltender Stats 2008/09

Final

Name Mins Pld. GA GAA Shots Saves Save % SO Record (W-L-OTL-T)
Alex Mettam 460:00 19 2.478 219 200 0.913 0 6-1-0-0
Joe Watkins 3232:21 169 3.132 1895 1726 0.911 2 32-17-4-1
Empty Net 7:47 3 - 3 - - - -

Special teams

Final

Penalty Shots 08/09

Final

Skaters

Name Shots Goals Pct. %
Martin Bouz 5 4 80
Lukas Smital 7 2 28.6
Taras Foremsky 4 1 25
Vaclav Zavoral 3 0 0

Goaltenders

Name Shots Saves Pct. %
Joe Watkins 21 14 66.6

End of Season Awards

The traditional End of Season Awards dinner was held on Monday 30 March 2009. The following awards were given out:

Most Sportsman like - #37 Ben Austin

British Player of the year - #8 Rob Lamey

Players Player of the year - #8 Rob Lamey

Top Point Scorer - #21 Milos Melicherik

The GIHSC (Guildford Ice Hockey Supporters Club) Voted the following:

Supporters British Player of the year - #8 Rob Lamey

Supporters Player of the year - #77 Taras Foremsky

Team Roster

MANAGEMENT
CEO  Rob Hepburn
Commercial Manager  Kirk Humphreys
Financial Controller  Thomas Hepburn

COACHING STAFF
 Head Coach  Paul Dixon
 Assistant Coach  Milos Melicherik
 Assistant/Equipment Manager  Dave Wiggins

GOALTENDERS
30  Joe Watkins
31  Alex Mettam 
FORWARDS
8   Rob Lamey
12  Matt Hepburn
14  Stuart Potts
17  Rick Plant - Captain
18  Callum Best
19  Terry Miles
21  Milos Melicherik - Alternate Captain
25  Vinnie Zavoral
32  Lukas Smital
44  Nick Cross
47  Martin Bouz
76  Taras Foremsky
91  Ollie Bronnimann
DEFENDERS
4   Neil Liddiard - Alternate Captain
6   David Savage
22  Paul Dixon
24  Mark Williams
37  Ben Austin
45  Steve Lee
55  Rick Skene

External links

References

  1. ^ [1] Official Release, Published Summer 2008
  2. ^ [2] Official Release, Published Summer 2008
  3. ^ [3] Official Release, Published Summer 2008
  4. ^ [4] Official Release, Published Summer 2008
  5. ^ [5] Official Release, Published October 9, 2008
  6. ^ [6] Official Release, Published November 19, 2008
  7. ^ [7] Official Release, Published January, 2008