The complete results can be found HERE
The Central Hockey League’ s Best of the Best Poll for the 2007-08 season may help explain some of the ridiculous numbers the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs have compiled.
Bossier-Shreveport (40-10-5) entered Friday as the league’s No. 1 overall seed thanks to a defense an opposing coach dubbed “demoralizing.” Behind a CHL record 16 shutouts this season (10 was the prior mark), the Mudbugs have allowed nearly 50 goals less than any other team.
Consequently, a sweep in the defensive categories from the annual poll voted on by players, coaches and broadcasters of the league’s 17 teams should come as no surprise.
The CHL’s high-flying offenses weren’t overlooked, but the honors were littered throughout the top teams. Laredo and Rocky Mountain garnered several titles while Arizona and Colorado were well-represented in the voting.
Rocky Mountain captain Brent Cullaton led the way with a poll-high three individual honors (Best Playmaker, Best Leader and Most Gentlemanly Player).
Laredo’s Jeff Bes (Best Overall Player and Smartest Player), Cullaton’s teammate, Daymen Rycroft (Most Underrated Player, Best on Power Play) and New Mexico’s Konrad Reeder (Best Skater, Best Penalty Killer) were the only other players to record multiple honors.
The Mudbugs’ Best of the Best defensive honors are nearly as gaudy as their record and statistics this season. John DeCaro executed the most overwhelming victory in any category. The second-year goaltender out of Marysville, Wash., garnered a poll-high 14 of 16 possible first-place votes (teams cannot vote on this themselves) to outdistance teammate Ken Carroll for Best Goaltender.
Carroll is challenging Tyler Weiman’s record for best season by a goaltender in league history. Even if the Mudbugs veteran betters the former Colorado Eagle’s 1.80 goals-against and .938 save percentage, Carroll’s current marks of a (1.80, .937) likely won’t enter the CHL record book.
DeCaro, 25, entered the weekend with a 1.64 GAA, a .942 save percentage and 10 shutouts (he actually has 11, but a lineup card mistake cost him an official shutout).
“I really feel if San Antonio didn’t have a guy signed, they would have signed him and kept him there or somewhere in Phoenix’s farm system,” said Laredo head coach Terry Ruskowski, who collected Best Coach honors again. “He’s big, but effortless moving from side to side. He plays with so much confidence he always challenges you to shoot him. When you don’t beat him a whole lot, it gets very frustrating.”
Teammates Quade Lightbody (Best Defensive Defenseman) and Kevin Cooper (Best Defensive Forward) joined DeCaro with honors on the back end.
“There are three or four guys (defensemen) on our team could have got it – three of four forwards, too,” DeCaro said.
Lightbody is second in the league with a plus-32 rating while the Mudbugs have gone 35-4-4 since Cooper’s arrival in late November.
“They are so good with what they do defensively that it demoralizes teams before they start playing,” Ruskowski said. “That’s a huge advantage. You go up there and get four or five, six shots and they really aren’t goal scoring opportunities -- then you’re looking for the closest exit.”
Entering Friday, the Mudbugs had allowed less than 100 goals and 49 less than the next closest defensive team.
“I don’t know how many times I look online and see another shutout by Shreveport and say, ‘How do they do it?’” Rycroft said. “It’s a credit to the players on that team -- to be that disciplined to play that system, it’s unbelievable. To have 16 shutouts – that’s unheard of.”
For the umpteenth straight season, Bossier-Shreveport was recognized as the league’s Hardest Working Team.
“It’s pretty amazing what they’ve accomplished,” Cullaton said. “It says a lot about Scott Muscutt and the systems he brings. He has them buying in every year.”
DeCaro hasn’t seen much of Bes, but that’s quite all right with him.
“He is a tremendous player,” DeCaro said. “I got a taste of him in the All-Star Game and that style suits him very well.”
The Bucks have already secured their fifth straight Southeast Division title and will soon aim for their fifth straight trip to the President’s Cup Finals. Bes, 34, has been in Laredo for five seasons now – Ruskowski sees that as no coincidence.
“If there is something that needs to be done on the ice, off the ice, he’s the type of guy I can rely on,” Ruskowski said. “He always seems to come up with the important goal. He may not be the fastest player, but he positions himself well and his shot got better the last couple of years.”
The Tillsonburg, Ontario, product stands second in CHL points this season (42 goals, 54 assists) and leads the league at plus-39. Teammate Steve Simoes collected Laredo’ other individual honor – Best Bodychecker.
Arizona's Alex Leavitt was named the Best Stickhandler. He leads the league in points (98) and assists (68). Teammate Kevin Cormier was chosen as the league’s Best Fighter (Heavyweight).
The Oklahoma City Blazers collected eight first-place honors overall – a high in the 45-category poll. The Blazers’ home, Ford Center, helped the franchise garner three honors: Best Arena, Best Locker Rooms and Best Arena Concessions. The Blazers tied Arizona for the Best One-Ice Promotions and Oklahoma City was also voted Best City.
The Blazers also walked away with Best PA Announcer (Ben Buckland) and Best Team Uniforms, but saw the Bucks nab Best Logo.
Youngstown is the lone remaining team to collect multiple individual awards – Chris Richards (Best Player on Face-Offs) and Bryan Lachapelle (Most Annoying Player).
Amarillo’s David Nimmo, 25, leads CHL freshmen in both goals (35) and assists (36) and was appropriately named Best Rookie by his peers. The timing was great for Nimmo, who recorded a five-point night Friday, including a hat trick and the overtime game-winner at Tulsa. He was joined by Stomp (Best Mascot) as winners for the Gorillas.
Josh Bogorad (Best Broadcaster) picked up Corpus Christi’s lone honor this year.
If there was a Best Bridesmaid category, the Colorado Eagles may have swept it this season. Only one individual first-place honor (Fraser Filipic, Best Fighter-Pound for Pound) was accompanied by 12 second-place honors.
Greg Pankewicz and Riley Nelson each finished as runners-up in three categories.
The Eagles did collect several team honors: Best Fans, Toughest Building to Win In (Budweiser Events Center) and Best Cheerleaders.
Colorado has been tested by its next-door neighbor this season as Cullaton’s arrival in Broomfield, Colo., has sparked the second-year Rage.
“A lot of us got together in the summer and we talked about how this was to be a big year for our team,” said Cullaton, who entered Friday’s play second in the CHL with 66 assists this season. “Thankfully, we all got on the same page early.”
Rocky Mountain finished 30 games under .500 last season. The addition of Cullaton, a 33-year-old Petawawa, Ontario, native has helped the Rage climb 12 games above .500 and into a tie with Colorado in the Northwest Division.
“He’s our backbone obviously,” said Rycroft, in his first year at Rocky Mountain, too. “He does it all. He’s a great leader, a go-to guy and great in the locker room. He’s the biggest reason for this franchise’s turnaround.”
Cullaton was happy his teammate was honored twice by his peers and is happy to hear opponents consider Rycroft – the league leader with 45 goals -- underrated.
“Not underrated to our team, but I guess from other guys,” Cullaton said of the 28-year-old Beaverlodge, Alberta, product. “He has 45 goals this season and had 25 and 26 the past two years. It’s nice to see he’s finally recognized.”
For the fifth straight season, the Wichita Thunder fans were voted the CHL's most annoying. Wichita also took two other honors, as rookie Mike Batovanja finished second in the best fighter (pound for pound) category and the Lampton Welding Supply Lightning finished third in the voting for CHL's Best Dance Team.
