Kingston Frontenacs GameDay April 9, 2016

BILLY KIMMERLY
The keys to a win for the Frontenacs tonight in
game 2 against the Niagara IceDogs will come
down to how effective they are on three key points
in their gameplan.
1. A BETTER FORECHECK: In game one last night it
was rare that Kingston came up with puck possession
after a dump in. It is so important for the
offensive zone time to be able to retrieve those
pucks. Niagara seemed to want the puck more
than Kingston. They were also more physical and
were able to push Kingston off the puck. Another
huge factor was the puck handling ability of Niagara’s
goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic. The first step is
for Kingston to dump pucks into the corners and
keep it out of the trapezoid area so Nedeljkovic
can’t get to it. Then the hustle level has to improve
and they have to win the battles in the corners
to gain possession. Possession leads to offensive
zone time, which should lead to more goals.
2. ORGANIZE THE BREAKOUT: Before they can get
to a position to dump the puck in and retrieve
it, the Fronts will have to be better leaving their
own zone. They had all kinds of problems with
their breakout passes in game one. Some were
not accurate, and a lot of the ones that were
would hop over the receiving players stick. This
led to far too many turnovers that resulted in
scoring chances for Niagara. Kingston is usually
a very good breakout team, so it could have just
been a bad night, but if Niagara has figured out
a way to slow down the breakout Kingston will
have to adjust their game plan to be successful.
Either way, the breakout has to be better.
3. HIT THE RESET BUTTON: Let’s face it, game one
was not Kingston’s best game. Early on they were
outplayed and out worked and dug themselves a
hole that was too big to climb out of. The good
news is it was only game one and there is time
to recover. The players, the fans and Niagara all
know that Kingston is better than they showed
last night. They need to reset and play the game
that made them the best team in the Eastern Conference
this regular season. There is no need to
panic.
Jordan Jackson is a longtime Kingston Frontenacs season ticket
holder who can be heard regularly on The Morning Show with Kris
and Tony Orr on K-Rock 105.7 and is co-host and analyst on Frontenacs
Tonight before each Friday home game on CogecoTV.
www.reidsdairy.com • Belleville / Kingston
6 KINGSTON FRONTENACS GAMEDAY MAGAZINE