he Indy Fuel, the city’s professional hockey team and its latest addition to pro sports, is ten games into the regular season with two wins to its credit. It’s really great to see the puck dance once again on the ice at the Pepsi Fairgrounds Coliseum. The Fuel, like it’s predecessors the Racers and the Checkers, have taken a name with auto racing connotations. The Fuel is affiliated with the Chicago Blackhawks of the NHL and the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL and plays in the Northern Division of the Eastern Conference of the East Coast Hockey League. The team colors are red, gold, black, and white. There is also black and blue if you count the bruises on the players after a game.
Canadian Scott Hillman is the Fuel’s head coach and has an extensive background in professional hockey. The 40 year old was born in LaSalle Ontario, attended the University of Windsor, and was a player for various teams from 1999 to 2007. Hillman started his coaching career with the Knoxville Ice Bears of the Southern Professional Hockey League as their head coach. He led the team to back-to-back divisional titles and league championships and was named the SPHL Coach of the Year for the 2008-09 season, He was a solid choice to be the Fuel’s first head coach.
As you would expect, there are a number of Canadian players on the Fuel roster but also a surprising number of Yanks. There is even a Russian player, 23-year-old Iidar Telyakov, a defenseman from St. Petersburg. Center Robert Czarnik leads the team with 6 goals scored and Goalie Cody Reichard has 343 playing minutes to lead all the goalies.
The team opened its regular season on October 17 against our old cross-state rivals the Fort Wayne Komets. The Komets won 5-4 but it was wonderful to see that rivalry renewed after a decade’s absence. Much thanks to team owners Jerry Williams and the Hallett brothers Jim and Sean for bringing professional hockey back to Indianapolis. I also want to commend them for making the Pepsi Coliseum their home turf and not screaming for a brand new $50 or $60 million arena to play in. I wish the Fuel every success and the best of luck for both this season and the coming years. You can visit the team’s web site at www.indyfuelhockey.com.
snicewanger@yahoo.com