Stars Struggling to Find Groove

The Prep Stars are still struggling to find their groove in the U-20 League this season. With 6 league games under their belt thus far, the Stars are still looking for their first win of the season. 

The Stars travelled to Graz on Sunday to face the 99ers, a formidable task on their best day, and came up with a 10-2 loss. Scores were 5-1 after one, 8-2 after two, and then 10-2 after three. Scorers for the Stars were Sebastian Rilk and Fabian Tomanek. Felix Wagner and Daniel Gysi each assisted on the Rilk goal, while Tomanek's was unassisted.  Johann Bauer was tagged with the loss on the night.

While scores have been unflattering for the Stars' squad, the games video has revealed a more positive light. "We are there... in certain instances the other team outmuscles us or outskates us, but we are right there," commented O'Leary on the situation. "Keep in mind, we are here to develop players, and guys are being asked to play well outside of their comfort zone, so we need to be mindful of that. We also need to recognize that we are making errors that last season, or on other teams for the new players, would not cost you. At higher levels, when you make these errors, you have to be prepared for the consequences." O'Leary mentioned turnovers and lack of attention to detail on the defensive side of the puck as being the biggest areas they are trying to address in practice. "We are used to working only one side of the puck, whether that is defense or offense. Good players play on both sides, and we need to buy into that."

Next up the Stars will travel to Innsbruck, still on the path towards their first win, and more importantly, confidence. "We need some of that swagger back. Squeezing sticks, freezing in situations when we have more time than we think... those things compound problems. We have to believe we can play, and then we have to play."