Monarchs update (part four, AFAIK)

As of now the Manchester Monarchs have been doing pretty well this season: the LA Kings affiliate has won four games, losing six, including one in OT. They do not have a top-40 AHL scorer nor a top-20 goalie, but this will change, hopefully soon.

The key scorers are defensmen Eric Werner (10 points, all assists) and Peter Harold 9 pts for 2 goals and 7 assists. Lauri Tukonen and recently called up Noah Clarke have each scored five goals. The negative on the offensive front has been Konstantin Pushkarev who is yet to find the back of the net in eleven games he has played.

The Monarchs fire-power got the boost when AHL leading scorer last season, Patrick O'Sullivan was moved across the continent to regain his Midas scoring touch. I'm fully confident that in the next two weeks, paired with Tukonen at his right, Sully will score early and often. In fact he already has a goal and three assists in the first four games he played in.

In goal, it has been mostly Jason LaBarbera, who has played a good majority of games, with Barry Brust only subbing on a couple of ocassions.

Defensman T.J. Kemp has been a pleasant surprise on the blueline:

"Always being the new guy on the team, it was tough, but it's a learning experience," said the second-year pro Kemp. "Last year, I was always the new guy. Because Reading (ECHL) is affiliated with Manchester, I played with a lot of the guys here last year. So I came in here and I was a lot more comfortable and confident. (Morris) gave me a chance played me on the PK and gave me a regular shift."

He's made so much progress that Joey Mormina, deemed to be a stallwart, was benched as a healthy scratch for one game.

Luck (and the zebras) has not really been a part of the Manchester season - see the Rochester American game recap. Well, we've seen some questionable games being called in the big league, no wonder the AHL has to have its share. I just hope what goes around, comes around.