Fehrvár AV19 will start their EBEL season tonight on the road against Klagenfurt, Rob Pallin and his team hope to prove that last season’s success was not a fluke.
After being picked to miss the playoffs last season first year head coach Rob Pallin lead Fehérvár to a regular season finish but unfortunately they lost to the eventual champions Vienna in thrilling first round series. During the offseason Fehérvár took a step back and looked what they needed to make it deeper in the playoffs, one thing is obvious by looking at the roster is that they added some physicality to the skill that the team already had.
Zoltán Hetényi is back after missing last season with an illness but he is back and is an great goalie, he will be splitting the work lead with Miklós Rajna who is an excellent backup but had a great world championships this past spring. Regardless of who starts in net, Rajna or Hetényi the goalie position will not be an issue for the club.
The blue line might be a potion that could be stronger, in the offseason the team brought two experienced imports in Aaron Brocklehurst and the monster Ryan Martinelli, with Arnold Varga and Attila Orbán, Volán has four defenseman that can leave anyone hurting. The top defensive pairing will be Bence Szirányi and Kevin Wehrs who both have an offensive touch as well. The youngsters Mark Szaller and Attila Reiter could get valuable playing time if the injury bug would bit the unit.
Fehérvár last season had the leading scorer in the league with Andrew Sarauer, who centered a line with former NHL player Frank Banham and Daniel Kóger. If the line can stay healthy for the entire season all three of them could have a great season. The three import forward in Chris Francis, Judd Blackwater and Brendan Connolly can not only score but can also bring the hammer if needed, they will be a nice second gear after the top line. Csaba Kovács is coming off of a career year, with him, Gergő Nagy and Ladislav Sikorcin lets Pallin go three lines deep even in a close game, which through the length of the season adds up. Two young players to keep an eye out for is Péter Vincze and Tamás Sárpátki. István Bartalis will be out for the first half of the season.
COACHES’ CORNER
Rob Pallin: I think we added the right guys this year with a bit more grit, but you need skill and speed and we tried to find the right guys for that. Two of the best players are banged up at the start of the season in Frank and Andrew and of course Bartalis will miss the first half of the season. Now we need guys to step up and commit to the team.
Expert Opinion*
I'd say they are a team that improved in the summer and they're looking to build on last years success. They have as good of depth as any team in the league, a good mix of speed, skill, and size will put them in the mix with the league's best and make them an exciting team to watch.
*Former player and current coach.
Additions: Brocklehurst (Ingolstadt, DEL), Martinelli (Fischtown, DEL2), Becze (Miskolc, MOL), Blackwater (Ontario, ECHL), Connolly, Francis (Alaska, ECHL), Nagy (Chicago, AHL)
Departed: Engstrand (Blues, Liiga), Kornakker (Long Beach, WSHL), Ejdepalm (Belfast, EIHL), Hetényi (Debrecen, MOL), Németh, Tokaji (MAC, MOL), Erdély (Sioux Falls, USHL), Magosi (Briancon, France), Marino (Brampton, ECHL), Nemes (UTE, MOL), Boivin (?)