Scott Arniel believes the time for stewing over consecutive blowout losses to the Milwaukee Admirals has passed.
The only thing the head coach of the Manitoba Moose is concerned with is moving forward and that means focusing on a pair of games against the Hershey Bears tomorrow and Saturday at Giant Center to kick off a six-game road trip.
"I dwelled on them for a few days there, watched the games again and now they're buried and we'll move forward here," Arniel said inside the Moose locker room on the final day of the American Hockey League All-star break. "There are areas we're going to work on and areas we're going to focus on, but you we have to worry about what's ahead of us.
"We had two games that weren't very good but prior to that, there was a lot of good hockey played. We have to make sure we're ready to go. They're very dangerous and if we play that loose game like we did the past two games, it will be the same outcome. Obviously, they're the cream of the crop and they're the best team in the league right now."
Earlier this month, the Moose played well for five of six periods (plus one in overtime) but dropped a pair of games against the Bears (2-1 in a shootout and 3-2 in regulation) and got a glimpse of what they need to do to compete with the top team in the AHL.
"We want to get back to good habits, the last couple games we definitely didn't play the game we're capable of playing," said Moose centre Marco Rosa. "These two games to start the road trip are huge and we have to be sharp. They have a really skilled team and it doesn't take many chances for them to capitalize. You can't trade chances with them because they're so good on all four lines."
Verbal shots
Arniel was bombarded by verbal shots from the Bears faithful during the Calder Cup final last spring and he's prepared for what might be around the corner.
"I'm sure their fans will be jacked up and wired to see us," said Arniel. "I've been working on some lines and some comebacks from some of the (shots) I got last year. They're an animated bunch and they're actually quite funny. They certainly back their team and it's nice to see. They live off that stuff. I'm sure those guys buy those seats (behind the bench) just for that reason, so they can chew out the opposition."
The Moose, 23-17-4-1, come out of the All-star break in third place in the North Division standings, eight points out of first, one out of second, but only three up on the fourth-place Abbotsford Heat.
INJURY UPDATE: Arniel said defenceman Mathieu Schneider has been getting treatment in Vancouver during the AHL All-star break and remains day-to-day with a "lower-body" injury.
Backup goalie Daren Machesney, who missed the past four games with a knee problem, has been cleared to play and might see action against his former team this weekend.
Forward Tommy Maxwell is also expected to be cleared to play after missing the past two games with a wrist injury.
Veteran Moose forwards Marty Murray and Matt Pettinger are dealing with groin injuries and both are listed as questionable for the series with the Bears.
The only players not making the season-long road trip are defencemen Nathan McIver and Geoff Waugh, who are out long-term with hand injuries.
BOLDUC DONE?: Although the official word is that Alexandre Bolduc will spend the next two weeks working hard at rehabbing his shoulder injury, it's becoming more apparent that the speedy forward will require surgery and is likely done for the season.
The loss of Bolduc is a major blow for the Moose, who were already trying to address a need down the middle.
"We're working on it," said Arniel. "It's something we've obviously talked about since September that we needed that centreman and now more so. Vancouver is also thin and they need somebody in that spot. Both organizations know there's a bit of a need there. It's tough to move people, but hopefully something happens."
ken.wiebe@sunmedia.ca
