12-23-98. The Pilots Seat is commentary, written from a fan's perspective, about the Pensacola Ice Pilots
by Scott Gregory
These parts happen to be popular to Canadian tourists as well as, some say, the alien variety.
Al Pedersen, coach of the Pensacola Ice Pilots, says he has run out of answers about his team's miserable season, and recently questioned whether aliens have stolen his players' brains.
If you happen to be an alien, please do the right thing and return what does not belong to you to the Pensacola Civic Center lost and found. Or, if you happen to be either Canadian or alien and can skate, shoot or stop a puck, please report to the ice immediately for warmups.
I believe Pedersen knows more about this season than he is letting on, and it all has something to do with Belanger. I don't know if Belanger is from Mars or Medicine Hat, but Pedersen had Belanger on his mind, and mistakenly writing that name on the lineup card made the real No. 19, Keli Corpse, ineligible for a recent game.
These are sad and bizarre days for the Pilots, 3-16-1 in the last 20 and 2-11-1 in December. It's almost incomprehensible to think back to the Kelly Cup Finals in May, see many of the same faces back, then glance at the current ECHL standings that have the Pilots firmly rooted in the league's basement.
It's almost New Year's Day, and the Pilots have lost 22 games, two fewer than all of last season. Picking the most frightening statistic beyond that is no easy chore. I'll go with the individual plus-minus stats worse than the coldest night in Fargo.
What's wrong with the Pilots? Unfortunately, everything is wrong as a whole. And everything is not easy to fix. It's the offense. It's defense. It's team chemistry. It's the coaches. It's the players. It's fundamentals. It's injuries. It's aggressiveness and hustle. It's management and ownership.
One thing in this plane crash is clear: The longtime Pilots do not respond well to adversity from management. Pedersen might joke about brains, but the problems lie more with the other gifts from the Wizard, heart and courage.
The problems did not start in November. They started in March. The playoffs threw this out of perspective.
In March, the Pilots traded Etienne Beaudry and Brandon Gray. Pilots' management viewed this as a smart move that would help the squad come playoff time. The players, by all accounts, saw this as a slap in the face to a team that was winning. The Pilots won just two of their final 11 regular season games afterward.
In the Kelly Cup finals, Hampton Roads coach John Brophy made fun of the Pilots' "pretty tans" and insinuated they play soft. It was almost as if the Pilots believed him.
Then, this season started on the wrong skate. Nothing builds team morale like management allegedly stiffing the players on thousands of dollars of playoff money. There was an evident lack of hustle and aggressiveness to start the year, and problems snowballed from there.
The Pilots attack the net like the goalie has leprosy. They hit as if they get fined for each wrinkle in their jerseys. They approach each game as if it were an independent counsel deposition.
Pilots management waited too long to begin cleaning house, and now they're paying for it dearly. Pedersen vowed early in the losing streak to begin moving players, and that didn't happen for a month. The season is all but lost, and the future is in jeopardy.
Despite individual talent, nothing is working. It's time for Pilots management to take one of two courses of action: part ways with more of the longtime players, or bring someone new in as coach who can motivate this crew.
The memories have been wonderful, but we can't live in the past. The great Pensacola fans deserve a team that has a shot at the Cup. Now, all they have to entertain them is the valiant effort of a goaltender hobbyist, and amusing stories about lineup cards and alien abductions.
© Scott Gregory. All Rights Reserved. Gregory is a Pilots season
ticket holder from Navarre. He is a former Florida Gators football beat writer and sports editor for Copley Newspapers. He can be reached at scott@thefivehole.com. Comments are always welcome.
