There was a time earlier this season when the Grizzlies were beating up on the Ice Dogs so often that rumor had it the humane society was on the verge of stepping in.
Don't look now Grizz fans, but the beatee and the beater have traded places. And the switcheroo came at the most inopportune time for the back-to-back defending International Hockey League champions.For the third straight time in their best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal series, the Grizzlies fell victim to the Ice Dogs as Long Beach earned a resounding 4-1 victory at the Delta Center Wednesday night.
Which means, after the year-long hype of "We want three" Turner Cup championships, all that remains between the Grizzlies and their summer vacation is the simple formality of one Long Beach victory in any of the next four games.
Technically, these are the same Ice Dogs who played the role of the Grizzlies' favorite punching bag at the beginning of the year. Memory refresher: Utah beat Long Beach five straight times while opening the season with a sizzling 9-1-1 record. But, obviously, much has changed since the Ice Dogs stumbled out of the gate with a 4-6-3 mark.
"We were awful the first part of the year," said Long Beach winger Barry Nieckar, a former Grizzly. "We struggled, but as the year progressed we got better and better."
Just call them the Phoenix Suns of the IHL. From their dismal start, the Ice Dogs went on to post the sixth-highest point total in league history with a 54-19-9 record for 117 points. Long Beach put together a 12-game winning streak and a 15-game unbeaten streak while notching the best record in the West and the second-best overall mark behind Detroit.
"I think the biggest difference is in personnel," said Long Beach coach/general manager John Van Boxmeer. "Our team has changed a lot since then."
It certainly wasn't a coincidence that their record skyrocketed after Van Boxmeer made a brilliant swap of centers with Manitoba, getting Stephane Morin for Wayne Strachan in the early-November trade. The Ice Dogs went 23-3-4 in the month that followed the deal. Since picking up Morin, they've beaten the Grizzlies in eight of 10 outings, including six in a row.
Morin, who was seventh in the IHL in scoring with a team-high 91 points (28 goals, 63 assists), burned the Grizzlies in Wednesday's game. He scored a pair of shorthanded goals, including a Grizz back-breaker that put the game out of reach early in the third period.
Getting breaks like that has boosted the Ice Dogs' attitude tremendously, which could very well put them in line to succeed the Grizz as champs.
"I can see the fire in our eyes and the intensity on this team," Nieckar said.
Added Van Boxmeer: "Right now we're playing with a lot poise and confidence."
Just like how the Grizzlies used to play.