Monday, May 12, 2014

This day in Indianapolis hockey history: May 12

A busy day in Indy hockey history. The 2007 Ice see a late goal dash their championship hopes in the USHL semis. The 2000 Ice clinch the city's seventh hockey title with a 3-0 shutout in Game 7 of the Miron Cup Final. In 1990, the Ice get within a game of the Turner Cup on Mike McNeill's OT goal, and the 1982 Checkers have their Adams Cup celebration slowed by one game. Also, birthday celebrations for former IHL Ice Warren Rychel and Dave Christian, and current USHL Ice captain Tyler Pham.  

 
May 12 in Indianapolis hockey history
2007: In overtime, the Ice drop a 3-2 decision to Sioux Falls in the USHL semifinals at Waterloo. Jake Skjodt and Garrett Roe score to give the Ice a 2-1 lead going into the third, but Sioux Falls rallies and wins it 4:47 into OT. 
2000: The Ice bring the seventh hockey championship to Indianapolis with a 3-0 shutout of Columbus in Game 7 of the Miron Cup Finals. Blaz Emersic scores early in the first period to give the Ice a lead, and Jamie Morris' second playoff shutout makes it stand up. Both of Morris' shutouts come in do-or-die clinching games. The Ice win the title in their first year in the league, going 10-5 in the postseason. It's the first title for an Indianapolis-based team since the IHL Ice won the Turner Cup championship 10 years before.
1990: Another wild comeback for the Ice puts them on the cusp of a title, as Mike McNeill scores 11:40 into overtime to beat the Muskegon Lumberjacks 5-4 in Muskegon. The Ice trail 3-0 after a period, a deficit that holds until Dave Bassegio scores a PPG at 5:32 of the third. Muskegon's Scott Gruhl answers, but Mike Rucinski and Jari Torkki score 67 seconds apart to cut the deficit to one with 7:23 left. It stays that way until Mike Stapleton is awarded a penalty shot with 19 seconds left. He scores on Bruce Racine to send the game into OT. Darren Pang gets the start in net for the Ice nad makes 29 saves. The Ice go 1-13 on the power play, Muskegon 1-3.
1982: The Checkers' championship celebration is put on hold, as they fall to the Dallas Black Hawks 5-2 in Game 5 of the Adams Cup Final. Red Laurence and Steve Stoyanovich score 1:44 apart in the third period to cut the deficit to one, but the Blackhawks scored two goals in 49 seconds later in the period to send the series to a sixth game.

Happy birthday to ...
Warren Rychel: Popular left wing for the Ice from 1989-91, he had 56 goals and 46 assists in 145 games for the black and silver. He also amassed 712 penalty minutes in those seasons.  He was part of the 1990 Turner Cup championship team, playing all 14 playoff games and tallying four points. It would be his prowess in dropping the gloves that would earn him a long-term spot in the NHL, as he came up permanently with the 1992-93 Los Angeles Kings. That year, he had 13 points in 23 playoff games as the Kings advanced to the Stanley Cup Final -- equaling his point production during the regular season. He played 406 NHL games with the Blackhawks, Kings, Maple Leafs, Avalanche and Ducks during a pro career that lasted from 1987-99. He had 38 goals and 1,422 penalty minutes in those seasons. He is currently the part-owner of the Ontario Hockey League's Windsor Spitfires, and is the father of top prospect Kerby Rychel. A native of Tecumseh, Ontario, he is 47. 
Dave Christian: A member of one of the United States's most storied hockey families, Dave Christian played 40 games for the Ice in 1993-94, tallying eight goals and 18 assists. It came at the end of an NHL career that saw him play 1,009 games, tally 773 points, and play in the 1990 Stanley Cup Final with the Boston Bruins. Christian burst onto the scene in 1980 as a member of the Miracle on Ice United States Olympic team, and turned pro shortly thereafter, playing for the Winnipeg Jets after two seasons at North Dakota. Dave is the third member of his family to win an Olympic gold medal -- his father Bill Christian and uncle Roger Christian played on the 1960 U.S. Olympic championship team. He played four seasons for the Jets, seven for the Washington Capitals, two with the Bruins, one with the Blues and one-plus seasons for the Blackhawks. His games with the Ice -- coming in his 14th pro season -- were his first-ever minor pro games. He would play two more years with his home-state Minnesota Moose before retiring in 1996. His family also ran the company that made Christian hockey sticks. He is a member of the United States Hockey Hall of Fame. A native of Warrod, Minn., he is 55.
Tyler Pham: A perennial Iceman, Pham was the team's first-round USHL Entry Draft selection in 2011, and he has played three seasons for the team. Over 168 games, he has 22 goals and 38 assists. He captained the team in 2013-14, leading it to the Clark Cup Final. He has committed to play collegiately at Army. A native of Denver, he is 20.

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