Blast will be back in 2010 with new deal

Brantford Expositor - Tuesday, January 26, 2010

The Brantford Blast are coming back to play Major League Hockey in 2010-11.

City council and staff hammered out a last-minute bylaw Monday that some councillors were reading for the first time when it crossed their desks at almost 9 p.m.

The deal essentially gives the senior hockey team's owner, Peter Ham and Ham Sports the right to set and collect advertising fees at the civic centre, after paying the city a fee of $2,600.

That fee increases annually by 3.5%. Although the contract ends with the 2013-14 season, it is renewable annually with no council action necessary. If either Ham or council wishes to change the terms, they must give three months' notice.

The team will be charged the "regular rate" of ice time for adult users, in accordance with city bylaws.

The new contract replaces two old contracts -one for use of the facility and the other for advertising rights. Council's failure to approve the advertising contract forced the Blast to disband for this season, a situation councillors vowed not to let happen again.

"The problem we had is that we had two other contracts for what should have been one contract," Coun. Martin said in endorsing the deal-approval bylaw. "This has everything together in one."

Blast, city go back to drawing board

Richard Beales, Brantford Expositor - Tuesday, December 8, 2009

The Brantford Blast are back -- tentatively.

It's been a topsy-turvey year for the Major League Hockey senionr hockey team. The Blast suspended operations last year when they couldn't agree with the city on an arena deal, but appeared ready to come back in 2010-11 when the city's operations and administration comittee agreed to sell the team advertising rights at the civic centre.

That deal fell through at the council level when the city decided instead to tender out the advertising rights.

On Monday, those same city councillors, sitting again as the operations and administration committee, admitted they made a mistake and offered Blast owner Peter Ham a chance to cut a new deal by the end of January.

"Some times you get 'em right," Coun. John Sless said, "and some times you get 'em wrong."

Ham was magnanimous about the councillors' actions.

"When you don't have the information - and I think to this day some misinformation is in the air - it's hard to make the right decision," Ham said outside of chambers, after he had watched the resolution be approved. "Once they had the facts it looked a lot simpler."

He said he had a comfortable arrangement for many years through staff at parks and recreation, but the new people came in who didn't have the historical understanding of previous deals.

"When it went absolutely haywire," he said, "I had to get talking to council."

So what's next for the Blast? "I've got to wait until we get this deal done," Ham said, "and then we have to get back all our season-ticket holders and all our sponsors and all our players, Hopefully, we can get this all done by Jan. 31."

City hall will bear blame for Blast bust

Brantford Expositor - Friday, August 14, 2009

If cities derive a healthy chunk of their identity and pride from their sports teams, then Brantford has been left with a battered psyche by the news the Brantford Blast will not play this season.

It's an extremely embarrassing situation for a city the size of Brantford, which some feel should be large enough to attract a WHL team, to not even have senior AAA hockey for a season.

Remember, this is a city that bills itself as the Tournament Capital of Ontario and central to the Blast situation is the operation of one of the city's two major sporting facilities, the civic centre.

It's unfortunate enough that the city is evidently so devoid of both civic heroes and corporate sponsors that its major arena bears a generic name, now, minus its most high-profile tenant, there is even less to distinguish it.

Neither Blast owner Peter Ham nor Mayor Mike Hancock nor city hall staff wanted to go into detail about how this happened or who might be to blame, but all involved will suffer.

Ham may bring back the Blast in a year with five-year rental and advertising contracts and cost certainty only to find that a portion of the team's fan base has forsaken it. The Major League Hockey league could suffer significantly from the Blast's absence.

It's tough to say how this hiatus will affect Ham's efforts to sell the team to an owner who plans to keep the Blast in Brantford.

City hall, however, will bear the brunt of the blame for this debacle and, in the absence of a detailed explanation of how a July 31 deadline for finalizing advertising and other contracts was missed, the public has every right to judge the public institution harshly.

There seems to be little appetite to explore how this happened to make sure it does not happen again.

The Mayor, who has clearly been rattled by this development, wants to focus on the future.

Parks and recreation director Maureen Sinclair replied "I really don't know" when asked who could be held responsible for the missed deadline.

We appreciate that no one wants to point fingers since Ham and the city need to continue to work together, but city hall is a public institution and if the Blast situation arose due to negligence or incompetence, the people who pay the bills have a right to know.

A high-profile business has signalled that it will not operate for a year due to a missed deadline at city hall. There appears to be a lack of professionalism on somebody's part and the public needs to know if it lies with those whose salaries are paid by taxes.

City councillors would be well advised to press for a full public accounting of this mess, especially given the looming election in 2010.

Ultimately, the successful operation of city hall -- whether it's a grand defining philosophy or a duty as mundane as ensuring contracts get signed on time -- lies with our elected officials.

While no one on council may have had any direct role in this fiasco, councillors should do what they can to determine what happened and why, and share that information with voters.

This embarrassing development has wider implications than just a lost season for a hockey team.

People have every right to ask if they're getting their money's worth at city hall.

That's a question worth answering.

Ham: 'The season is gone'

MICHAEL-ALLAN MARION, Brantford Expositor - Wednesday, August 12, 2009

It's final: the Brantford Blast will not take to the ice in the civic centre this fall.

And the prospect that the former Allan Cup champions will lace up their skates the following season and beyond hangs on the team's ability to conclude a long-term lease and advertising contracts with the city, Blast owner Peter Ham says.

Not even a last-minute phone call from Mayor Mike Hancock, nor a high-level meeting with a team of senior city administrators on Wednesday morning, could convince Ham to reverse his position that it was too late to reach a deal that would allow the senior hockey team to play in September.

"This season is gone. I made that crystal clear right away in the meeting," Ham said in an interview.

He had just emerged from talks with parks and recreation director Maureen Sinclair, assistant city solicitor Tracey Cronin and Eric Burke, the manager of the Wayne Gretzky Sports Centre arenas and the civic centre, who is in charge of the Blast file.

"I told them we can't back up, we must move forward," Ham said. "And I asked them if they wanted to move forward, too. They said they did. It was a very productive meeting."

Ham said they began talking in earnest about his goal to secure five-year contracts concerning leasing and advertising and marketing that would allow the team to play again in 2010.

"I want to do what's best for hockey in this city. We need long-term arrangements so we can make plans and go after big events."

No Blast this season, says owner

Ed O'LEARY, Brantford Expositor - Monday, August 10 2009

Brantford Blast, winners of the 2008 Allan Cup, have informed the city, Major League Hockey and the Ontario Hockey Association that the team won't operate during the 2009-10 season.

"Regrettably, we were unable to conclude the necessary contracts with the City of Brantford in time to operate this season," Peter Ham, Blast president, general manager and owner, said Monday.

"We will take a one-year leave of absence and return with some energetic new blood in a revitalized organization for next season.

blast go on scoring spree

Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Monday, February 23, 2009

Blast failed to make the playoffs this season because they couldn't score goals but you would never know it by the way they're finishing the season.

The Blast put a 12-4 beating on the last-place Orillia-Coldwater Tundras at the civic centre Friday night in Brantford's final home game of the 2008-09 season.

The Blast conclude their Major League Hockey season with a game in Coldwater tonight.

Brantford seems to have regained their scoring touch. The Blast defeated Norwood Vipers 8-4 here last Sunday and lost 11-8 to the Dundas Real Mc- Coys last Friday.

"Not making the playoffs has been the biggest disappointment, the biggest and the only," said Blast's first-year head coach Jeff McCormick.

"There were just too many games where we had trouble putting the puck in the net.

"We had a real good group of players to work with as far as effort and enthusiasm. It was there all year long as well as work ethic from everybody.

"What it came down to was that we didn't have the ability to score consistently."

Unfortunately for the Blast, they didn't have the lineup for most the season that they have now as recent additions have influenced their attack.

At least that was the case until the bombing of the Tundras when players that have been in the lineup throughout the season did the damage.

Player-assistant coach Andrew Taylor scored two goals and earned three assists.

Aaron Brand, John Kozoriz and Matt Mezenberg also scored two goals each. T. J. McCool and newcomer Paul Lawson each got one goal and two assists.

Jeff Brown and newcomer Jon Jankus also scored goals.

Jordan Skinner got three assists and Jason Skinner got two assists.

Leiland Gauley, Dennis Dewar, John Vecchiarelli and Ryan Clarke scored for the helpless Tundras.

The Tundras took a 1-0 lead on Gauley's goal at 4:29 but then the Blast went to work.

Goals by Lawson, Kozoriz and Mc- Cool gave Brantford a 3-1 lead by the end of the first period.

The Blast scored five unanswered goals in the first 10 minutes of the second period to take an 8-1 lead and turn the remaining 30 minutes into a let's-get-this-over match.

BLUELINE CHIPS: Blast's veteran equipment manager/trainer Ken Crabb Jr. sat out the first of a two-game suspension he received for his actions during the game against the Vipers here last Sunday. Crabb apparently voiced his displeasure with the referee's call and was banned from the Blast bench. Crabb also tossed a roll of tape in the direction of the referee, an offence which will cost the Blast $500 to get Crabb back in the good graces of the Ontario Hockey Association..

- - -

BLAST 12 TUNDRAS 4

Offence comes alive with 44 goals down the stretch

Brantford Expositor - Monday, February 23, 2009

Despite not making the Major League Hockey playoffs, the defending Allan Cup champion Brantford Blast certainly didn't go into the night quietly.

Playing in their final game of the 2008-09 season, the Blast crushed the Orillia/Coldwater Tundras 11-5 on the road on Saturday.

Brantford concludes the regular season by finishing fifth in the six-team league.

The Blast wound up with 13 wins and 15 losses, finishing well ahead of the last-place Tundras (four wins, 22 losses, one overtime loss and one shootout loss).

With only the top-four teams making the playoffs, the matchups will be the first-place Dundas Real McCoys (19-7-1-1) against the fourth-place Baltimore Clippers (15-12-0-1), and the second-place Whitby Dunlops (18-10) taking on the third-place Norwood Vipers (15-9-3-1).

The McCoys and Clippers have set dates for the first two games in their MLH semifinal playoff series, with Dundas hosting Game 1 on Friday at 7:45 p. m. and Game 2 in Baltimore on Sunday at 8:30 p. m.

The remainder of the playoff schedule for both series has yet to be set.

Brantford's biggest problem this season was offence, but in the team's final five regular season games, that aspect of its game exploded for 44 goals, an average of just under nine per game.

The Blast, which was averaging 3.61 goals before the five-game outburst, wound up with the second-least goals scored (127) in the league and tied Dundas for the fewest number of goals against (120).

Against the Tundras, Chad Spurr led the way with a goal and three assists.

Other multiple-point performers included Aaron Brand (1G, 2A), John Kozoriz (3G), Terry Lammens (2G), Andrew Taylor (1G, 2A), Dan Veenema (1G, 2A), and Jeff Brown (1G, 2A).

T. J. McCool also scored for the Blast, while Corey Fulton, Jim Baxter, Jason Skinner, Matt Mezenberg and Ryan Healy got one assist each. Ryan Dickie earned the win in goal, making 38 saves.

This year's Allan Cup will take place in Steinbach, Man., from April 13-18.

Blast take Norwood Vipers down a notch

Brantford Expositor - Monday, Feb 16, 2009

Despite being eliminated from the Major League Hockey playoffs, the Brantford Blast aren't going to make it easy for teams that have qualified for the post-season.

Tied 4-4 early in the third period against the Norwood Vipers at the civic centre on Sunday, the Blast exploded for four late goals to score an 8-4 win.

The game was the final contest for the Vipers in the regular season and it relegated them to third place (15 wins, nine losses, three overtime losses and a shootout loss) in the six-team league.

The Whitby Dunlops (18-9) and Dundas Real McCoys (17-7-1-1) are currently tied for first, with one game remaining for the Dunlops and two for the Real McCoys.

The Baltimore Clippers (15-11-0-1) secured the fourth and final playoff spot, while the Blast (11-15) will finish fifth.

The Orillia/Coldwater Tundras (4-20-1-1) will wind up sixth.

Brantford has two games remaining in the regular season, on Friday at the civic centre against the Tundras and then in Coldwater on Saturday. Both games start at 8 p. m.

The Blast, who outshot the Vipers on Sunday afternoon, were down 2-1 in the first period before a late goal tied things up at 2-2.

Brantford then took a 4-3 lead after 40 minutes only to have the Tundras score an early third-period goal that evened things up at 4-4.

That's when the Blast struck for four goals to secure the win. Aaron Brand (one goal, three assists), Jim Baxter (1G, 1A), Jason Skinner (2G, 1A), Paul Lawson (2A), Andrew Taylor (2G, 1A), Jon Jankus (2A) and Jeff Brown (2A) all had multi-point games. Terry Lammens and John Kozoriz each got one goal for Brantford, while Jordan Skinner and Jeremy Bloomfield got an assist each.

Chris Houle (16 saves on 19 shots) and Ryan Dickie (eight saves on nine shots) shared the goaltending duties for the Blast.

McCoys silence Blast

Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Sat. Feb 14, 2009

DUNDAS — It’s been one bad thing after another for the Brantford Blast this season.

The Blast have faced plenty of problems but keeping the puck out of their net hasn’t been one of them.

At least that was the case until here Friday night when the roof of the J.L. Grightmire Memorial Arena caved in on Brantford goaltenders Chris Houle and Ryan Dickie.

Dundas Real McCoys scored on their first four shots against Houle to build a 4-1 lead despite giving up a large territorial edge in play to the Blast.

Dickie replaced Houle and the Blast rallied to tie the score 7-7 but the McCoys, led by Ryan Christie, dominated the third period and pulled out an 11-8 victory.

The Blast, already eliminated from playoff contention, return to Major League Hockey action when they face the Norwood Vipers at Brantford’s civic centre Sunday at 2 p.m.

The Real McCoys, hopeful of finishing in first place, are on the road to play the Orillia/Coldwater Tundras on Sunday at 8 p.m.

Whitby, idle this weekend, is in first place with 36 points from 27 games.

The McCoys used last night’s win to move into a tie for second place with the Vipers as each team has 34 points. However, the McCoys have played only 25 games as compared with 27 for the Vipers and the Dunlops.

Pesky Frank Grandits opened the scoring for the McCoys at 3:03 and Scott Young followed with a goal at 5:30. Former Blast captain Tyler Pelton assisted on both goals.

Dan Veenema scored for the Blast at 11:43, but the McCoys increased their lead with goals by Mark Jooris at 11:56 and Young at 13:38.

The Blast replaced Houle with Dickie at that point.

Brantford’s Chad Spurr scored an unassisted goal at 19:05 only to see Christie reply 17 seconds later.

Brantford’s John Kozoriz took passes from Aaron Brand and Andrew Taylor to score at 19:43 and cut the Dundas lead to 5-3. The Blast outscored the McCoys 4-2 in the second period to tie the score 7-7.

Rob DeCiantis sent the McCoys ahead 6-3 with a power-play goal at 2:04 but Veenema replied from Ryan Healy and Spurr at 2:55.

DeCiantis scored at 4:31 for a 7-4 lead but Healy scored at 5:14.

Kozoriz set up goals by Taylor at 12:22 and Brand at 17:15 to tie the score.

The McCoys, led by Christie, dominated the third period.

Christie scored three goals to finish with four for the game.

DeCiantis got one for a three-goal game. Brand got Brantford’s lone goal in the third period.

Lack of scoring sinks Blast hopes

Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Mon. Feb. 9, 2009

Less than a year after winning the Allan Cup for capturing the Canadian senior AAA hockey championship, the Brantford Blast are officially eliminated from the Major League Hockey playoffs.

The Blast defeated the Baltimore Clippers 5-2 at the civic centre Sunday afternoon in what resembled a No Body Contact Hockey League game.

Brantford was eliminated after the expansion Clippers trounced the Dundas Real McCoys 6-3 in Baltimore on Saturday.

With the win, the Clippers pulled ahead of the Blast by 11 points. There was no way Brantford, which had only five games remaining prior to Sunday's skate-a-thon, could catch Baltimore.

It's no secret why the Blast are missing the playoffs: lack of scoring.

The Blast have allowed the fewest goals (96) in the league but they've also scored the fewest (88), and have the worst power play.

"We've been snake-bitten offensively," said team captain Jeff Brown. "We struggled all year to score goals. Our power play hasn't been what it's supposed to be.

"Last year, we'd get a chance and the puck would be in the net. This year, the goalie makes the big save which changes the game.

"It's frustrating for all the guys. Think of all those times we've lost by one goal."

Brown said the Blast probably have a enough scoring power now with star centre Chad Spurr back in the fold, along with other late season additions such as Ryan Webb and Jon Jankus.

"Hopefully, we'll get the guys right from the start of the year next year and build from training camp all the way up," Brown said.

Blast president and general manager Peter Ham agreed with Brown that a lack of scoring power proved costly.

"We just didn't score enough goals to win on a consistent basis," said Ham.

"Whether we were on the road or at home, we outchanced the opposition 85 per cent of the time. We simply couldn't finish."

Ham gave his seal of approval to the job done by first-year head coach Jeff McCormick.

"Jeff always had the guys prepared," Ham said.

"There's no doubt we were the best prepared team in the league in all aspects."

Ham called a meeting in his office prior to the start of Sunday's game. McCormick, Brown and assistant captains and coaches were invited to the meeting, during which Ham explained the Blast were going to finish the season in a first-class manner.

"We're going to go through the rest of the season like the defending Allan Cup champions," Ham said.

"We're going to roll with a full team for every game and with extras on the bus for road games.

"We'll finish the season with our heads high and proud of the efforts we've put in."

The line of Spurr between Ryan Healy and Dan Veenema wreaked havoc against the Clippers.

Veenema scored two goals and Healy notched one, while Spurr was easily the most dangerous player on the ice.

Aaron Brand and Brown also scored for the Blast, who outshot Baltimore 47-26.

Ryan Dickie played goal for Brantford and he made several strong saves. Dickie usually backs up Chris Houle but the first-stringer was writing an examination as he attempts to get on a police force.

Fulton back in lineup for first time since tragic altercation

Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Mon. Feb 9, 2009

Corey Fulton returned to the Brantford Blast lineup Sunday afternoon for the first time since being involved in a fight with Whitby Dunlops' Don Sanderson during a Major League Hockey game on Dec. 12.

Sanderson's helmet came off during the scuffle and the 21-year-old defenceman's head struck the ice.

He was rushed to Brantford General Hospital and then transferred to Hamilton General Hospital, where he underwent surgery. He was in a coma until his death in January.

Fulton, 21, acknowledged after Sunday's 5-2 victory over the Baltimore Clippers, in which he earned an assist, that he's been going through his own personal "hell" since the Sanderson fight.

"It's the hardest thing I've ever done is to go through this," said the soft-spoken Fulton.

"It's always in the back of my mind no matter what."

Fulton has been receiving grief counselling but has discovered that his biggest relief has come from talking with Sanderson's parents, Mike and Dahna.

"At first I wasn't sleeping at night and I was very emotional all the time," Fulton remembered.

"I felt guilty but then I began getting help from the doctor and, seeing the parents, they really helped me out on this. The parents were telling me it wasn't my fault."

The Dunlops played a tribute game for Sanderson in Whitby and their opponent happened to be the Blast. Fulton attended the game.

"The last time I saw (Sanderson') parents was at the game in Whitby," said Fulton, a construction worker in Mississauga.

"Right now, I'm trying to write a letter to them to tell them how I feel."

The Blast organization was thrilled to see Fulton back in the lineup.

"The guys were enthused," said Blast president and general manager Peter Ham. "They really wanted him to play. They were all pulling for him. I was very happy to see Corey Fulton play today.

Blast fire 51 shots in loss to Real McCoys

Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Sat. Feb. 7 2009

Baltimore Clippers have a chance tonight to eliminate the Brantford Blast from the playoffs when they play the Dundas Real McCoys in Baltimore.

The McCoys defeated the Blast 5-2 despite being outshot 51-20 at the civic centre Friday night.

The loss left the Blast nine points behind the Clippers, who hold the final playoff position in Major League Hockey.

Brantford has only five games remaining, including one against the Clippers at the civic centre Sunday at 2 p. m.

The Clippers have four games remaining.

Dundas goaltender Brett Leggat blocked 49 Blast shots to earn the victory.

"No question about it," said Brantford's head coach Jeff McCormick.

"We outplayed them for long periods of time. We just couldn't score. Leggat played well."

Dundas took a 1-0 lead in the first period when Nick Smith scored off a two-on-one break when his wrist shot beat Brantford goalie Chris Houle on the short side.

Blast's Terry Lammens tied the score at 3:37 of the second period when he pounced on a loose puck in the slot area and beat Leggat with a low shot on the glove side.

The McCoys regained the lead when Shawn Maltby scored on a breakaway at 8:22 on a play that appeared to be offside.

Dundas went ahead 3-1 at 11:53 when star forward Ryan Christie tipped Smith's point shot past Houle on a power play.

Dan Veenema cut the McCoys' lead to 3-2 when he knocked in Ryan Healy's rebound at 15:34 but Dundas answered 12 seconds later when Justin Davis beat Houle with a shot over his shoulder.

Christie closed out the scoring in the third period.

"You can't question the effort," Mc- Cormick said of his players.

"We out-worked them, out-skated them and out-chanced them something awful.

"It's been the story of our season." Former Dundas winger Paul Lawson made his debut for the Blast but Gerald Moriarity, also a former Dundas player, was forced to sit out.

The Blast were informed by the Ontario Hockey Association that Moriarity still had one game to serve on a four-game suspension he received while playing for the McCoys in a game Dec. 12.

"He's eligible to play Sunday," said Steve Cheeseman of the Blast.

Moriarity joins Blast for tonight's game

Brantford Expositor - Friday, Feb 6 2009

Paul Lawson won't be the only former Dundas Real McCoys' player to suit up against his former teammates for the Brantford Blast at the civic centre tonight at 8 o'clock.

Gerald Moriarity, known for his rough-house style of play, will also be in the Blast lineup when Brantford faces Dundas in a Major League Hockey game.

Moriarity was actually signed two weeks ago by the Blast and his name was on game sheet when Brantford defeated the Real McCoys 5-4 in a shootout in Dundas but Moriarity didn't show for the game.

Moriarity played in four games for the Real McCoys this season and got 27 minutes in penalties. He played in six games for Dundas last season and earned 25 penalty minutes.

Lawson played in 22 games for the Real McCoys last season. He scored nine goals, four assists and received 46 penalty minutes.

The six-foot-five left winger got nine goals, nine assists and 89 penalty minutes in 24 games for the Real McCoys in the 2006-07 season.

Lawson scored 11 goals, 18 assists and received 36 penalty minutes in 23 games for the Real McCoys in the 2005-06 season.

The Blast and McCoys are 3-3 in their meetings this season.

The Blast will be cheering for Dundas on Saturday night when the McCoys face the fourth-place Baltimore Clippers in Baltimore.

The Clippers lead the Blast by nine points but Brantford has two games in hand on Baltimore.

The Clippers face the Blast at the civic centre Sunday at 2 p. m.

Pelton joins Real McCoys

Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Thursday, Feb 5, 2009

Tyler Pelton, captain of the Brantford Blast for six years, will skate at the civic centre Friday night wearing the uniform of the Dundas Real McCoys.

Meanwhile, Paul Lawson, a left winger who enjoyed six seasons with the McCoys, has signed with Brantford and will be in the Blast lineup for the Major League Hockey game which starts at 8 o'clock.

Pelton said Wednesday that it's going to be interesting facing his ex-teammates.

"It'll be different playing against (Chad) Spurr and Andrew Taylor is one of my best friends," said Pelton.

Pelton was the face of the Blast franchise until this season.

He played in 183 games for Brantford, scoring 130 goals and earning 150 assists.

Pelton and Blast president/general manager Peter Ham met several times since the veteran centre was the first to hoist the Allan Cup to celebrate Brantford winning the Canadian senior AAA hockey championship last spring at the civic centre.

However, Pelton refused to sign because he didn't think he was going to play at all this season.

When Pelton finally decided he had the time to play, he believed the Blast had already committed to other players.

"There may have been some miscommunication also," Pelton said.

"I've been talking to Dundas for the last month or so. I talked to Ron Bernacci (McCoys' assistant coach and a former coach with the Blast). He kind of convinced me to go there but I've already talked to Dundas and, if I want to go back to Brantford next season, they won't stand in the way."

Pelton said he is not upset with the Blast or Ham.

"I have more respect than anybody for the whole Ham family."

Ham didn't know why Pelton chose to play in Dundas.

"The last in depth discussion I had with him was Dec. 19 in my living room when I gave him his (Allan Cup) ring," Ham said. "We asked him to play here on a continuing basis from the end of last season until January.

"He just didn't want to play anymore. He said he was out of shape and his heart wasn't into it but I think he could play until he's 45.

"Anyway, I wish him the very best. He's entitled to play wherever he wants.

"He gave us the ultimate effort."

Lawson, a six-foot-five, 230- pounder, is a graduate of Yale University.

He played professional hockey with the Detroit Vipers in the International Hockey League and the Flint Generals in the United Hockey League before joining the McCoys.

The Blast, idle since scoring a 5-4 shootout win over the McCoys in Dundas two weeks ago, are trying to catch the Baltimore Clippers for the fourth and final playoff position.

The Blast are nine points back of the Clippers but Brantford has two games in hands.

The Blast has six games remaining including one against the Clippers here Sunday at 2 p. m.

The Clippers will be coming off a game against the McCoys in Dundas on Saturday night.

Dunlops Honour Sanderson

Canadian Press - Sat. Jan. 17, 2009

WHITBY, Ont. — Residents of Whitby, Ont., packed a local arena Saturday night to honour the memory of Don Sanderson and remember the hockey player, coach, son, grandson and friend who died Jan. 2, three weeks after he was injured in an on-ice fight.

The jersey of the 21-year-old rookie defenceman bearing the number 40 was hoisted to the rafters at the Iroquois Sports Centre prior to an Ontario Hockey Association game between the Whitby Dunlops and Brantford Blast.

Hours before the game, family, friends and teammates hugged and shed tears as they came together to reminisce about Sanderson at a cafe inside the arena complex. For many, it was the first time they had seen Don's parents since his funeral.

"It's another opportunity to bring everyone together in Donald Sanderson style," said Don's mother, Dahna Sanderson, who made her way around the room greeting everyone.

"That's what I said to one of my girlfriends: 'Look at him, he's bringing everyone together again even when he's not here."'

Dahna said that since her son's death, the public response had been both overwhelming and humbling. She's still struck by how unreal the entire situation still feels.

"Raising Donald's sweater to the rafters will be like raising his heart, because that's what he's all about. He's a passionate boy."

Don's father, Mike Sanderson, had been on the go since early Saturday morning with the girl's hockey team from Belleville that he coached with his son. They beat a team from Willowdale 2-1.

"It was probably the best game the girls have ever played." he said.

"Don would have loved to have been part of that."

Sanderson, who has run several power skating camps for kids, said that more than anything his son wanted to be a coach. He said his own mentor was former NHL coaching great Roger Neilson, who passed away from cancer in 2003.

"The only great thing about this is that Roger's in heaven and now Don's there, and Roger's going to take him under his wing and maybe teach him the wisdom of coaching."

Sanderson's death drew national media attention, and debates within the sport over helmets and fighting.

During a fight in a game at the Brantford Civic Centre on Dec. 12 against Blast forward Corey Fulton, Sanderson's helmet came off. Both players fell, and Sanderson's bare head smacked the ice.

Though he briefly regained consciousness, he later fell into a coma and would stay in hospital for three weeks before his death.

Earlier in the week, the Ontario Hockey League announced a new, stiffer penalty would be assessed to players in that league who remove their helmets before a fight. What was a $100 fine is now an immediate one-game suspension. Mike Sanderson called it a good first step.

"We can't play the game without a helmet, so why are you allowed to stay on the ice and fight without one?" he said.

Canada's most famous hockey dad, Walter Gretzky, agrees.

"I wish that (helmets) could be put on in such a way that they could never come off," said Gretzky, who was invited to be at centre ice by Dunlops' officials for the tribute to Sanderson. The Brantford, Ont., native said he was glad to come, and to be able to speak with Don's mom.

"It's so nice to see that there's no hatred in her," Gretzky said, in reference to any feelings Dahna Sanderson might have towards the player that fought her son.

The pre-game tribute began as Don's family and dignitaries gathered at centre ice. A video montage was then played featuring highlights of Don's play, along with media coverage of his death. It showed the Leafs' paying tribute to him before a game, and Don Cherry talking to reporters as he left the Port Perry church after Sanderson's funeral.

As the number 40 jersey was slowly raised to the ceiling, a children's choir sang "You Raise Me Up." Many people were seen with tears in their eyes as Dahna Sanderson capped the night by thanking everyone who came.

"Just as I did with my son, I encourage each of you to live your life fully, love like there is no tomorrow, and laugh out loud often because Don loved to laugh."

Blast double Tundras 4-2
Brantford resigns Spurr

Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Sat. Jan 17, 2009

Chad Spurr led the Brantford Blast to the Allan Cup championship last spring. Now, the team is hoping he'll guide it to a playoff position.

Spurr resigned with the Blast on Friday afternoon and helped defeat the Orillia/Coldwater Tundras 4-2 at the civic centre Friday night.

"It felt good to get back on the ice but it'll take a few games to get back into it," said Spurr, who earned an assist.

Spurr didn't sign until now because he was "fixing his house" and working.

"I'm not working right now. I'm in school so I've got two months off (work)," he noted.

"I've missed the competition and I've missed the guys and I've missed Crabby (Blast trainer Ken Crabb Jr.)"

Blast coach Jeff McCormick reunited Spurr with his usual left winger Ryan Healy. But, since Steve Rice is retired, Mc- Cormick had to find him a new right winger.

Terry Lammens started on the right side but McCormick decided to place Dan Veenema on the right wing for the third period.

Lammens was then placed on a line with Ryan Webb, whom he played with when Webb joined the club last week.

"He (Spurr) and Healy complement one another," Mc- Cormick said. "You could see Healy's game was up a notch."

Lammens and Webb also seemed to work well together.

"They responded to one another well," McCormick said. "That's the big thing."

The line of John Kozoriz, Aaron Brand and Andrew Taylor also played a strong game.

McCormick didn't give Matt Mezenburg, T. J. McCool and Cory Matchim much ice time but that line was effective whenever it was on the ice.

"That line drew three penalties," McCormick said. "Their contribution was huge."

John Vecchiarelli, a veteran of the minor professional ranks, gave the Tundras a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 9:56 of the first period.

Brantford defenceman Ian Jacobs tied the score at 16:38 with Spurr and Healy drawing assists.

Veenema scored the lone goal of the second period off a three-on-one break which he created by knocking down a Tundras defenceman at the Brantford blue line.

Tundras' Kyle Begley tied the score at the 27-second mark of the third period but Veenema regained the lead for Brantford at 7:01 when he took a pass from defenceman Jim Baxter and skated around a Tundras' defenceman before scoring over the shoulder of goaltender Ron Bertrand.

Taylor took a pass from Brand and beat Bertrand with a 30-foot blast for a 4-2 lead at 11:10.

Tundras' defenceman Josh Young lost his cool in the first period when he was assessed a 10-minute misconduct by referee Mike Kostyk.

He then had to be restrained by a linesman from getting at Kostyk and he eventually tossed his stick in Kostyk's direction. He was assessed an abuse of officials game misconduct, an abuse of officials misconduct and an attempt to injure match misconduct.

Young receives an automatic four-game suspension and the Ontario Hockey Association will have a hearing into the incident.

In other Major League Hockey action Friday night, the Baltimore Clippers defeated the Norwood Vipers 9-7 in Baltimore and the Dundas Real Mc- Coys defeated the Whitby Dunlops 5-1 in Dundas.

The Clippers are now in third place with the 23 points, the Vipers fourth with 22 and the Blast fifth with 16.

The Blast play the Dunlops in Whitby today at 6:30 p. m.

Blast need winning string to catch Clippers

ED O'LEARY, Brantford Expositor - Thursday, January 15, 2009

It took Ryan Webb less than a minute last Friday night to show he was going to be an impact player with the Brantford Blast.

Webb scored against the Baltimore Clippers at the 25-second mark after taking a pass from defenceman Jordan Skinner and sweeping around a defender.

The Clippers goalie blocked the slick centre's first shot but Webb buried the rebound.

He would later add two assists, one of them on a neat pass that set up teammate Terry Lammens for a goal.

Webb also created several scoring chances for himself and his teammates, but missing those opportunities proved costly for the Blast.

The Clippers scored five unanswered goals in the third period to secure a 7-4 victory. Baltimore would follow with a 7-2 home win over the Dundas Real McCoys last Saturday night.

The Clippers, who hold the fourth and final playoff position, are now seven points ahead of the fifth-place Blast.

The Blast, who have nine regular-season games remaining, face the last-place Orillia/Coldwater Tundras on Friday at 8 p. m. at the civic centre before travelling to Whitby to meet the Dunlops on Saturday at 6:30 p. m.

Webb resides in Roseville, Mich., which is near Fraser, Mich., where Blast general manager Peter Ham once operated the Detroit Falcons of the United Hockey League.

"He's a very exciting player with a tremendous passion for the game," Ham said.

"Anyone who travels 168 miles each way, and has to cross an international border to play in Brantford, obviously loves the game."

Ham believes Webb is just what the hockey doctor ordered for the Blast.

"Ryan brings what we need the most right now and that's offensive punch," Ham said.

"He's very creative and seems to know where to go all the time ... he's very quick."

The Clippers are only one point behind the Norwood Vipers and Baltimore has one game in hand on the Vipers.

The Vipers play at Baltimore on Friday night and the Clippers play in Norwood on Sunday night.

The first-place Dunlops have a three-point lead over the second-place Real Mc- Coys but Dundas has two games in hand on Whitby. The Dunlops play in Dundas on Friday at 7:45 p. m.

OHL tightens helmet rules in wake of Sanderson's death

Players who remove head protection during fight face one-game suspension

THE CANADIAN PRESS, Brantford Expositor - Thursday, Jan. 15, 2008

The Ontario Hockey League has instituted a game misconduct and an automatic one-game suspension for players who remove their helmets or undo their chin straps before or during fights.

The OHL previously fined a team $100 when a player took off his helmet to fight.

But when 21-year-old defenceman Don Sanderson of the Whitby Dunlops died Jan. 2 from injuries he suffered when his head hit the ice during a fight, OHL commissioner David Branch said his league had to look at stiffer sanctions.

Sanderson struck the back of his head on the ice when his helmet fell off during a fight in a game against the Brantford Blast at the civic centre on Dec. 12

The York University student went into a coma, underwent brain surgery and was moved to life support until his death.

The Dunlops play in the Ontario Hockey Association's senior men's AAA league.

"I would suggest to you the fine isn't working. It's not enough of a deterrent," Branch said then.

"The issue of removal of helmets for the purpose of fighting is something we must address in a much stronger fashion."

Also under the new rules, if a player removes his helmet and releases his chin strap to fight and the opposing player doesn't, the former gets an additional two-minute minor penalty in addition to the game misconduct and game suspension.

If the player removes his opponent's helmet or releases the chin strap before or during a fight, a game misconduct and a one-game suspension is the penalty.

Linesmen are now ordered to intervene immediately should helmets become dislodged during a fight, the OHL said Wednesday in a statement.

The new rules take effect today in the OHL.

The penalty for removing helmets to fight in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is a 10-minute misconduct.

The Western Hockey League doesn't currently penalize players for taking off their helmets prior to fighting but is reviewing that policy, said WHL communications director Cory Flett.

Blast cut eight players

Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Monday, January 12, 2009

Goaltender Anthony Marshall, who backstopped the Brantford Blast to an Allan Cup championship last spring, was among eight players released by the Major League Hockey team Saturday.

All MLH teams were forced to declare their protected rosters (25 players and/or cards) by midnight Saturday. The teams have until Feb. 10 to sign players to open cards.

The Blast protected 21 players and left four open cards.

The Blast also placed defenceman Brad Woods and forward Corey Fulton on the medically unfit to play list.

Woods is suffering from a knee injury and Fulton is distraught from being involved in the fight which led to the death of Whitby Dunlops' defenceman Don Sanderson.

If either player returns to action this season, they must be re-signed by Feb. 10.

Marshall is reported to have an opportunity to play in Japan.

Marshall has seen little action with the Blast this season as Chris Houle has been Brantford's No. 1 netminder. Ryan Dickie will now be his backup.

The Blast also released Tyrone Garner, Paul MacDonald, Jason Uyeno, Steve Traver, Dan Pitre, David Russell and Bryan Hamm.

Neither Hamm nor Russell had seen action this season although both had signed. Pitre, a defenceman, had played in 11 games after being a regular in previous seasons.

Garner is a quality player but he's attending police college and simply couldn't afford to suffer an injury.

The Blast play the Orillia/Coldwater Tundras at the civic centre Friday night.

Blast blow lead against Baltimore

Ed O'Leary, Brantford Expositor - Saturday, January 10, 2009

Blast head coach Jeff McCormick, a firefighter during working hours, could have used some of his co-workers to douse the flames under his collar late Friday night.

"At the end of the second period, we talked about taking care of our own end first," McCormick fumed after the Blast blew a 4-2 lead in the final 20 minutes and watched as the Baltimore Clippers scored five unanswered goals to earn a 7-4 victory at the civic centre.

"They obviously didn't do that."

It was a devastating loss for the Blast in the Major League Hockey standings.

The Clippers hold the fourth and final playoff position with a record of nine wins, seven losses and one shutout loss for 19 points.

The Blast, the defending Allan Cup champions, are struggling in fifth place with only seven wins against 12 losses for 14 points.

They're idle until they face the Orillia/ Coldwater Tundras here next Friday.

"It was a game we should have won," McCormick lamented. "We're too good a hockey team to give up a two-goal lead in the third period. We're too good defensively but we start running around. We weren't doing our jobs defensively."

The Blast may have played their most impressive period of the season in the opening 20 minutes against the Clippers.

Brantford outshot Baltimore 30-11 but came out of the period with only a 3-1 lead as they lacked finish to their scoring opportunities.

It didn't take newcomer Ryan Webb long to show he was going to make an impact. The slick centre scored a power-play goal when he took a pass from defenceman Jordan Skinner, skated around a Clipper defenceman and flipped in his own rebound at the 25-second mark.

Aaron Brand then made a beautiful pass to veteran winger Andrew Taylor for a 2-0 lead at 11:58.

Sloppy defensive play by Brantford's five skaters allowed Shane Terry to cut the Blast lead to 2-1 but Brantford regained its two-goal lead when Brad Streib moved in from the blueline to blast Ryan Healy's rebound into the Baltimore goal. Webb also got an assist on the play.

Chris Jones scored for Baltimore on a two-on-one break at 5:20 of the second period but Brantford's Terry Lammens converted a three-way passing play with Healy and Webb at 7:19 for a 4-2 lead.

Brantford's defensive disorganization inside its blue-line led to Baltimore tying the score on goals by Brad Foote and Robert Finch at 8:27 and 8:56 of the third period.

Clippers' captain Adam Van Dam scored on a power play for a 5-4 lead when Brantford's Ian Jacobs failed the clear the puck out of the Blast zone.

As if things weren't bad enough, Baltimore's Todd Taylor took advantage of a giveaway by Blast's Steve Hurst for a 6-4 lead at 14:22.

Taylor also scored into an empty net at 18:15.

The only bright spot of the game for the Blast was the play of Webb.

"He certainly gave us offensive spark in the first two periods," said McCormick. "He looks like he's a good acquisition."

Today is the cutdown date for all leagues such as MLH under Ontario Hockey Association jurisdiction.

MLH teams must submit a protected list of 25 players and/or cards by midnight to the OHA.

 

More Blast News

Click links to view more Blast news stories.

November 08 - January 09
August 08 - October - 08
April 2008 - May 2008
April 2008 - Allan Cup
February 2008 - March 2008
December 2007 - January 2008
October - November 2007
Blast's Next Foe Features Several ex-NHLer's - Oct 25, 2007
Blast Suffer First Loss of Season - Oct. 22, 2007
Blast remain undefeated - Mon. Oct. 22, 2007
Blast committed to defence - Wed, Oct 10th 2007
Blast 2-0 on 5-0 shut outs - Tuesday, Oct. 9th 2007
Blast Open Season on Winning note - Oct 6th, 2007
Blast Embark on Allan Cup Quest - Oct 4th, 2007
Born to fight - Hamilton's Jeff Joslin will be kickin' Ice with the Blast
Scott Sheppard is a Blast
Blast Add Coaches - July, 14, 2007
Blast hire Trader as Coach - July 7, 2007
Inside Track: Blast Season a Success - March 28, 2007

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