 |
BALDY’S PUCK DROP Weekly E-Newsletter (September – March) |
 |
Baldy’s Puck Drop” Weekly E-Newsletter with Matt Leaf
Volume 19: January 18, 2024
PDF Printable Download: Weekly E-Newsletter with Matt Leaf
Dear Great Falls Americans Enthusiast: We are going to start this issue with the several positives from this past week. Congratulations to Goalkeeper Kaden Rhyder who is currently practicing with the NAHL’s Chippewa Steel this week. As a reminder, our primary objective is to promote players to the next level by providing them resources and opportunities to achieve their goals. Kaden is our 4th player to be asked to skate with an NAHL team (five different NAHL teams have looked at our players), which is more than any other Frontier Division team. You will also likely be hearing about some of our player making their college commitment in the coming weeks, as well.
Through 4 games over at the IIHF WM20IIB tournament in Belgrade, Serbia, Team Australia has 2 wins and 2 losses with Dmitri Kuleshov leading Australia in scoring with 3 goals and 2 assists. We are, obviously, very proud of Dmitri and look forward to having him back at the end of the month. If you are interested in watching Dmitri play, your best bet would be their game at 11:30 MT on Saturday as they take on the host Serbia with a chance of earning a Bronze Medal – you can live stream the game from: IIHF – Live Streaming.
The Americans launched a new online fan activation platform through DASH with two activations last
weekend. The first was a “Mystery Box” activation where fans could purchase a player signed game puck and be entered into a drawing for a “Mystery Box” valued at over $100. Winner of the first Great Falls Americans Mystery Box was Kyle Smith from Salina, Kansas. Kyle, who used to live in Great Falls and billet Americans’ players won a baseball hat, beanie, limited edition pin set, travel mug and mini stick. We also auctioned off a “GFA Proud Supporter” banner that was signed by the entire team with Joe and Leah Benski (Benski Towing and Recovery of Great Falls) putting together the highest bid. Thank you to the Smith’s and the Benski’s for supporting the Americans and for everyone else who jumped in on the fun of the DASH Great Falls Americans special page which had over 115 views during the activations. Look for other exciting new opportunities to engage – including a special Great Falls Americans Valentine’s Day package you are not going to want to miss out on.
Now, let’s address the elephant in the room – the six-game losing streak. It has been a tough run of winnable games that simply have not gone our way. Some of the wounds are self-inflicted (Louisiana/Butte x2), some have been just unlucky (Bozeman -Fri) and the others we played well and just could not get a break (Alexandria/Bozeman -Sat).
So, full disclosure, here is the issue we are now battling. Hockey people are generally very superstitious and there are things we just don’t talk about. Like now, the six-game losing streak has all coincided with Coach Sears being at 299 career wins and hitting 300 is a huge milestone. Right or wrong, I just feel it is time to hit the issue head on and mention it in the newsletter to break the spell. The alternative – which has not been eliminated as a possibility – is to execute a sacrifice – maybe a chicken or possibly the rabbit that is living under our dressing room. We are off this weekend, so still have time to figure out what needs to be done to turn this curse around and I will keep you posted. In the meantime, if anyone wants to execute the “Curse Breaker Spell” mentioned to the left, feel free to do so and let us know so we can all move forward with confidence. By the way – I just want to say that I am saying this half tongue-in-cheek and not totally serious – but that I am also a firm believer in karma and these types of curses, so there is a part of this that is at least 50% serious.
The positive from last weekend were the contributions of our new players and both Forward Jacob James and Defenseman Phil Harrell were recognized as Honorable Mention Frontier Division Players of the Week. We head to Bozeman for a rematch on the 26th and 27th before coming home for one game on Friday February 2nd for a 7:00 PM puck drop versus Helena. I would like to take this opportunity to welcome another new member to our team. Forward Callahan Laggis is originally from Rhinelander, Wisconsin and joins us via trade from the Oregon Tradesman. Cal will add additional depth to our forward position and will bring some speed and grit that should help this team get over the hump. Please be sure to welcome Cal to the family when you get a chance to meet him!
If all goes well, we will be practicing with some Airman and Women from Malmstrom AFB on Saturday afternoon – we will recap in next week’s edition of Baldy’s Puck Drop.
Player Profile – #20 Cade Bendigo (Breezy Point, MN 6’3” 180 lbs. FOR – Shoots Left
Favorite Team: Tampa Bay Lightning Favorite Player: Sidney Crosby
Favorite Movie: Into the Wild Favorite Actor/Actress: Leonardo DiCaprio
Favorite Food: Curry Favorite Pre-Game Meal: Protein Bar
Musical Group You Won’t Miss in Concert: Chief Keef
Song or Artist Guaranteed to get you hyped: Glock Baby
One Item you would bring with you to a deserted Island: Volleyball
Hobbies other than Hockey: Skateboarding
Three People you would invite to Dinner: Elon Musk, Jenna Ortega, Jahseh Onfroy
College/University of Choice: Univ. of California-Berkeley Like Most About Great Falls: Skate Park
How would you define a successful season: Winning the Fraser Cup.
Also, thank you to all our existing Eagle’s Nest, Diamond and Platinum Level partners for their continued support.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Gold, Silver and Bronze Level Partners
| Century Gaming | Great Falls Hospital & Clinic | Anderson Glass-Door | Point S Tire & Auto Service |
| 2 J’s Complex | Borrie’s Italian Supper Club | Murphy Law Office | Stadium Sports Bar & Casino |
| Heidelberg Lounge | Treasure State Eyecare | Craftmaster Cabinets | Floors and More Abbey Carpets |
| Tuttle Tile | Teriyaki Madness | Central MT Lock & Safe | 3D International Restaurant |
| Jersey Mike’s | Noble’s West Side Liquor | Annie’s Taphouse | Hotel Avron-Celtic Cowboy |
| Scheel’s | Croxford Funeral Home | Big Sky Laboratory | Allstate- Tammy Quintrell-Stubbs |
| All State Signs | Highwood Creek Outfitters | Automotive Machine | She Bare Wax & Sugar Boutique |
| Wheat Montana | Stifel Investment Services | Bigelow Endodontics | Best Western Plus Riverfront Hotel |
| Culligan Water | Best Med Urgent Care | Buffalo Wild Wings | Tilleraas Landscape & Nursery |
| Stockman Bank | SpringHill Suites by Marriott | Central Avenue Meats | Todd Neighbor at Comparion Insurance |
| Fuddrucker’s | Play It Again Sports | The Beacon IceHouse | Nate & Renae Weisenburger |
| Life In Bloom | Camparion Insurance | United Materials | Fox Sports Radio, Q106, 109.9 The Wolf |
| Hampton Inn | Traynor Capital | Bravera Bank | Discount Meats |
| KFBB (SWX) | Cascade Electric |
Thank you for being a part of our family and we look forward to seeing you at the rink.
Matt Leaf
Great Falls Americans HC Inc
MattL.GFAmericans@gmail.com