09/27/01
Mary Schmitt Boyer Plain Dealer Reporter
During practice in Gund Arena on Tuesday morning, Barons coach Roy Sommer was sitting in the stands watching his team when right wing Hannes Hyvonen fired a shot on goal from the right faceoff circle.
"That guy can shoot," Sommer said.
The Barons' season-ticket holders got a chance to see for themselves last night in Gund Arena. Hyvonen scored from about the same spot and Miroslav Zalesak scored the game winner in the Barons' 2-1 victory over the Rochester Americans in the AHL exhibition opener for both teams.
Though Sommer was happy with the victory, he wasn't satisfied with the play.
"We've got a lot of things to work on," he said. "We got caught out of position a few times, but the goaltenders played well."
Seamus Kotyk started and stopped all 18 shots he faced. Maxime Gingras relieved him midway through the second period and stopped eight of nine shots while giving up a power-play goal to Karel Mosovsky that tied the score at 1-1 with 11:46 gone in the third period. Less than two minutes later, Zalesak rapped in a shot at the goalmouth.
The game, which started 15 minutes late because Rochester didn't arrive until 4:15 p.m., was billed as a meet-and-greet for the new Barons and their season-ticket holders. Despite the late start, players outnumbered fans at the beginning of the game. But by the end of the evening, the sprinkling of fans had turned into a smattering, and they all seemed to like what they saw.
"They're faster and harder hitting," Bob Race of Willoughby said, comparing the AHL Barons to the late IHL Lumberjacks. "There are less old guys hanging on and more young guys trying to make a name for themselves."
Added Al Williams of Garfield Heights, "It's upgraded tremendously."
The 150 or so fans in attendance seemed to enjoy the fact that David Rattray bloodied Rochester's Mario Larocque during a fight midway through the third period, but Rattray drew a two-minute penalty and a 10-minute misconduct for instigating the fight, and Mosovsky scored on the resultant power play.
Sommer seemed thankful for whatever noise the fans generated.
"We appreciate the fans who came," he said. "[Attendance] will get better once word spreads and they see the type of hockey we're going to play."