For more information:
Chris Bilder, Public Relations/Marketing, Eugene Generals
541-359-4154 (office)
541-680-6222 (cell)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 25, 2008
Generals Open at Home Tomorrow
Eugene, OR – The Eugene Generals (0-0) will hold their fourth Opening Night tomorrow at Lane Events Center-Ice at 7:35 PM against the Rogue Valley Wranglers (0-0). With a new coach at the helm and thirteen new players, the Generals will be looking to take the first step in improving upon their disappointing first round playoff loss last season. The Wranglers, who have rebuilt their team with fourteen new players, will be looking to improve on their 3-45 season, and will be looking for their franchise’s first road victory.
“At the beginning of the season everybody is tied for first place,” Generals Head Coach Jay Miller stated. “We want to treat Rogue Valley like a first place team. I have the utmost confidence in my team, but that doesn’t mean we can overlook any team on our schedule. By no means are we afraid of the Wranglers, but we will respect them like any other team. I want us to go out there tomorrow and Saturday and play with 100% effort, and I want us to minimize our mistakes. If we can accomplish those two things I think we have a great chance this weekend.”
The Generals were able to handle the Wranglers last season defeating the team from Medford in each of the eight games the two teams met. The Generals didn’t win a game by fewer than three goals last season, and overall the Generals outscored Rogue Valley 73-20. The Generals also dominated the Wranglers on special teams last season. The Generals were able to score on 32.8% of their powerplay opportunities while only allowing the Wranglers to score on 10.3% of their powerplay opportunities. The Wranglers are expected to be a much better team, however, and cannot be disregarded by the Generals.
With the first game jitters in effect for both teams, veteran leadership in tomorrow’s game will be crucial. The Generals do return key veterans in Michael Frei, Neil Holder, John Strahle, Kyle Mills and Kevin Aslett, just to name a few. The Wranglers will be returning their leading scorer in DJ Giguere Jr., and will be returning their number one goaltender from last season in Nick Cafrelli. The Wranglers also traded for former River City Jaguars goaltender Jared Secondo, and added Josef Chase with the number one overall pick in the inaugural NORPAC Draft.
The games between the Eugene Generals and the Rogue Valley Wranglers will be this Friday and Saturday at 7:35 PM at Lane Events Center-Ice. For more information on upcoming games please visit eugenegenerals.com.