Colten Teubert has fired back at his critics.
The Regina Pats defenseman, who’s been the primary target of criticism during Regina’s recent struggles, had some strong words for Pats fans who have been less than supportive.
“When a fat guy eating popcorn wants to boo me, it really doesn’t matter,” Teubert told the Regina Leader-Post last week. “To be honest, they can do whatever they want and be negative. Our attitude is, we win and lose as a team. We also keep each other accountable but in a respectful way and a way that a team and a family should.”
The Pats are in a state of crisis. Regina was considered one of the top contenders in the Western Hockey League’s East Division this season, but before a weekend home-and-home sweep of lowly Moose Jaw the Pats had lost seven straight and 17 of their past 21. Regina has slid all the way down to 10th place in the Eastern Conference and is in danger of missing the playoffs altogether.
And the scapegoat has been Teubert. The 1990-born defenseman was taken 13th overall by the Los Angeles Kings in last year’s NHL draft, and he was a key member of Canada’s gold medal-winning team at the World Junior Hockey Championships.
However, since returning from World Juniors Teubert has been less than stellar. The White Rock, B.C., native has just two goals and four assists and is a minus-7 in his past 17 games. He was a healthy scratch when Regina played Calgary on Jan. 25. Some have suggested Teubert is just going through the motions since signing a contract with the Kings.
Teubert vigorously denies those allegations.
“If I could, I’d give out my cell phone (number) to every person who thinks that,” Teubert told the Leader-Post. “They can give me a call and I’ll have coffee with them. … If anybody is judging my character, saying I want to lose, that’s a really disrespectful comment. That’s not who I am. That’s not how I was brought up. I cry every time we lose. It’s really disheartening that fans would go that low but, if they want to point fingers, there are three pointing back at you. Our fans tend to boo more than they cheer these days. On a positive note, maybe we could get some cheers that are for us instead of against us.”
Teubert and the Pats have 10 games left with which to win those fans back over.
Around the WHL
The Kootenay Ice rewarded head coach Mark Holick and assistant coach Kris Knoblauch with two-year contract extensions. The extensions stretch through the 2010-11 season. … Calgary goaltender Martin Jones set a franchise record for wins in a season when he earned his 40th in Friday’s 7-2 victory over Red Deer. Jones broke the previous record of 39 set by Alexandre Fomitchev in 1998-99. … A pair of forwards left their teams over ice time issues. Red Deer lost 18-year-old Tomas Polak, while Prince George lost 18-year-old Corey Tyrell. … Medicine Hat forward Tyler Ennis was named the WHL Player of the Week. The 19-year-old had five goals and three assists as the Tigers went 2-1.
League leaders
Points — Casey Pierro-Zabotel (Vancouver) 105; goals — Joel Broda (Calgary) 47; assists — Pierro-Zabotel 73; penalty minutes — Matt McCue (Medicine Hat) 176; wins — Martin Jones (Calgary) 41; goals against average — Dustin Tokarski (Spokane) 1.87; save percentage — Tokarski .939.
Nick Patterson’s Silvertips blog: http://www.heraldnet.com/silvertipsblog
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