3 players leave team, fourth asks for trade

Ice Breakers Director of Hockey Operations Nick Russo talks about personnel changes on the Mentor’s team.

The city of Mentor is contemplating installing doors that open automatically at the entrance to Mentor Civic Ice Arena so handicapped fans and hockey players of all ages toting cumbersome equipment bags can easily enter and exit.

A revolving door might be more appropriate for the Ice Breakers, Mentor’s second-year team in the Federal Prospects Hockey League.

The Ice Breakers last played on Feb. 22. Since then, forward Alex Morrow decided to retire, team captain Nate Farrington left the team, forward Jiri Pestuka asked to be traded back to the Carolina Thunderbirds and goalie Frankie McClendon decided to give up hockey.

“Pestuka’s story had nothing to do with what’s been going on around here,” Ice Breakers Director of Hockey Operations Nick Russo said on Feb. 26.

“He sees where we’re at and wants to play for a championship. He’s been on two championship teams and wants the opportunity to win another ring.”

Russo thought he had a deal for two Thunderbird defensemen but later on Feb. 26 he said the trade is on hold because one of the Carolina players did not want to report to Mentor. He said he would not trade Pestuka, who has two goals and three assists in 20 games with Mentor, for just one player.

The FPHL trade deadline is March 1. A player can be signed after that, but he must be with a team at the end of the season a minimum of 10 games to be eligible for the playoffs.

When Russo mentioned Pestuka’s request for a trade “had nothing to do with what’s been going on around here,” he was referring to Iain Duncan being fired as head coach. Duncan was let go two hours before the Ice Breakers played the Elmira Enforcers on Feb. 22.

Some players thought about not playing Elmira as a show of support for Duncan. The game went on without any players boycotting. But the Enforcers won easily, 5-0. The Ice Breakers (14-25-0-3) have lost 11 straight heading into their game with Port Huron at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 28 at Mentor Civic Ice Arena. They host the Prowlers again at 6:30 on Feb. 29.

“The timing of (firing Duncan) was horrible,” Russo admitted in the Feb. 26 interview.

The good news for the Ice Breakers is leading scorer Declan Conway has recovered from a shoulder injury and will play against the Prowlers on Feb. 28 and

29. But even with Conway in the lineup, scoring for the Ice Breakers is like mining for diamonds.

The Ice Breakers have scored two or fewer goals eight times in their 11-game losing streak. They beat Battle Creek (1-39-0-1), 4-2, prior to the start of the 11game slide and before that lost five straight games in which they scored two goals three times, one goal once and were shut out once.

“We’re bringing in forwards that can score,” Russo said. “They’re not officially in yet. There are going to be many new faces in the lineup this weekend that are quality forwards.”

Russo said the plan is to fill the roster spots left open with Morrow retiring and Farrington gone with players whose college careers recently ended. McClendon leaving the team leaves Jordan Brant as the Ice Breakers’ only goalie.

“It hasn’t been a good 2020 for us,” Russo said. “We need some fresh blood. We’re not giving up on this season. That’s why we to make these moves.

“Why they (Farrington, Morrow and McClendon) decided to go at this point, maybe it was facilitated by the change in coaching.”

Sebastian Ragno, formerly Duncan’s assistant, took over as interim coach five days ago.

“He’s doing an awesome job,” Russo said. “It only takes a pair of eyes and a pair of ears to watch practice and see the phone calls and the connections he has with all these young players and the culture we’re creating — the culture I want to create.”

Mentor is fourth in the five-team FPHL East, but the Ice Breakers are in strong playoff position because 80 percent of the teams in the league advance to the postseason. They have a 20-point lead on fifth-place Delaware.