Dallas Morning News - Snap Bulletin
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October 5, 2005 - On the eve of the OTHL's season opener, it appears trade acquisition Anson Carter is on the outside looking in. The reported lineup for the first game of the season against the Columbus Blue Jackets does not include Carter. In his place, it seems Denis Hamel will play on the 4th line, while Mike Leclerc is bumped to the 2nd line and Jeff O'Neill relegated to the 3rd line.
When asked about the situation, GM Yoskovitz had this comment, "Anson Carter will not be playing in the season opener. With the volume of new players we brought in this year and the upheaval we saw at the end of the preseason, we wanted to give Anson some time to adjust. You can expect to see him soon enough, contributing for this team. Anson understands the situation."
As for O'Neill, he did not appear upset about being bumped to the 3rd line, "I didn't have a great preseason, I just wasn't putting the puck in the net. I'm going to work my tail off with linemates Wessy and Draky to play sound defensive hockey, aggressive hockey, and pot a few goals. I'm not worried about ice time right now. I want to win."
O'Neill is expected to see plenty of ice time regardless, playing on the powerplay and potentially killing penalties as well.
Andrew Raycroft as expected gets the starting job.
Carter was not available for comment by press time.