Dale Mahovsky gets used to new life at Vipers
Oct 23 2010 by Stuart Rayner, The Journal
DALE Mahovsky has got his head around eating dried blood, now the Canadian is hoping his Newcastle Vipers team learn to get the measure of Elite League referees.
Like almost all of the Newcastle team which welcomes Cardiff Devils to Whitley Bay tonight, Mahovsky is new to the Elite League. But ten games into the season, the 25-year-old forward acknowledges his side must start learning what they can and cannot get away with.
Player-coach Danny Stewart this week cited the number of penalties conceded as his side’s biggest early-season failing, and Mahovsky thinks part of the problem is learning where the boundaries lie.
“The reffing is different here,” commented Mahovsky. “In some areas they let more go – plays off draws, stuff like that – but in other places they’re more sticky. We need to do a better job of realising what they’re going to call. No matter how good our penalty kill is, if you concede ten a game, you can’t do that.
“With less players (than he is used to in North America), the same players out all the time, it’s just one of those things.
“If we’re only taking four or five a game our penalty kill will improve, guys will be fresher and it’ll just be better for us.”
Off the ice, Mahovsky has shown himself to be adaptable after starting his professional ice hockey career in a new country.
“Nothing’s been really difficult to adjust to, it’s just been different,” he said. “I came here with a pretty open mind, which I think helped me. I came here with low expectations – not saying I expected things not to be great, but I just knew I would be out of my element and I wasn’t going to get upset every day.
“Even things like the food is quite different at the beginning. Going to get breakfast and having this black puck on my plate – black pudding – I thought, ‘Okay, I’ll try this and see what’s going on.’ Everything’s been an adjustment but it’s all been a good adjustment.
“For sure the Geordie accent was something to get adjusted to. I don’t find it that bad, so long as you’re courteous and say, ‘Excuse me?’ people don’t mind repeating. Sometimes I’ve even had to ask guys on our team to slow down a little bit so I can catch up.
“It’s funny, it’s comedic, and it’s something to get adjusted to.
“Trying to get everything settled in was different and kind of hectic at times. Just getting bank accounts set up, a television and a cell phone, it was a tough first three or four days.
“As a team we’re obviously not where we want to be in terms of our performance on the ice but with every week of practice we get a bit better. We’re just trying to look forward and get a bit better.”
With a totally revamped side, there has been little local knowledge for Mahovsky and Co to fall back on. It has its advantages.
“We’re all in the same boat, we’re all new to Newcastle,” he argued. “It helps bring everyone together because we’re all learning at the same time – where do we go to get food, where do we go to do that. It’s a learning curve.
“Sometimes it is a bit more difficult because you’re all new and nobody really knows what’s going on.
“But we have a good group of guys and it’s been a good adjustment and pretty fun so far.”
Meanwhile, defenceman Justin Sawyer has returned to Canada for “personal reasons”, but captain and enforcer Brad Voth could make his Cardiff return from a hand injury. The Vipers travel to Hull tomorrow.
Whitley Warriors’ match at home to Telford tomorrow in the English National League has been postponed.
