Bulls face-off with the Peterborough Petes in first round play-off action
by Kerith Nicholl
During the regular season the Belleville Bulls won every game they played against the Peterborough Petes.
Every one.
All six of them.
So what, George Burnett says.
"They're a big strong team. They've got some veterans and an all-star goaltender from last year... it's vitally important that we don't underestimate our opponent," says the Bulls head coach and general manager, on the eve of his team's first-round playoff series with the Petes.
The Bulls last weekend ended the regular season strongly, taking first place in the Eastern Conference, making them a team to look out for. The Bulls are entering the playoffs with a total of 48 wins, 20 more than the Peterborough Petes. However, this does not mean that the Bulls will sit back.
"We know it won't be easy to win, despite what the records indicate," Burnett says.
The regular season had the Bulls and the Petes facing off a total of six times.
Burnett says consistency and hard work will help the team to excel in the playoffs. He also attributes the Bulls' success during the regular season to their goaltending, their defence and their consistent play.
"I think the key thing was we played well defensively as a team right from the get-go," Burnett says.
Burnett believes that the Bulls have improved in all areas of their game during this year's regular season, not just in any specific area. The Bulls are led by a group of 19-year-olds including Shawn Matthias, centre, Matt Beleskey, captain, and veterans Cory Tanaka and Keaton Turkiewicz. They also have the help of newcomer Jan Mursak and older player, Adam Perry. But good players aren't everything when it comes to the playoffs.
"We've had an excellent regular season. Unfortunately, at this time of year it doesn't mean really anything going into the playoffs if we're not prepared to play," says Burnett.
Burnett hopes that they are able to make it far in this year's playoffs, similar to the one they had a year ago, but he also wants to surpass last year's success.
"We expected to have a strong season. We weren't quite sure what to expect... but we're where we want to be entering the playoffs," says Burnett.
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