September 16th, 2010

The GMs of the Vancouver Heroes and Buffalo Phantoms are already jawing back and forth.

In analyzing the Buffalo Phantoms team roster, Ben Rauscher (Vancouver Heroes GM) remarked, "When Anderson (Phantoms goalie) falls back down to earth like space junk does every day, this team will crash and burn."

This didn’t sit well with Daryn Beckman (Buffalo Phantoms GM). The 2010 Presidents' Trophy winner responded with an attack on Vancouver's team roster.

"That's all fine and dandy, but offense is more valuable than goaltending in this league," Beckman said. "Who's your number two right winger? Oh yeah, the new Jonathan Cheechoo aka Brad Boyes who apparently forgot how to score last year. I will take my right wingers (Hossa and Eriksson) over him any day. And hopefully Simon Gagne can get a new groin this year to be good enough to call a number two left winger, but odds are he will probably end up pulling his [expletive] like every year."

Beckman went on to call Rauscher's team the Vancouver 'Zeroes' and then asked him how his ass smelled from being under him in the standings all season last year.

Always one to have the last word, Rauscher responded by calling Beckman an idiot and showing a video of the AFHL Commissioner interviewing GM Beckman on a variety of topics. Both the Commissioner and Beckman in the were fake actors in the video, but it got a lot of laughs from the viewers, mostly because the role of Beckman was played by a woman.

After a pre-season rookie game on Wednesday, reporters asked the outspoken GM what he thought about Beckman's initial comments.

"Who gives a [expletive] about Beckman and the Phantoms?" Rauscher retorted before signing autographs.

While the Heroes and Phantoms can’t battle until Week 19 of the regular season, the war of words has already begun.