Here we are, the final game of the regular season. We're already sealed our spot into second place and we're playing the last place team. To make matters worse, as if being statistically out of the game, they arrived short handed. They only brought five skaters to the game. Such a pitty for them, at the beginning of the season, they managed to defeat us. Such was not going to be the case tonight.
This game was absolutely lopsided in every way. The momentum, offensive time, and most importantly, the scoreboard. When the game ended, we had racked up 11 (or 12) goals to their 1. It was a slaughtering.
Anyway, intra-team game play had a completely different feeling this week. Everyone was trying to help the guys on my line to score goals. Specifically me. I can't tell you how many times the guys on the bench would tell me they were trying to hit me and couldn't for one reason or another. Anyway, I did manage to touch the puck and get a few shots off toward the goal. One of them was a one-timer and the other two were rebound attempts. There was one in particular that was just funny.
I managed to get the puck in the center of the offensive blue zone, but I lost my balance for some reason. Anyway, while I was on my knees I was using my stick to fend of the other team while I was trying to pass the puck toward the net, hopefully to one of my teammates. Well, that was the intention anyway, because I couldn't get my blade on the puck. I had to have flailed at it three times before the other team managed to get it away from me.
At the beginning of the game, it was said that their goalie was playing injured. I'm not so sure about the injury, but we were just eating him up. We were dominating the game so badly that our goalie yelled at us after the first period. He said, "You guys have got to play more defense, I'm just taking way too many shots this game." Then one of the guys asked him how many shots he took and answered 2. We just busted out laughing. Anyway, the second period didn't get much better. Therefore, he decided to take things into his own hands. He skated across the court and traded sides with their goalie. Therefore, we were shooting against our own goalie. It was certainly a sight to see. It was also interesting to see how he would stand up to us and us to him.
He didn't finish the game unbeaten, but he certainly slowed the scoring streak we were putting on the other goalie. After the game, I asked him how it was defending against us. He said something along the lines of, you guys are ferocious. Granted that was a comment toward the team as a collective, not a line breakdown. However, it does let me feel more confident about our chances going into the playoffs. We fully expect to take the first round(s) easily and advance to the finals. We expect to play the Torhs in the finals. As mentioned before, we have a 1-2 record against them. I think that once we make it there to play them, it will be a final to watch.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Bruins at Redwings - Hockey League - Week #13 - Game 12
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Bruins at Knights - Hockey League - Week #12 - Game 11
This week's game really brought a trend to light. Thus far, all season, only one team has consistently brought all of its players to play every weekend. That would be my team. The least players we've ever had on a weekend was eight. Each team is filled with ten players, which includes a goalie. The weekends where we had eight players was when our goalie didn't show. Therefore, our bench has always held two lines minimum. Well, this week also showed us the converse of our situation. The Knights only had 5 skaters available. Talk about being dog tired after the game is over. Those shifts were seriously long.
As you can imagine, with two full lines against barely one, we had a distinct upper hand. This game was a no-contest event. We handily won this game, but you couldn't tell by how we were playing. We're all there to play and it would appear that we, as a team, don't care one way or the other (winning or losing) to adjust our game. We pushed them as hard, if not harder, at the end of the game as compared to the beginning of the game.
For me, this was a dangerous game to play. Somehow, the previous week, I managed to misplace my mouth guard. As most of you know, I have put a considerable amount of money into repairing my teeth. To play a game with as much potential for damage as hockey without protection is just foolish. Well, there wasn't much I could do about it once I was at the court. I played this game without one. Thankfully, nothing happened to my teeth during the game, but this situation isn't something I want to readily reproduce any time soon. Additionally, when I was searching my gear for my guard, I discovered that the lining of my equipment bag has ripped. All three of the pockets were bleeding into the center area. I guess it was past time to get a replacement. I can't remember how many different sports I had used this bag to transport equipment or for how many years I had done so.
As far as my performance this week, I felt I played more physical based on what I had learned the week before. Unfortunately, at the end of the game I was still minus on the +/- shift chart (I think). During these past 10 games, I have come to realize that my shift is weak on allowing odd man rushes and being too forward most of the time. This week, I made a conscience effort to try to contribute in the avoidance of odd man rushes. However, since they expect me to be playing offense, I wasn't able to do a very good job of this. Although, when we were in our blue zone trying to play defense as a team, I managed to contribute a few times to the rush up court.
There were two such occasions that really frustrated me. There were two times that I was on a 2-on-1 rush with Woods. He was carrying the puck into the offensive blue zone and I was his cross court help. Neither time did he even show the thought of trying to make a pass to me. Granted, both times he scored, but when we're winning so well against an opponent, it would be nice if they would give us, other not-so-well-skilled guys, a chance. However, I was a good teammate and I didn't say anything to him or the other guys on the team.
As for injuries, I managed to leave the court with a bruised knee. It took a couple of days, but it really wasn't much to fuss about. A little bit of stiffness for a couple of days and a little bit of discomfort bending it to walk stairs or to sit, but not a big deal.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Fliers at Bruins - Hockey League - Week #11 - Game 10
Well, we've played the Fliers a couple of times by now. I'm sure you can guess at the outcome. Chalk-up another game into the win column for us. Instead of getting into the synopsis of the game and what transpired, I wanted to throw out some information that was noteworthy by my teammates and my game-play recap.
Woods, one of my teammates that plays for The Syndicate. The Syndicate is an AIHL team based out of the arena that we play in. Yes, he is that good. Anyway, he took an opportunity to embarrass the goalie with only a few seconds left in the game to put away the last goal of the game. It was just sickening to watch and I have to give him credit for being able to put the puck in the net in the way he did it. He managed to get a breakaway opportunity and was dekeing as you would expect, but what he did at the end was simply amazing. He faked right, pulled the puck left and put it behind him and took a behind the back, backhand shot thru his legs and beat the goaltender. It was just an amazing feat.
My game-play this week wasn't anywhere in the neighborhood of that stellar performance. However, I did have a revelation this week. With how badly we've been destroying this team on the court, I felt that I should have more puck time. Well, this did happen. However, I wasn't able to accomplish much when I touched the puck. I did managed to get an assist this game, but that was it. Each other time I touched the puck, something stupid would happen. I finally got frustrated with my own game play and decided to channel that energy toward the other team.
I discovered in playing a more physical game, I was getting more opportunity to get my stick on the puck. With getting the stick on the puck more often, that would allow me to be a more productive member of the team. Apparently mental attitude to the game really effects things. I had spent most of the season thinking that I can't stand up to these guys; they are much better than me. However, I didn't realize how much that was effecting my game-play. Therefore, once I started getting physical, this aversion seemed to go away and my involvement increased dramatically.
One other thing happened this night that was new. I managed to play a game and not leave with an injury or with a failure in my equipment. This was a pretty good thing seeing that Monday would bring my first anniversary married to Angel and her mother was visiting. I'm not sure what she would have thought if I would have come home limping or something.
