This Thing is Really Shaping-up

After much ado about the Warriors and ATM, the only perfect team left is the surprise Stickmen. Sadly, this may have been the swan song for Patrick Donaghue.

Players of the week:

Bryan Brookman 2 goals, 2 assists (read 'em and weep, Bryan)

Alex Eysermans 2 goals, in two games

Curtis Zoil 2 goals

Goalie of the week:

David Blubaugh, again, first game .941 save percentage, second game shut-out


Blue Devils 4, Komets 2

The intoxicating Melissa "supergirl" Knourek kickstarts the Komets offense early, I think this is her first I-league goal. For some reason her fellow Komets cannot follow her lead. Ryan Wacker sends it to Curtis Zoil for the equalizer before the period ends. Ryan then, apparently upset with his lack of goals as of late, takes to the box for a slashing, of course the Komets do nothing with the advantage. Zoil scores once more in this period, apparently the only way to get this guy out of the crease is with a whistle. Joshua Davis nets the third goal for the Devils in the third, from Speelman. Scottie Baldree tries in vain to turn the tide. But Speelman comes up with a goal of his own, the Komets are toast.

Stickmen 3, Spiders 1

Two perfect records. Two outstanding defenses. Two phenomenal goaltenders. Offense... well, they have the spots filled on the rosters. In what should have been a titanic battle, the Sticks strike early and often (by Stickmen standards). Eysermans starts it off with a goal before the two minute mark, single handed. Brad Bynum scores unassisted just to show Alex he can. Then the Spiders finally put the game in question as Blubaugh is unable to hang onto a rebound, Lynn Kresta, still just as quick as before her half-marathon last week, snaps it past the glove of the flailing netminder. A tense third period goes almost scoreless despite a power play for each team. It takes the last ditch effort of the Spiders pulling Nina Bonifaz to give the final tally to Bynum. Only one undefeated team left, I think I called this one before the session even started. Oh shut up!

Iceholes 3, Army of the Twelve Monkeys 2, OT, Shoot-out!

Iceholes, welcome to the elite. The Monkeys have been living under a magnifying glass lately and they finally succumbed. Mindo puts the biscuit in the basket for his second game in a row. The Iceholes fight through four minutes of penalties until they get a man up, and Chris Pringle makes the most of the open ice. The third was even for almost three minutes when Mark Dunning gets the puck to Jon Bird for the lead. The Iceholes, however, can't keep ATM out of the net as they create a two assist gem for Mike Missel. Obviously OT was scoreless. Both goalies: Bobby Michaelides, Mark Johnson, are in the zone for this game. It takes Eight total shooters to register one goal, and the winner goes to Mark Dunning, a great game for Mark, starting in the box for four minutes, then an assist, and all the way to here... I'd like to thank God, my parents, all of my teammates, the writers, oh gosh everybody was so great. I didn't write a speech, uhm, there's the music, please? Thank you, everyone. I love you all.

Patriots 7, Puckers 2

On the opposite end of the aforementioned microscope find one Ginger Parker, and she entered this game with a price on her head. The Puckers scored first, and, yes, Casey puts one in from center ice. And alot of Patriots scored too. But the real drama goes to Butch Hutchinson in his singleminded quest to systematically hunt down and destroy Ginger Parker. In the second he dislocated her shoulder, but she was spotted slamming herself against the glass on the bench and returned without missing a shift. She fought through the physical resistance trying to spark the offense but Butch could not be stopped. With only a few seconds left in the game he highsticks Ginger and is asked to leave the game. Seriously this was a great, hard fought game. Possibly the only one who leaves the ice without a generally good feeling is Patrick Donaghue. With rotator cuff problems, Pat is considering leaving the net. No one wants to see you go, you have been a hoss between the pipes.

Snipers 2, Gravediggers 0

Well, no more ties in this league, so somebody had to win. There is very little to show for this game on the scoresheet, but it was one of the most fun games I have played in quite a while. The first was scoreless and the only penalty of the game went to Bruce Frankel, holding (ticky-tack). The second contained all of the scoring (all on me), to Ed Vogel, Then to Alex Eysermans on a great offensive face-off play. Yeah, I can't explain it. I lost and had a great time. Blubaugh wins his second of the night (i guess those steroid cycles are paying off). Congratulations to the Snipers on their victory, may many more come your way... well I think we all know that's not very likely, just keep havin' fun.

Warriors 2, Brewzers 1

The Warriors stick by there m.o. and allow the Brewzers to score first. It's Paul Thurston, unassisted, and he continues to be unassisted for the remainder of the game. Finally in the third the Warriors pull it together. Dallas capitalizes on the powerplay, less than thirty seconds later Carl Moser puts in the game winner. Mike Moore puts up a spectacular game but has little to show for it. The Brewzers are left with the Gravediggers as the only winless squads. Unfortunately, these two will never square-off, could we finish this session with two winless records? I certainly hope not.

Did you miss out on some birthday cake upstairs after the games? Another great night in what is shaping-up to be one heck of a year, at least for me. Here's hoping this finds you well, whoever you may be.

bcIII