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Lobsterboy's patience pays off

If good things come to those who wait, Lobsterboy should buy a lottery ticket.

The shelled shotstopper has been waiting all season to score his first victory, and then he had to wait more than three periods for his teammates to finally find their offensive legs as they roared back from a 17-14 defecit to eke out an overtime thriller, 21-19.

"It just feels good to win one game," says the creaseminding crustacean, who's been struggling to find his goaltending groove after being in and out of the lineup all season. "I've come close so many times, I've let in so many lousy goals."

For most of Sunday's game, it looked like it would be another one of those times as opposing speedsters Kid and the Colonel were able to careen around flatfooted defenders and convert two-on-one and even three-on-one breaks, while notorious gameshow host gone bad, Wink, had ample time to tee up his terrifying slapshots from the point. But then Lobsterboy took control, smothering rebounds, lunging across the crease to knock sure goals away with his stick, headmanning clearing passes up the court, imploring his mates to battle back.

"He lets you know that you're still in the game and that you can still pull out the win," says Billy Idol, who's tenacious forechecking late in the game created a number of scoring opportunities. "Lobsterboy was definitely the difference today."

"He stepped up at the time they needed him the most, and they definitely started to work a little harder," says the Colonel who was robbed late in the game when Lobsterboy jabbed his stick across the open net to knock a sure goal from mid-air. "They controlled the ball along the boards, they beat us to the ball when it was loose, and when you have possession of the ball, good things tend to happen."

Like Bird and Billy Idol poking rebounds between Ottoman's pads, or Hoss and Elvis crashing hard to the net to convert scoring chances, or the Living Legend stripping the ball from a streaking Kid, spinning and ripping a shot in the shortside.

"We had a good finish," says Billy Idol. "We had scoring from every single person today."

It took a while to happen, though. After charging to a quick 2-0 lead, Idol and his mates seemed to lose their spark about the same time they lost their defensive quarterback, Wink, who was released to the other team to replace Hoss, as he dealt with an emergency demand from his exploitative employer.

"When we picked up Wink off waivers, it was an absolute coup, it changed the dynamic of the game" says the Colonel, as his side took a 5-4 lead into the first break. "We had a guy back there who could pass and shoot, he makes really good plays, he added another threat to the team."

"Wink is the quarterback for any team," says Lobsterboy. "He knows how to make the passes, he can slow down the game."

Suddenly struggling, his mates started pressing in the offensive zone, leaving their beleaguered backstop to fend for himself.

"We tried to be too offensive, and we just got caught too many times," says Billy Idol, who expressed his own frustration when he pitched his gloves and stick over the fence after a difficult shift.

"The wind just went out of their sails," says Lobsterboy of his misfiring mates.

So it was up to him to be his team's port in the storm.

"We were behind four times, and we always caught up," says Lobsterboy. "It makes you feel good that you can contribute by making some key saves."

Posted by jaysuburb at May 2, 2004 04:10 PM