April 24, 2011
Series advantage slips away
As Colonel berated his mates in frustration, Velma couldn't help but feel an opportunity to take charge of the Stanley Stick championship series had slipped away from his team. Literally.
His five goals had helped his squad close to within a pair of goals, 15-13. But a light shower had slicked the concrete court. Velma never scored again, and his team succumbed 20-16.
"The game really seemed to turn for us when the court got wet," said the feisty forward who seemed unstoppable in the game's early moments. "You can' t stop on a dime anymore and you have to plan your moves ahead."
That hesitation was all their speedy opponents needed to pounce on opportunities. Three straight goals, one of the disallowed for goaltender interference, snuffed any hope of a comeback.
"We just came back and scored to stop their momentum," said Scooby of his side's knack for timely goals to turn the game back to their advantage. "We just capitalized on those chances."
In fact, his side, a potent combination of young speedsters and wily veterans, never trailed. But the final result was far from a runaway, something Unabomber said they were conscious of whenever they managed to stretch their advantage.
"I think time has shown anyone can win or lose, it's all who wants it the most in the end," said the hard-shooting defender, who felled Beetle Boy with one of rapier blasts late in the game. "At the end we proved we wanted it more."
No one more so than Scooby, who time and again stormed around flat-footed defenders as he charged out of the corner and across the crease to create scoring opportunities. And those plays wouldn't have happened without aggressive forechecking.
"Once we had possession of the ball, we were able to get it to guys to get away those shots before the goalie gets set in his butterfly," said Scooby.
"It's a deadly combo when you have Scooby and Lak and Kid up front," said Velma.
And when the offense did falter, Chico stood tall in his first Stanley Stick start.
"Once that first shot hits you, you settle down," said the rookie rearguard. "The intensity is unbelieveable, everyone is amped up."
With his team down a game, Velma says his team is ready for the challenge of winning next week's rematch to set up a decisive mini game.
"Some of our team is going to use the hack and slash and maim, and some of team is going to propel the goals."
But their opponents aren't taking anything for granted.
"We know the Colonel is going to have them regroup and they'll come out very hard with a new game plan," said Unabomber. "We fully expect it to be an all-out battle again, and we're going to have to bring our A game."
Chico is right. My memory failed me. Let's award their team the Stick and just go to the pub at 10:30 in the morning. I've begun drinking earlier in the day before ... once.
Posted by: The Colonel at April 30, 2011 10:52 PMAh no there were two goalies in the 15-13 game. Colonel played for both teams and therefor won and lost.
So I did not give up 28 goals . Nice try though.
Best of luck tomorrow guys to everyone
Hopefully a better game than tonights Canucks effort
Wow, Chico let in 28 goals in a game?! That must be a new record against...
Posted by: Velma at April 30, 2011 06:53 PMHow's the weather forecast looking tomorrow Lak? Should I bring my wet or dry shoes for the court?
Posted by: The Colonel at April 30, 2011 05:13 PMThose are some impressive statistics Chico. So much so that I started wondering whether there was any reason for us to even show up and play on Sunday. Then I realized that we still had a glimmer of hope because you were the only goaltender in the 15-13 game and therefore, also the losing goaltender. Whew! I guess it's still worth our while to come out tomorrow. Bring your A-game because we plan too. BOOM!
Posted by: The Colonel at April 30, 2011 05:12 PMI'm pretty sure Franz had 12 of those 20 goals in your 20 - 7 game, Chico.
Posted by: velma at April 30, 2011 03:51 PM20-16
20-7
15-13
20-9
Were you the winner in all four of the previous week's games Franz? Did you have a pair of shutouts? Blah blah blah
I'm ready for the Colonel to ring a couple off my mask from terrible angles and for a log jam of bodies in front of the net, didn't make a difference for the past month and it won't on Sunday. Best of luck wasting your energy.
OH ...
and, PFG is going to SLAM the door on anything coming our way. BOOM!
Posted by: The Colonel at April 29, 2011 11:52 AMSounds good to me.
I have just purchased a pair of new, light-weight shoes that fit perfectly as well as three new sticks and blades which I will break-in on Saturday in preparation. I have also regemented myself to a low-calorie diet and exercise program and have lost 6 lbs since last Sunday. I will carb load on Saturday so that I have the perfect balance of energy and strength for this Sunday. With my new shoes I will be able to leap-tall-buildings-in-a-single-bound. Lak may be able to catch me ever-so-slightly on occasion but Unabomber will not. While all of you are looking for the big hit, fleet-footed Colonel will be burying them upstairs early and often with his monstorous shot and pin-point accuracy!
And, Doo won't be able to remark: "You are old and slow anyway. Now you don't have a sole on your shoe and it is starting to rain and get slippery." Damn you Doo! Damn you! lol
Posted by: The Colonel at April 29, 2011 11:52 AMFull contact next Sunday? Sweeeeet - I'm IN!!
; )
Oh Lak,
You're such a cuddly, little bear. Looking forward to giving you a nice hug on Sunday :)
Good thing Chico doesn't rhyme with Rinne.
Posted by: ? at April 28, 2011 10:25 PMWhat is this @!% comedy central!!
Good one Franz! That made me chuckle!
I am all for banging and crashing. Rarely do I get a chance to test my true strength and explosiveness!
HOw excting!! IF YOU DISH IT OUT JUST BE READY TO TAKE IT!!!!!!
YOU IN UNABOMBER !!
Posted by: lakattack at April 28, 2011 09:29 PMWord on the street is that Chico is a greater meltdown risk than a Japanese nuclear plant.
Posted by: Franz at April 28, 2011 07:35 AMPlease. I'm not about to play an emotionless, along-the-boards game and you guys know it. Guess what - neither are you. You'll make it as difficult as you can on our goaltender in the hopes that it gives you an advantage. It's not likely that anyone is going to get run but you can expect far more action right in front of the net, more banging and crashing, and generally more intensity. The Commissioner isn't about to relegate this to a completely recreational, non-competitive game because that's not the spirit of The Stick. Looking forward to a fun, hard-fought game on Sunday. BOOM!
Posted by: The Colonel at April 27, 2011 09:23 PMKid's right Colonel, any of your premeditated crease crashing will result in goals being called off now every time. Beetle could have come clean on that crease battle but chose to remain silent. You guys set the bar last game.
Posted by: Bomber at April 27, 2011 09:04 PMCorrect me if i'm wrong, but wasn't your team the ones that called off a perfectly fine goal because of "goalie interference"?
But contrary to what you have decided (are you the commish now?) goalie interference will be called this week...you guys set the precedent, and believe me, you make it very obvious when you start interfering with the goalies...it will get called every time.
Posted by: KID at April 27, 2011 06:32 PMChico,
I think you'll find that the Stanley Stick is a lot like the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the sense that what is typically a fairly even-keel, low-intensity regular season turns into a very intense Stanley Stick battle. We didn't see much of that intensity in Game 1 but this week will be a different type of game.
This is your first Stick and I think you're proving yourself admirably. I just think we all need to be prepared for what is going to happen this Sunday. There will be way more crease crashing and driving hard to the net - far more than you experienced in the regular season. Complaints by goaltenders are going to go unheard unless it's something blatant and we're all going to have to play through it. Fortunately for me, I live for that type of game.
You've got a good group in front of you and so do we. I think the teams are very balanced and it's going to come down to who wants it more. I think the discussion you witnessed last week from our team is a testament to our competitive nature and how much we want it and as you know, when you're focused on a goal and things aren't going your way, there can be some frustration. And, I think you're right, airing that frustration last week will have the effect of galvanizing our team. So be ready.
I'm sure you're up for the challenge. I know we are.
Colonel
Thanks for not giving our side any credit at all. That's great. We can certainly build on that. And you are right. We don't call interference much. And it's usually confessed by the guilty party. I know I respect that from my opposition. Best of luck this week and perhaps the infighting can galvanize your team.
Absolutely incredible! About 10 seconds before the overtime winner I was sitting here thinking that it's too bad this matchup was a first round matchup as it could be looked back on as the best series of the Stanley Cup ... but we'll see! Something tells me there's more excitement to come.
Posted by: The Colonel at April 26, 2011 10:15 PMUnbelievable Canucks/Blackhawks game tonight. Currently intermission between the 2nd and 3rd periods. Hope the Canucks can prevail!
Posted by: The Colonel at April 26, 2011 08:49 PMAs I've said to my team-mates, I don't think we could have played a worse game (I led the charge on that one this week) and we still only lost by a handful of goals. A few tweaks here and there and I expect we'll see a different result next week ... in both the first game and the mini.
My only hope is that I don't have to play another game listening to all that whining about whether or not a player is or is not in the crease; whether there may or may not have been incidental contact. After all, last time I checked we were playing hockey not tidily winks. You agree with me right Chico? I mean, it's not like anyone is running the goaltender out there or anything. That type of game has historically been reserved for game two (go Franz!). Am I right?
Posted by: The Colonel at April 25, 2011 10:29 PMNucks lost and I doubt they will win! I hope I am wrong.
Ready to roll for game # 2 and ready to be to pick the tempo even more!
Thanks PFG for coming out and hope to see you next week!
It will be another game with rainy condtions for next week, so it should make for an another game with some adjustments.
Good game by everyone and looking forward to next week.
Posted by: Lakattack at April 24, 2011 08:26 PMGreat battle today
It was awesome playin with all of you
Next week will tell all