Week 3 Results:
Black 7 Red 4
Gold 6 Gray 3
Blue 8 Pink 3
Updated Standings after 3 weeks:
1. Green 4 (23/16) ***
2. Blue 4 (16/10) ***
3. Gold 4 (9/5) ***
4. Pink 4 (18/20)
5. Black 3 (24/23)
6. Red 1 (10/16)
7. Gray 1 (17/28)
*** Has had a bye week***
Note: Top 3 at the end of the regular season will be guaranteed a best of 3 series. 2nd seed will play 3rd seed. The 1st seed will play against the team that wins the 4th place tournament (will be held April 11th). In short, its important to get a top 3 seed so you can avoid having to play in the 4th place tournament.
Team Black picked up its 1st victory of the season last night. They jumped ahead 5-0 at one point until team Red scored 3 unanswered goals in the 2nd period to climb to within 2. Clint was called for a stick slam but team Red was unable to convert on the power play chance that could have drawn them within a goal. Corey Bassett was a late scratch for Team Black. Erika Dodd was present at the time and agreed to take his place. She contributed a couple goals for team Black. Cody Haag and Mitch Dorunda also scored a couple times. Robb Reed and Luke Manners each scored once for team Red. Denny Stinchcomb filled in for a missing Jordan Tosh. A 5-3 2nd period lead for team Black turned into a 7-4 win. It was their first win of the season after a couple one goal losses to start the season. Team Red will face Team Gray next week. Each team has one point in the standings but neither has found the win column yet. Team Black will get a week off to celebrate its first win.
Tyler Waltman and Team Gray got a tough break in the draft. Waltman drafted Kevin Smith with the 2nd overall pick (Smith’s availability at the time was mainly probable for the regular season but iffy for the playoffs). Smith was not present for the first 2 games and informed us yesterday that he will not be able to play this season. Brandon Reiter agreed to fill in last night but did not commit to playing for the rest of the season. He made a quick contribution by scoring the 1st goal last night but team Gold quickly answered on a breakaway from Bob Anderson to Brian Anderson. Team Gold would find its way up to a 5-1 lead going into the 3rd period but Tyler Waltman pulled his team to within 2 with plenty of time left. Jeff Wehner played his 1st game for team Gold last night and contributed a couple goals, one of them came on a really nice set up from Bob Anderson. Another goal came on a really fancy backhander. Bob Anderson and Zach Smith combined for 3 goals but Smith said afterwards that there wasn’t much connection with some of the teams passing last night. Henry Sutter filled in for Dean Risser. Sutter played well considering that it was his 2nd game of a back to back. Team Gold and Team Blue will play next week in a battle of undefeated teams.
Team Blue picked up a nice 8-3 win over Team Pink last night (didn’t see much of this game), but it seemed like Team Blue controlled the game from start to finish. They scored a couple quick ones and never looked back. They got a boost when John Matchock was able to play and they had their regular goalie (Tim Herman) back. Herman was unable to play last week due to an injury. He didn’t appear rusty or hurt last night. Team Pink was missing Matt Cole, Austin Boyd and Joe Roush. Tyler Waltman filled in. Team pink will look to rebound next week but will play against another undefeated team in Team Green. Team Green did not play last night. Team Blue will play team Gold. It will almost feel like a Colonials scrimmage (Andersons, Terwilliger, Fatula, Matchock, Herman).
Just a reminder, if you can’t make it a game, let your team know so they can let us know. Players from a bye week team may be looking to fill in for absent players who signed up to play on a regular basis. We just want the subs to be comparable to the players they are filling in for.
Cody Haag (Black)
1. You guys picked up your first win last night. What can you say about the overall team effort in the win? It was a solid team effort to pick up our first win. Our captain played the entire game and was solid defensively. Offensively we came out strong and picked it up again later in the game. Overall, we had a solid team effort.
2. You got off to a 5-0 lead but they scored 3 unanswered goals and had a power play chance to get closer. Do you think killing that penalty was the turning point in the game? I wouldn't say killing the penalty was the turning point of the game. We have had leads in all three of the games we have played, and we lost two of those games. Our team was hungry for a win, and we did not want to lose this game. After they scored those three unanswered goals against us, we knew we had to pick up our gameplay. We were able to do just that in the third period and take home the victory. Also, having Clint net helps tremendously. We left Clint out to dry a few times, and he made some big saves when we needed them.
3. Whats been your overall impression of your team after 3 games. Do you think chemistry has looked pretty good? We seemed to have a little more chemistry in this game, and we were getting more chances to score. Each week of the season, our team chemistry has been getting better, and I would say this was our best week by far.
4. You contributed a couple goals in the game. Are you happy with how you are playing so far? I had two goals last night. One was a garbage goal in front of the net, and the other was a breakaway goal. In my honest opinion, I would like to play a little better. My team has set me up with multiple opportunities, and I messed them up either by the ball getting lost in my feet or just lacking the skating ability. I do feel like that game was the best game I have had this season.
5. Do you like draft leagues better than leagues where you have to find a team to be on? . I normally participate in the draft leagues because I have only played for a couple of seasons. I am just starting to meet and connect with the guys who play in this league.
Brice Miller (Pink)
1. Tough loss to the Blue team last night. What can you say about the overall team effort in the loss? We pushed the game when we had the chances too. Just couldn’t score last night.
2. What was the impression you had of the team you were up against last night? Lots of defense, every shot or pass there was someone getting a stick in the lane. They controlled the ball for most of the game and made it difficult to get chances.
3. It seemed like they controlled the game from start to finish. What do you think went wrong for you guys? Like I said just tough to do things in their end. Not a lot of luck in our favor and they shut our offense down.
4. 3 weeks into this winter league. What kind of expectations do you have for this team going forward? I have high expectations for this team, this is by far the most skilled team I’ve been a part of, just excited to keep moving forward with them.
5. Do you like the draft leagues better than the regular xhl league where you have to find a team to play for? Personally I think I prefer the draft leagues. I’ve only been through one XHL season and more draft leagues. I like the opportunity to be playing with new people each season. Alex Waddell (Red)
1. You guys fell to team Black last night (not sure what the score was). What can you say about the overall team effort? I thought everyone played hard through the whole game. We had a slow start but everyone kept going even when we were down.
2. You guys got off to a slow start and fell behind 5-0. What do you think went wrong at the beginning? We just started out a little sloppy I thought we tightened it up after the first period but it wasn’t enough. Clint played a great game. It would be nice if he’s do that once in a while when I’m on the same side as him.
3. You got within 5-3 in the 2nd period and had a power play chance to get closer. Do you think not scoring on that power play hurt your momentum for the rest of the game? Not really It would have been nice to get a goal there but I thought we still had the momentum until half way through the third.
4. What positives can you take out of these first 3 weeks? I think the effort is great and we are figuring out where some of our newer players fit in. It’s great to see some new players in the league regardless of their skill level. Hopefully they stick with it and we can keep growing the league.
5. You will get to play team Gray next week (Waltman/Trent/Rooster/Dodd girls/Tony Conforto/Dean Risser/Kevin Smith or Brandon Reiter). What kind of game do you expect from them? Expecting a big effort from both sides. I think we will both be fighting hard for that first win.
Vinnie Deloia (Blue)
1. Nice win over the Pink team last night. What can you say about the overall team effort in the win? I think everyone played pretty well tonight. Everyone on the team can skate pretty well and I think we synced up a little better this week.
2. You have not played much hockey in the past year. Do you think you are getting your stamina back? I think I would need stamina in the first place to get it back, but I didn’t half collapse this week so I’ll take it haha.
3. Only 2 weeks in. Whats been your impression of the team you are on so far? Team is really solid, I didn’t know we had Dave going in and that’s a big addition. Everybody plays hard and can skate well. Easy to get along with group for sure.
4. You guys got off to a quick start last night and never looked back. How were you able to control the game like you did? I think we were able to keep up in speed with them, which was my concern going in since they have some younger guys. Having an extra sub this week made it so we could keep fresh legs.
5. Do you like draft leagues better than the regular xhl? I prefer draft because most of the time the matches seem more even and that makes for more exciting hockey, love both though. Thanks !
Brandon Reiter (Team Gray, Kevin Smith fill in) 1. You filled in for Kevin Smith last night. What can you say about the overall team effort? I think the effort was fine. My understanding is this team has had various players fill in each week so it seems like the main concerns are consistency and chemistry.
2. The team was only able to score 3 goals. What do you think went wrong for the team offensively? Adam. I thought we traded offensive opportunities pretty evenly with them, but you typically need some extra touch to get it past Doc.
3. Were you happy with you played individually? I thought I did ok but think I could have scored more goals with the chances I had.
4. How do you think you guys (And girls) did trying to contain Bob and Zach Smith last night? I think we did pretty well.
5. You would not commit to playing beyond last night. Will you be extending your contract or will it just be a one and done deal? I will be discussing it with my agents. Jeff Wehner (Gold)
1. 6-3 win last night. What can you say about the overall team effort in the win? I thought we played great as a team. We were really consistent with how we were playing and kept a good pace going
2. Were you happy with how you played individually considering that you had not played in a while? Overall I was happy with how I played. It took a few shifts for me to get my skating legs back under me but I was expecting that.
3. Its only one game, but how do you like playing with these particular guys that you are with for this league? It honestly felt Iv been playing with these guys for a few seasons already. I feel like we are all on the same page with where we need to be and our positioning and passing and am excited see how much better we get playing together as a team.
4. Did you feel pretty good conditionally? It was a rough one skating for the first time in a few months. I’m still feeling it in the legs, having subs is always nice!
5. You have expressed some interest in playing in Brockway this summer. How do you compare playing in Brockway to playing in Reynoldsville? The rink in brockway is more what I’m used to, with size of the rink,surface and boards. I’m still used to playing on the rink reynoldsville and every week I’m learning something different whether it’s with skating or how to use the angle of walls to get passes up the boards.