Playoffs Underway

Blue 7  Orange 6

The playoffs began with a doozy of a game between the #2 and #5 seeds -- Blue v. Orange.  Blue started the game where they left off the same way they finished the regular season; dominating the early chances to take a 3-0 lead.  Jaron Buffone kicked it off by cleaning up a missed shot that caromed off the back wall right to his stick 5 minutes into the game.  Zach Smith followed it up with his first goal of the game a couple minutes later.  Jaron then took advantage of an Orange turnover in the defensive zone.  A Robb Reed slap shot stopped the bleeding and Larry Kruckow's wrister with 3 seconds left in the first period changed the complexion of the game.

Both teams would only score once each in the second period but a late penalty against Blue gave Orange a chance to tie the game early in the third period.  Zac Gray did just that and followed it up with another to give Orange its first and only lead of the game.  Blue stepped on the gas again with Jaron tying things up off a nice feed from Josh Clontz.  Zach Smith outmuscled an Orange defender to score on a breakway to give Blue the lead once again.  He added an insurance goal afterwards.  Orange tried to mount a last minute comeback.  Alex Waddell scored with 32 ticks left on the clock, but a late flurry in front of Clint Lingenfelter failed to tie it up.  Blue prevailed 7-6.

Perhaps the story of the game was the play of Braxton McKinley in net.  He filled in for Tony Conforto.  If you didn't know it, you would have thought the McKinley in net was his dad.  Braxton made several great stops throughout the game to give Orange a great chance to pull a caper against Blue.  

White 12  Gold 9

Team white did not have any momentum going into their first playoff game last night, but their losing streak was quickly forgotten when they got off to a 3 goal lead in last nights game against Gold.  Gold never led in this game, but they battled back to tie the game at 6 late in the 2^nd period.  Bob set Coltyn up for their first goal then scored one of his own soon after with Cory adding another first period goal to keep them within a goal going into the 2^nd period.   Cory appeared to give Gold the lead late in the 2^nd period but it just missed going in.  White would go on to score a goal late in the 2^nd period and slowly pulled away in the 3^rd period.   A 7-6 lead after 2 periods jumped to 12-8 at one point before Coltyn scored as time ran out to make the final 12-9.  There was too much back and forth action to remember exactly who scored what throughout the game, but White had a good balanced effort and good passing throughout the game.  Andy and Ben Rossi each had 4 goals while Jake and Josh Clontz each scored twice.  Jake and Josh had 3^rd period goals to help the team gain some much needed separation.  Bob led the way for Gold and kept them close but it seemed like Bubba made some clutch saves anytime Gold inched closer.  With the win, White gets another meeting with Blue next week.  White jumped out to a big lead when the teams first met earlier in the season, only to see Blue come back.  Surprisingly, blue mercy ruled them in last weeks regular season finale.   The game was close for about 20 minutes before blue quickly pulled away.  The winner of that game will most likely play team black the following week, unless team orange somehow pulls off a big upset next week. 

Black 12  Green 0 (Mercy Rule 10 minute mark of 2^nd period)

In years past, there was not a significant difference in skill level between a #6 seed and a #1 seed, but this game was one of those David versus Goliath matchups.  Black (Laken) scored seconds into the game and the route was on.  A 9-0 lead after one period turned into a 12-0 mercy rule win early in the 2^nd period.  Noah led the way in both goals and assists for black.  Adam only had to make a couple saves in the shut out win.   As a reward for earning the top seed in the regular season, black gets to play the two lowest seeds to start out the playoffs.  Green will get a 3^rd matchup with Gold next week with the winner most likely to face the loser of the Blue/White game next week.

Clint (Blue)

1. 7-6 win over orange last night. What can you say about the overall team effort in the win? Team effort was great! Everybody was skating hard and helping each other!

2. Zach Foradori has replaced Anthony Schuckers for this league. What can you say about his play for you guys so far?  Zachs been great! Hes really helped us on the back end and our breakout out of the defensive zone! Helps the other Zach focus a lil more on offense!

 3. It was your 2nd, one goal win against orange this season. What do you think made the difference for you guys?  Just sticking to our game! We got ourselves caught a couple times trying to force things but if we play smart and base our offense off of our defense, we should have a good chance against any team.

 4. What did you observe from Braxton as he took Tony’s place last night? I thought Braxton played very well! He knows how to play his angles and he did a good job at freezing the ball when we had it in their zone for an extended period of time!

5. With the win, you get to play against Andy, Jake and company next week. What kind of game do you expect against them this time around? ) It'll definitely be a good game! Last time we met I feel like we played our best game and they played their worst! This one will go either way! Whoever plays to their strengths should take home the win!

Peach (Gold)

1. 12-9 loss to white last night. What can you say about the overall team effort in the loss?  The effort was there, we just never really found our flow. They did a good job keeping us from getting scoring chances and always had a step on us.

2. What do you think went wrong in the 3rd period? I don’t know Brian, but I’m pretty sure it gave me PTSD. Can we just skip this one?

3. Cory nearly had a goal which would have put you ahead 7-6. Do you think that was a big momentum swing? There’s always so many “what-ifs” when you lose… It was a pivotal moment in the game, and we maybe missed a big opportunity, but I don’t think it came down to one missed opportunity. They outworked us when it mattered most, and it showed on the scoreboard

4. Kaden has been solid most of the season but did not have one of his better nights last night. What words of encouragement can you offer him? Kaden has showed a lot of improvements all season long. He’s come a long way and will keep on getting better. One thing he’s always shown is resilience, and I’m sure he’s ready to move on to the next game by now. And as far as words of encouragement? Kaden… “Ice cold root beer if we win…” How bout that?

5. Its been a crazy season in the nfl. Whats your early super bowl prediction? Your guess is as good as mine, but I think the Chargers might shock everyone and take the AFC and face a surging Seattle Seahawks

Schedule for Monday, December 15th:

620 ----- White vs Blue

720 ---- Green vs Gold (Loser Eliminated)

820 ---- Orange vs Black (Orange Eliminated if they lose)

Looking ahead:

If Black beats Orange, they will play the winner of the White vs Blue game. The winner of the Green vs Gold game will play the loser of the White vs Blue game. If Orange wins on Monday, the bracket will get a little more complicated. Stay tuned.