March 14th Results
Gold 11 Pink 8
Red 10 Green 4
Blue 5 Black 3
Updated Standings After March 14th games (6 weeks)
Automatic best of 3 series spots
1. Gold 10 (36/22) ***
2. Blue 8 (30/23) ***
3. Pink 6 (43/36) ***
4th place Tournament spots
4. Red 5 (29/31)
5. Green 4 (38/52) ***
6. Gray 4 (31/39) ***
7. Black 3 (32/37) ***
Gold 11 Pink 8
Gold remains unbeaten following an 11-8 win over Team Pink last night. Team Pink was missing Austin Boyd, Matt Cole and Steve Capetta. They picked up Rooster last night (his team was on a bye week). The two teams were tied at 2 with less than 10 seconds to go in the first period when Bob Anderson found Brian Anderson standing in front of team Pink's net to give team Gold a 3-2 lead going into the 2nd period. Zach Smith found Brian Anderson on the opening faceoff of the 2nd period to put Gold ahead 4-2. Smith scored a goal of his own soon after to make it 5-2. A goal by Rooster got team Pink to within 5-3 but Gold scored 3 unanswered goals to go up 8-3. A 9-4 lead going into the 3rd period was quickly trimmed to 9-6 and actually got down to 10-8 thanks to some really good shooting from Zach Foradori. He had multiple goals in the 3rd period. Following a timeout with less than 3 minutes to go, Zach Smith scored an all important insurance goal to make it 11-8. No one scored after that. Zach Smith and Bob Anderson each scored 4 goals for team Gold. Brian Anderson had the other 3 goals. Zach Foradori and Andy Calvert led the way offensively for team Pink. Rooster chipped in as well. Team Gold will face Team Black next Monday at 615. Team Pink will face Team Gray next Monday at 815. A regulation win for Team Gray would give them a legitimate chance to earn the all important 3rd place spot in the regular season standings.
Red 10 Green 4 (Didn't watch this whole game)
Team Red picked up its 2nd win in the last 3 weeks to move to within a point for 3rd place in the regular season standings. They jumped ahead 3-0 before anyone could blink an eye. Eric Llewellyn scored a couple goals for team Green to get them to within a goal after the 1st period. Following a couple more goals from Team Red to start the 2nd period, Denny Stinchcomb scored for Team Green to draw them to within 2 at 5-3. Jerred Amick found the back of the net on an impressive shot following a faceoff win for team Red to put them ahead 6-3 and it seemed like the momentum carried over from there. The lead would eventually grow to 10-3 late in the 3rd period before green scored to make the final score 10-4. Red had a nice balanced attack from Jordan Tosh, Jerred Amick, Tyler Waltman and Alex Waddell. Team Red is off next week. Team Green will look to bounce back against team Blue next Monday night at 715.
Blue 5 Black 3
For the 2nd week in a row, Team Blue found themselves tied going into the 3rd period. Josh Clontz made his debut for team Blue and contributed a tying goal at the 2nd period horn to make it 2-2 going into the 3rd period. Mitch Dorunda got the scoring started on the night for team Black. They led 2-1 at the end of the first period but would not score again until Dorunda scored with less than a minute to go in the 3rd period. By then, it was too late. With the score tied at 2 in the 3rd period, John Matchock wristed/slapped one to the net from a long distance. It looked like it deflected off teammate Dan Fatula's stick in front of the net. Regardless of who scored the official goal, it gave Blue a 3-2 lead. Fatula scored a couple more goals soon after. The goal that put the game out of reach came on a nice pass from Dave Jewell to Dan Fatula to make it 5-2. Fatula led the way offensively for team Blue. Both goalies looked good for their respective teams. Team Blue had a couple power play chances but missed out thanks to some good saves from Clint. Black had a power play chance as well but Blue did a good job defensively in that sequence. They got very few shots if any on their 2 minute power play. Team Black will face team Gold at 615 next Monday. Team Blue will face Team Green next Monday at 715.
Josh Clontz (Blue)
1. Back on the floor tonight. Were you excited to get back at it? Absolutely! I had a nice break, but I love hockey and I was ready to get back on skates.
2. What can you say about the overall team effort tonight? The effort was great, black came out with alot of speed and had us on our heels a bit, but we just kept playing hard and got the w.
3. You scored a big goal to end the 2nd period. Did you think that was the turning point of the game? For sure. Anytime you end a period with a goal it gives the team a big boost of momentum, we took that into the third period and really controlled the last period.
4. This team isn’t used to subbing. Do you think the rotation was ok tonight considering you had 3 subs? Yup, it was nice to have fresh legs all the time. Dan picked out a group to rotate at forwards and a group for the back and it worked well.
5. What kind of expectations do you have for this team going forward? Honestly I have no idea what the other teams look like, I only caught a few minutes of the game before ours. We have a solid roster and we played really well together if we keep doing what we did last night we should be in good shape.
Joe Roush (Pink)
1. 11 to 8 loss tonight. What can you say about the overall team effort tonight? There were some momentum shifts throughout for sure. We definitely could have done more to help our goalie. A lot of cross crease passes that led to goals for them could have been better defended against as well as breakaway chances and odd man rushes but that tends to happen when you're over aggressive and trailing the entire game.
2. You like the mix of players on this team? Like any other draft league, yeah it's fine.
3. Bob and Zach are tough to contain. How do you think you guys did trying to slow them down? They managed to get plenty of tallies on the score sheet so not well enough
4. Your team rallied in the 3rd period. What do you think the team did different? I don't know we did anything different other than perhaps spending more time with possession of the ball.
5. From what you have seen in this league, do you think the teams seem fairly balanced? I know a few others have mentioned this in previous interviews and it's been discussed but as to how Bob ended up with himself, Zach, Adam in net on top of the majority of his usual "crew" on that team is questionable as far as balance across all the teams. That team is obvious favorites. But other than that, yes
Jake Kline (Black)
1. 5 to 3 loss tonight. What can you say about the overall team effort tonight? Team effort was there to start we were in it most of the game just idk what happens we just loose momentum
2. They scored a goal to end the 2nd period. Did you think that was the turning point in the game? It could of been a turning point I guess.
3. The team is struggling offensively right now. What do you think has gone wrong? Not sure what's going wrong. Some points in games seem like we are doing good on both ends. Then out of nowhere everything going south on both ends. Must be something with me thats how the mobb was in summer league. Seems like it followed me to this league.
4. What positives can you take out of the game? Positive I guess we can say we stayed with them for most of the game anyhow
5. What kind of game were you expecting tonight when you saw their team on the floor? Alot of good players on that team. Didn't really think we were gonna keep score as close as we did. Figured they would pull away alot more Than what they did Clint played very well had some great stops. Kept us in game also Morgan Lyons (Green)
1. 10 to 4 loss tonight. What can you say about the team effort tonight? I thought it was okay and our offense works well together but there’s always room to improve
2. You have only been playing a short time. What’s it been like? It’s been fun to play with more experience players
3. Are you happy with how you have played individually? Somewhat. I’ve only played for about two years if not less and this is my first time playing in a league this competitive and fast paced. I’m also playing against some guys that have probably played for about as long as I’ve been alive and are way more experience.
4. What made you want to sign up? The Dodd girls and Brenden got me into playing pick up hockey and they convinced me to try the xhl out. I’ve also come to watch previous games in the last winter league and the summer league and thought it might be fun.
5. What positives can you take out of these last couple of games? working with more experienced people I guess. I think the faster game play will help me learn faster and there have been people in the league that have explained or tried teaching me new things Bob Anderson (Gold)
1. 11 to 8 win tonight. What can you say about the overall team effort tonight?
We earned the W but I think it's safe to say it wasn't our best effort. We were pretty sloppy defensively. That has plagued us a bit as of late, so we will want to clean it up as we get closer to the playoffs. I know I've been guilty of focusing too much on the offensive game, and not helping the defense out as much as I should. Regardless though, we are in a good spot right now with three weeks to go in the regular season.
2. Were you a little surprised to see 19 combined goals scored in this game?
Anybody who bet the over in that game probably made some money. I didn't expect that many goals for sure. I've reffed some of Team Pink's games this season and have been impressed with their defensive game and hustle. I think missing players like Austin Boyd, Steve Capetta, and Matt Cole hurt them. We gave up more goals last night than in any game we've played so far. I think we will be better defensively going forward.
3. They were without a couple defensive minded guys, including Austin Boyd. Is it a little less satisfying to win under those circumstances or do you still consider it a big win?
I was disappointed to hear that they were missing some of their regulars, including Boyd. I look forward to playing against guys like him, Steve, and Matt. They raise the competitive level of the game. Granted, we let them pick up Rooster who has been a beast, but it's sometimes difficult for a fill-in to have the same impact when they play for a team that isn't their own. Chemistry is off and fill-in players tend to defer to the regulars. Nonetheless, I expect Team Pink to be a tough out come playoff time. They have a lot of balance.
4. You and Zach make a good core of skaters. How do you think the rest of the guys have fit in so far?
I think we have a good roster that compliments each other very well. Sometimes that's the difference in these draft leagues. I think our team has a good mix of grit and skill, defense and offense, and unselfish play to make a good run at this season's title. Building a winning team is sort of like putting a puzzle together. You can have a lot of vibrant and extravagant pieces, but if they don't fit together, the overall product never comes together.
I know everybody likes to score goals, but not every good player is a goal scorer. A player like Fred is the classic example. He may only pitch in a goal or two a season, but he's proven time and time again to be a valuable player. His reliable defense allows others to play more aggressively up front.
5. You have reffed a fair share of games so far in this league. What have you observed from some of the teams you have got to watch?
Reffing allows me a chance to not only make a few bucks, but to scout out the competition. We've had trouble getting refs, so maybe that can be a little recruitment piece for us? I already talked about Team Pink, so I'll move on to some observations of the other teams.
I liked what I saw from both the Black and Blue teams last night. They played hard. It was entertaining to watch. From what I've seen, I would place a couple of bucks on Team Blue to make the finals if I were a betting man. They are deep and have the pieces to put together the puzzle that I referred to in the previous question. I like Team Black's tenacity. They played a much better defensive game last night too. That should be encouraging for them going forward.
Team Red also has the right pieces in my opinion. They played us really hard in our first game and Henry has the ability to steal a game when he gets hot. I think they can elevate their game even more come playoff time.
Team Grey is playing their best hockey of late as well. They really moved the ball well last week. If they can get Andy to take Kevin's place consistently, that would be really helpful for them going forward. He and Rooster had a really nice connection going. Team Green might be frustrated right now, but a few tweaks to their playing style could help them win some games. They have a lot of talent!
Regardless, I'm looking forward to seeing how this season plays out. I'm sure there will be some fun games ahead and I'll be right there to scout it all out while I'm reffing!