Progenic Revenge aka Dads v Boys Part Deux The end of a hockey season generally culminates with a te
Progenic Revenge aka Dads v Boys Part Deux The end of a hockey season generally culminates with a te
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And Then There Was One
Just two days and technically 45 minutes after an epic win to salvage their series, the Boy’s team’s season came to less than dramatic halt on the backside of a 4-2 loss. Momentum from the previous game certainly carried the visiting team through the first two and a half periods of the game. A tied series felt like a real possibility as the boys opened a 2-0 lead with some very dominant play. A two-nil lead could have just as easily been four-nil as the visiting side was firing on all cylinders.
Then the middle of the came turned out to be a virtual crest in the road. Aggressive play tuned into timid play; particularly in the defensive zone. The entire team seemed to collapse back into their goaltender. The home team became the aggressor after scoring their first goal. While the Boy and his teammates never gave up, they certainly seemed to back down (or at least back up). The home team, already up four points to two in the six point series, finished the second period with a 3-2 lead. The boys had 15 minutes to square the score, which would have kept their season dimly alive. But another goal by the home side, quickly deflated already fragile spirits. Play in the rest of the period was noticeably desperate and panicked. The crowd got quiet as we too could feel the game, series and season slipping away.
An opposing penalty and resulting power play opportunity in the last two minutes of the game provided one last ray of hope. The goalie would be pulled to create a six on four player advantage, which would in turn provide a couple of scoring chances. However, the soon-to-be victors keeper held strong to preserve the win.
The game/series, which had its fair share of animosity, unfortunately ended on a sour note with a late penalty then a game ending skirmish. The refs, to their credit, were quick to dissipate the situation. At the end of any series, good or bad, a time-honoured tradition has the combatants shake hands in a show of good sportsmanship. In a show of poor sportsmanship, one of the victorious coaches chose to not shake hands with his counterparts – not the right message to be sending to a group of 15 and 16 year old boys.
In quick retrospect, our group of boys had a pretty good yet that provided a lot of unique tests of individual and team character. While they didn’t achieve all of their goals, I think some of them learned and grew – most of them enjoyed their time with this team. They and we all have a substantial store of good and bad memories.
Now the focus turns back to the Devil, who is still wrapped tightly in two exciting series – the first of which resumes in a couple of days. Just enough time to take a breath and ease some shaky nerves. With all the talk of two long seasons, I’m still not ready to see them both end.
#imahockeydad
And Then There Was One
Just two days and technically 45 minutes after an epic win to salvage their series, the Boy’s team’s season came to less than dramatic halt on the backside of a 4-2 loss. Momentum from the previous game certainly carried the visiting team through the first two and a half periods of the game. A tied series felt like a real possibility as the boys opened a 2-0 lead with some very dominant play. A two-nil lead could have just as easily been four-nil as the visiting side was firing on all cylinders.
Then the middle of the came turned out to be a virtual crest in the road. Aggressive play tuned into timid play; particularly in the defensive zone. The entire team seemed to collapse back into their goaltender. The home team became the aggressor after scoring their first goal. While the Boy and his teammates never gave up, they certainly seemed to back down (or at least back up). The home team, already up four points to two in the six point series, finished the second period with a 3-2 lead. The boys had 15 minutes to square the score, which would have kept their season dimly alive. But another goal by the home side, quickly deflated already fragile spirits. Play in the rest of the period was noticeably desperate and panicked. The crowd got quiet as we too could feel the game, series and season slipping away.
An opposing penalty and resulting power play opportunity in the last two minutes of the game provided one last ray of hope. The goalie would be pulled to create a six on four player advantage, which would in turn provide a couple of scoring chances. However, the soon-to-be victors keeper held strong to preserve the win.
The game/series, which had its fair share of animosity, unfortunately ended on a sour note with a late penalty then a game ending skirmish. The refs, to their credit, were quick to dissipate the situation. At the end of any series, good or bad, a time-honoured tradition has the combatants shake hands in a show of good sportsmanship. In a show of poor sportsmanship, one of the victorious coaches chose to not shake hands with his counterparts – not the right message to be sending to a group of 15 and 16 year old boys.
In quick retrospect, our group of boys had a pretty good yet that provided a lot of unique tests of individual and team character. While they didn’t achieve all of their goals, I think some of them learned and grew – most of them enjoyed their time with this team. They and we all have a substantial store of good and bad memories.
Now the focus turns back to the Devil, who is still wrapped tightly in two exciting series – the first of which resumes in a couple of days. Just enough time to take a breath and ease some shaky nerves. With all the talk of two long seasons, I’m still not ready to see them both end.
#imahockeydad
Must Win Thrillers
The last three games, in the last three nights, all must-wins for the Devil and the Boy, have provided as much drama for the players, coaches and especially we spectators in the stands as nearly the whole year combined. Ya just gotta love playoff hockey.
Two nights ago the Devil and her mates played their latest game against their closest rivals, having already lost the first game in a best-out-of three series which will determine who gets to go on to play in the provincial championships. The girls played what could best be described as a bend-but-don’t-break game that saw them score the first and only goal half-way through the second period. Our goalie, not unlike other games this year, “stood on her head”; pushing away several good scoring chances from the other side. On one shot in particular that had its sights on the bottom stick side of the net, she instinctively threw out her right leg, just barely getting her toe in the way of the oncoming puck. On the bench for this game, I watched a great deal of it behind splayed fingers, as did many of the onlookers in the stands I’m sure. But in the end the girls prevailed, sending the series to a game three back at the same foreign rink in exactly one week’s time.
Cut to last night, where the Boy’s team turned the drama up a few notches. I almost don’t know where to start describing this third game of a six point series, which had our team facing elimination with a loss. To start, the team would be dressing only ten out of 15 skaters as they dealt with two season-ending injuries, one two-game suspension from earlier in the series, one player on a family vacation in Florida and one competing in the provincial high school cross-country skiing championships. One of the ten dressed skaters had injured his wrist lifting weights in gym class earlier in the day and the other had injured his shoulder in the previous match. The player with the injured shoulder would only sit on the bench as an emergency backup should someone be needed to serve a ten minute misconduct penalty (crafty little coaching move, indeed). The team was shorthanded to say the least.
But it gets worse. The hockey gods seemed to be frowning. One on the nine players who was capable of skating realized just before the game started that he had a broken skate. He was lucky to be able to borrow a pair from a team coming off the ice from a previous game. So we started the game with a hodge podge of forwards and defencemen. The opponents, with a full bench, no doubt salivated at their prospects for a win.
The Boy and his rag-tag side had other ideas. They came out aggressive right off the hop. The Boy was able to split the D on a rush in the first couple of minutes. He was hauled down, crashing into the net with the puck in tow. At first, we in the crowd thought we witnessed a quick goal, but instead the ref called a tripping penalty; giving the Boys their first powerplay opportunity. They would not score early, but would dominate play for much of the game. As the other team scrambled, their goalie and defence were forced to knock the net off its moorings on at least four occasions. On the last of these, the Boy threw the puck into a dislodged net – another goal disallowed, but the Boy and his mates mock-celebrated to let the visitors know they were going to keep coming.
Then the break came as the home team was fighting off a penalty. The Boy pressured an opposing defenceman into turning over the puck. He scooted in behind him and broke towards the goalie with the startled defenceman in hot pursuit. He was able to throw the puck up an over the goalie’s left shoulder to establish a one-goal lead. Now the challenge would be squarely on the nine, exhausted skaters for the remainder of the second and the entire third period. Hockey mom did her part, by ordering in a round of energy drinks to boost the psychological, if not, the physical spirits of the young warriors.
With all the adversity they’d faced to this point, what else could possibly go wrong? How about another broken skate at the start of the third period; this time on the foot of a different defenceman. The only option, it seemed, was on the foot of the tenth penalty emergency player. His skate was subsequently transferred to where is was needed more. The newly equipped defencemen was able to rejoin the team after a quick “pit stop”.
The final event in this multi-act play was a collision between the Boy and an opposing player in the corner of the rink. The Boy went down in a heap. The trainer was summoned to do a quick assessment; before calling on a couple of other players to pick the Boy up and escort him back to the bench, reportedly with a fair stream of drool running out of his cage. All the while, the crowd looked on as both teams got something of a rest prior to finishing the last half of the final frame. The Boy would shake off the hit and return a couple of shifts later.
Scoring chances would be exchanged in the dying minutes. The Boy’s goaltender came up big on more than one occasion. The good guys held on to their painfully slim margin for the victory. Victorious, nine players and a backup goalie poured onto the ice to celebrate. Another must-win game four is tomorrow night; back in the bad guys’ playground.
Finally, cut to tonight and the last of three consecutive critical games. This time the Devil’s team was taking on the first-place squad from the regular season who had already won game one 2-0 at home. A first-place squad who only lost 4 out of 22 regular season games. The home side certainly had their work cut out for them. But they’ve proven in the past that they can play against strong opponents. And play they did. They battled hard the entire contest. Without looking at the stats, I would guess that they were outshot; our goalie shone again in behind her embattled crew.
As in the past two evenings, the game would be decided by a single goal coming on a seemingly harmless shot by the Devil towards the end of the second period, followed by a scramble for the puck in front of the goalie. One of the Devil’s line-mates was able to poke the puck past, through, over and/or under the sprawling goalie. It was difficult to determine how exactly the puck found its way into the net, but that’s where it ended up; delivering an early death knell to the visitors. Once again, the home team would fight tooth and nail to preserve a win and to play another day. Another victory huddle would form around the winning tender. This series will end, one way or another, this coming weekend. Both teams now know it’s anybody’s game.
There you have it. Three identical 1-0 decisions in three nights have sprouted a few more gray hairs on my aging noggin. These kids and their teams may have very well knocked a couple of days off my life expectancy. But I wouldn’t change it for the world. The post-game jubilation I’ve witnessed on the ice is worth every chewed fingernail. The high-fives and fist-bumps I see other parents exchanging tells the same story. We’re all proud of the efforts our players are putting in; particularly when their backs have been against the wall. Keep it up all ye young hockey soldiers. We’re gonna keep cheering you on as best we can.
#imahockeydad
Must Win Thrillers
The last three games, in the last three nights, all must-wins for the Devil and the Boy, have provided as much drama for the players, coaches and especially we spectators in the stands as nearly the whole year combined. Ya just gotta love playoff hockey.
Two nights ago the Devil and her mates played their latest game against their closest rivals, having already lost the first game in a best-out-of three series which will determine who gets to go on to play in the provincial championships. The girls played what could best be described as a bend-but-don’t-break game that saw them score the first and only goal half-way through the second period. Our goalie, not unlike other games this year, “stood on her head”; pushing away several good scoring chances from the other side. On one shot in particular that had its sights on the bottom stick side of the net, she instinctively threw out her right leg, just barely getting her toe in the way of the oncoming puck. On the bench for this game, I watched a great deal of it behind splayed fingers, as did many of the onlookers in the stands I’m sure. But in the end the girls prevailed, sending the series to a game three back at the same foreign rink in exactly one week’s time.
Cut to last night, where the Boy’s team turned the drama up a few notches. I almost don’t know where to start describing this third game of a six point series, which had our team facing elimination with a loss. To start, the team would be dressing only ten out of 15 skaters as they dealt with two season-ending injuries, one two-game suspension from earlier in the series, one player on a family vacation in Florida and one competing in the provincial high school cross-country skiing championships. One of the ten dressed skaters had injured his wrist lifting weights in gym class earlier in the day and the other had injured his shoulder in the previous match. The player with the injured shoulder would only sit on the bench as an emergency backup should someone be needed to serve a ten minute misconduct penalty (crafty little coaching move, indeed). The team was shorthanded to say the least.
But it gets worse. The hockey gods seemed to be frowning. One on the nine players who was capable of skating realized just before the game started that he had a broken skate. He was lucky to be able to borrow a pair from a team coming off the ice from a previous game. So we started the game with a hodge podge of forwards and defencemen. The opponents, with a full bench, no doubt salivated at their prospects for a win.
The Boy and his rag-tag side had other ideas. They came out aggressive right off the hop. The Boy was able to split the D on a rush in the first couple of minutes. He was hauled down, crashing into the net with the puck in tow. At first, we in the crowd thought we witnessed a quick goal, but instead the ref called a tripping penalty; giving the Boys their first powerplay opportunity. They would not score early, but would dominate play for much of the game. As the other team scrambled, their goalie and defence were forced to knock the net off its moorings on at least four occasions. On the last of these, the Boy threw the puck into a dislodged net – another goal disallowed, but the Boy and his mates mock-celebrated to let the visitors know they were going to keep coming.
Then the break came as the home team was fighting off a penalty. The Boy pressured an opposing defenceman into turning over the puck. He scooted in behind him and broke towards the goalie with the startled defenceman in hot pursuit. He was able to throw the puck up an over the goalie’s left shoulder to establish a one-goal lead. Now the challenge would be squarely on the nine, exhausted skaters for the remainder of the second and the entire third period. Hockey mom did her part, by ordering in a round of energy drinks to boost the psychological, if not, the physical spirits of the young warriors.
With all the adversity they’d faced to this point, what else could possibly go wrong? How about another broken skate at the start of the third period; this time on the foot of a different defenceman. The only option, it seemed, was on the foot of the tenth penalty emergency player. His skate was subsequently transferred to where is was needed more. The newly equipped defencemen was able to rejoin the team after a quick “pit stop”.
The final event in this multi-act play was a collision between the Boy and an opposing player in the corner of the rink. The Boy went down in a heap. The trainer was summoned to do a quick assessment; before calling on a couple of other players to pick the Boy up and escort him back to the bench, reportedly with a fair stream of drool running out of his cage. All the while, the crowd looked on as both teams got something of a rest prior to finishing the last half of the final frame. The Boy would shake off the hit and return a couple of shifts later.
Scoring chances would be exchanged in the dying minutes. The Boy’s goaltender came up big on more than one occasion. The good guys held on to their painfully slim margin for the victory. Victorious, nine players and a backup goalie poured onto the ice to celebrate. Another must-win game four is tomorrow night; back in the bad guys’ playground.
Finally, cut to tonight and the last of three consecutive critical games. This time the Devil’s team was taking on the first-place squad from the regular season who had already won game one 2-0 at home. A first-place squad who only lost 4 out of 22 regular season games. The home side certainly had their work cut out for them. But they’ve proven in the past that they can play against strong opponents. And play they did. They battled hard the entire contest. Without looking at the stats, I would guess that they were outshot; our goalie shone again in behind her embattled crew.
As in the past two evenings, the game would be decided by a single goal coming on a seemingly harmless shot by the Devil towards the end of the second period, followed by a scramble for the puck in front of the goalie. One of the Devil’s line-mates was able to poke the puck past, through, over and/or under the sprawling goalie. It was difficult to determine how exactly the puck found its way into the net, but that’s where it ended up; delivering an early death knell to the visitors. Once again, the home team would fight tooth and nail to preserve a win and to play another day. Another victory huddle would form around the winning tender. This series will end, one way or another, this coming weekend. Both teams now know it’s anybody’s game.
There you have it. Three identical 1-0 decisions in three nights have sprouted a few more gray hairs on my aging noggin. These kids and their teams may have very well knocked a couple of days off my life expectancy. But I wouldn’t change it for the world. The post-game jubilation I’ve witnessed on the ice is worth every chewed fingernail. The high-fives and fist-bumps I see other parents exchanging tells the same story. We’re all proud of the efforts our players are putting in; particularly when their backs have been against the wall. Keep it up all ye young hockey soldiers. We’re gonna keep cheering you on as best we can.
#imahockeydad
Up Against It
The Devil’s team somewhat oddly began two separate playoff series for two different regional and provincial championships this weekend. Both series will be determined by the first team to reach four points with victories counting for two points and ties counting for one. As such, there are pretty slim margins of error between continuing on to the next/final series and having the hockey season end altogether. Par for the course this year, the girls played two very close matches, but fell 2-1 and 2-0 (with the second goal finding an empty net) in each; thereby putting them behind the eight ball in the next game of both series. Both games could have just as easily gone the other way. Just the incentive they need to come back and win game two in each. I have every confidence they will because we, the spectators/parents, need more heart-stopping action. While many would claim to be “hockeyed-out”, none can truly say they want to see it end.
Similarly the Boy is finally in a playoff series again, after a bye-induced, three-week layoff. He decided to play after spending the past few days nursing flu and then cold symptoms that kept him from one day of school. Nothing a couple of Tylenol and a Sudafed couldn’t cure long enough for him to play. Game one, which I missed in attending the Devil’s game this aft, was apparently a poorly refereed affair that saw our boys on the wrong end of a 3-1 score, with an empty-netter of its own and a couple of ejections, including a frustrated coach at the end. But this is a six-point series, with game two as soon as tomorrow night, back on home ice, which should see the boys come back with a vengeance.
Suffice it to say, we have an exciting week and hopefully a few with several important games ahead.
#imahockeydad
Up Against It
The Devil’s team somewhat oddly began two separate playoff series for two different regional and provincial championships this weekend. Both series will be determined by the first team to reach four points with victories counting for two points and ties counting for one. As such, there are pretty slim margins of error between continuing on to the next/final series and having the hockey season end altogether. Par for the course this year, the girls played two very close matches, but fell 2-1 and 2-0 (with the second goal finding an empty net) in each; thereby putting them behind the eight ball in the next game of both series. Both games could have just as easily gone the other way. Just the incentive they need to come back and win game two in each. I have every confidence they will because we, the spectators/parents, need more heart-stopping action. While many would claim to be “hockeyed-out”, none can truly say they want to see it end.
Similarly the Boy is finally in a playoff series again, after a bye-induced, three-week layoff. He decided to play after spending the past few days nursing flu and then cold symptoms that kept him from one day of school. Nothing a couple of Tylenol and a Sudafed couldn’t cure long enough for him to play. Game one, which I missed in attending the Devil’s game this aft, was apparently a poorly refereed affair that saw our boys on the wrong end of a 3-1 score, with an empty-netter of its own and a couple of ejections, including a frustrated coach at the end. But this is a six-point series, with game two as soon as tomorrow night, back on home ice, which should see the boys come back with a vengeance.
Suffice it to say, we have an exciting week and hopefully a few with several important games ahead.
#imahockeydad
Every Game Has Its Hightlights
Both the Devil and da Boy played today.
She had her last regular season game, which meant little in terms of final standings, but quite a bit in the general scheme of things as they played their closest rival, who are coincidentally expected to also be playing in the first round of the playoffs. I joked before the game started that the girls needed to “set the tone for the playoffs” with a win. And a tone was certainly set before the game ended, but not quite the way anyone expected. The girls started strong and really took the play to the other team. A good majority of the play occurred in the opponent’s end of the ice. The Devil herself had several scoring chances in the match, though she failed to put one past the other team’s keeper who was solid between the pipes. The Sharks did, however, manage to open the scoring in the second period and held a one goal lead for most of the rest of the frame. The other team would knot the score at one. But our side was relentless today and managed to pull ahead as one of our forwards managed to put a rebound in the back of the net through sheer determination.
And then the otherwise typical game got interesting. With about five minutes left in the third period, there was a relatively lengthy battle on the boards between one of the Sharks’ forwards and an opposing defender. Having lost the puck challenge, the frustrated defender decided to thrust her glove into the mask of our player. Not backing down, our player shoved back and from there it got a little ugly. Keep in mind, these are 13 year old girls. A couple of punches were thrown by both combatants, but did not really land. Then, as our player, attempted to back out of the situation, the rival defender threw a straight right that knocked her to the frozen surface. The referees quickly interceded. The shocked forward made her way to the penalty box, while the one who delivered the extra punch was sent to the change room. Our player received a two-minute roughing penalty, while the other was likewise assessed a two-minute minor, along with a five minute fighting major penalty and a match penalty. A match penalty means she could end up missing up to four games; four games presumably against the Sharks in the playoffs which start in a couple of weeks or less. Not too often we get to see punches thrown in girls hockey.
The end result of all the hubbub was a lengthy delay in the game and a four on three situation for the Sharks. Our girls would come away with a 2-1 victory as the ice time allotted ran out (the game was curfewed). The stage has certainly been set for an upcoming playoff series with this very same rival.
Hockey mom and I hustled back home to pick up the Boy to bring him back to the rink for game one of his new regional playoff series. As chance would have it, this series is to be played against the same team the regular season ended against; a team who went winless during the entire season; a team who our boys defeated by a combined score of 33-3 in the final three games of the year. Suffice it to say, this is not expected to be a pretty round. But these games do need to be played. The Boy opened the scoring tonight with a laser beam goal over the right arm of the goalie. He added a second a few minutes later; only this time over the other shoulder and from a little closer in. The rout was on.
Entering the third period, the coach decided to do a little tweaking of his bench; moving one of his defencemen up to left wing on a line with the Boy and another forward. A few minutes into the final frame and at the beginning of a shift, the Boy fed a nice pass to his new winger who fired a shot through the opposing keeper, who to that point had played a pretty solid game in front of his shaky teammates. The Boy’s line stayed on the ice. Within a few seconds of the ensuing face off they were back in the offensive zone. The Boy fed his defenceman-turned-winger another puck in front of the net, which he quickly deposited in the back of it. Two goals in one shift is pretty impressive. But they weren’t done. Another face-off at centre resulted in another surge into the visiting team’s end. I quickly commented to the defenceman’s father in the stands that his son could get a hat trick in a shift, which would in turn prompt me to launch my ball cap onto the ice below. The Boy fed his line mate another pass in close which was turned away by a quick leg save. But the other winger, picked up the rebound, circled the net and again snuck the puck over to the erstwhile defenceman. On cue, he deposited his third goal of the two-minute shift neatly behind the other team’s goaltender. Within moments, my “Hockey Dad” chapeau was hurling through the crisp arena air in celebration of the rare feat. It was nice to have a highlight in an otherwise lacklustre match which ended with our boys on top 10-0.
Post-game, the defenceman’s father, who helps during practices and played competitive hockey when he was younger, was ribbed by the team who said his son scored more goals in one shift than he scored in his career. He, of course, shot back claiming he scored at least four goals one season as he was considered more of a defensive, enforcer type of player. It all made for some good laughs following the disappointing loss the team suffered earlier in the week.
The boys are in another six-point series, meaning there are at least two more similar games on tap for tomorrow and later this week. My hat may find the ice yet again, though only as a result of something at least as spectacular as three markers in a shift.
Our girls are expected to be fired up, finishing fourth overall in their 10-team league and getting ready to face their closest fifth-place rival both geographically and competitively. I believe every one of their five or six games this year has been a one goal affair. This trend will likely continue.
We hope the same fire can be summoned by the Boy and his mates in the next round, who cannot be faulted for becoming lackadaisical against questionable competition. Management is actually looking to find a last minute tournament to enter as a tougher warm-up for the next series; a series which will certainly provide a greater challenge than the one they currently face.
Time will naturally tell what the fortunes of these two teams hold. And I’m sure each game from here on in will have its share of highlights.
#imahockeydad
Every Game Has Its Hightlights
Both the Devil and da Boy played today.
She had her last regular season game, which meant little in terms of final standings, but quite a bit in the general scheme of things as they played their closest rival, who are coincidentally expected to also be playing in the first round of the playoffs. I joked before the game started that the girls needed to “set the tone for the playoffs” with a win. And a tone was certainly set before the game ended, but not quite the way anyone expected. The girls started strong and really took the play to the other team. A good majority of the play occurred in the opponent’s end of the ice. The Devil herself had several scoring chances in the match, though she failed to put one past the other team’s keeper who was solid between the pipes. The Sharks did, however, manage to open the scoring in the second period and held a one goal lead for most of the rest of the frame. The other team would knot the score at one. But our side was relentless today and managed to pull ahead as one of our forwards managed to put a rebound in the back of the net through sheer determination.
And then the otherwise typical game got interesting. With about five minutes left in the third period, there was a relatively lengthy battle on the boards between one of the Sharks’ forwards and an opposing defender. Having lost the puck challenge, the frustrated defender decided to thrust her glove into the mask of our player. Not backing down, our player shoved back and from there it got a little ugly. Keep in mind, these are 13 year old girls. A couple of punches were thrown by both combatants, but did not really land. Then, as our player, attempted to back out of the situation, the rival defender threw a straight right that knocked her to the frozen surface. The referees quickly interceded. The shocked forward made her way to the penalty box, while the one who delivered the extra punch was sent to the change room. Our player received a two-minute roughing penalty, while the other was likewise assessed a two-minute minor, along with a five minute fighting major penalty and a match penalty. A match penalty means she could end up missing up to four games; four games presumably against the Sharks in the playoffs which start in a couple of weeks or less. Not too often we get to see punches thrown in girls hockey.
The end result of all the hubbub was a lengthy delay in the game and a four on three situation for the Sharks. Our girls would come away with a 2-1 victory as the ice time allotted ran out (the game was curfewed). The stage has certainly been set for an upcoming playoff series with this very same rival.
Hockey mom and I hustled back home to pick up the Boy to bring him back to the rink for game one of his new regional playoff series. As chance would have it, this series is to be played against the same team the regular season ended against; a team who went winless during the entire season; a team who our boys defeated by a combined score of 33-3 in the final three games of the year. Suffice it to say, this is not expected to be a pretty round. But these games do need to be played. The Boy opened the scoring tonight with a laser beam goal over the right arm of the goalie. He added a second a few minutes later; only this time over the other shoulder and from a little closer in. The rout was on.
Entering the third period, the coach decided to do a little tweaking of his bench; moving one of his defencemen up to left wing on a line with the Boy and another forward. A few minutes into the final frame and at the beginning of a shift, the Boy fed a nice pass to his new winger who fired a shot through the opposing keeper, who to that point had played a pretty solid game in front of his shaky teammates. The Boy’s line stayed on the ice. Within a few seconds of the ensuing face off they were back in the offensive zone. The Boy fed his defenceman-turned-winger another puck in front of the net, which he quickly deposited in the back of it. Two goals in one shift is pretty impressive. But they weren’t done. Another face-off at centre resulted in another surge into the visiting team’s end. I quickly commented to the defenceman’s father in the stands that his son could get a hat trick in a shift, which would in turn prompt me to launch my ball cap onto the ice below. The Boy fed his line mate another pass in close which was turned away by a quick leg save. But the other winger, picked up the rebound, circled the net and again snuck the puck over to the erstwhile defenceman. On cue, he deposited his third goal of the two-minute shift neatly behind the other team’s goaltender. Within moments, my “Hockey Dad” chapeau was hurling through the crisp arena air in celebration of the rare feat. It was nice to have a highlight in an otherwise lacklustre match which ended with our boys on top 10-0.
Post-game, the defenceman’s father, who helps during practices and played competitive hockey when he was younger, was ribbed by the team who said his son scored more goals in one shift than he scored in his career. He, of course, shot back claiming he scored at least four goals one season as he was considered more of a defensive, enforcer type of player. It all made for some good laughs following the disappointing loss the team suffered earlier in the week.
The boys are in another six-point series, meaning there are at least two more similar games on tap for tomorrow and later this week. My hat may find the ice yet again, though only as a result of something at least as spectacular as three markers in a shift.
Our girls are expected to be fired up, finishing fourth overall in their 10-team league and getting ready to face their closest fifth-place rival both geographically and competitively. I believe every one of their five or six games this year has been a one goal affair. This trend will likely continue.
We hope the same fire can be summoned by the Boy and his mates in the next round, who cannot be faulted for becoming lackadaisical against questionable competition. Management is actually looking to find a last minute tournament to enter as a tougher warm-up for the next series; a series which will certainly provide a greater challenge than the one they currently face.
Time will naturally tell what the fortunes of these two teams hold. And I’m sure each game from here on in will have its share of highlights.
#imahockeydad
Falling Just Short
After narrowly escaping a series sweep at home in Game 3 of their first round playoff series, the Boys returned to enemy territory for Game 4 last night. A tightly contested match ended in another one goal game with the good guys claiming a 1-0 victory on a goal scored with just over two minutes left in the third period. My personal highlight in this fourth game came in the dying moments when the Boy exhorted the already raucous visiting crowd to cheer louder. As he approached the dot for the final face-off of the game, I noted a grin which spread from ear to ear. The Boy and his teammates tied the series at two games apiece and had certainly turned the momentum of the series in their favour. That being said, they had merely claimed two one goal victories. Game 5, scheduled for this evening, would likely be another tight affair.
True to its billing both teams came our raring to play. They exchanged goal scoring chances at both ends of the rink. Both goaltenders also came prepared to play with each making his share of spectacular saves. But the visitors would open the scoring in the first period on a bang-bang play on a pass from behind the net. The score would remain 1-0 until the middle of the second period when the Boy would bang in a rebound to knot the score at one apiece. It felt again like the momentum had swung somewhat in the home team’s favour, but there was still plenty of hockey to play.
In the game within the game, I watched the opposing goaltender approach the Boy, who he knows quite well, and exchange some “pleasantries” during a stoppage in play when the net came off its moorings. The Boy would report after the game that the goalie joked about the quality of the equipment in this town. The Boy for his part says he reminded the netminder about the equalizer he had recently scored as well as a shot he had rung off his helmet earlier in the contest. The keeper retorted with a few choice names for the Boy. Gamesmanship; all in good fun.
Following a flood of the ice after the second period, the back and forth action continued with each team coming close to taking the lead. Bothy would take a couple of penalties, which led to some nervous moments as they fought off one-man advantages. Around the midway mark of the third period, the home side did appear to be a little fresher from my, perhaps biased perspective, but the visiting goalie continued to turn away their oncoming shots.
The tie was finally broken with just under four and a half minutes left in regulation time, when one of the bad guys battled for a puck on the sideboards. He was eventually able to throw a pass towards the front of our net. One of his teammates parked in the slot, about six feet in front of the goalie, was able to get his stick on the incoming pass, redirecting it quickly towards the goal. Another bang-bang play resulted in the goal, which would ultimately end the hard-fought first round series. Our boys would valiantly battle through the final four minutes of the game, including the final ninety seconds with no goalie and an extra attacker. They registered a couple more shots on goal, but were unable to get solid scoring chances or find the back of the net to re-tie the contest.
The game came to a inglorious conclusion for one team and a triumphant end for another. Sticks were raised at one end of the ice, while others were slammed down in frustration. But in a typical show of post-series good sportsmanship, the teams would line up at centre ice to shake hands; presumably wishing each other, sincerely or otherwise, good luck in their future paths. The way the playoff system is structured, these two teams could conceivably face each other again down the road, should our boys win a round or two and the recent victors lose in one of their next couple of rounds.
The team is understandably disappointed going out in the first round, but they play in a very competitive division. The Boy knows this all too well as he’s played in this same division against many of the same players and teams for five years; with each year being a struggle to reach the big finish line. Hell, three of the four opening round series went to five or six games with several matches only being decided by one goal.
The Boys fought hard in this series. They are to be commended for having come back from two games down and trailing in game three; having lost a goal scorer in the process. Nearly every league contest this year provided a challenge; save for a few games against a couple of lesser light teams. All of the players on this team knew, or certainly should have known, the playoffs would bring more of the same. Playoff success would require their best efforts, combined with bounces and blessings from the ever-present hockey gods, in order for them to have a chance to advance through any round on their journey. Perhaps a better start to this series would have made a difference, but that’s all woulda, coulda, shoulda at this point.
It’s now time to reset their focus on winning a new round against a new opponent on their way towards a regional league, rather than provincial, championship. We get a few days off now as we wait and see who that next opponent will be.
As I say all too often, there is still plenty of hockey to play.
#imahockeydad