Fight night in Canton vs the 'suckas!

Cadavers (8) vs Windsuckers
Wednesday July 7th

Canton 9:10pm

4-2 loss

We are going directly to the Guestblogger for this one... and it sounds like it was a doozy. Here he is makin' it happen as always... guestblogger iJosh:

Dedham, MA - Some days it isn't easy being the Dead in the Red. Those red sweaters might as well have bulls-eyes on them at times. Last night against the Windsuckers was no different. On more than one occasion sticks were swung, hits were given and punches were thrown. It was definitely not the worst set of incidents ever for Schlidaveur Inc, but not the best either.

Dressing for this game would be: Larry, Neil, Blake, Hammitt, Jason Seaver, Howard, Steve Baker and AK for the forwards. Campbell, Capt George, Parker and iJosh for the defense. The fearless leader, Matt Kilroy, manned the pipes.

From the outset, this looked to be a tough game. The Cads did not put much pressure up front and rarely, if ever, got a strong shot on net. The shots that did get through to the net were in clear view and easily handled by the goal keeper for the Suckers. On the defensive end, the Suckers would get through early putting a shot by Matty. George would be sent off the ice early as well for a hold. The Dead would hold off that penalty. And Campbell, after a few games without a trip to the box, would return to his familiar perch. This time he would go for a trip. Again, the penalty would be killed. But Matt would get beat once again from close range. Despite a two man advantage in the period, the Cads were unable to put much pressure on the Windsuckers and the period would end with a 2-0 deficit.

The second frame would see things get more interesting. The Cads would finally get through to the goalie. The first an unassisted rush. George would get the puck and race up the right side. He fired a nice strong wrist shot that beat the goalie to cut the deficit to 2-1. A shift later, Baker would collect the puck from AK and let a nice hard shot go. It would be too much for the goalie to stop as it would find its way through the 5-hole and slid in for a 2-2 tie. Now the Suckers started to mount the pressure again. They were fighting for the puck and position. Each play ended with an extra shove, or chop from them. But the refs were on it at this point. And the word on the ice was to not retaliate and let the refs call it as they were. So numbers were noted for later if necessary. Midway through the second, Larry would get called for interference as he pushed a Sucker offsides. Not long in the penalty the Suckers would strike again putting one past Matty from the right side. On the ensuing face-off, the Suckers would take the puck right back at the net and bury it for 2 goals in 30 seconds. The period would end 4-2. The Cads hadn't played great, but were still in this game.

So the third round, I mean period, would see a lot more physical activity. Larry, not feeling really ready to leave the box so soon the first time, decided to return. This time for a little hook. Two more minutes to reflect alone. However, Larry would be joined not too long after by Mr. Campbell for a rough. A little scuffle in the corner turned into a little more when Big Mike was taken down and a little extracurricular activity led to Mike giving the guy a few hits to the helmet. But #19 decided that this was not going to be a one-on-one battle and jumped in. #19 would be shown to the locker room, but not before Hammitt had a little shouting match with him from the bench. Campbell and the Sucker would go off with matching minors. The refs would take their time - about 3 minutes - trying to sort everything out (it was a 4 on 4 for a few more seconds guys. It isn't String Theory.). The next shift would see iJosh collect the puck on the left point and take a wrist shot that was deflected into the goalie by [I think] Neil. AK would try to pick up the rebound, but it would be quickly covered by the keeper. #9 would take offense to AK having the gall to try to pick up a loose puck and throw AK a little jab. So AK - all 5'7" of him - would take on this 6'2" Sucker. Some debate was quickly made on the ice about weather or not to step in. It was determined, rightly or wrongly, that this one-on-one battle would remain one-on-one unless another Sucker stepped in. The refs even yelled a warning about 3rd man in.

So every Cad watched the Suckers to make sure no one got close. As soon as the 2 bodies fell to the ice, it was quickly broken up. AK, to his credit, agreed with the decision to sit tight and let him fight his own battle. You have to give him credit for doing so. Though Parker thought that someone should have stepped in considering the size difference. Good points were made on both sides of the argument.

Let it be known that if it got out of hand that someone would have stepped in as needed. AK and #9 would be sent home for the evening. But it wasn't over yet. Campbell would get a bit confused as his matching penalty expired and jump on to the ice and head to the bench. However, this would create a two many men situation and put a man back in the box. A minute later, iJosh (serving the too many men) would get some company in the form of Steve Baker for a slash. And more company was about to enter the box when Hammitt would deflect a puck just inside the defensive blueline. As he skated forward to collect the puck he would "Hammitt" a Sucker (a "Hammitt" would be to essentially run him over like a Battleship would run over a dingy). Bogus call if you ask this guest blogger.

Regardless, the Sucker would take exception to being no match for Hammitt and give him a push. Hammitt already aggitated by the 3rd man in on Campbell took his frustrations out on the little guy, who then tried to face rake our bull in a china shop. This would prove to be too much for the refs to handle who promptly ended the game with about 4 minutes left on the clock.

Hands would be shook by some still on the ice, but not all.

So the final tally would be: 4 goals against. 2 goals for. 3 fights. 7 penalties for the Suckers. 10 penalties for the Cads and 3 overall ejections.

The 4th period was thankfully not called off by the refs as the Cads enjoyed beer provided by Larry, Campbell and iJosh who also brought the leftover jello shots from the 4th of July.

Overheard in the parking lot regarding testicular fortitude of some players: Sometime you have a little pussy. Other times it becomes a Gash.

Scoresheet:
1st:
Penalty: George (holding the stick)
Penalty: Campbell (tripping)
2nd:
Penalty: Larry (interference)
Goal: George (unassisted)
Goal: Baker (from AK)
3rd:
Penalty: Larry (hooking)
Penalty: Campbell (rough)
Penalty: AK (fighting - ejected)
Penalty: Bench (too many men)
Penalty: Baker (slash)
Penalty: Hammitt (skating)
Penalty: Hammitt (roughing)

Suds vs Suckas

Schlitz (21) vs Windsuckers

Monday March 1st

Bavis Arena 9:30pm

1-0 Loss

Ok, we've got a pair of great guest bloggers for this one.... so lets hear from them.

First up is Mike Campbell who had this summary of the night's actions.

Heres Mike:

Yes, Suds vs. Suckas.

The timeline is a little fuzzy, and as you know, I'm not so good a writah, but here's my story... and I'm stickin' to it.

Campbell and Reynolds along with special-guest-star-who-did-a-great-job-and-I-think-we-might-keep-him-back-here-on-D-like-we-did-Reynolds Goody made up the ice-hogging D-Trio. Not sure of the forward lines (although someone in the locker room afterwards referred to one of them as the "good" line - as in "Why didn't we put the good line out at the very end?" - but since there were no goals scored by anyone, it was really hard to tell which was the "good" line.), but the O was made up of Baker, Bell, Pounds, Capraro, Shah and Underhill.

These 'sucka guys are pretty good - with one, maybe two hot-shots and not a lot of weakness. Good C, maybe B level skater with Orange socks (whom we shut down). They also have a beastly, gargantuan goalie, that gives up VERY little net, hence the lack of goals on our part. That said, we gave them a damn good run for their money. Lots of end-to-end action, with very few (dare I say, none?) defensive breakdowns. I don't think they ever got an odd-man rush, never mind a break-away. Their one goal was scored in the second period, after Brian had made a nice glove save, one of their guys (23, I think?) gave his glove a good whacking, eventually knocking the puck out, and bashing the begeesus out of Brian's thumb. It only got more chippy from there...

Reynolds took a hit in the back in the offensive end, and let his guy know he didn't like it. Their resident big-guy with the beard chimed in and told Mark to suck it up, and I told him to f-himself, so the four of us had a little time in the box to cool off. Baker got hit so hard with an uncalled butt-end that he gave the ref a demo of what he had missed. The demo was so good that the ref actually flinched, giving us all a little chuckle. There were a few more hits, and grunts and poundings, and Reynolds and I each went to the Bin of Sin one more time. I don't remember any other calls against us.

They had a few other good chances. At least one off the post, and another one went in JUST after the whistle blew... although Brain will tell you he let that one in, after hearing the whistle. I'm not sayin' anything else about that.

We played better later in the game. We finally figured out that the puck wouldn't go in on its own, and we brought some good pressure, lots of shots and a few chances, but none of them cashed out. I got a little desperate and ended up on the ground, in the crease with the puck in the palm of my glove, so I tried to stuff it in by hand, and even that didn't work. It gave us all another laugh, though.

All in, one goal for the bad guys, none for the hops. Almost every penalty matched, and everyone skated hard. A few beers at the Blacktop Café sealed it as a good time in Rockland, despite the loss.
Good luck tonight boys.
~ Mike

Alright! Thank you Dr. Campbell... your words are always appreciated.

The blogger got another summary on this one, from frequent contributer Mark Reynolds. Here's Mark:

Close game Mon night, but the Windsuckers got the best of the Schlitz in a 1-0 loss.

The lineup was:
Brian in Net
Forwards
Pete-Neil-Blake
Scott-Larry-Steve
Defensive Trio
Goodie-Campbell-Reynolds

The only goal came after a wicked slash to Brian's thumb on his blocker side. There definitely should have been a whistle and a penalty. Instead, the puck bounced out and ended up in our net during the scrum. Overall, Brian played an outstanding game, and as usual, saved our collective arses with some tough saves.

The game got a bit chippy in the second. Imagine that against the Windsuckers. Reynolds gets checked hard into the boards from behind and takes physical exception with the offender. With a crowd of Windsuckers encircling Reynolds, Campbell jumps in on to cover his teammate's ass (thanks again Mike). Now two out of three Schlitz defenseman are in the box for roughing (matching with Windsuckers).

The Schladaveurs penalty leaders were at it again. In the third, Campbell went for roughing and Reynolds for checking.

Both teams played a tight game. The Schlitz passed better than usual and did a good job of controlling the puck in the defensive zone. Our forwards had lots of SOG in the 3rd period. We just couldn't put the puck in the net.

Our defensive trio was solid for the entire game. We didn't allow a single break away and only a few 2-on-1's, which the Schlitz handled well. Watch out Goodie; if you keep playing D like that, you'll end up as a full timer.
Thanks again to the forwards that hustled on the back-check.

Kudos to Blake for his best game of the year. He played excellent positional hockey, passed puck intelligently, and battled hard every shift. Pete played his usual balls to the wall style and was especially effective in the neutral zone. Larry, Steve, and Neil set the pace of Schlitz play in the offensive zone. The Dr's long reach kept the puck from leaving offensive zone on many occasions. He also had some quality SOG himself.

The Schlitz would sure like to have this game back again.

Zombies fall to Suckas

Cadavers (17) vs Windsuckers
Monday February 1st
Bavis Arena 9:20pm




4-1 loss



A cold Monday night on the South Shore for a tough division matchup with the pesky 'suckas, this one would suffer from being the same night as the Beanpot which would reduce the roster size considerable. Despite that Team Zombie showed and played hard against the Blowhards and it sounded like a hard fought game.
Once again the Blogger doffs his hat to another Guest Blogger for this game story, this time from dependable (on ice and off) Mark Reynolds who gives us a nice rundown of the action. Without further ado... Here's Mark:


4- 1 loss to the Windsuckas

Defense: Valenti – DWH – George
Forwards: Baker – Pounds – Matvey – Goodie – Chuck - Reynolds
Net: Lizzy

The Red started out with 8 skaters. Then, Goodie showed up after visiting the wrong rink (aka the Greg James syndrome), but arrived in the second as a huge and much needed relief.

The Suckas had us vastly outnumbered, but it didn’t faze the Red. We played a tough game and moved the puck reasonably well. They had a few guys that most wouldn’t consider “D leaguers” which accounted for their goals and generally gave us some trouble.

Steve Baker scored the lone goal on an extra effort by jamming the rebound past their “rent- a-goalie”, who happened to be far superior to the usual goalies we face. The Red had lots of high-quality shots on goal, but we just couldn’t beat him with anything.

Our defensive trio won most of their battles in the corners and our forwards passed well and did a good job of controlling the puck in the offensive end.

As for Lizzy, she played a kick-ass game. She stopped a number of high velocity shots and didn’t give up any rebounds. Way to go Lizzy!

Penalties: Matvey for tripping in the second immediately followed by Reynolds for slashing one of Suckas non-D league players (#5). Yes, I totally got my money’s worth.

Valenti tangled with #5 later in the game and gave him a WWF style body slam…simply outstanding. #5 went to the bin and Valenti remained on the ice, much to the chagrin of the Suckas.

Without their “rent-a-goalie”, the Red would have fared better. We’ll get em’ next time for sure.

Zombies and Suckas MLK Monday

Cadavers (15) vs Windsuckers
Monday January 18

BU 10:10

1-0 Win!

Another matchup with the Windsuckers on the old Walter Brown Arena ice for this MLK day showdown. Sounds like this one was another classic division battle, and a very very close game. Once again the Blogger stands aside and gratefully presents some terrific guest blog comments and stories from the game. As always many many thanks to everyone who contributed. Lets start off with the short and sweet from Mike Campbell:

MC: "PIMs: Campbell 1:30; Capraro 1:30; Angry Ken 1:30
Larry got the only goal in our 1-0 win. We should’ve whooped them, but the win is a win."

Next up we hear some good stuff from Greg James.

GJ: "Ken got into another fight last night (pretty much in the same spot on the ice as a year ago when I pulled a third man in in exactly the same situation). And, despite my overwhelming urge to step in and play the role of heavy and crack some heads.., and despite the fact that by simply changing the date on a word document on my laptop I would have the suspension appeal letter already written… I quickly realized that the NESHL commissioner also had a readymade suspension appeal reply letter already written (coldly reading only: “suspension stands”), I smartly decided not to jump in. Turns out Kenny didn’t need my help anyway and ended up pulling a guy 3 times his weight down to the ground. Nicely done bro.

I don’t really remember anything else from the game except for perhaps some wicked point shots on net by me, sorry Jeff. -Greg"

No apologies necessary Greg. Thanks for the great recap. Now we move on to frequent contributer Pete Capraro who has another angle on things.

PC: "Hard fought win, I think we had 2 good offensive lines going putting solid pressure on all night. We did well bringing it through the neutural zone and putting it on net, lots of rebounds by the netminder that we could have capitalized on. BU ice looked 10x worse than the Capraro arena, with cones on the ice warning of the holes at center ice. Some terrible calls by the zebras but it didn't throw us far off our game, in fact we scored when I was in the box, see what happens when you get rid of trouble?"

Now we hear from a major player Ken Douville about how the night went:

AK: "Larry got a ridiculous goal shorthanded to win the game 1-0. Everyone played a great game which was needed versus that team. ... when asked to elaborate on his "incident":

sure... this team was very physical all night in front of the net with crosschecking etc. So when this guy started pushing I got into a little tussle with him and ended up on top. I usually don't win those so I was happy with the outcome. "

And lastly... but certainly not least... we have the Cagey Vet Nelson Sharfman.
NS: "Larry gets the number one star for a workman-like effort and a more than nifty unassisted goal, the only goal of the game, when he pressured the Windsuckers SHORTHANDED, caused a turnover behind their net, got the puck out from behind the net, skated by himself in front of the net, and roofed a wrister point blank off the goalie's glove and into the top netting.

Brian was also quite solid in net. Hard to win those 1-0 games unless your goalie throws a shutout.

Their goalie was really tough, and they had a very solid defense in front of him (lead by the dude in the yellow helmet, not to be confused with the man with the yellow hat...). We had a lot of pressure against them all night but both the defense and their netminder was more than up to the task. I can think of at least one breakaway, one on zero, that came up snake eyes for us (that would be me), but I believe there were others as well.

Not that many people in the sin bin that night. What's that you say? Well, now that you mention it I don't remember Hammit being there...

A well earned and exhausting victory. The drive home at midnight is a lot easier to make when we have the one and they have the zero. -- Nelson"

Awesome work Team! On the ice and with your keyboards. Thanks for helping to keep the blog on life support.... the Blogger appreciates it. Great win guys... looks like things might be turning around on this season....

Schlitz stoned by Sucka's

Schlitz (9) vs Windsuckers
Monday Nov 30

Canton 10:20

3-1 loss

Dissapointing night for the Golden Beercans against the Windsuckers whom we seem to have seen quite a bit of this season. Yet another in a seaon long series of Monday night events, Managment is still scrambling at times to fill out the roster for these games. Looks like we had a hearty and even 10 to go to war with at gametime.

Here is your lineup

Schlitz

Matt Elliot

Mike "Goody" Goodwin

Pete Capraro

Roman Kurin
Matvey Nikhamik
Larry Bell

Dan Gregson
George Moorachian
Mark Reynolds
Mike Daley
Goal – Lizzy

No surprise that this one has a long list of penalties given the way the last one ended against these guys. Unfortuneatley, the penalties didn't look to help us at all. I believe, if I read this scoresheet correctly that we out PIM'd the Sucka's 11 to 7. That would include 4 penalties in the first period (Daley, Bell, Capraro, and Matvey) in which the sucka's would outscore us 2-0. Then 3 more in the second period (Pete, Roman, George) in which we broke even at a goal apeice. Roman was the goal scorer from George. The Gold would round the night out with another 4 penalty period in the 3rd (Mark, Mike, Matt, and Mark again), but managed to keep the Sucka's from adding to their lead.

Apparently not much brewing on the offensive side of the puck on this night.

Here is Guest Blogger and man on the scene Mark Reynolds with a breif recap:

"Monday’s loss was to the Windsucka’s was due to a lackluster effort and multiple penalties (11) by the Gold. We fell behind and could never regain momentum as we were shorthanded for much of the game. Think about this fact: no Hammit or Campbell and we took 11 penalties. Capraro (2), Reynolds (2), George (2), Larry (1), Daley (1) and I forget the rest. I must add they had 3 players that were way beyond the typical “D League” ability. This certainly caused lots of frustration. Maybe they think it’s cool to add a few guys in their young 20’s that have some skills. "

Thanks Mark. The Blogger always welcomes any commentary with open arms. Thanks for your input.

Lets try to get a better performance against these guys the next time out.

Zombies vs Windsuckers Early game

CADAVERS (6) vs WINDSUCKERS

Mon, November 9th

UMASS 7:00

3-1 Win!

This was game one for what will hopefully be our last double header night... and really hopefully the last we see of U Malcatraz....

The early game saw the flying Zombies taking on the Windsuckers, a group we haven't played in a while. They had some players with skill, but not a ton and the game was a good, hard fought, hard skating affair that bordered on getting a bit out of hand at times with the chippyness but ultimately resulted in a very nice win for Team Zombie.
The roster looked like this.
Matt CEO/BMF Kilroy in the Net
D1: Campbell, Valenti

D2: DWH, Jeff
O1: Nelson, Larry, Reynolds
O2: Jasse, Capraro, and Baker
O3: Elliot, Gregson, and Matvey

The game was chippy pretty much from the start. There was no question the 'Suckas were going to show plenty of "give and take" during the game. They also had no problem squawking about just about everything. Finally we play a team that mouths off to the Zeebs... though somehow when looking at the score sheet it doesn't seem that they had any more penalties that we did.
The teams settled in and went right after each other. It wasn't long before that wicked first line of Larry, Nelson and Mark Reynolds would make something happen.
Mark held the puck and fed Nelson who was working his way down low by the net. Nelson takes the puck, the defenseman hangs on him like a cheap suit, to which the Cagey Vet literally tosses him off and into the boards then fires a pass to Larry who buries the shot for the first goal. Check me on that... the scoresheet says Nelson scored it but I do remember the move on the back boards and the feed pass...
Again the chippyness shows and gets ratcheted up. Jeff tangled with #4 from the 'Suckas and took a holding call as a result. The Red killed the penalty very nicely and shortly after they had another chance.
This time Jeff made a rush into the offensive end, then fed Larry who again was hanging out in the high slot. Larry's shot was solid but deflected, all to the better as it found the twine over the keeper's right shoulder. 2-0 Red. Capraro would go for a roughing before the end of the first.
The second period was a whole lot of back and forth. Matty made some great stops, on two, count 'em breakaway chances. The Red would take a pair of penalties Larry for a hook and Valenti for a rough. Valenti's might have been a match but I can't recall.
The Third would again see more of the same. Bitching from the White, chippy play all over the place, great stops by Matty, and good chances from the Red. About halfway into the period Dr. Jasse would take a feed from Mike Campbell who had made a very nice rush up ice, and Jasse roofed the shot for the 3-0 lead. This was great because the good Doctor's wife and daughter, the lovely Beth and Madison were in the house to watch the game. I dont think they actually saw the goal... but they knew it happened and it was nice to have a couple of fans... even if they were mostly reading Madison's favorite chunky books.
Campbell would go for an interference call... a situation where both he and the 'sucka he bumped were looking at something else and they ended up in a pile. Of course the Zeebra still felt the need to put Mike in the box... I guess just 'cause he was so much bigger than the other guy. I'm telling you... nobody gets more minutes because of his size than Campbell...
The game would go into the final five minutes with the White desperate to score to break up the shutout. Unfortunately they were able to finally break through with just under 3 minutes to play.
That would leave just the straggling minutes of frustration for the 'suckas. The scumbag that had tangled with Pete, Jeff, Matt Elliot, and had slashed Matt during the game decided it was time for one good cheep shot before the end. He took the opportunity to hit Jeff from behind against the boards in a blatant DOUCHEBAG move. Of course the pussy skated away so by the time Jeff was on his feet the guy was almost back to his bench and being escorted to the box. A true pussy move from #4, Mr. No face mask... the scoresheet says his name is Boyajriar... whatever... we know what he is. A coward. Keep you head up for the next time we play scumbag. Ok thats enough of that... the blogger is still smarting this morning.
Game Stars
3rd Star: Matty Kilroy. Another in a series of great games from the star CEO keeper this season.
2nd Star: Mike "Dr." Jasse for the third goal... and for bringing fans.
1st Star: Larry "Twins" Bell. A pair of goals for the double vision daddy.

So during a stop-over on the way home at the Dr. Jasse residence...
From Mrs. Jasse who watched the game with... limited interest: "Was that the gay team you played?" Yes Beth... judging by the amount of bitching from them... yes it was.

Suds Soak 'Suckas

Schlitz (22) vs Windsuckers
Tuesday March 10th
HinghamA 10:00


4-1 Win

In this long season of peaks and valley’s the Schlitz have seemed to struggle much more than in any season since their creation. A new mix of talent in the division, a few more miles on the odometer, maybe just the way things go, but those valleys have been much more frequent than the peaks. So here we were on a late Tuesday on the South Shore with a full locker room of guys and one girl in Gold ready to go. The Golden Suds had a spectacular win last Thursday? against the Call that represented the end of a very long slide. The question was could the Beercans pull off a second in a row and build on the momentum?
There was an excellent cast in place to answer the question. Lizzy, not before coaching up Moms on the scorekeeping and scoreboard duties, would take to the nets. In front of her the D had a new wrinkle with Campell playing with Chris Fosdick, and Valenti skating with Jeff. CF was clutch to step up and skate the D.
The Cans would then throw a solid group of three lines out on offense. Michigan Mike Daley would center Gregson and Chuck, Larry would pivot for Reynolds and Parker (a late arrival who just happened to bring his equipment… good move), then Matvey would center Capraro and Blake Underhill. This was a nice scrappy lineup and confidence was … well not high, …but in play.
With the mantra from last week repeated on the bench the Gold took the game right to the Windsuckers who were sporting their spiffy new FirebreathingCoyotelookingThing shirts had a solid lineup. A handfull of + guys and then the usual suspects. they would clearly take a quality effort to beat.
That my friend, is just what the Beercans would give. A no joke, no prisoners, short shifting, hard skating, cycling, passing, beat your guy to the puck kind of a game. I’m not kidding. Whatever started last Thursday? indeed carried over as the Gold would cycle hard taking the game right to the Coyotesuckas.
It was second or third shift of the game, just short of 3 minutes in that the Daley line (carryover theme) would strike after holding the play furiously in the White end. That would establish the tempo and the momentum and Chuck Slate would plop one right in on a smart pass from Kevin Parker who had just come on. The Gold would take the lead and have to play with it.
The play would level off, but no question going at a pretty good clip. The Gold played hard surppressing the White attack in the neutral zone with smart backchecking, and would play a good deal in the White end, getting numerous chances.
The line of Capraro, Underhill, and Nikhamik would do excellent checking work, and taking the game right at white. Chris Fosdick had a few anxious moments on D but on the whole played great stepping in seamlessly and doing a good job breaking up plays in our end. Lizzy would be tested several times. She handled everthing thrown at her, benefiting from a break here and there, but a solid performance without question. She was quick to cover loose stuff and clearly handled all the long shots.
The first would see one penalty as Campbell would go for a rough. But that would be it until late in the second. The game would stay 1-0, with both teams close to scoring the next critical goal. That goal would come with 5 minutes left in the second when the ‘Cans would break up a play in our end, Valenti on the play, up to Underhill, who relayed to Capraro who barreled ass down the middle of the ice losing the D and striking with a wrister low on the glove side that would give the Gold a 2-0 lead. Huge. Massive. Titanic are words that came to mind at the time. Reynolds would go for the only penalty of the period but the Suds were solid on the kill.

So thats how it would go 2-0 into the third with the game tightening all the time. You could see the Windsuckers gain some momentum as we tired. But Mike Campbell would come zipping over the 'suckers blue line and would rip a nice shot that found the net (pass from Matvey) and would put the Gold up 3-0. That goal was also Titanic, Huge and Massive.

The Windsuckers wouldn't go quietly and as the tired legs caught up with us not a minute after Mike's goal, White would finnaly get one past Lizzy, but only after a long scramble in our end. So with a 3-1 lead the teams went right after each other for the remaining 6 minutes of the game. Old friend Mike Daley would send a nice pass to Mark Reynolds who drove home the nail in the coffin at just over a minute to play. Thats how this one would end 4-1 and a huge, massive, titanic win for the beleagured Golden Beercans. Nice work by everyone involved.

I'm not even going to mention that no one brought beer and we failed the 4th period completely... sheesh.

Game Stars

3rd Star: Goal scorers Chuck Slate, Mike Campbell and Mark Reynolds, aaand helpers Kevin Parker and Mike Daley. Good contributions, well deserved by all.

2nd Star: Lizzy for having a tremendous night. Keeping the game infront of her and just plain playing clutch when it counted. Great win Liz.

1st Star: The line of Pete Capraro, Blake Underhill and Matvey Nikhamik. Blake and Matvey each had an assist and Pete scores the eventual Game Winner on a terrific breakaway. Great work all night. Blake had a heroic effort in the third at one point to make it to the puck and get it out of our end in a critical situation. Matvey just quietly goes about his business setting people up and contributing every time he plays. Great work, all of you.

DONT FORGET. GAME THURDAY NIGHT 10:30 in West Roxbury.

SCHLITZ vs LAST CALL

Lets keep the winning streak going! The playoffs are around the corner.

Also be sure to get back to management about next week's St.Patrick's Day Doubleheader.

Suckas Bury Zombies...

Cadavers (23) vs Windsuckers
Monday March 2nd
Canton 9:10pm

6-1 loss

When the blogger threw out the request for stories from this one, this was the first and only response I got back for about a day and a half. It was from Mark Reynolds and went like this.

"Well, another tough loss for the Red. 6 – 1. No additional comments required. The only stars were in the 4th period– Campbell and Jasse – thanks for the beer boys."

That seemed to do the trick. But really there must be more to it than that right...?
Well, Dr. Jasse was nice enough to chime in with some thought provoking comments as well this morning...

A couple of brief descriptors from Monday night and our collective slide of late:
We're old and we suck.
Is there an E League?
What are we, the Washington Generals?
Can we PLEASE play an entire season against the clinic?
Are there any blind Bantam teams we could square off against?
Dude-6 shots we're down 4-0.
We hung in there and tightened up but it was pretty much over after that. We lost 6-1. Roman had a nice roofer from Jasse and maybe Larry.

Here is world champion Guestblogger iJosh.... leading off with just a short comment on the grimness of his reports lately....and then turning in another excellent game summary.

"Too depressing to get excited about writing these at the moment. Last 3 games I have attended: 22 goals against, 1 goal for.
---
Lately there has been the sentiment that the other team didn't belong skating with us, or more accurately we don't belong skating with them.
So would this be another game like those? Would the Skating Dead rise or stay stiff and let the rigor mortis set in? The answer to those are:
Yes & No and No & Yes respectively. Meaning? Well this game would indeed be somewhat like the others in that we were never in it from the get go, but that this was a team we can and should have been able to skate with. We just shot ourselves early and often. The Dead looked dead, played stiff and resembled exactly what is on the crest.

So is there a way to sugarcoat this? Probably not. Tensions started to get a little high and maybe we need to step back a bit, relax and just remember to play hard and have fun. I don't know. I am not one to give any pointers on game play right now.

The quick summary of the game play is this: The defense would have Matvey paired with George and Mark Reynolds paired with Mike Campbell.
The offense shaped up to be Larry, Jasse and Ken D and iJosh, Ken Mitch and Roman. Early in the first this would be all Suckers. They would put 6 shots on goal to find 5 of them find the back of the net. This was due to breakdowns by the Cads and opportunistic play by the Suckers.

The second would have the Cads shore up their defense, to the point were they gave up no goals and much fewer chances. George started the period by sending a Sucka flying in front of the net. That would earn George a bit of alone time. But the Cads would do a good job killing the penalty. The first line would then miss a few door step chances including one where Mitch stepped in for Jasse and nearly put home a rebound, but it was less than an inch wide. Later in the 2nd in the middle of another line change the hard work of Larry and Jasse would help find Roman in the slot who put a beauty home to finally give the Dead some life. More chances would be had, but despite two power plays none would bring another goal.

Now that we had played a good period, a bit of confidence started to infuse the team. But as the game wore on and the chances never materialized into anything more than chances, tensions began to rise.
Another power play would be wasted and the legs began to tire after playing from so far behind. The Sucka would get an insurance goal and then some fat lady stood up in the stands and sang.

Unfortunately this is one we would love to have back. But seeing that we can't lets just learn from our mistakes and play smarter and better and don't forget to have fun.

4th period had a very quick showing as it was absolutely freezing.
Beverages courtesy of the Mikes: Campbell the Bud Ligh and the Jasse the Heineken Lights."

Ug. Man these have been dark days.... thanks for the words everyone.

Suds v. Suckas

Schlitz (20) vs Windsuckers

Sunday February 22
Dedham 9:10 pm


4-2 Loss


Sounds like a tight matchup on Sunday night for the Suds. Let's hear from a pair of excellent guest bloggers about how this one went down. First of we've got Larry "Double Vision" Bell with a nice recap of the action. Here's Larry:

A pretty even match between the Suds and 'suckas. The suckas opened the scoring in the first period as #28 broke through the D and beat Brian with a wrister to the stick side. Suds answered in the second with Capt George taking the puck at the offensive blue line, skating around the zone, behind the net and banking a shot off Scott's skate.
Schlitz took the lead in the third as Jasse sent a pass to me at the blue line that split the D and I finished off the break with a backhand goal. 'Suckas answered when I send a bouncing pass to George at our blue line that he couldn't control resulting in a breakaway for white.
They took the lead moments later on a shot from the top of the left circle that eluded Brian. The fourth suckas goal resulted from another miscue between LB and George as white took it to the net from the corner, neither one of us took the puck carrier, and he squeezed in a backhand, short side.

Penalties:
77 - 2 x 1:30 = 3:00 pim
16 - 2 x 1:30 = 3:00 pim
9 - 1 x 1:30 = 1:30 pim
7 - 1 x 1:30 = 1:30 pim
90 - 1 x 1:30 = 1:30 pim

Good work Larry, thanks for checking in. Now we've got another excellent GB from Dr. Jasse hisownbadself. Here's Mike with an outstanding game story.

DEFENSE:
CampbellDWHGregg JamesCap't George
OFFENSE:
Mike Daley centering
Dan Gregson LW
Chuck RW
Larry “Don’t Call me Alexander-Graham” Bell
Centering
Doc Pounds on z lef
El Doctorino Jasse (if yer not into the whole brevity thing) on the right
Nelson Greybeard doing that floatation thing he does so well
Puck drops and (wait for it) the whistle blows. A mere 12 seconds into the game Campbell heads for the sin bin (tripping). Our boy in stripes (butterball) said that was a first for him to call one so early.
Pretty evenly matched game; they went up 1-nill in the first but both teams had chances. We tied it on a non-kicking motion deflection of Dr Pounds boot (not sure who got the assist).
Things got a little dicey when Larry and one of their pugnacious D got into it and the bad guy ended up horse-collaring Larry to the ice. Tounges were flappin’ but cooler heads prevailed as both parties went to adult time-out to reflect on what they had done.
1-1 going into the 3rd and Jasse feathers a pass up the middle to a streaking Larry who’s speed splits the D and tucks a backhander home against the helpless tender of the net.
We’re up 2-1 and there is much rejoicing.
Puck drops, it’s in the feet, it’s passed back to our D, it’s in George’s feet, it’s picked up by their forward, it’s in the net.
#%%^&*&@!!
The score may have been 2-2 but it was a truly deflating goal.
They ended up tucking a wrap-around in to go up 3-2 and ice it with a wicked slapper to make it 4-2.
I thought we played well (Brian kept us in it) and we skated with ‘em. We just didn’t have quite enough.
No beers in the 4th…..the horror.

... ug. Great story Mike! Too bad about the game. Thanks for giving such excellent blog my man. You are always welcome in this space. Good effort by the Suds and big kudos to all who played, too bad it didn't work out.

Suds survive Suckas!

Schlitz (18) vs Windsuckers

Tuesday January 13th

Milton Academy 9:10pm

6-4 Win

Night two this week at the lovely Milton Academy rink. This time the Suds were in action against the Windsuckers for a 9pm tilt. Sounds like a good night all the way around. We here at the blog have an excellent game recap from Veteran GuestBlogger iJosh that we hope you will enjoy. Here's iJosh:

Firmly entrenched in the winter and the winter hockey season the Cold Cans headed down to Milton Academy to face the Windsuckers. The locker room would have 9 dressing early, but a just in time Stefan and a slightly late Blake Underhill would quickly join the fray.

The pairings for the game would shape up to be: iJosh centering Chris F and Kenny D; Mike "Scoring" Daley centering "Mad" Matt Kilroy and "Dan" Gregson. Blake would learn how to be the abacus but requested to just be called the floater. So Blake was the floater. The D would be Capt George, Hammitt, Campbell and Stefan.

The puck would drop with the "Scoring" Daley line. And though they would not put one in on this shift, they would leave a good one on the doorstep to help set the pace for the game. The next shift would work hard and have a few chances. But neither would break through. Stefan would challenge an incoming pass toward a Windsucker. He would get to the player just as he caught the pass the Sucka held on. However he would seemingly lose his balance and fall over Stefan's stick. Tough to tell if Stefan had anything to do with that or not. But that would not matter as the ref (Frankenref dubbed by Campbell) saw it as Stefan's fault. He would go to the box and feel shame. The Cans would complete the PK, but not too far after that the Sucka's would draw blood and put one past netminder Brian Carey for a 1-0 lead.

Newbie, Ken Douville would soon get into a little blue line tussle as someone tried to stand him up at the blue line. Both would get called to the box, but Ken would get the extra one and again the Cans would be down a man. Again the Golden Suds held their own in the PK. All the while, the Cans were still putting pucks on net and making every attempt to tied up the game. iJosh would miss one after the goalie tipped it with the end of his stick. Campbell would barely miss one. Then finally Mr. Daley would get his first point of the night as he would slide a beauty of a pass across the slot to Mad Matt who knocked it home 5-hole style. 1-1 game at the end of 1.

In the second the Cans tried to carry their momentum to build a lead. Early on it didn't look good as Brian called out to Hammitt to clear the Sucka out of the crease. In one person's opinion, maybe it isn't a good idea to give Hammitt that sort of directive as he literally threw the player onto his ass. Well Hammitt would go to the box and think about what he had done. Now with the momentum leaning toward the Windsuckers, the Cans tried to take it right back. And this time they would come through. Mr. Daley would drive one home from Mr. Kilroy to take and early 2nd period 2-1 lead.

Though the momentum would be short lived as the Suckas would come right back to tie the game. Not long after the Sucka's would throw the puck out in front of the crease were it bounced around a bit and found its way into the net (I think it went off a defensemen, off Brian's skate and in). So the Sucka's now had the mojo running with a 3-2 lead. But in this game of back and forth momentum, it was the Schlitz turn to go for the gusto. With Mike Daley leading the way he took a pass from Kilroy and raced around the net for a tit for tat wrap around goal. 3-3 Game. Though the scoreboard (and I think even the scoresheet) had the game at 4-2. No matter. With the period running down, Capt George took a pass from Campbell, crossed the blue line and caught an opening on the near side low part of the net.

Now the score was 5-2. No! 3-3. No! 4-3. Yes right, 4-3 Schlitz. It took a little explanation to help the scorekeeper get it right. And with that the Schlitz end the 2nd with a little gusto.

With a 4-3 lead, a little momentum (there is that word again) and the fear that it could change right back the Golden Beer Cans were desperate for that bit of insurance. Not for a lack of opportunity and effort there would be little scoring early on. A few rushes and excellent opportunities were thwarted by the Sucka goalie, who really deserved more credit than the scoreboard would lead one to believe. Mike Campbell would go for a trip as he landed a nice hip check on some poor Sucka. He would get up gingerly after that one. And once again the PK was up for the challenge. The Golden team D would play solidly and would bend but not break. Stopping pucks and sending them out of the zone before any complete breakdown could happen.

Then again, Mr Daley would put another home to finally get that needed insurance as he rushed in and put one past the keeper for a 5-3 lead. On the next shift, new Ken would get his first goal as a member of Schlidaveur Inc from who.....come on people first one to guess who got the assist get a free pass from the "Coon of Shame" for a month....Yes that is right Mike Daley. One little breakdown with about 45 seconds left in the game would make it a 6-4 Schlitz lead. And that is how it would end.

The 4th period had a few die hards sipping the BL courtesy of Malachi Crunch Campbell in the cold drizzly night.

Game notes:
Both lines just clicked though the 2nd line didn't have as many ticks on the scoresheet, they were not lacking in effort or chances.
The Team D, though did break down at times, played and overall smart game.
I think the scorekeeper was drunk, but I think that isn't a big revelation.

Stars:
3rd Star: Tie. George Moorachian for his goal and solid blueline work. Ken Douville for his one assist shy of the Gordie Howe Hat Trick and overall hustle.
2nd Star: "Mad" Matt Kilroy a goal, 2 assists. Not bad Matt but not as good as...
1st Star: Mike "Scoring" Daley for a FIVE, yes folks that is not a typo, five point night. 3 goals and 2 assists and we use him as a defenseman?

Great work as always iJosh. Thanks very much for another excellent game summary.

Everyone stay warm this week and check your email for roster info regarding next weeks game on Thursday night. That's all from here...

Zombies thump 'Suckas! Playoff Opener.

Cadavers(P1) vs Windsuckers
Tuesday August 19
Canton 10:40pm

5-1 Win.


The Dead in Red took to the ice Tuesday late–night in Canton to open the Summer Playoffs. A result of some late night traffic on 128/95, there were some late arrivals, but in all Team Zombie ended up with 12 guys, a nice group that included subs Nelson, and Larry from the ‘cans. The Red faced off against the Windsuckers whom have played us tight a bunch of times.
The roster broke down like this.
In front of Lizzy the D pairings of Mike Campbell: Jeff Fosdick, and Billy Pearlman: Marc Valenti worked. The offense was a morass of changing wing pairings and 2 centers. The aforementioned Mrss Sharfman and Bell, joined by Roman Kurin, Matt Elliott, Kevin Parker, Scott Pounds, Jim Sullivan and iJosh. A good crew for sure.

The Cadavers hit the ground running and clearly were intent on playing a good game. The ‘suckas had some players and certainly had 2 lines and a goaltender that looked like a young kid wearing a Thayer Academy practice jersey. This led to some early spectulation that turned out irrelevent once the game got on.
Regardless of out manning and taking the game right to the ‘suckas and their keeper, the game remained scorless for nearly the entirety of the first period. But I’m here to tell you, friend reader of the blog, there were passes, in succession, there were set up shots and plays, in short, we looked like we knew what we were doing, and did it in good up tempo, short shiftin fashion.

As the end of the first loomed near, Lizzy had a good handfull of stops, and the Red had was racking up the shot totals against the keeper who so far had all the answers. The Cads took a penalty, Valenti on a iffy call and were forced to kill it. The PK was tense but effective and the Red did a nice job breaking up the ‘suckas and thwarting anything they got going. It was a nice momentum builder to make the kill with the game 0-0 late in the frist. Things were about to break.
On a play in the ‘suckas end Jeff Fosdick gloved down a clear from a ‘sucka and plopped it infront of himself on the blue line. He followed with a big shot that found its way to the keeper and hard working, always in position Nelson Sharfman jumped on the rebound and put the Zombies up 1 with one minute remaining in the first.

The second period was only a continuation on the good news in the first. Once the ice was broken the Red kept after it continuing to get good pressure. Jim Sullivan took a puck from the neutral zone (near our blue) and threaded his way up the ice. Leaving a trail of turned defensemen Jim swept across the crease and beat the keeper with a nice shot that made it 2-0 at 14:24 in the second.
Lizzy would make another handful of stops in this period staying right on top of everything. The blogger learned after the game that our Liz was nursing a badly bruised forearm and was toughing it out just playing with the injury. She played like a trooper jumping on anything the ‘suckas got going. She would take the shutout into the third, but not until Sully would strike again. He would bury a close chance this time courtesy of D combo Pearlman and Valenti. 3-0 end of 2.

The Zombies kept riding the wave and it wasn’t long before the SW would check in with a rebound goal of his own. Larry would score, from hard cycling iJosh and Matt Elliot at 12:36.
Then there came the only blip on the night for the Dead in Red when Marc, Larry, Marc again, Bill, Marc then Bill again combined on a sliding fumbling bouncing play that went right down the center of the Zombie zone and right into the net past Lizzy who was probably hypnotized by the bouncing weaving puck as it made its way toward her. Anyway we blew the chance at the playoff shutout for our gal Liz and the game was 4-1. This was only a minor setback as the Red promptly went back to taking the game to the Windsuckers.
Veteran Giant Nelson would bang the capper home on (what else) a tremendous effort keeping the puck in the zone and moving, shooting, scoring unassisted with a little over 2 minutes left in the game. That was how this one would go to the locker room. A nice 5-1 playoff thumping, with great effort and play by everyone on the ice for the Red. Great way to get going in the playoffs.

Game Stars
3rd Star: Jim Sullivan, a nice pair of goals to get the playoffs going. The near end to end through traffic was truly a beauty. Nice work Sully.
2nd Star: Lizzy. Playing with a bandaged forearm she turns out a nice effort holding the ‘suckas to only 1 (that was really on us) and being on top of the play all night. True teammate, nice effort playing through it. Keep up the great work.

1st Star: I’m going to have to start coming up with some other kind of superlatives to describe what our friend Nelson churns out for us night after night. Caught in a schedule conflict for the Suds game later in the week Nelson opted to come skate with the Red, who were down a pair of regulars. All he does is grind up the ice all night forcing the play and scoring “oh by the way” two great goals along the way. That’s why he is THE MAN. Maybe that’s what I’ll refert to him as from now on...


The only thing that didn't go perfectly was... no fourth period beer. Yep. Managment apologizes to the guy that hung out for a few minutes... but there were no frosty beverages to be had. We'll do better next time.

Suds can the 'suckas.

Schlitz (11) vs Windsuckers

Tuesday July 22nd

Quincy Youth Arena

10:10pm

4-0 Win!

Alright, alright, alright. The Schlitz are back to their winning ways thanks to some all around nice work by the crew that skated last night in Quincy. Sounded like a pretty good game, and a niffty shutout for our Backstop-Badass Brian. As usual guest blogger iJosh has a terrific game wrap for you, friends of the blog, so without further ado.... heeeere's iJosh!

"Well boys and girls it was a tougher one than it needed to be last night. Despite the score and the fact that the Golden Boys controlled most of this game, this one was close almost to the end.
The game would start with a well stocked roster. The defense would be anchored by pairs of: Hammitt & Greg James and the two Dans. The offense would stack up as follows: Larry & iJosh at centers. Wing pairs of Sully & Mitch, Mark R & Chuck (who always seem to play well together) and Roman & Scott. Larry, iJosh and Jim Sullivan would rotate centers to keep legs fresh.
Pre-game note. This game was in Quincy and our favorite rotund, 4-eyed ref was on the ice. As was Larry. But no worries, Larry had, at this point, finally completed his 2 game suspension from the last Schlidaveur. But since Larry's recent run-ins with this ref, it was just worth mentioning.
With the game underway, Schlitz would find itself with opportunity after opportunity. It just seemed that early on, no great chance could make its way past the goal line. The Windsucker goalie was certainly playing at his best. iJosh would have a perfect feed from Mr. James go just wide. Mark and Chuck would barely miss and Mitch would put on in only to have it still touching the red line.....but barely. Finally the Cans would strike gold as Scott would continue his recent trend of deserved goals as he would net this one from Larry. The rest of the 1st would be uneventful for the score sheet and that in many parts was due to Brian, as well as the aforementioned W'Suckers' goalie.
Into the 2nd we go. Lots and lots and lots and lots of chances. Roman hit the inside post, iJosh and Chuck and Larry and Sully and Sully and Sully all had legitimate chances. But alas my friends, no glory. Again this was due to the play of the entire team Suds - especially Brian - and again the opposing goal keep. The signature of this game would be lack of 2nd chances. Brian contained almost every shot and when he couldn't would dive and cover it up before any 2nd chance could be had.
The Windsuckers' goalie gloved most everything on the 1st try. Just kudos all around.
The final frame...Now the Golden Schlitz needed the gusto to put this one away. And with a few minutes gone in the period, they would finally get it. Larry would find himself spinning in front of a clogged net after receiving the puck from Roman (yes that is true, we were all shocked too) and found an open spot in the net and tucked it home. This would be followed at the end of the same shift with Greg James teeing one up from the point and driving it just wide to the left and low, where Larry tipped it beautifully into the net for a 3-0 lead. When asked about the pass/shot after the game, Greg would admit that he was trying to go high side, right. Thank god for his aim. Then a shift or two later, Jim Sullivan would work his way from blue line to blue line and into the offensive zone. He would slap one toward the net where a Sucka would take the shot off the inside skate and deflect it into the net for a 4-0 lead. The Schlitz would not give up as they continued to press for the - should I say it? - shutout. As the final seconds finally ticked off the scoreboard would indeed indicate that a big fat zero was on the board. Final score 4-0 Suds.
The 4th period happened in the covered entry to the arena as the rain was pouring down. Mr James provided beverages.
Scoring Wrap Up:
1st:
Dr. Pounds from Larry
3rd:
Larry from Roman
Larry from Greg James
Jim Sullivan unassisted
Believe it or not there were no penalties. Even with Hammitt on D and Larry on the ice with Bongo the ref overseeing the game.
Game Notes:
At one point during the game Larry light heartedly started complaining about a missed call while on the bench as Bongo was leaning against the boards listening. Mr. Ref just shook his head and listened and when it was mentioned that he did not like Larry there was a little smirk and acknowledgment of said fact. At least he was honest.
Next game for the Schlitz which is vs the Sitniks (sounds Russian to me) features none other than Comrade Roman (you didn't see that one coming huh). So you all know the strategy and don't forget to hit hard.

Game Stars:
1st Star: Tie - Larry and Brian
2nd Star: Jim Sullivan
3rd Star: Dr. Pounds.
Honorable mention to everyone else. It really was a good game by all."

That is just flippin' sweet. Another spectacular guest blog by our man on the scene. Great work as always. Great work by everyone who played last night.

Before we wrap it up, the blogger has an update on teammate Kevin Parker, emailed in by the man himself. Here's Kevin's message to me:

"Thanks for the support, it's much appreciated. After a long week laid up in the hospital I'm finally free. Still a little wobbly on my legs (think Bambi or a new foal or Larry going into the 5th period) so it'll take some time. The fever is gone and the swelling is just about down
so things are looking up for me. I'm pretty much cleared to play as long as I can tolerate the pain. With that said, I'll shoot you an e-mail about next week, may be a Schlidaveur debut. Thanks again and sorry for not letting you know about Sunday, had no computer. "

So let me get this straight... the dude plays with a heart condition last season, a staff infection this season, what is he going to do next season? Chop of a limb and play down a hand or foot? (Don't get any ideas Kilroy...) Major props to Kevin for playing through pain. We're glad to have you anytime you are ready... good luck with a complete recovery.

And more late arriving comments from last night by our pal the Stat Whore himself... Larry Bell.

"Overheard in the parking lot:
"Lets bury the hatchet" Larry Bell and the fat ref who suspended him for two games.
At first I was appalled to come out to the parking lot and find the Koharski ref drinking with us. At first I wouldn't talk to the guy and I had a sense of betrayal from my teammates for feeding this guy beer. But, then the wisdom of it all became clear. Mark was the first to breach the subject with him, letting him know that I was not, in fact, swinging my stick at the other ref during the game I was suspended in. Once we talked, we decided to bury the hatchet.
Cheers,
LB"

Good thing you didn't decide to bury that hatchet in his chest... or head... or whathaveyou...

Thanks for the words Larry.

Aaaand one last thing. There were a couple of corrections to the stats sheet. Thanks to Chuck and Nelson for catching them. I shorted Chuck a goal, and Nelson 2 assists and have confirmed both errors. (this is why you need to check on the stats and email me if they don't look right...)

Sooo. I've corrected the totals, added last nights numbers... and provided another up to the minute scoring update below.

Enjoy.

Big week next week... hmmm I better start looking for an appropriate pic for the rosters posting.

Stay tuned.

Zombies grind out a tie with the Windsuckers

Cadavers (22) vs Windsuckers

Monday February 18th

Milton Academy 8:30pm

4-4 Tie

A full scale Presidents day tilt with the Windsuckers last night at Milton Academy. The Cadavers took on division rival the Windsuckers and came away with a nice come from behind effort that gained a point to save a slightly scary evening. Here’s the story.
The Zombies were well stocked with 11 skaters and the forwards made nice with the rotation even without Nelson’s abacus.
The forwards were Roman, Matvey and Scott, with Larry centering Jasse and The Chuckster. Ijosh found a home in there somewhere and while floating through the lines he did noting of the sort on his way to a 2 point night.
The Defensive crew was staffed with “Always nice to see you…” Stephan and George, spelled by the infamous Campbell and J.Foz. Backstopping was CEOBMF Madd Matt Kilroy.
The game started out ingloriously for the Zombies with a bizzare episode in our own end. The puck came up the right side of the zone, the forward received the puck then under pressure passed back to Campbell on the same side. The puck went through Campbell off his skate toward an unprepared Kilroy who tried the old “Ole-backhand I think I’m gonna catch it” stop and the puck agonizlinly slipped over the goal line for the first goal of the game. No dis to the Chairman of the Pipes, that one was all on us for springing it on him. Regardless… it was clear the Dead in Red were in for an interesting night.
Thankfully roughly two shifts later we heard from the big man on D Mike Campbell took a long shot from near the top of the zone (perhaps even slightly out of it) that found its way to the back of the net. Good move by Mike, often we don’t just fire away as often as we should. This one paid off. Which led to the following exchange on the bench.
Jeff: “Good one.”
Mike: “Yeah. I’ve never scored the first two goals of the game before.”
The Zombies seemed to snap out of the early going funk and started to create some chances. The forwards cycled well and the Red was able to get several good shots on net. The ‘suckas keeper was solid, stoning just about everything close in, he only seemed to struggle with the outside stuff.
The cycling resulted in a nice “clean it up” goal from Dr. Scott Pounds. The assist from iJosh and George who had done a great job of keeping it in at the point. That was fairly consistent all night. The duo of George and Stephan did a great job holding the play in their end and creating some chances. I think Stephan had at least 2 (poss 3) Patened Wennik end to end and around the net-ers.
That was the end of the good news for the Dead. Chuck “I just wanna get on the scoresheet” Slate was whistled for an interference call just at the end of the first period. It was funny to watch Campbell check with the ref to…you know make sure he got the right guy… PIM whore…
The ensuing start of the second went poorly as the ‘suckas took advantage of the power play. Their guy with the purple pants, clearly one of their best, charged through the neutral zone then turned an off balance and badly beaten Jeff Fosdick (this was a theme…) just inside the zone and then buried it past Kilroy. 2-2.
The second period saw a bit more cycling from the Red but again they seemed to jump on every chance and the ‘suckas continued to work hard, and got good chances on us. The Windsuckers broke through again and scored again…twice… but no one can seem to recall the circumstances of the third goal. Regardless we headed to the 3rd Period down 2-3 and we have another conversation overheard on the bench...

Jeff: "One period to go. When was the last time we came from behind to win a game?"

Mike (and everyone else): " ... "

The bad mojo was still flowing as the third frame got off to a shakey start.
There was a mad scramble in front of Kilroy who made the initial stop, but then inexplicably chose not to cover the puck and instead tried to shovel it out to his right, the only problem was that the ‘suckers had a guy there who buried it putting the Zombies down 4-2 with about 10 minutes left in the game.

Big man on D Mike Campbell came through again with roughly 6-7 minutes left as he took a big shot to the net after rushing up the zone from the right point to the left side. Again he had an important momentum goal and the Dead were down by 1 and calling on all reserves of Zombie Pride and legs to save the night.
The chances were coming and the ZP magic carried the play as we set up shop in the 'suckers end. With about 3-4 minutes remaining we set up a face off in thier end on the left dot. Larry wins a nice draw that comes back to Jeff Foz at left point. Jasse ties his guy up, likewise Chuck on the other side and Larry keeps his guy in place so Jeff has a nice open lane into which he pounds a slapshot that goes off the keepers right pad and into the net for the tie.

The Dead in Red were able to hold fast for the last few minutes and get a few more agonizing shots that never found paydirt. All in all, a good salvaged tie with the 'suckas.

Major props to the Windsucker's goalie Sean who along with another guy (big defenseman) hung out for a few beers. As we were all dressing and leaving the fire alarm went off in the building so the fourth period was kicked off under the flashing lights of the responding Milton FD. Nice of them to come by and keep everyone busy while we enjoyed a little apres skate.

Ok lets give out some awards... only a tie I know but what the hell.

Honorable Mention 1: Dr. Scott Pounds with a beauty of a goal.
Honorable Mention 2: Jeff Fosdick saving an embarassing evening with a nice bit for the game tieing goal.

Game Stars

3rd Star: The Russians. Both Matvey and Roman had really good games despite not making the score sheet. Matvey played excellent center wining draws and making plays. Roman passed the puck well and really got some things going. Good work both of you.
2nd Star: iJosh for a two point night (both assists) and all the chances and movement that helped the forwards do a great job cycling all night.

1st Star: I don't think he's been here before but lets hear it for Mike Campbell for two critical goals and a ton of great stops .. usually covering for his (badly beaten) D partner. Great effort all night Mike, good job!

Good skate by all involved. We've now tied our last two against these guys... next time let's make sure we get it done.