Return to Sparta....again!

So the Cadavers would play yet another game against the Spartan.  Feeling like that is the only team we play lately.

We traveled to UMalcatraz to face the men in green this time.  Albeit with similar results as last time:

UMass Boston
Thursday, March 14 @ 9:20pm
Spartans 5
Cadavers 2

The Cadavers would have a full squad of 13 players.  The Spartans would be, well, sparse.  This should bode well for the men in red.  Is that your final answer?  Because if it is, then you are wrong.  The Spartans would, or actually shall I say, one Spartan pretty much dominated this game.  The fill-in goalie, Steve, played great.  He made some stellar saves.  However he could not get in the way of some of the constant slew of break-away plays that presented themselves behind the D.  Very quickly we would be down 2-0.  Though Jim Sullivan would find a way to put on into the net this time.  If you recall, last time he should have had one, but somehow got robbed.

Number 12, had quite the game for the Spartans.  He was able to score all five goals (according to Point Streak he only scored 4, but they left out the empty net goal).  He also was able to sit for 2 minutes for calling George a lady part name after he fell  into the boards and blamed George.  He would also draw a penalty on iJosh while the Spartans were already on  a power play.  He would grab the puck, curl around and lose an edge.  As he fell, his skate his iJosh's stick as iJosh tried to stay with #12.  When even your own team disputes the penalty, it is a pretty bad call.  But despite all protests the Cads would have to endure a 5 on 3 that they would eventually kill.

In the end Leo (#12) was too much for the Cadavers.  He did a wonderful job of skating to and from the icing line to the blue line.  I would complain more if the Spartans had a full squad, but they only had 6, so I will only slightly grumble about that.

Again, kudos to the fill-in goalie.  Hopefully we will see him in the pipes again for Schlidaveur International.  

Cadavers fail to capture Sparta

So in a snowy Thursday night many would make the trek to Canton to take on the Spartans.  After a little bit of shuffling the eventually roster would fill out to a robust twelve skaters.  Somehow the score sheet disappeared in the snow, so my weathered memory is a little more clouded due to this issue.  The long and the short of it is that:


Spartans 4
Cadavers 2
Thursday March 7, 10:10 
at Canton A

The goalie was again excellent for us.  However we would quickly get down 2-0.  Jim Sullivan would rattle one, not quite home.  He grabbed  a pass from behind the net and riffled one at the net.  The goalie would get a very small piece of the puck.  The puck then hit the post and bounced out of the crease.  Jim raised his arms thinking that he had the goal, but he would quickly have to just get back on defense.

The Cads would eventually cut the lead to 2-1, but Sparta would quickly re-establish a 2 goal lead.  Later in the game Alex would make a nice play, kicking the puck to himself, beating some Spartans and poking it home.  But the Spartans would eventually pad their lead again, before fending off the Cads for the rest of the 3rd.

Due to the snowy weather there would be no 4th period.  Seemingly everyone was able to get home safely, though it was definitely tough at time.

And no, keeping up with the Blog is not easy.

Can's kick Sparta!

Schlitz (7) vs Spartans
Thursday 11/10
Milton Academy 10:20pm


6-2 Win


The Golden Beercans took on the Greenies from Sparta on a pre Vets-Day Thursday night in Milton to see if we can keep the roll going. These guys weren't themselves the last time we played them and it would be interesting to see if their talent returned for this rematch.
The Blogger was not in the house so we've got stories coming in from the guys that played.

iJosh: 6-2 win. 2 fights and 2 ejections, one per team.

Nelson: 

We won 6-2.  We controlled most of the game despite a number of shield-less players on their end.  Not sure why.  The stat sheet never made it to us.  Not sure there was one.  I had a goal assisted by Josh B.  Josh B. also had a pair of goals, and Kevin Parker had one.  Scott P. said he had a goal as well, but I missed it while trying to fill out our roster.  Not sure who had our sixth.  Assists are anybody's guess.  Larry probably has a few (no, he wasn't there, but has that stopped before?).  Baker was tossed for fighting.  Reynolds served a penalty for "being mauled".  (I'm pretty sure it's in the rule book.  You can check.  I certainly see it called all the time.)

Roman from Jared on the 4th goal.

Roman penalty in the 3rd

Allright! Thanks very much for the words Nelson. I'm sure there are more stories there... and thats what the comment section is for. If you played.. witnessed the "throw downs" please fill in the picture for us. I've included the league version of the scoring and penalties. This data will go into OUR stats sheet unless otherwise refuted. Thanks Scoring Summary

Period 1

Schlitz - Josh Bittker (Jared Gorden) , 4:41

Spartans - Andrew Grange (Tim Rogers) , 7:59

Schlitz - Kevin Parker (Josh Bittker) , 11:15

Schlitz - Scot Pounds (Roman Kurin, Dan Herbert) , 14:00

Period 2

Schlitz - Josh Bittker (unassisted) , 3:05

Spartans - Timothy Pope (unassisted) , 14:05

Schlitz - Nelson Sharfman (Kevin Parker, Josh Bittker) , 14:58

Schlitz - Roman Kurin (Jared Gorden) , 16:00

Period 3

(no scoring)

Penalties

Period 1

(no penalties)

Period 2

Spartans - Theodore Bradford (Roughing), 1.5 min , 0:00

Schlitz - Kevin Parker (Roughing), 1.5 min , 0:00

Schlitz - Dan Herbert (Roughing(Double Minor), 3 min , 1:50

Schlitz - M Reynold (Slashing), 1.5 min , 6:18

Spartans - Charles Day (Slashing), 1.5 min , 6:18

Period 3

Spartans - Jeffrey Cohen (Roughing), 1.5 min , 4:30

Schlitz - M Reynold (Roughing), 1.5 min , 4:30

Spartans - Tim Rogers (Roughing), 1.5 min , 4:30

Schlitz - Steve Baker (Unsportsmanlike Conduct), 1.5 min , 4:30

Schlitz - Roman Kurin (Hooking), 1.5 min , 8:10

Spartans - Greg Banks (Slashing), 1.5 min , 12:47

Schlitz - Steve Baker (Slashing), 1.5 min , 12:47

Zombies continue to slide against Sparta

Cadavers (9) vs Spartans
Thursday July 14
HinghamC 10:30pm

3-2 loss


The Dead in Red faced the talented Spartans in Green last night in Hingham in a late evening game for a chance to put a stop to the recent 3 game skid. The streak comes after the great success in the early going that saw the team open 5 and 0. That seems like a long time ago now, and the Spartans would be a tough match up (given our recent train wreck beating at their hands) to “get off the schnide”.
The Cads had a full 13 slated and a nice group of players, even with Nelson and Bauer showing fashionably late for the puck drop. The team was once again haunted by missing equipment troubles as Mitch discovered he was short 1 shinny.
This realization had a funny reveal as while he was explaining his situation to Capt. George there was a short ebb in the conversation. Mitch was heard to say “I’ve got the big one.” as he knocked twice on his cup. Of course we knew he was talking about his most important piece of equipment… wait… never mind.
So we lost a skater in the pregame again (last time it was Scott) and went to war with 12 after the late arrivals made it to the bench. Mitch didn’t seem too troubled… this just meant he could have a little longer ride home in his new Mustang. (sweet ride dude)
Here is your final roster.
Jon (leaving for Nevada next week…sob…) Cole in Net.
D1: George and Bauer
D2: Campbell and Jeff
Centers: Larry and Baker
Wings: Matvey and Roman; Greggy and Scott; Nelson and Parker

The Spartans are clearly and experienced and talented group but I’m happy to report that the Red played up to the task most of the night and kept the game close. The first period would see action at both ends, both keepers doing a solid job in the early going.
It was clear that the Red would have to keep a close eye on a few guys, number 20 in particular had ridiculous wheels and they had no trouble getting odd man or breakaway chances from time to time.
Larry would go for a trip as he hauled a streaking forward down on his way to Jon at just under 9 minutes. After a line change and faceoff to Jon’s right the Spartans made a nice series of passes and a shot that put them up 1-0. Jeff looked up to see Mitch shaking his head slowly behind the end board glass then turned to D partner Campbell who said “Wait… we were shorthanded?”. That’s kind of how that one went.
Unfortunately a fumbled line change would lead to a breakaway for Green and they would score on the chance to go up 2-0 with about 2 and half minutes left. The good news was only that Red continued to stick with it and didn’t lose it completely before the period break.

The Second period would see a revival by the hard working Zombie crew. Led by strong efforts all the way around. The forwards did nice work cycling in the Green end and D did a solid job snuffing out Green chances in the neutral zone before they got cooking.
Some of that hard work would pay off about 5 minuets into the frame when Larry would send a play to Matvey who would bury the chance and cut the Green lead in half.

Campbell would go a minute or two later for a mild molestation of a forward that was free wheeling in the zone. No blood on the PK though this time.
Mr. Campbell would make up for his penalty on the next shift he made the ice. Mike would take the puck in our end and barreling up ice would make a nice rush into the zone and let go a shot. Nelson, doing his typical muck and grind routine in front would bang home the rebound from the shot and the game was tied. No question Zombie pride was in effect and the Red got a little jump being back in the game.
Unfortunately before the end of the period Green would strike back on a long shot that kind of ham-strung Jon and sneaked in under him and the second would end with Team Zombie behind by a goal again.
The third would see a pair of penalties for Green in the first 6-7 minutes but the Cads couldn’t seem to get the offense into high gear. The Spartans were doing a good job all night squashing things before they made it to their keeper.
Baker’s scouting report on the keeper was deadly accurate… if only we all had the wrist shots to take advantage…
Under 5 minutes Bauer would go in a matching penalty situation after tangling with his Green counterpart. The Zombies would pull Jon in the final minute and a half, and would get a pair of good chances as they were able to hold it pretty well in the Green end. Despite the chances this one would end up a hard fought one goal loss against a pretty good team.

The fourth period would be sponsored by Eric Bauer and the Harpoon sampler… and its always a pleasant hang in the Hingham lot in the Summer, a full moon through thin clouds above.

So the season opening 5-0 has now been followed by 0-4 and the team heads towards 500. Next up will be SLJ (no slouches) next week at BU.
See you then.

Spartans stop streak! Zombies go down.

Cadavers (6) vs Spartans
Thursday 6/23
Dedham 10:10pm

6-2 Loss


The Cads put the 5-0 streak on the line with a late night matchup with the Spartans (Green) in Dedham last night. Lets just say that the Green Team brought their horses and the season opening streak was ended at 5. A hearty 11 skated for the Dead in Red but it wasn’t enough to get over on the powerful Spartans.
Here is your roster:
Jon Cole in Net
D: Campbell, George, Baker, Roman
O: Bell, Elliot, Gregson, Matvey, Scott, Nelson, and Sully

The Blogger was not in attendance but this word came back via the grapevine to let us know how the deal went down.
First up is Nelson Sharfman:
We lost 6-2 .
Nice goal by Sully.
Larry got one by cleaning up the trash in front.

The game didn't really get away from us until the later stages but they had the first two goals and led (at times comfortably) from wire to wire. They had some of their better skaters with them. Now that we are out of the "assessment" period of the schedule the ringers on all the teams should start to reappear.

Not too much to report here. They were a better team than us (though probably not 6-2 better).
They made some nice plays and their goalie made some nice saves. We should have scored more. John wanted a couple back. Just another night at the ballpark.
-- Nelson

Thanks very much Nelson. We got another take from Larry Bell who rounded out the picture a little more. Here’s Larry:

1st loss of the season. It was pretty close in the first two periods but they managed to put 3 by Jon and their goalie came up pretty big. We mixed up the lines and tried to mount a comeback in the 3rd, with Sully scoring from Matvey to make it 3-1.
Then a series of defensive breakdowns (breakaways, 3-on-1s) led to then scoring 3 more in the third. I also scored from Campbell, but too little, too late. Penalties to Baker and Campbell Cheers LB

Thanks for the words guys. The Blogger appreciates.
Too bad about the streak going down, but really, we weren’t going to go 16-0 or anything.
Lets see if we can bounce back tonight with the game in Hingham.

Zombies Battle Sparta... and Win!

Cadavers (13) vs Spartans
Thursday August 19
Hingham 10:10pm


5-1 Win



Team Zombie showed for a late evening match up with the Spartans and turned in an entertaining rarity these days... a win. The night featured a brand spankin new rookie goaltenter for the Zombies, a fan, a fight (nothing new here...), check that... Campbell fighting with high schoolers and yes you read that right... a victory.
Lets have the roster first off. Big ups from managment to our gal Lizzy for hooking us up with Teddy, a new goalie but experienced player who manned the pipes for us. This was good because the alternative was Nelson with the backup gear. No offense to Nelson, but we'd rather have him crashing the net than manning it.
So. Teddy in the pipes
D1: DHW, and iJosh
D2: Campbell and Jeff
OCenters: Larry and Jason and Steve (rotating)
Wings: Hammit, Howard, Elliot, Gregson, and Nelson

This group of twelve would do a nice job getting things underway and creating offense early. The Spartans had their usual crew (apparently some guys from the Wolverines crossover) and guys to keep an eye on. Number 20 (black helmet) needs watching and the Red did a good job setting the tone early and working the game.
Larry would be the first to break the ice. He would bury a play from Hammitt and Team Dead was up a goal just 3 minutes in. This was good! The Red were moving pretty well and doing a nice job counter attacking. Matt Elliot would score on a wild rebound and the Dead were up 2-0 at the 12 minute mark.
Interesting here that the Green got a few bodies added to their bench mid way through the period. They happened to have off colored jerseys, one with no faceguard and looking suspiciously fresh and young faced. Of course these two were awesome, and young and made for special minding whenever either of them stepped on the ice. The Green would get a goal at the six minute mark and it was 2-1. Thats how the first would end.
Things were growing a little contentious between the squads and there was no shortage of physicality here and there but nothing major... yet. Larry would strike again, this time with help from Dan With Hands Herbert and Team Zombie was up 3-1 now halfway through the game. But things were about to boil over.
As a by the way here... Teddy the guy who has only been playing goal for 6 months or so was playing well. Dude was athletic and made nice saves even if he was a little awkward around the net with the puck. He was asked to be there on a number of occasions and answered the call all night.
The two superstahs were ramping things up and Campbell, who started the game a little... amped up... was at the end of his rope. While towering over one of the guys (teal jersey) and working him off the puck... as Mike does so well... the kid had a bad idea. Launching himself up and under Mike's chin he stunned him with a head butt and the "horse left the corral" somewhere in Campbell's head. The kid didn't have much of a chance as Mike explained in detail that he took exception to the head butt. Mike was "explaining" with his gloves and arms pretty well, D partner Jeff was trying to hold off the other young dude (no mask) but couldn't keep them apart. Next thing you know Campbell is rolling on the ice with both the boys, and Jeff (now realizing the good fortune to be had here) is yelling to the ref that the other kid was 3rd man in and had to be kicked out. Two ringers for the price of Campbell immediatley seemed like a good swap.
Of course Jeff should have been paying more attention to Mike who was still "explaining" now with the original kid against the back boards and the Zeebs had thier whistles and hands in the air. Jeff soon corralled Mike and sent him to the locker room and the Zeebs tried to sort everything out.
Red ended up with a powerplay (Campbell for a double, a third and an eject) thanks to the 3rd man but before the puck was dropped they decided they needed to toss one more Red shirt... they just couldn't come up with a number. Now. The Blogger believes that they were probably looking for Jeff who was trying to separate Mike from the Green players but he never "got involved". Regardless someone had to go, the Zeebs told Jeff and he went to the Red bench. Now, Jeff offered to go unless anyone else wanted to... and Mike Hammitt (a little riled up hizownself) volunteered to go. This is a big teammate move by Mr. Hammitt and gives him an automatic game star. The Blogger doesn't think this really went the right way though in retrospect, Jeff should have gone as he was the only one it could have been the Zeebs were looking for. Regardless Hamm is a standup guy. Thanks.

Things basically settled down after that. A little pressure was off, the Green goalie had done enough screaming as time was going off the clock while the Zeebs worked things out that the Zeebs were not going to give Green any breaks. In fact they collected another two penalties in the third to only one for Red (iJosh with a hook).
Dan Gregson would put home a play from DWH and the Red would go up 4-1 with 5 minutes left in the game. Neslon would cap it off (from Elliot) with just over a minute to go and this game would be a rout as time ran out Red 5 Green 1. Good stuff.

Game Stars
3rd Star: Teddy Lock. Fill in goaltender. Nice work Teddy... we'll be seeing you again I'm sure.
2nd Star: Matty Elliot with a goal and an assist and a nice overall game.
1st Star: Larry for a nice pair of goals and his usual agressive play all night.

Honorable Mention: DWH for a pair of helpers and solid work throughout the game.
Honorable Mention2: Gregson for a nice rebound goal and celebration. I think his hands went up so quick it knocked the big man on his ass... in fact I'm sure of it. Doesn't matter. Nice goal Dan.

Thanks again to Gregson/DWH and Campbell for Apres Skate beers.
Thanks also to guest star Fan Heather who came along with iJosh. She said she wanted to see some action... we were glad to oblige. Thanks for watching... and for staying for the apres skate.

Zombies Conquer Sparta!

Cadavers (p1) vs Spartans
Wednesday April 8
Hingham C 10:20

5-0 Win

The Dead in Red showed up for the start of the Winter Season Playoffs ready for action. The Spartans were the opponent for the night, having just played on Sunday. They had beaten the CH Terriers that night and won the opportunity to play against us. The Zombies were well stocked, taking the ice with 12 and adding Stephan before the end of the first to round us out to and even 13. The Spartans looked to be suffering from Second Game of the Week Syndrome and had a thin bench of 8 guys. It might have been 9 but they looked like 8 all night. This clearly played to the Dead’s advantage.

The Zombie Lineup was thus.
Campbell, Valenti, Jeff, and Stephan on D. Chris Fosdick played the first then went up to forward. Nelson, Mike Daley, Pete, Matt Elliot, Matvey, Chuck, Parker, and Douville made up the hard working Oh-Fence for the night. Pete was an unexpected drop in… but he happened to be driving by, with his equipment, on his way back from the imaginary practice/game at Quincy Youth Arena… luckily we had a spot for him, and to his credit he made the most of it.

The game went like this. We pressed, played hard, shifted short, hustled back, fore checked with some success at times, and kept after the Spartans all night. They played the exhausted, back on your heels style of a short benched, second game this week group of guys. They played hard and tried hard the whole game to their credit. They just couldn’t get much going against us. Brian saw a few shots but not many of high quality. I believe he was overheard in the locker room after the game… “I think I only saw 5-6 shots all night…” He wasn’t complaining, and he turned out a nice solid performance standing in there when we needed him.

Mike Daley was all over the place, as you’d expect and was the first Zombie to break the ice. Fed from Nelson Mike would tuck one by the keeper about halfway through the first. Sparta was hard pressed to keep up with Mike when he started wheeling around the zone. Before Stephan showed to relieve Chris at his D position, the tall, lanky forward would make a play. Keeping the puck at the right point, (playing opposite brother Jeff that shift) Chris made a nice move to give himself room then launched a nice slap shot at the net. The Scoresheet has Matvey tipping it into the net, but Chris contends it may have gone in untouched… we’ll have to get a ruling.

Mike Campbell would go to the box for the always interesting “Leg Check” penalty. No shit he “Leg Checked” the guy… have you seen how long Mike’s legs are? Most of the guys we play against only come up to the bottom of his shoulder pads anyway…

The first ended 2-0 Zombies. The Second period would see Mike Daley land another goal, this one from Marc Valenti at the point. Nelson would go off for roughing at some point, but the PK was solid. Pete Capraro would make the most of this evening out with his equipment and would score on a long cycle with Chris assisting. Hmn… this one might be wrong too… did Pete or Chris score this one… we need another ruling. Chime in boys and help the blogger out..? The period was basically the same as the first, with more panting.

The Third would see two more penalties for the Red. Daley for a phantom Slash, and Campbell again for Interference… I wonder why not “Leg Interference”… again the PK and Brian stood strong. Sparta did actually mount a few good chances in this period but nothing worked out. Nelson would cap off scoring unassisted, once again turning in an epic hard work performance that he is so famous for.

Other notable incidents during the game included Kevin Parker walking back to the locker room in his socks to get his crappy old skates, after skating the first in his shinny (and apparently painful) new skates.
Always nice to have “fashionably late” Stephan Wennik. He always drops in out of the blue but turns out a good game every time. Thanks for making the journey down.

Game Stars
3rd Star: Chris Fosdick. 2 goals or 2 assists? Maybe a goal and an assist? Any way you slice it Chris got 2 points, did a great job helping out the D, and then continued to impact the game on offense. Great job.
2nd Star: Another 2 point man. In fact he’s The Man. Nelson. Goal and an assist, and a nightly clinic on how to play hard and will yourself into scoring opportunities. Thanks.
1st Star: Wheelin’ and Dealin’ all night, its got to be Michigan Mike Daley! Mike has another 2 goals to add to his totals. Great hard work all night and results in the net to boot.. Who could ask for more?

That’s the story from here (a week after the game)… unfortunately it doesn’t sound like the Suds fared as well on the next night. The Cadavers next face off against #1 seed the River Rats on Monday 4/13.

Spartans suppress Beercan uprising.

Cadavers (17) vs Spartans

Thursday January 22nd

Canton 10:20 

5-4 Loss

Tough night for the Dead in Red against division rival the Spartans in Canton. Twas a cold dark night, the kind of heart of the winter that makes you not want to go outside. The blogger, baffled by a Harry Angstrom-like haze, navigated his way to the game. Much thanks, I think, to Dr. Jasse for the pleasant company and stimulating literary conversation. I don't know if it helped or not, but i had other things on my mind, and the skating did me good. 

The blogger arrived to find another good room full of happy Zombies. We would eventually fill out a full roster 13 but not until about the middle of the first. Here's your lineup.

D1: DWH, Daley

D2: George, Jeff

O1: Nelson, Douville, Parker

O2: Roman, Matvey, Gregson

O3: iJosh, Mitch, and, ... and, ... oh crap I have no idea. Maybe we only had 12. 

So the Spartans had their usual group. The chap with the Red helmet, good hands, not so fast but dont let him shoot, #16 or 6 was it had good legs and speed and was also a deadly shot. This is a crew we've seen many a time. Given our numbers the mantra game plan of short shifts, hard work and smart play was in order for this one and the Dead in Red did their best to execute that plan. 

The game started not so well as the Mean Green would pot a bang-bang chance less than a minute into the game. Clearly we couldn't let their better players move too much with the puck. The Red would knuckle down and you could feel the momentum start to come the way of the Dead... but after 10 minutes of hard work the Green would land another one on a breakaway this time (number 16 for his second of the game) at 5 and half remaining. The first would end with Team Zombie killing off a tripping call to Nelson with 2 minutes left. Good kill, but we were still down 2-0 after one.

The second would be only marginally kinder to the Red as they would finally break through just 2 minutes into the period. While taking the play to the Green, Roman (from Nelson and Douville) wound his way through heavy traffic at the top of the zone, then executed the "Russian Lullabye" to perfection. Every player in the zone seemed to slow down and watch as Roman held, held, held the puck then sent a nice wrister through the screen and into the net. The Red had a bit of a bump but it was short lived as the Spartans would answer only 3 minutes later with another hard work goal of their own. During this stretch the Red have a bunch of chances including an epic 3 on 0 that we... uh... didn't score on. The Spartan keeper was on it for sure. To make things worse old friend 16 was back at teh 7 minute mark to put the Zombies in a 4-1 hole. Pile onto that Matvey going to the box after taking one in the chops during a little give and take in front of the Spartan net. The Red would kill it, again and would keep working despite being down 3 as we went into the 3rd.

Its not often i get to write this, so savor it when you get there... ok? The Third Period belonged without a doubt to Team Zombie. The effort and desire, dare I say Zombie Pride, was racheted up a few notches and the boys went to work. Less than 3 minutes in the Green would take a whistle and the Red would go on the Power Play. Moments later George would unleash a slap shot (from Douville) that would go a long way through the screen and into the net for the second Zombie goal. The Green would go again just a minute later for a rough and the Red would keep up the pressure on the power play but not score. Roman would be the next to tally as he would get his second (from DWH) at the nine minute mark to put us down only 1 at 4-3. Roman did well all night and seemed to find the net at just the right time. This momentum was snapped when after a breakdown the Green would land another goal with 6:44 remaining. 

Again I have to say the effort continued and the Cadavers took the game right back to the Green despite the setback. George would strike with just under 5 minutes remaining, this time unassisted, but from the same spot at the right point. The Zombies were back within one and continued to press the game to the Spartans. Unfortunately the Green just had a bit more than we did in those closing minutes as we struggled to mount an attack as time ran out and the Spartans preserved the victory 5-4. A good skate for all and a good effort if not for the unsatisfying ending. Indeed the night was just that... unsatisfying. 

Game Stars

3rd Star: Ken "when do I get a number" Douville. A pair of helpers and some good hard work from this strong Rookie of the year candidate.

 

2nd Star: Captain George. Good hard work and no lack of verbal encouragement from the Captain on this night. 2 nice goals and a steadying hand all night at the blue line.

1st Star: Gotta be the Russian Lullabye Roman Kurin. Two tremendous goals and a little bit of spunk when going after the puck. Atta boy Roman. Keep up the good work. 

Honorable Mention 1 : D pair 1. Mike Daley and DWH just bring it all the time. DWH had two ridiculous rushes in the second period where it seemed like he would skate around everyone in the Spartan end, and Daley is just awesome. Mike held the puck and worked it in the offensive zone like nobody's business and not only squashed a bunch of green chances but created a bucket full of his own. Great work.

Honorable Mention 2: Lizzy did a good job holding it together. I mean, you wouldn't know that from the stream of profanity that she dealt out in the post-game locker-room (mostly in defense of Matvey).... but there wasn't too much she could have done about a bunch of their chances and she did a solid job on the outside shots all night. Good work... and take it easy Liz.  

Suds burn down Sparta!

Schlitz (11) vs Spartans

Thursday December 4th

Hingham C 10:20pm

7-3 Win

Good turn out for a late game in Hingham, even with some late arrivers. We were still able to start the game with 10 then added two more to make it a total of 12 to take on the Green Greeks.

The roster looked like this.

Brian in net.

D1 Campbell and Chris Fosdick

D2 Matvey and Jeff

Forwards: Capraro, Jasse, Reynolds, Parker, Nelson, Scott, Larry, and Roman.

In this league you never do really know what you are going to be up against from one week to the other. Who knows when a team is going to either show up strong with lots of decent players or show up with a weaker roster. We've seen the Spartans enough to know it can go either way with these guys. Sometimes we handle 'em... sometimes they handle us.

This night was good because even early on it looked like the Skating Beercans would have the best of this showdown. No question the Gold would go on to play one of thier best games of the season and all around a real confidence booster. There was passing, skating and good shooting too... hard to believe I know but it all seemed to work out.

The first was underway when Kevin Parker would land one from Matvey and Capraro that would break the ice and get us going. Not long after Campbell would pick up the faceoff pass from Roman in the Green end and fire a shot that would hit off a defenseman's leg and into the net for a 2-0 lead.

The Spartans wouldn't go quietly though and they would score with 6 minutes left in the first to get on the board for the first time. The Gold would counter with only 2 minutes left, when Roman would score, this time Campbell returning the assist favor to him. Mike kept it in the zone and Roman kind of skated around until everyone kind of fell asleep then he put a wrister into the net. The period would end 3-1 good guys.

The second period would see more good work on the Gold part. Dr. Pounds would pick a nice pass from Roman and Pete and would roof a shot over the keeper for a 4-1 lead at the nine minute mark of the period. This would be followed by a nice goal from Larry, this one from Nelson and Chris that would close out the second period with the Suds running way with things 5-1. We would have a couple of penalties, Parker and Campbell which forced a brief 5-3 that the Gold was able to kill.

The Spartans would come back and score two in the third, we would take one more penalty (Reynolds) before it was all said an done. The Gold wasn't done either with Nelson scoring a beauty from Matvey and Chris Fosdick scoring his second of the game from Jasse and Roman to wrap things up. All in all a pretty good night at the rink.

Game Stars

3rd Star: 2 guys with a pair of assists. Matvey Nikhamik and Pete Capraro. Matvey had a very strong night playing D and Pete had his susual high-energy outing that really pressed the older Spartans. Nice job both of you.

2nd Star: 3 guys each with 1 goal and 1 assist. Mike Campbell, Chris Fosdick, and Nelson Sharfman. Each of these three had very nice games, nice passing and finish. Good work all of you.

1st Star: Roman Kurin with a nice 4 point night. 1 goal and 3 assists made for a big night for the speedy Russian, who was an active part of the offense all night. Great work.

Zombies Defeat Sparta!

Cadavers (2) vs Spartans

Thursday October 9th

UMass 10:30pm

3-1 Win!

Alright, alright. Here we are with another season underway and another series of quality Guest Blog appearances from our Man on the Scene iJosh! He is on the case with a red-hot wrap up of last night's action at the prison by the bay. So without further ado.... here's iJosh:

So we returned to the hell hole that is: UMasscrack, The Prison By the Bay, UMalcatraz. Some people parked far away, some paided the $6 to park even though the gates closed in 5 minutes. A few just ignored the toll takers and lived to tell about it.

This was Kenny D's first time at the beloved rink and his comment simply was: "This place is a $%!(hole".

We dressed as the Sitniks played to a 2-0 win just prior to us. So with Matvey and Roman double shifting with the two teams, that would leave us with full squad of 13.

The defense would throw out: Valenti with Pearlman and Daley with Matt Elliot.

The offense would run with: Jasse, Kilroy, Capraro; iJosh, Matvey, Roman; Chris F, Gregson, Kenny D.

The first period would see the Dead in Red have numerous chances and pretty much control the play. But despite the strong chances there would be no spoils to show. Though Marc Valenti would attempt to break the record for quickest penalty ever with a trip in the first shift at 0:59. The penalty kill would play nearly flawlessly. The Spartans could not get off a decent shot the entire kill.

Into second we go. The first shift would see some good pressure on the Spartan's goaltender, who played extremely well all night. But extremely well isn't perfect and the Skating Zombies would take advantage of that. At 0:51 of the 2nd period, Roman would take the puck to the corner. He would eventually pass up to the point to Billy Pearlman who skated in close to the net and sent a pass/shot across the crease. It would land on iJosh's stick and he would tuck it home for a 1-0 Cadavers lead.

Pearlman would not be done with his offensive pressure. In his next shift he would take a pass at the high slot and slap it toward the net where it would ring post to post and out. Roman would do the same from the right side of the net as it bounced off the post and away. The rebound would go to the left side and collected by the Spartans. But Billy would skate over and take the puck away from him skate across the ice and bury the puck into the net for a 2-0 Zombie lead.

Mike Daley would get caught trying to take a puck away from the Green, only to have him miss and take the guys legs out. So end result, 2nd penalty for the Dead. Penalty kill, again, was strong. The Red did not let the Green get any strong chance. The Green would mount a couple of strong chances, just not on the penalty and "Dr. No", Brian Carey would have none of it.

The last period would see a breakdown. Billy Pearlman would cough up the puck near mid-ice where the Spartans would collect and go on a breakaway. This one just could not be stopped by Brian as he was just left out to dry. Sorry Brian. But the Dead would pick themselves up and dust themselves off. But not before losing a player. Kenny would land on the ice and take a knee to the chest. Despite trying to tough it out for a couple of shift, he just could not go on. Hopefully it is not too bad. So we would finish the game with 2 centers and 3 sets of wings. Before long, Mike Daley would pass off to Matt Elliot who would catch a streaking Roman up the ice with a perfect pass. Roman skated in and beat the Spartan goaltender on a nice little deke to make it 3-1 Cads.

The Spartans would pick up the pace and put some more pressure on Brian. Some bad decisions would lead to some good chances for them. But again, the Doctor said No. iJosh would get beat on the right side of the net and would get called for the hook. This PK was no different than the others. Just no real changes for the opponent. So after the Green took their timeout and pulled their keeper, they would try to mount one last ditch effort. The Cadavers stood their ground and prevented any real pressure from the Green.

Final Score: 3-1 Cadavers

Honor Roll:
3rd Star: Roman for having a 2 point night even though he played 2 games in a row.
2nd Star: Billy Pearlman for his defense a goal and an assist. Though he gets down graded from 1st to 2nd for "assisting" on the Green goal.
1st Star: You want him in that net. You need him in that net. And he's rather that you just said "Thank you" or go on your way....Brian Carey.

4th Period would be rather subdued due to it being UMass and all. But a few diehards stuck around and had one, if only to celebrate the 40th Birthday on one CEO and now old fart, Matt Kilroy.

Overheard in the "locker room": Sitnik player: Roman playing with you too? He's a tool.

Overheard in the parking lot:
Person A: Your rod hockey team name was the "Rodfathers"? That sounds like a gay porno. Rodfathers: Maybe a regular porno.
Person B: No it sounds like gay porn.

Great job iJosh! See you all next week at the 'daveur!

Suds fall to Sparta! Open season with loss.

Schlitz (1) vs Spartans

Thursday Sept. 25th

9:00pm Brockton

3-1 Loss.

The blogger was definitly not on scene for this one, still recovering from that short off season. Here are a team of guest bloggers to tell you all about it. Lets start off with a word from Dr. Scott Pounds who checked in with a very nice recap:

"We lost 3-1.

We started the game with 9: Campbell, DWH, and Mike Daley on D; Gregson, Elliot and new Ken; Scot, Chris Foz and Kilroy lines. Nelson showed up a few minutes in and took over center for Elliot, who moved to D. iJosh appeared shortly after that and began as the floater. When Kilroy took a hard shot off the ankle and new Ken discovered that his skating muscles were way flabby, iJosh, Kilroy and new Ken rotated quickly at right wing. Scot and Gregson rotated left.

The game was competitive. Brian made a bunch of nice saves. The Spartans just had that little bit of edge. One pudgy guy scored two pretty goals after keeping the puck on his stick through our zone. The golden boys were never out of it, and I think we may have outshot them overall. We had some outstanding chances in close and were rotating in the zone pretty well. Coach George would have approved, but we could not get one past the keeper until iJosh wrested one into the far corner after some pretty passing by the Schlitz.

New guy Ken had some good instincts remaining from his high school playing days and is also the early leader for the Mike Campbell Trophy after being called for interference in front of the Spartan net, then jawing with one of the Spartans followed by disputing the refs version of reality. He obviously has a bright future in either red or gold.

Overheard in the 4th period during a discussion of whether you would be attracted to a woman who was your twin:
iJosh: (to Gregson) There’s a woman at my work who looks just like you - without the beard.
Gregson: So she’s hot?

Outstanding... in every way Doctor... thanks very much.

Let's continue with world class guestblogger iJosh with an excellent recap:

"Game 1 of the Back to Back to Back defense of the League Title began with a sputter. It certainly was not for lack of effort. Nor was it for a lack of chances. The Maroon and Gold were in this game most the way. But, and I'll save you from looking at the end of the blog, did not end well as our Heroes would fall 3-1.

The game would start....um....actually I don't know. Due to some traffic and a late arriving person, who shall remain nameless but goes by the title of my wife, I was unable to see much if any of the 1st period. So as I arrived on the ice it was already 1-0 Spartans.
So the 2nd period began with the following: Defense: Mike Campbell, Matt Elliott, New Daddy with Hands as well as the return of Mike Daley. The forwards would line up with: Gritty Old Nelson, CEO Kilroy, Dan Gregson, Dr. Pounds, Chris Foz, Rookie Ken Douville and late arriving iJosh.

The second period would see a fair amount of chances by the Gold. iJosh would miss on the doorstep, just barely getting stuffed as Chris Foz and Kilroy set him up with a rebound (that almost made it in as well). That would be followed by Foz getting some good chances after being cycled the puck from down low. But nothing to show. The Spartans would throw some pressure on too, but Brian would respond time and again. Finally though the Spartan would pierce the armor and improve on their lead 2-0 Green.

Into the 3rd, the Beercans would continue to press. This time DWH would miss in close twice. Once a last second deflection would ruin what would have been a goal. Then on a rush, DWH would get broken up, only to find the puck between his skates. He would collect the puck and flip the backhand just a bit high and over the glass. Later in the 3rd the Green would again improve their lead. This time a "look what I found" goal as the puck would rattle around and find its way to an enemy stick, where it would be tipped by Brian. 3-0 Green. Now the Schlitz would need to press to get back into the game, or at bare minimum avoid the shutout. The chances would get slimmer as time would wind down. With roughly 5 minutes to go, Ken Douville would be shown what the inside of the Brockton penalty box looked like after he took issue with an open ice take down. None-the-less, it would leave the Gold down a man. With only a few ticks remaining on the clock, Chris Foz and Mike Campbell would make their attempt at a score. This created a loose puck that iJosh would one-time into the top right corner to trim the deficit to 3-1. Though that would be all the Gold would have.

But despite the loss it was nice to have Mike Daley back. And Ken D looked good despite the rust and lack of wind (its only been 7 years Ken you should be fine by next game). Just like the past few seasons, it appears that we start with a loss. I'll take a game one loss, because if our history is any indication we won't lose the last game."

Great work as always iJosh!

Here's Chris Fosdick (responding to my email...): "It wasn't Elliot that scored, it was iJosh from me. There was a penalty. I know new guy Ken had one. (BTW he showed good hustle and some talent)

You know the Spartans have a few guys who are playing down a level, so its tough, but we played them quite close. Very even back and forth, both teams having moments of good pressure. I would say that overall we probably had more good chances than they did, but they had a hot goalie, and so it goes. Good game even though we lost."

And one from Mike Campbell: "Josh had the goal. Ken (the new guy) wants to be a goon. He got the only penalty. Well fought game. Brian played well. Elliot and I were the Defensive pair on the ice for all three goals."

This gem from Mike Daley: "Highlight was Lizzy pulling into the parking lot at 11:00 well after most had gone home. Scott and iJosh extended the 4th with her. Gregson, Elliott, and I had to call it a night at that point."

Good stuff all around. Not the desired outcome...but hey...we'll get to that.

Looks like next week we have the first of the 'daveurs starting up right away.

See you Tuesday night Sept.30th in Hingham at 10:20pm

Suds eat it against Spartans.

Schlitz (7) vs Spartans
Thursday Nov 15
Hingham 10:20pm


2-1 loss.


A tough one for our gang in Gold. We were uncertain of numbers pregame but ended up with 12 by the time the puck was dropped. Not bad considering that the Spartans had a light turnout, they started with 7 and ended up with 8 total. As I said to Campbell after the first shift.
"That doesn't mean shit."
Indeed it didn't. Despite scoring first and looking good through the first period, somehow we came out on the losing end of this one.
The first goal came well into the first period when Mike Campbell rifled one past their goalie for the early lead. The assist here is murkey... but it looks like the helper came from Jeff Fosdick. The blogger takes no responsibility for his loss of memory. Now... what was I saying? Dr. Pounds has spoken up and he indeed was in on the assist. Thankfully his brain still works.
Oh yes. The Spartans, who decided that they wanted to get a little pissed off at the fact they were losing to us, took their game up a bit. After a contentious scramble in front of OEJ there was some jawing and shoving. Nothing major. Problem was that less than a minute later, the loudmouth who was giving OEJ a problem swatted at the puck, near even with the goal-line and scored. Tie game. Crap.
The Spartans would put up another one in the second and despite the hard work by all involved on the Gold side of things, we just couldn't get the equalizer.
Again the Russian line of Jan Yevmenko, Roman Kurin, and Matvey Nikhamik played well, especailly over the last few shifts. They had several good chances to get one... it just didn't happen. Other forwards were Jeff Fosdick, Mike Jasse, Deb Dalesssio, Scott Pounds, and Dan Gregson.
OEJ had a another solid night, as we've come to expect. The D in front of him was Campbell, DWH, Billy Pearlman, and Greg James (who got a penalty in the third).
No stars for this one.
Definitly one we should have had.

Suds Bubble... but Fizzle against Spartans.

Schlitz(1) vs Spartans

Thursday 10/4

10:30 UMass

2-0 Loss.

Another fabulous night of D-Leauge Hockey at the Pleasure Dome that is... U-Ass Boston. This particular night was enhanced by not only the condition of the ice, which resembled the Southeast X-pressway (think potholes), but by the extra good feeling we all recieved paying $6.00 just to park near the rink. I'm sure there is free parking somewhere over at the J.F.K. Museum but really... who has the energy to carry your hockey stuff a mile and a half? We should have taken it as a sign.

The Suds did show some signs of life as the title defense got underway against our old friends the Spartans (dk green). They had thier regulars, and gave a typical hard working, opportunistic performance. The Guys in Gold got some opportunities early and the game stayed 0-0 into the second period.

Nice solid chances were seen from the second line of Scott Pounds, Matvey Nikhamik and Roman Kurin. Mike Hammitt abley rotated through this line and the first line (who also had some solid chances) of Larry Bell, Matt Elliott and Ken Goldenberg. Some good bids but not enough outlets to open defensement at the point, and never really any consistent presence in the slot.

Things (ie: The Spartans) caught up with us, and our heavy legs, and after the Gold chased them around our own end for what seemed like an entire shift they broke the ice with a goal 5 minutes into the Second. OEJ had been playing very well, turning aside several solid chances but this one was about the 6th rebound and putback so it was kind of inevitable.

The rest of the Second stayed an uphill climb and unfortunately the Suds didn't do much to help thier own cause. About 3 minutes after the goal George Moorachian took a penalty (not much he could do really) but he wouldn't be the last Gold visitor to the box. Mike Campbell (riled that he didn't win his namesake award I'm sure) was next with about 30 sec left in the period. Both situations were killed off well by the Suds and they stared to get a few more chances at the other end.

Alas... halfway through the period Jeff Fosdick was next with a fairly awful too many men call that gave the Spartans yet another Power Play. Managing to kill that one (thanks!) less than three minutes later we send another man to the box, this time Mike Hammitt for a nice open ice take down. As you may know, follower of the blog the penalty killing was not going to hold up forever and the Spartans struck again this time just before the penalty was to expire.

Again they had several chances in a row, and it didn't help that Jeff left his man wide open about 7 feet from Mike and didn't intercept the pass that went right to him and right in the net. That was about it for the Schlitz. George took one more penalty before the night was through and the Spartans kept coming. OEJ did a good job just keeping the score at 2 as the minutes ticked away.

So... no game star love for the Suds on this one, but there were some things worth mentioning.

OEJ: Rock solid game in a losing effort. This game could have looked very different.

Matvey: Made a phenonminal backcheck to save a 2 on 0 scoring chance with about 8 minutes left in the third. By this point nobody had any legs, but Matvey made it back an broke up the play admirabley. Nice effort.

Mike Campbell: Similar story... but Mike's moment came with about 4 min remaining in the first. He came from behind to totally shut down one of thier faster forwards... cleanly I might add. He and his D partner Stephan Wennik played great all night.

Overheard in the locker room:

"You know that guy 6 was ok, but nothing really special... was it just me or did he REALLY STINK?"

"Yeah... he was ripe. I should know, he skated by me about 15 times in the third."


The 'Coon of Shame dropped by to say that during the third period he had some serious thoughts making himself a nice cozy home inside the bags of Jeff Fosdick and Mike Hammitt. He was seen lurking around our "plush" locker-room (and I use that term ... loosely) during the fateful third period when both guys took very ill-timed trips to the sin bin. Jeff for calling for his replacement then staying on the ice to face the play and earning a too many men, and Hammitt for knocking over a Spartan in open ice on our blue line. Be warned gentlemen... The Coon did not officially nest this night... but he thought about it... for a while.

Well, two games at this lovely establishment next week. Monday and Wednesday. Management is none too pleased. Get your availablilty or IN/OUTs into Kilroy so we can set roster.

The season is off an running.... a stumbling 0-1-1 after week 1. Let's try to do better next week.

Mad Matt stars in Suds showdown with Spartans!

Schlitz (14) vs Spartans

Thursday August 16th

9:00pm Milton Academy





6-3 win!

Yep. I'm here to tell ya. That was a grinder. A fun win with a good squad of Suds, and backstopped by.... Mad Matt Kilroy. That's right friends, Kilroy did his first stint between the pipes last night and came away with a W! We played the very veteran Spartans who had only 1 sub. Decent talent but old like us and they were bummin without legs to help. The Schlitz had our own concerns so things kind of evened out.
The night began with us behind schedule. Kilroy was running late, and was informed on the way in that there was no previous game to nab a keeper from. He was the man this night. It was a scramble getting him dressed, not helped by the ridiculously hot locker room. Campbell had something to say about that... just bad timing. Matt made it to the ice with less than a minute on the warmup clock. The Gold peppered him with some shots. The Spartans were paying attention.
The game got underway fine and we had no problem skating with them when they were fresh. They were able to get off a shot, slow and straight from the top of the zone in the early going, and it slid toward our man Matt, his moment of truth. And it went in. A dubious start, followed by the Spartans screaming "SHOOT" everytime they gained the zone for the rest of the game. They knew what they had, and that just made our task tougher despite their numbers.
We had a game.
Later in the first they scored again to go up 2-0 but only after Kilroy redeemed himself with a couple nice stops. Then we started to turn the tide. Matt Cicciari, abley filling in as part of the forward ranks got our first goal unassisted. We were playing very well at that point moving the puck around their zone and taking advantage of thier already tired legs. The period ended 2-1 and the Suds were feeling good.
Matt continued to play much better despite the Spartans getting a third goal as we got into the second period. The two goal lead didn't hold as the Suds applied consistant pressure working around their zone. On a nice cycle through the zone the forward line of Roman Kurin, Scott Pounds, and Dan Gregson created some good chances. A scramble in front followed by shots from Roman and Scott and Jeff F pinching from the point put the puck past the sprawling keeper. One goal game again. Matt's play continued to improve as he made more and more saves.
At the start of the third we had weathered a couple of penalties, Hammit for two and Campbell for one and we knew we'd have the chance for a good period now that they were really wearing down. A change of positions on the first line put Cicciari at center and moved Pete Capraro to the wing opposite Larry Bell. The move paid off less than 30 seconds into the period when Cicciari buried one with assists to both wingers. The Suds were rolling and were starting to feel it. It wasn't long after that that Pete put the go ahead goal on the board on a rebound from Roman.
The Suds did proud by the gold as they continued to apply pressure and swat away possetions as the Spartans came up the ice. Mad Matt was still playing great and really shone on the home stretch. Matt turned everything aside including a terrific right pad save on a blistering low shot. The closest the Spartans got was a goal after the net had been dislodged (courtesy of George Moorachain knocking their player into it).
Cicciari and Bell added the icing on the cake as the minutes ticked away and the Suds brought this one home.
Great effort by everyone involved. Nice come from behind win against a (albeit disabled) decent opponent.
Game stars.
3rd Star: This one is dedicated to George "where's the love for the D" Moorachain. George and Mike Hammit did a great job getting chances and taking the puck away all night. Hammit had some whistlers that had guys getting out of the way all night. THe second pairing of Jeff F and Mike Campbell likewise had a strong night keeping things away from our buddy between the pipes. Third star goes to all four defensemen.
2nd Star: Sub Matt Cicciari with the natural hat trick and great wheels all night. Two of his goals were unassisted, and he seemed to be all over the place. Thanks Matt, you are welcome anytime.
1st Star: Is there any doubt? Mad Matt Kilroy with a gutsy, gritty, dirtdog, came to play for the team performance between the pipes. You get big Kudos just strapping on the equipment dude, let alone winning the game. Great job.

Fourth Period Honors: Mike Campbell, Larry Bell (Beerman), Matt Kilroy, Mike Hammit, and Jeff Fosdick for a little overtime in the Lantanna parking lot. Good stuff gents.
Overheard in the parking lot 1: "Who brought the yummy meatballs tonight?"
Overheard in the parking lot 2: "Wait... you met your wife in Amsterdam?"
Overheard in the parking lot 3: Something about blowjobs...the topic of the night...anyone there can pick thier favorite. Wonder why this always comes up in Milton.