When Team A outshoots Team B 25-11, the logical money is on Team A to win. The hedge is Team B to steal a win with a final score of something like 1-0 or 2-1. The moonshot/sucker bet would be taking Team B to rout/humiliate Team A 7-1. This hypothetical became all-too-real for Captain Bryan Ossa’s Pink in Week Five, as they played the very unfortunate role of ‘Team A’ to Captain Zach Siemer’s ‘Team B’. Captain Siemer put his team in front with his fourth of the season at 6:20 (Tyler Winstead), and Jon Zygelman made it 2-0 less than a minute later (Janice ‘The Better’ Darlington & Steve Linke). White improved their goals to shots-on-goal ratio from 2:4 in the first to 3:5 in the second, with a Steve Linke solo strike at 6:07, followed by a Zygelman solo effort at 2:34, and the Zygelman hat-trick-capper at 1:43 (Janice ‘The Better’ Darlington). White ONCE AGAIN improved their goals to shots-on-goal ration in the third, this time to 2:2, with another unassisted Linke goal at 9:09, and one last tally from White’s white-hot captain at 6:35 (Zygelman). Silas ‘The Silencer™’ Perks (24/25) was in peak Perks form, with his bid for a second shutout in four games spoiled only by a Mark DeGraffenreid slapper with 1:36 to play (Mostafa Azab). The laughably lopsided 7-1 win saw White more than double their goal scoring output through their first three games (from 6 to 13), and has them perched just below the only other undefeated team in the standings, Orange, as we arrive at the halfway point in the season. The humbling (and, frankly, deeply troubling) loss for Pink drops them to 2-2-0…still playoff safe, but clearly exposed, and nervous about potential repeats of this debacle.

As if our thirst for passionate, bitter rivalries weren’t already slaked by the two weeks of ‘Four Nations Face-Off’ hockey, Week Five saw the long-awaited birth of the best and biggest new SDFHL grudge match…Captain Jeremy Copp v Captain Hima Joshi. The two are (by all reports) still happily married, but they bravely (if ‘bravely’ is the word) decided to challenge that marital bliss this season by not only playing on separate teams, but CAPTAINING separate teams. Captain Copp’s Orange came in as the overwhelming favorite in this one, having dispatched their first three opponents with varying degrees of ease, thanks in large part to an absolutely clinical offensive front. Captain Joshi’s team struggled to 0-2-0 out of the gate, but came in on the heels of a rousing 4-3 come-from-behind win over Red in their previous game. While Orange was certainly favored to prevail, we all know how these frenzied feuds can play out…it’s usually anyone’s game. Christopher Fiore seemed to snuff out that fantastical notion immediately, sending a half court laser past Will Heinl just SEVEN seconds in to give Orange the lead before the scorekeeper had even clicked the pen (Justin Stege with the assist). Arnold Gonzales matched the defensive scoring at 7:25, drawing Black level with assists to Eric Willard and Captain Joshi herself. Owen Perks would give Orange back the lead at 5:26 (Gladstone), and unfortunately for Black, this was just Owen ‘getting it Perk-olatin‘™ on his way to another first star honor. As if Orange needed ‘secondary scoring’, Andrew Wong found the score sheet in the second with what is almost certainly the best goal of his SDFHL career. Actually, when you are comparing just TWO goals (yes, that is his career total), I suppose I better use ‘better goal’ to describe this gem. Wong (perhaps having undergone severance, and not realizing that his outie has always been a pass first, stay at home defender) went coast to coast and snapped a shot far side past Heinl to give Orange a 3-1 lead. Owen Perks notched his second of the game with just 0:38 remaining in the middle period, moving Orange into the third with a commanding 4-1 edge. Stege further sharpened that edge with his second of the season at 5:12 (Owen Perks), then Owen completed the hatty at 4:13, with the unselfish pass courtesy of brother Silas (please take note of this style of play, Mr. Wong). Black took the loss with a grain of Salt, with Jon’s late, no-angle net-finder making the final only a slightly-less-unsightly 6-2. Mason Holcomb (11/13) kept both his personal record and that of his team spotless at 4-0-0 with the steady stint, while Will Heinl (15/21) became the latest victim of ‘The Big Orange Machine™’. I followed up with the wedded warriors, and although Hima does owe Jeremy two more car washes and one ‘take Chef to the vet’, all reports are that this clash has not put them any closer to divorce. Now, if Black makes the playoffs…

The creamy middle of the Week Five schedule saw Captain Ryan Karns’ Flint Blue taking on Captain Chad Goins’ Red, with both teams looking to double their win total and improve their playoff footing heading into the midway point of the season. As coincidence would have it, both teams came in on the heels of a 4-3 win, and while Flint Blue (1-1-1) enjoyed a slightly better record than Red (1-2-0) at game start, that extra Flint Blue point came from some very late game heroics from Captain Karns himself in Week Two. So, after two blowout bouts to open the Sunday slate, this one certainly held parity potential. Captain Karns kept his hand hot, netting his third of the season unassisted at 5:09, and when Luke Wolmer doubled Flint Blue’s lead just forty seconds later (Dan Jurgens & Ryan Loughran), it looked like another Week Five washout was well underway. Jackson Tomaszewski stemmed the tide with his fifth of the season at 1:14 (Gordon Schmidt & Josh Tran), and a Tran tally with just 0:22 to go brought the balance all the way back going into the first break. Tran struck again at 7:22 in the second (Schmidt), catching him up to Tomaszewski for the team lead in goals at five, and giving Red their first lead of the game. Alas for Captain Goins & Company, that lead was very short-lived, as John Boddy leveled the ledger just 0:38 later (Karns & Loughran). Alack for Goins’ group…Wolmer wrested the lead back at 2:23 (Leah Gonzales), leaving Flint Blue up 4-3 heading into the final period of play. Boddy added insurance with his second of the game with 7:34 to play (Ryan Karns & Mark Nagy), and Jurgens put things out of reach for good just eleven seconds later (Maureen Ruchhoeft & Nagy). So, while the Week Five lights had finally shined upon a tight and competitive game through two, the 6-3 final in Flint Blue’s favor will go into the box score archives as a third straight laugher. It’s worth noting that Nick Meglich (26/29) was the busier of the two goalies, but stood strong and outdueled Jon Cima (12/18) to push his team into a cozy, playoff-poised position in the standings. Red will need to find their form in the coming weeks if they hope to join Karns’ crew comfortably north of the cut line, and with a 3-0-1 White up next, it will take some doing to get that done this Sunday.

Our cover team this week is (obviously) making the paper for all the wrong reasons, and at 0-3-0 coming in, Captain Razoky’s Green would need to will their way to a Week Five win, or find themselves (already) teetering on ‘must win out to make the playoffs’ territory. Captain Joel Gattey’s Lime had cobbled together a 0-1-2 record coming in, but with their lone loss coming to a stout Blue side, their first tie coming as the result of Captain Karns’ late game heroics in Week Two, and their second tie coming against the now 3-0-1 White, it was clear that those two points were well-earned and to be respected. Still, a win for Green would move them ahead of their color cousins, and provide the extra security of what might be an important head-to-head tie breaker come late March. Joe Malki put Lime on top at 4:56 in the first, with Captain Gattey providing the lone apple, but Captain Razoky’s second of the season brought Green even at 1:47 (Andrew Jacobsen). Not all goals hit the same, and a goal scored late in a period is always extra impactful. Joe ‘Mr. Impactful’™ Malki delivered just that for Lime, notching his second of the game with just 0:28 on the clock to give Lime back the lead going into the second. It was another late period goal…another late period Joe Malki goal…his hat-trick-capping fifth of the season coming with 1:15 to go in the middle frame to provide some padding for Lime just prior to the second period break. Jordan Pynn’s goal at 3:41 in the third (Sean Bathgate & Vance Morra) had this one sliding toward a fourth straight Week Five rout, but Eli Schonbrun (Brendan Jew) restored at least some measure of respect for Green in another losing effort, this time a 4-2 Lime squeeze. Matt Henderson (18/20) improved his personal record on the season to the proverbial ‘sample platter’ 1-1-1 with the win, while Chuck Bender (20/24) and Green now find themselves the only team without a point in the standings at the halfway point in the season. They will likely need to capture eight of the remaining ten points available in their schedule, and as cruel fate would have it, their first opponent is Captain Copp’s 4-0-0 juggernaut, Orange.

The final hope for a Week Five hand-wringer came in the nightcap, but with Captain Rob Gaudio’s Blue coming in at 3-0-0, and Captain Shawna Hamon’s Brown down at 0-3-0, the odds and the aura suggested another one-sided win would be in the making. To add further shine to Blue’s prospects for staying perfect, this game would serve as the grand finale for Kyle Snyder…easily one of the best players this league has ever seen. Snyder would no doubt want to go out in a blaze of glory, perhaps capping his career with another first-star-worthy performance in leading his team to a fourth win in as many tries. Kalen Hunter had other ideas, and those ideas began at 8:39 in the first, as he opened the scoring (from Weston Oakley and Jim LaGrossa) and…with apologies for the CAPS, but sometimes life warrants it…gave Brown their SECOND GOAL AND THEIR FIRST LEAD OF THE SEASON (!). I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge that this was Oakley’s first career SDFHL point…CONGRATULATIONS, WESTON! Hunter would strike again just seven…correction…SEVEN seconds later, with an unassisted effort, the logistics of which I am still trying to piece together. Just like that, the uber-underdogs had the upper hand, and seemed well on their way to a much needed win…perhaps even a lopsided win, since all the cool kids are doing that in Week Five. A scoreless first saw more strong play from Chris Tran in his sub stint for Sean Kelly, and Tran (20/20) would stick the landing on the clean sheet, besting long lost cousin, Don Tran (14/17), and keeping Snyder and the rest of Blue’s battalion at bay from start to finish. Hunter, meanwhile, became the fourth hat-trick-haver of the week, pushing Brown’s lead to three (Captain Hamon) to stay with 7:04 to play. The 3-0 win is beyond big for Brown, as it not only keeps them paced with the rest of the precarious playoff potential pack, but also provides some much-needed confidence heading into the second half of the season. That second half kicks off for Brown with a crucial showdown with standings neighbors, Black, while Captain Gaudio and Blue will look to fend off their sister shade (Flint), and get back on the winning track with Jason Remple joining the ranks to replace the departed Kyle Snyder. Kyle…we wish you all the best in your post-SDFHL life. You have been a pleasure to have in the league, your skills are inspirational (and devastating…won’t miss that) and you know who to reach out to for a Thursday night booking whenever you might be in town…

Captain Joel Gattey’s ‘Malkiwis’ came into Week Four play with the early season blues, having lost their opener to Blue (4-2), and having lost a third period lead to Flint Blue (4-4). The lone point was something, but still stung, and Lime was hungry to get their season on track with a first win against Captain Zach Siemer’s ‘Siegulls’. Probably (if not definitely) the last person a struggling team wants to see warming up between the pipes at the other end…Silas ‘The Silencer™’ Perks. Perks appeared to be in prime form in White’s first two outings, although the second of their two wins coming in was really more about an under-powered opponent (Brown mustered just six shots) than Perks’ trademark prowess. Lime would surely prove a bigger challenge for the studly shot stopper, and Captain Gattey’s crew was ready for the reciprocal challenge of finally pinning an L to his line, and earning their first W in the process. A scoreless first saw Lime on the front foot, outshooting White 6-3, and while the shot trend continued in the second (13-7 in Lime’s favor), it was White’s Steve Linke who would be the first to find twine (3:36 from Jon Zygelman). The shot total was extremely lopsided in the final frame, with Lime racking up ten to White’s ONE, but per usual, The Silencer™ was stealing the show, and had White primed to steal two points. Joe Malki finally broke through for Lime with just 1:25 to play (Jordan Pynn), salvaging another precious, but painfully-difficult-to-procure point for Captain Gattey’s still-winless side. Perks (28/29) was the obvious choice for first star in this one, while a nearly-one-third-as-busy Matt Henderson (10/11) was relieved that his personal record was spared a second loss in as many tries. The 1-1 tie is exactly the kind of score that SDFHL oddsmakers would have predicted for just about any game involving White this season, but Captain Siemer and his crew are having the first laugh (at the very least) now at 2-0-1. Lime sit just above the cutline now at 0-1-2, and will have to hope that their streak of tough luck comes to an end against Captain Alan Razoky’s 0-3-0 Green when league action resumes on February 16th.

My personal assessment of teams, be it fresh off the draft, or after a week or two of live play, is typically not so great, but having seen Captain Jeremy Copp’s Orange play twice (once as a referee, and once as their opponent), and having two eyes, a Flint Blue roster, and at least a loose sense of SDFHL player skill levels, I had the two teams in the second game of Week Four pegged as two of the best. At the very least, I figured this game would prove/disprove my theory about their respective Cup contender statuses, and/or would be a good early season ‘measuring stick’ for the two sides. Owen Perks put Orange up at 3:37 in the first with his fifth on the young season (from Brother Silas™ and Matt DeBerry), but Captain Karns answered at 2:18 (Dan Jurgens) to keep things knotted through one. It’s worth noting the Flint Blue managed to keep both the score even and the shot count close (7-8, in Orange’s favor) in spite of killing two overlapping penalties which gave Orange forty-eight seconds of five on three play. The shot count was dead even (five apiece) in the second, but Chris Fiore was the only player to make a shot count, putting Orange back in front at 6:21 (Silas Perks & Shelby Shattuck). The third period saw the teams trading punches, but with something of a quirky twist thrown in, for good measure. Matt DeBerry shored up his second star honors with his first of the season to put Orange up 3-1 (Silas Perks), and not long after John Boddy responded for Flint Blue to cut the lead back to one at 3:37 (Ryan Loughran & Jurgens), Captain Karns’ & Company were forced to pull their goalie to push for the tie. Silas Perks found the empty net to ‘ice’ the game…but Boddy struck again with 0:29 on the clock (Luke Wolmer), leaving the outcome of the game in question to the final buzzer. Mason Holcomb (16/19) and Orange would hold on for the 4-3 win, with the Silas Perks owning the very rare stat of ’empty-net game-winning goal’. Nick Meglich (14/17) was certainly solid in the losing effort, and again, boasts the very rare distinction of posting the losing line that actually matches the goals-allowed of his winning counterpart…bizarre! So, while my acumen may not always be accurate, and in spite of their dissimilar records through the first third of the season, I am standing by my contention that both of these teams are top Cup contenders. I for one am anxious for the playoff rematch, if nothing else…

It is no surprise that the two total goals scored for Captain Hima Joshi’s ‘Zero Dark Birdy’ in their first two outings translated into an 0-2-0 season start. What is surprising is that this was NOT the lowest goals-for total in the league…a distinction that did (and still does) belong to Captain Shawna Hamon’s Brown, who have managed just ONE goal through now three full games. Captain Chad Goins’ ‘Chadinals’, by contrast, had racked up a respectable seven goals in their first two weeks of play — three in utter vain in a 7-3 opening week boat race loss to Pink, but two of their four in a 4-3 win over Green coming in a rousing rally with just 1:09 left to play. Black had a ‘strength of schedule’ argument in their favor coming in, having played Blue (now 3-0-0) and White (now 2-0-1), and the chance to play a team with a few weak spots and a loss on the books was a welcome relief. Jon Salt converted that relief into pure confidence for Black, breaking the scoring seal at 9:20 in the first with his second of the season (Eric Willard), but Josh Tran responded for Red at 7:30 (William Teglia), locking the teams in early to what looked destined to be a high-scoring dog fight. Eric Willard put Black back on top with a solo effort at 4:35, and the dead even shot count in the first (8-8) seemed to indicate that we would, at the very least, likely be in for a close contest in this one from start to finish. Brennen Abel equalized for Red with 1:45 remaining in the second (Teglia), and just when it looked like things would remain tied going into the third, a super strange/fluky/unintended ricochet goal found the netting behind Will Heinl to make it 3-2 in Red’s favor with just ten ticks left before the second intermission (credit on the goal going to an unsuspecting Jackson Tomaszewski). It was more early period punch from Jon Salt in the third, with the sublime sniper lacing home an unassisted strike to bring Black level at 9:31, then Salt once again to complete the hat trick at 3:37 and finally wrest the lead back for Black, 4-3. Heinl (21/24) would make that 4-3 score hold up for a Black win, their first of the season, and the first of his SDFHL starting goaltender career. CONGRATULATIONS, WILL! Chuck Bender (13/17) absorbed the loss in Jon Cima’s stead – it would be his first of THREE games played on the night…we all owe this man a big thank you for his selfless devotion to the league!

If you can’t beat ’em (on the court), at least put the smack down in the ‘best team name’ competition. Captain Shawna Hamon’s Brown certainly ‘can’t beat ’em’ so far this season, with just one goal-for coming into their match with Captain Bryan Ossa’s Pink, but when the veteran captain dropped ‘Turds Of A Feather’ on my desk last Sunday afternoon, I knew her team would have at least one ‘big win’ this season. Frankly, this season’s crop of names are not exactly tough to beat, but this moniker (apparently owing its birth to one Greg Francisco), coupled with the team motto/chant of ‘stink together’…*chef’s kiss*. At the risk of appearing biased, the team with the second best name this season was Captain Ossa’s pride and joy, the ‘FlamingOssas’. By the starkest of contrasts, Ossa’s club had amassed THIRTEEN goals in their first two games, seven in a win over Red, and six in a one-goal loss to Orange. Spoiler alert…the contrast between these two teams’ offensive output get much starker in Week Four. The return of Andy Strathman and Kalen Hunter to Brown’s lineup, and a very-much-on-form Sean Kelly made for a scoreless stalemate through the first period and a half of play, with Pink having nothing to show for their very convincing edge in shots (23-6, through the first two periods). Josh Wirt would finally break the seal at 5:33 in the second (Carl Vankoughnett), and Vankoughnett followed with one of his own at 3:32 (Pat Gladstone & Wirt), just twenty ticks before Wirt struck again (Sadie Hellstrom) to put Pink up 3-0 in three blinks of an eye. The initial scoring spate left the floodgates ajar, and four more goals in the third would burst them wide open and flush Brown down to another humbling loss…Carl Vankoughnett from Elyse Shattuck and Wirt at 6:33, Wirt from Hellstrom and Vankoughnett at 6:13, Wirt from Mostafa Azab and Mark DeGraffenreid at 3:08, and Will Heinl from Vankoughnett at 0:39. The 4 and 2 effort from Wirt and 2 and 3 line for Vankoughnett has the duo sitting at one and (tied for) two in the scoring race, while Pink’s team total TWENTY goals through three games is certainly an eyebrow-raiser for future opponents. Chuck Bender (11/11) kept Brown’s season goal total at ONE with a shutout in his second sub stint of the night, while the 7-0 Pink win somehow made a very sharp Sean Kelly (27/34) look rather pedestrian. Needless to say, ‘Turds Of A Feather’ will need to find their scoring touch in short order, starting with their Week Five showdown with Captain Rob Gaudio’s undefeated ‘Blue Jays’ (quite possibly dead last in the team name race, if it is any further consolation to Captain Hamon). A loss, let alone another shutout loss, will go a long way to assuring that Brown ‘stink together’ all the way to the playoff scrapheap.

Another SDFHL Sunday, another blue-green clash on the slate. Captain Rob Gaudio’s Blue opened the season with a 4-2 win over Lime, and Lime would go on to suffer a heartbreaking 4-4 tie at the hands of Flint Blue in Week Two. Rains washed out what would have been a break from the blue on green crime, but Week Four brought the color rivalry back into focus with Captain Razoky’s Green hoping to find their first win of the season against Gaudio’s undefeated flock. While this game marked the end of just the first third of the regular season, another loss for Razoky & Company would certainly have them in a deep hole. Conversely, a third win to open the season would have Blue already in striking distance of the typical eight team playoff watermark of nine points. Captain Gaudio put his team out front first at 3:09 in the first, converting a Tony Thinh pass into paydirt, and Kyle Snyder doubled that lead with an unassisted end-to-end rush with just ten ticks remaining in the opening period (always a back-breaker). Green rallied in the second, flipping the lopsided shot count (11-5 in Blue’s favor in the first…then 13-3 in Green’s favor in the second) and finally cashing in against Don Tran to cut the lead to one. I never thought I’d see the day my fingers would type the words ‘we had an Andrew Jacobsen sighting’…as the perennial super star sniper finally registered his first of goal (and point) of the season at 1:22 in the second (Jason Northrup)…a good indication of why/how this team has struggled to this point in the proceedings. Blue’s one goal edge would hold strong over the ensuing ten minutes of play, and Ralph Feuer would deposit an insurance marker with just 0:23 remaining (Trevor Vick). I checked…this was NOT an empty-netter…just a very late goal to make the final score 3-1, Blue over Green. The result sees ‘the rich’ (Blue) getting richer, while ‘the poor’ (Green) see their playoff prospects get poorer, but (as noted in the headline blurb) Blue will be losing their first round stud, Kyle Snyder, after their Week Five match with Brown (talk about ‘poor’). It remains to be seen whether the Board will find a replacement for Snyder that comes anywhere close to his level of skill and scoring prowess, but Captain Gaudio’s team can take solace in the fact that they are already a near lock for the playoffs at this point.

Most SDFHL pundits pulled no punches when picking over the results of Captain Zach Siemer’s 2025 Wing League draft. Even the staunchest proponent of the ‘defense wins championships’ ideology squirmed a bit at the VERY backend heavy nature of White’s lineup, but a 1-0 win counts as much as a 5-2 win, and Siemer’s strategy was clearly to count on a steady diet of those tight, low-scoring wins this season. The aforementioned pundits (and perhaps even Siemer himself) were not counting on a breakout performance from Janice Darlington in their season opener, a 3-1 win over Black, but the lone goal against (and the winning result) was a sign that Siemer’s scheme might just rebuff all of the post draft scrutiny, after all. Captain Shawna Hamon’s Brown limped into Week Two licking their wounds from a 6-1 licking at the hands of budding offensive juggernaut, Orange. Still without the services of Kalen Hunter and Andy Strathman, but now also bereft of the presence of steady secondary scorer, Kevin ‘The Deputy’ Dinino, and super stud savemaster, Sean ‘Da Kid’ Kelly, things would not prove any easier for Hamon & Company on this day. Chris Tran was nothing short of spectacular for Brown in a fill-in stint for Kelly, but even spectacular has its limitations. A scoreless first saw Tran stop FIFTEEN shots, while Brown mustered ZERO the other way (!). Captain Seimer finally broke the scoring seal in the second with his second of the season at 4:51 (Jon Zygelman), and Silas Perks’ sleepy session at the other end was tested by just four Brown shots, including a rare penalty shot (a failed Weston Oakley attempt). Siemer would cash in again at 3:13 in the third, leaving Tran’s 36/38 effort completely wasted in Brown’s 2-0 loss. While Perks (6/6) was barely needed in this one, it is perhaps worth noting that even a massive, lopsided shot total in White’s favor (38-6) was JUST enough to earn them a win. It will be interesting to see how White hold up against some of the heavier hitting offenses in the league, including Silas’ ‘other team’, Orange.

Both Captain Jeremy Copp’s Orange and Captain Bryan Ossa’s Pink blasted past their Week One opponents with considerable ease, dropping six and seven goals on Brown and Red, respectively. While it is easy to overreact to early season results, I for one (as one of the referees in their debut) was convinced immediately that Orange was an incredibly well-oiled scoring machine straight out of the box. I was no less impressed with Pink’s output, but I had Ossa & Company as underdogs coming into what one might rightly have assumed would be a slugfest for the ages. It definitely was that…one of those games with very little white space left on the score sheet, and one of those games that force me into a rapid fire/lots-of-commas style recap. It was nearly all Orange in a five goal first, with Owen Perks opening the scoring at 4:56 (Aaron Cooney & Silas Perks), then Cooney making it 2-0 with a solo effort just nineteen seconds later, then Owen Perks making it 3-0 just thirty-eight seconds later. Josh Wirt finally answered for a reeling Pink side at 2:31 (Captain Ossa), but Justin Stege restored the three goal edge for Orange at 0:25 (Owen Perks). Pink staged a swift comeback in the second, with Pat Gladstone cutting the lead back to two at 9:23 (Carl Vankoughnett & Mostafa Azab), Vankoughnett notching his first of the game at 8:52 to cut the lead to one (Ossa & Wirt), then his second of the game at 6:44 to draw Pink level (Gladstone & Wirt). The euphoria on the Pink bench after the inspired surge quickly faded, with Orange’s first line taking full advantage of Pink’s second line to convert two quick goals and completely arrest and reverse the momentum in this one…Owen Perks at 6:28 (Cooney & Christopher Fiore), and Cooney at 5:43 (Silas Perks & Owen Perks). Orange padded their lead back to three at 8:05 in the third (Owen Perks from Cooney and Janice ‘The Better’ Darlington), and as the clock wound past the halfway point of the final frame, it seemed pretty clear who would win the big ‘slugfest’. Pink issued a collective ‘not so fast’, with Vankoughnett completing his hat trick at 3:19 (Ossa & Wirt), then Mark DeGraffenreid firing home his first of the season at 1:25 (Azab) to keep things VERY interesting going into the final minute of play. Alas, in spite of a strong press and a number of golden opportunities, Pink’s latest gasp would prove their last in a wacky, wild, Kool-Aid style 7-6 loss to Orange. I try to always include goalie stat lines in these recaps, and while I am sure neither netminder is dying to relive this one, Mason Holcomb (17/23) can at least console himself with the W, while Michael Haine (10/17) will have to hope for a better outing, and a better outcome next time.

Captain Rob Gaudio’s Blue looked to keep pace with the lead pack in the standings with a second win in as many tries, while Captain Hima Joshi’s Black hoped to even their record and move away from the dreaded cutline in a Week Two ‘crossroads’ clash. It can hardly be considered a surprise that the first period bled by with no score, considering the teams combined for FOUR shots on goal, but things picked up in a second period that saw Black outshoot Blue 10-2. Steve Pugliese put Black in front first at 7:55 (Rob LaVigne), but Tony Thinh made one of those two Blue shots count, evening the score at 2:49 (Tim Vick). The shot count flipped back in Blue’s favor again in the third, likely owing to a pair of Pugliese penalties that also led to one Kyle Snyder powerplay strike (6:51, unassisted), then a second (4:57, from Captain Gaudio). Trevor Vick added empty net insurance with five ticks to play (Synder), sealing the 4-1 win for Blue, and dropping Black into the cut line pit with the other two point-free sides, Brown and Green. The shot totals ended up being pretty even in this one, with Don Tran (13/14) besting Will Heinl (10/13)…the lesson is ‘do not give Kyle Snyder four powerplay opportunities in an otherwise close game’. Gaudio & Company will look to stay perfect in a matchup with Captain Razoky’s 0-2-0 Green, while Captain Joshi’s Black brood will look to start their climb to playoff safety against a 1-1-0 Red this Sunday.

The Week Two SDFHL slate saved the best for last, with two hotly contested matches (both featuring dramatic last minute twists) serving as a delicious denouement. First up, it was Captain Chad Goins’ Red facing off against Captain Alan Razoky’s Green. The two captains were taking turns kissing the Cup with last season’s champion Orange just a month or so prior, but now stood in opposition, both looking to capture their first win (or, at least, first point) of the season. Dorothy Kline (apparently) grabbed the ‘Girl Power’ baton from Week One heroines, Janice Darlington and Maureen Ruchhoeft, putting Green up 1-0 with an unassisted strike at 6:57 in the first, then restoring Green’s one goal lead at 5:02 in the second period (Eli Schonbrun & Trice Harvey), after a Jackson Tomaszewski tally at 5:13 had Red oh-so-temporarily tied (Josh Tran & Janet Goins). Schonbrun would make it 3-1 Green at 3:51 in the second (Brendan Jew), and Captain Razoky’s ‘Parrot Heads’ looked primed for paydirt, up two heading into the third. That third period would be ‘The Josh & Joe Show’™, though, as Red’s Josh Tran halved Green’s advantage at 5:56 (Greg Wirth), then Joe Nguyen knotted the score at three apiece with a solo strike with just 1:09 to play! Just as the buzz on both benches was dying down from this dramatic late swing…boom…JT again with the game-winner at 0:58! Eleven seconds, two goals, and this game swung from a 3-2 Green win to a 4-3 Green loss…incredible. Jon Cima (11/14) reaped the benefits of the last minute flip flop, while Chuck Bender (18/22) could only hang his head and tip his cap to Josh, Joe, and most of his mates from the previous season for pulling out the gritty, gut punch win.

As advertised in the recap above, the Week Two nightcap was another tight, thrilling match with a delightful (depending on who you’re asking, of course) twist ending. Captain Ryan Karns’ Flint Blue prevailed over Green with relative ease in Week One (5-2), and they hoped to complete the ‘shades of green’ sweep to start their season, while Captain Joel Gattey’s Lime hoped to shut down that fun little couplet coup and rebound from their opening week loss to, fittingly, ‘the other blue’. Dan Jurgens put Karns & Company in front first at 6:34 in the first (Erin Plone & Captain Karns), but Vance Morra (the man just does not stop scoring) equalized for Lime at 4:21 (Joe Malki & TK Mason) to leave the teams even going into the middle ten. In spite of the even shot count (5-5), that middle ten was dominated by Lime, who somehow managed to score on 60% of their shots. Joe Malki restored Lime’s lead at 9:37 (Jerry Gonzales & Vance Morra), but Luke Wolmer brought Flint Blue back level on the powerplay at 6:32 (Jurgens & Plone). It was another J, this time Captain Joel Gattey, putting Lime back on top at 4:44 (Joe Malki & Morra), and yet another J, this time Jordan Pynn, giving Lime their first two goal edge at 2:42 (Chris Malki & Joe Malki). Mark Nagy brough Flint Blue back to within one at 8:44 in the third (Wolmer), but in spite of the lopsided shot count in their favor (22-11, at game’s end), it was beginning to look like Lime would steal a win based on that pesky, all-important ‘how many actually went in’ bit. The clock wound down toward the final minute of play, when Flint Blue did finally actually put one more in…it was Captain Karns himself at 1:07 (Jurgens), snatching a point from the jaws of defeat, and keeping Lime out of the win column in stunning fashion. The 4-4 tie felt (I’m sure) like a victory for a returning Nick Meglich (7/11), while Will Heinl (18/22) can hold his head high after holding on to a winning line for as long as he could in Matt Henderson’s stead. Lime, while frustrated with the non-win, should consider themselves grateful that superstar John Boddy was out of the lineup for Flint Blue in this one…he may well have added an ‘N’ to the front of that ‘one point’ they earned in his absence.

The Wing League 2025 season cracked open with a battle of birds of similar plumage. Captain Chad Goins was still flying high after a convincing Cup run the previous season, and with most of the same players carrying over (Abel, Tomaszewski, Schmidt, Palomo Schmidt, and of course Teglia and the Goinseses), Red had right and reason to crow confidently coming into a match with Captain Bryan Ossa’s Pink. The ‘FlamingOssas’, while ‘strong on paper’ were in the proving position, but appeared loose and ready for their opener, anxious to debut their ‘stand on one leg goal celebration’™. While said celebration certainly needs some work, Pink were able to practice it bright and early in this one, with Josh Wirt poking home his own rebound to put Pink on top (Mark DeGraffenreid & Sadie Hellstrom). Carl Vankoughnett provided a second opportunity to practice the pose, striking at 4:53 (DeGraffenreid & Mostafa Azab) to double the lead and send a surge of confidence through the Pink bench. That confidence ebbed a bit after 2024 Fall League Final MVP, Jackson Tomaszewski, broke loose on a counter attack and deposited Red’s first response past rookie netminder, Michael Haine. Vankoughnett would restore Pink’s two goal edge at 8:04 in the second (Azab & Captain Ossa), but Tomaszewski was there again to cut it back to one at 2:25 (Josh Tran & Brennen Abel). Late period goals are notorious momentum shifters, and Wirt’s second of the game with just 0:19 remaining would prove no exception (Azab). The late second period strike set off a chain of three Pink goals within the first three minutes of the third…Wirt unassisted…Wirt from Vankoughnett and Pat Gladstone…Gladstone from DeGraffenreid. Steph Palomo Schmidt lodged the only response to this flamingo flurry, converting at 5:36 on the power play (Abel & Tomaszewski) to save some grace and face in an otherwise lopsided 7-3 win for Pink. Jon Cima (10/17) will hope for better from himself and his teammates over the remainder of the season, while Michael Haine (20/23) was steady in victory in his SDFHL debut.

I have always ‘teased’ Tom and Janice that the latter is ‘the better Darlington’, but even the laziest/most biased fact checker in the world would have no choice but to crown Tom’s better half the best player in the match between Captain Zach Siemer’s White and Captain Hima Joshi’s Black. The Associated SDFHL Press (me) went a step further, crowning JD the queen of Week One…and making it a point to ‘tease’ Tom about her prowess after each point she posted. The first such point was the opening goal at 6:40 in the first (Captain Siemer & Steve Linke), and the second was her second of the game less than two minutes later (4:42 from Seimer and Jon Zygelman). Captain Siemer himself would build White’s advantage to three at 2:08 (from Santora, and…yes…Janice ‘The Better’ Darlington), and we all know the odds of rallying from a 0-3 hole with Silas Perks minding the opposing team’s nets. Jon Salt did blast one past Perks with 1:35 to play in the first (Eric Willard & Evan Melcher), but that would be the last ripple of the netting behind ‘The Silencer’™ in this one. Actually, it would be the last goal for either side, as both super sub, Mason Holcomb (12/15) and Perks (19/20) kept clean slates through the remaining twenty to preserve the 3-1 score line, White over Black. While I don’t keep a log, I am guessing this is a first POTW honor for Janice…a very deserving one, and obviously an encouraging sign for a team that is loaded defensively, and somewhat lacking (on paper) offensively. Captain Joshi, meanwhile, will have to hope that the return of Geoff Downes, Wendy Enright, and goalie Will Heinl will produce better results against Blue in Week Two.

Sometimes a loss, and sometimes even a win in sports ‘isn’t pretty’, but Captain Shawna Hamon has guaranteed that none of her team’s games this season will be pretty with the selection of perhaps the most repulsive shirt color to ever (dis)grace our beloved rink. Ugly shirts don’t mean ugly play, per se, and Hamon & Company acquitted themselves rather well through two periods of play, in spite of being rather…grossly outplayed. The combination of Owen Perks, his free-from-the-goalie-gear bother, Silas, and Aaron Cooney was nothing short of a tall, swift, smart, super skilled machine. Mix in a very solid defensive corps with booming point shots (particularly Chris Fiore and Shelby Shattuck), and it is a wonder that Brown held things down as long as they did. When I say ‘wonder’, I mean none other than Sean ‘Da Kid’ Kelly. Kelly was an absolute beast throughout in this one, but the Orange machine pounded two goals past him in a furious, frenetic first. Both of those goals belonged to Silas Perks, with the first assisted by Shelby Shattuck and Owen Perks, and the second by…Owen Perks and Shelby Shattuck. When Brown’s Jim LaGrossa struck for the only goal in the second, it was beginning to look like Da Kid might steal a point (or maybe two) for Captain Hamon’s crew. Alas, that’s when things got ‘ugly’. Orange’s swirling, swarming offensive presence led to one Aaron Cooney goal at 7:55 (Owen Perks & Maureen Ruchhoeft), then a second Cooney goal at 6:46 (Owen Perks & Silas Perks), then (on theme with this recap) the prettiest goal that Captain Jeremy Copp has ever scored (Ruchhoeft) at 6:11, then one final coffin nail from the birthday girl…Ruchhoeft from Owen Perks & Justin Stege at 5:20. When the dust from the four-goals-in-3:35 flurry had settled, Orange had smashed past Brown by a 6-1 total, with Owen Perks collecting FIVE assists, brother Silas recording 2 and 1, and big 6-0 celebrant, Maureen Ruchhoeft, feeling the birthday vibes with a 1 and 2 outing. So…not a pretty night for Brown, but they can take some solace in an incredible performance from Sean Kelly (maybe the best performance in a five goal loss I have ever seen), and the fact that the likes of Andy Strathman and Kalen Hunter were not in the lineup for this one. Orange is definitely looking pretty…pretty…pretty good, having served notice with just one game that they are (at least, in my opinion) a strong Cup contender.

The late slate pair of games featured shades of blue taking on shades of green. The first pairing, featuring Captain Rob Gaudio’s (Royal) Blue and Captain Joel Gattey’s (Lime) Green was an intriguing one, in that the teams appeared (to me, anyway) to be very even/similarly constructed ‘on paper’. With all Lime players present and accounted for, and Blue missing only the new (and apparently slightly confused) Argentine field hockey transplant, Maive Cantarella, this match would serve as a good early test for both ‘on paper’ teams to see how they would fare ‘on court’ this season. The first period saw no scoring, and very few shots (just six, combined), but the teams really began to engage in the second, with a Kyle Snyder solo effort at 8:35 breaking the scoring seal, and a second Snyder snipe at 7:29 (from ironwomen, Dorothy Kline) pushing Blue’s lead to 2-0 in just over a one minute span. Vance Morra continued where he left off in a breakout Fall 2024 campaign, responding for Lime at 5:34 (Jerry Gonzales & Captain Gattey), but Jason Lee restored the two goal edge for Blue at 3:04 (Trevor Vick & Kyle Snyder). The third period saw twenty combined shots, exactly as many as the other two periods combined, but the score remain unchanged into the late going. Chris Malki finally found a way to bring Lime to within one (Gonzales & Gattey) and the comeback was ON…but quickly OFF, as Snyder completed his hat trick with 1:07 to play (Lee), sealing the 4-2 win over Lime for Blue, and making clear who the most important ‘on paper’ and ‘on court’ name was in this one. Veteran Don Tran (20/22) was steady as ever in nets in the win, while Matt Henderson (14/18) had to resign himself to ‘getting Snydered’ in his season debut for Lime.

It was ‘different shade of blue and green, same result’ in the nightcap, as Captain Ryan Karns (Flint) Blue took on Captain Alan Razoky’s (Kelly) Green. While both of these teams have their share of offensive weapons, I was double and triple taking while typing up this box score, just shocked at the draft haul that Captain Karns managed. That is not to diminish Captain Razoky’s squad, but I feel like Vegas would have had Flint Blue as the favorites in this one, and they may well have them as Cup favorites before long. Erin Plone took the ‘girl power’ torch from Ruchhoeft and ‘The Better’ Darlington, cashing in at 5:45 to put Flint Blue on the board first (Dan Jurgens & John Boddy), but Captain Razoky equalized on the powerplay less than two minutes later (Eli Schonbrun) to leave things level going into the second. That loaded Flint Blue lineup unloaded in the second, with a new goal scorer each time. Boddy put Flint Blue back in front at 8:06 (Ryan Loughran & Jurgens), Ramsey Ksar padded the lead at 6:50 (Luke Wolmer & Mark Scelfo), and — after Brendan Jew brought Green back to within one at 6:29 (Schonbrun & Trice Harvey) — Dan Jurgens restored the two goal edge at 3:46 (Mark Nagy). The third period was quiet…too quiet for a Green comeback, with the lone goal coming courtesy of Luke Wolmer at 7:49 (Ksar & Leah Gonzales)…the fifth unique goal scorer for Flint Blue in a 5-2 victory. Chuck Bender (18/23) was twice as busy in the loss as Don Tran (9/11) was in a fill-in win for the absent Nick Meglich, but the real story for me in this one is the thick, diverse Flint Blue attack. It’s a one game sample size, but I don’t envy Lime in the late game this Sunday…