Matt Henderson turned away all eighteen shots he faced, while Sean Kelly was left holding a particularly prickly L, as Black continued their improbable and impressive run to the Fall League Final. Jordan Pynn (who else) scored the game’s first goal, and game-winner late in the second period, and Dan Jurgens tucked home some insurance after catching Kelly halfway to the bench for an extra attacker. The 2-0 win is the most drama-free Black have managed, but manage they have…all the way to the promised land. They will rest this week, and await the last team standing in the Losers’ Bracket on February 9th. Tie Dye will look to capitalize on tired legs when facing either Pink or Orange in the second game of a double header this Sunday.

The middle game on the slate was anything but drama-free, as Orange alone racked up twenty five minutes of penalties (in a thirty minute game), with both teams scraping and scrapping for their playoff lives. Unfortunately for Captain Brett Cohen, his own injury, and the absence of key players, Justin Stege and Jerry Gonzales, would prove too much to overcome, in spite of the preponderance of power play time. London Peters accounted for four PIMs, but also a goal and an assist for Orange in the 2-1 win, including the primary assist on Bill Casey’s OT winner (scored, ironically, on Orange’s only power play of the night). The goal of the night (possibly the season) though, belong to Stephanie Chen, who roofed a nifty Dorothy Kline pass to knot the score at 1-1 late in the first. That sparkler is little consolation for Maroon, whose playoff flame is now extinguished. Orange remain alive, but face a tough test in Pink this Sunday. Should they prevail, they would still need to slip past Tie Dye to make it back to face Black.

More drama in the late game, with plenty of penalties, and not so many pleasantries flying about. Red was on the ropes early, after Pink poked home two points on the board in the first period (Tim Vick and John Gamm). Gamm came calling again in the second to pump the lead to 3-0, and Captain Chad Goins added a goal to his earlier assist to put things out of reach for good on the power play early in the third. It was a strange season arc to say the least for Red. After breezing through the regular season, hitting just one small snag in their final game, they managed just a 2-1 win over Green before bowing out of the playoffs with back to back losses to Tie Dye and Pink. The 4-0 win for Pink featured (naturally) a shutout for (the white hot…and pretty good at hockey, too 😉 ) Tiffany Fox (18/18), and two assist output from both Glenn Pinto and Mostafa Azab. All of this from Pink without first round sniper, Kris Tosczak in the line-up…this is why we play the games.

Our second week of playoffs kicked off with an elimination bout between #4 Orange, and #8 Green.  Green rode their 1-0 Week Nine win over Orange into the playoffs, and looked to repeat the feat to stay alive after a tough loss to top seeded Red to open their playoff campaign.  Things looked promising early for Captain Nick Vacchio’s group, as Josh Wirt delivered a breakaway counter attach goal in the first minute of play to put the underdogs on top.  Gary Peters leveled the ledger minutes later, and second period strikes from Captain Kevin Dinino and Bill Casey had Orange up 3-1.  Jason Remple brought the tension back later in the second, closing the gap to 3-2.  A Gary Peters retaliation penalty late in the third made for a thrilling finish, especially with Orange unable to finish several empty net chances.  Time would ultimately run out for Green, who became the first playoff casualty with the loss.  Orange’s trademark habit of outshooting opponents held true again in the 3-2 win, as they nearly doubled their opponent’s output.  Melissa Busby could not find the sequel to her sparkling regular season effort against Orange, but certainly gave her team a chance to win, stopping 21/24.  Zach Siemer’s first career playoff win in nets came on an 11/13 effort, strong enough to propel Orange on to a Week Three match with the two seed, Maroon.

Timing is everything in hockey, as in life.  Jordan Pynn’s last minute game-winner put Black in, and Purple out of the playoff picture, and it was the only loss on the entire season for Red.  Meanwhile, Tie Dye had scraped and scuffled through the first four games of the regular season (0-3-1), only to find their stride in the latter half (3-1-1) to make the middle of the playoff pack.  Harsh Wanigaratne’s (literal) last second timing sent Orange to the Loser’s Bracket, and moved Captain Joe Malki’s team on to a showdown with the aforementioned Red.  Connor Miller struck once in the first, and once in the second to put the top seeds out front 2-0, but the lone remaining period would prove ample time for Tie Dye (who have proven they need mere seconds).  Chris Malki cut the Red lead in half, then assisted on son Joe’s game-tying tally.  It was Joe again to give Tie Dye the lead, and Kamal Gill providing insurance on the power play to complete the surge from down and out to up and on for Tie Dye, 4-2 over Red.  It was the first time in ten previous games that Captain Nick Adkins (26/30) allowed more than two goals in a game, and even that only happened twice.  Again, timing is everything, and Red was bested at the worst time…the playoffs.  Sean Kelly’s 15/17 was enough to hold the fort, and the third period onslaught has Tie Dye charging on to the Winner’s Bracket finals to face Black.  Red still has time to recover, and you can be sure they will not be an easy out from here on out.  Their first test on the other side of the bracket comes in the form of #3 Pink.

Speaking of Pink, Dale Stuzka twice tickled the twine with the game on the line, opening and closing the shootout scoring, and closing the door on White’s season.  Regulation ended in a 1-1 tie, as Eric Caligiuri’s late first period goal for White was matched by John Gamm’s equally late third period goal to crush White’s spirit and send this one to OT.  Pink’s PK had to go to work in that extra session after Kris Tosczak was sent off for a high-stick.  Both goalies stood tall, with Tiffany Fox stopping 17/18 for Pink, and Christian LeClair deflecting 13/14 at the other end.  Captain Chad Goins made the right call, and a bold one, at that, slotting the veteran Stuzka at the top of the shootout order.  Dale delivered, and after the next eight shooters failed in turn, it looked like it might be all that was needed.  Andrew Wong provided one last burst of heroics for White, who were without Captain Mark Ennsmann, but Stuzka repeated the feat in the second round, and Brian Sheptycki was denied anew by Fox to seal the deal.  White join Green on the scrapheap, while Pink advance from the frying pan to the fire with the 2-1 shootout win, which has earned them a meeting with Red in the late game this Sunday. 

The evening closed with a back and forth affair the ultimately pushed Black forth to the Winner’s Bracket Final.  Dan Jurgens’ power play marker for Black in the first was equalized almost exactly a minute later by Maroon’s Eric Willard.  The lone second period strike belonged to Black’s Mark Nagy, and an early third period Jordan Pynn goal gave Black a 3-1 edge.  Jon Zygelman cashed in on the power play with 0:25 to play, because all of this season’s playoff games MUST have wire to wire drama.  Pynn put an end to the tension with an empty-netter, his second of the night, fourth of the playoffs, and sixth in his last three games.  In fact, Nagy’s and Jurgens’ goals in this 4-2 win are the only non-Pynn goals for Black since Jim LaGrossa’s Week Eight tally in a 2-1 loss to Pink.  Chuck Bender absorbed his first playoff loss with an 11/13 line, while Tiffany Fox was fine and dandy in a fill-in role for Matt Henderson, stopping 17/19 at the other end.  Black has certainly caught fire at the right time, and if the non-Pynn scoring continues into their Week Three match with Tie Dye, the six seeds could certainly find themselves in the Final catbird seat.  Maroon remains alive, and will look to stay that way by repeating the 3-2 regular season defeating of Orange.       

A tight, thrilling opening night of playoff action kicked off with Kaptain Kayleigh’s Cinderella squad arriving in their shiny glass slippers to face Captain Chad’s three seed side.  You’ll recall, Black made the playoffs with a shocker in (literally) the final minute of the regular season, with Jordan Pynn snapping home the game-winner at 0:55 to send his team on, and send Purple packing.  Well, this one came down to the final minute, as well, and (spoiler alert) it was Pynn for the win once again.  Tim Vick had Pink on the board first, converting on the power play late in the second.  Jordan Pynn equalized around the midway point in the final frame, but Matt Henderson (18/19) and Tiffany Fox (15/17) stood tall through the rest of regulation and…almost all the way through OT.  After a controversial no-goal decision late in OT stung Black, erasing what would have been a Jim LaGrossa from Jordan Pynn winning strike, the same duo teamed up, but switched roles seconds later, as Pynn cashed in on a feed from LaGrossa to end it at 0:26..2-1 Black over Pink.  Can this trend continue for Black, or have they tempted fate to the limits at this point?  The next test comes in the form of the second seed, Maroon, whom Black bested 4-2 back in Week 3 (without Pynn and Trevor Marsolini in the lineup!).  Will Pink survive to see playoff Week Three?  They will look to avenge a 4-0 Tosczak-less loss to White that they suffered back in Week Nine.

Maroon and White took things to OT and beyond in the second match of the night.  Chuck Bender (9/10) and Christian LeClair (13/14) faced a total of twelve shots through the first two periods, and their combined efforts nearly kept things 0-0 all the way through regulation.  Brian Sheptycki spoiled the scoreless party, putting White out front with 2:22 to go, but Jon Zygelman responded just five seconds later to bring things back to square ones (that’s a 1-1 pun).  Bender and LeClair would not relent in OT…owing to the fact that (apparently) neither faced a single shot.  It was on to the shootout, where (spoiler alert) it was all Maroon.  Jerry Gonzales, Jon Zygelman, and Sailboat Lewis all made no mistake with the shake and bake, while Brian Sheptycki, Mark Ennsmann, and Eric Caligiuri got Chucked aside at the other end.  A 3-0 triumph in the shootout meant a 2-1 win for Maroon, who march on to face the pesky Black team on the Winners’ side of the bracket.  White will look to stay alive against Pink, with their captain out…and Tosczak in. 

Captain Adkin’s crew romped through the regular season, suffering just one defeat (the aforementioned last minute shocker that sent Black to the big show).  Green was largely romped-upon, by contrast, squeaking into the playoffs as the lowest seed.  In an interesting twist, Melissa Busby is a member of both teams.  Busby was, by design, not present when the two teams met in the regular season – a game which saw Red torch Green 7-1.  The Sophie’s choice was made for her this time around, as Red has three females, and Green has but one goalie.  Busby would suit up in nets for the underdogs, facing her other team, the top dogs.  While she could not be truly thrilled, nor distraught with either team prevailing, she would certainly hope for a better fate than that of her Week Two substitute, Christian LeClair.  Two scoreless periods ticked past, setting the table for yet another down to the wire Week One match.  Busby had kept her team (Green) in the game with eleven saves to that point, shutting down her team (Red), and making an upset look like a real possibility.  Greg Wirth spoiled the scoreless streak, making good on the power play at 9:44 in the third.  In a stunning turn, Jason Remple answered back for Green almost immediately.  Both goalies had been sharp, and (in spite of the two goal flurry) it looked as though we might be heading to a third straight OT thriller on the evening.  Nope.  Connor Miller…shot from distance…off Busby’s stick…straight up in the air…arching high over Busby’s head…Busby’s head swiveling about, trying to locate the ball…I swear a full two seconds tick by…the ball drops in just behind her, and into the net.  That would turn out to be the game winner.  I will let you be the judge whether that is better or worse that a 7-1 face smash.  Anyway, I didn’t check to see if Melissa shook her own hand, but Red prevailed 2-1, and will move on to face Tie Dye in the upper bracket.  Red won the first meeting with relative ease, 3-0, but playoffs are a different animal.  This is a juicy matchup of the league’s top goalies…the fans want it to go to a shootout.  Green look forward to a showdown with Orange, whom they bested 1-0 in Week Nine.  That win was perhaps Busby’s best career game, and the one that ultimately secured a playoff berth for Green.  Does she have any more magic left in those pads, or will she be down to one team come Monday?

Only one game left on the docket…surely this would be a convincing win, maybe even a blowout?  On the contrary, this one outshined  the previous three with respect to ridiculous thrill factor.  Vance Morra deMorralized Orange with an early strike.  Orange would finally find a crack in Sean Kelly’s armor late in the second, with Jet Javelet touching home the equalizer on a wild play in front.  The score remained 1-1 through the rest of the second, all of the third and all of OT…wait…wait…all of OT?  No!  In one of the most insane and surreal finishes in league history, Harsh Wanigaratne tucked home the game winner with less than a second left on the OT clock.  While Tie Dye celebrated, Orange looked around in stunned disbelief.  Surely this dagger hadn’t beaten the buzzer?!?  It had, or at least it was deemed to have done so by the naked eyes of the referees (and those of yours truly) in real time.  So…no shootout, but one second and one shot put Orange down and out, 2-1.  It was such a fitting way to end this spectacular night of playoff hockey.  This league prides itself on parity, but this was just insanity from 4:00-8:30pm.  The win has earned Tie Dye the right to face top seeded Red this Sunday.  The loss has Orange thinking about redemption, starting with a chance to avenge a stinging 1-0 Week Nine loss to Green.  If this week’s games are anywhere near what Week One gave us, buckle up and start reaching for the Cup…it looks like all eight teams are legitimate contenders.

Captain Mark Ennsmann put his team on the board late in the first, but that would be the last of the scoring for his warmish and cold side.  Captain Joe Malki evened the score early in the second, assisted on Harsh Wanigaratne’s game-winner less than a minute later, and added a final nail in the coffin early in the third to lead his team to a crucial and convincing 4-1 win.  Vance Morra (1 and 1) rounded out the attack for Tie Dye, Chris Malki recorded primary assists on both of his son’s goals, and Sean Kelly (16/17) finally got the support he needed when his team needed it most.  A loss would have kept Tie Dye in peril going into the final two games of the night, but the win propelled them all the way (past White) to the five seed.  White were safe by virtue of their Week Nine win over Pink, but their games of late have been less swim and more sink.  Whatever the case, the first of three desperate Week Ten contenders had come through, and it was on to game two…

I came to praise Melissa Busby for her Week Nine heroics, but Purple came to bury her.  A six pack attack surrounded the lone Green goal (Matt Hanley), as Andy Strathman struck just over a minute in, Weston Nawrocki and Carl Vankoughnett each erupted for 2 and 1, Alan Razoky went for 1 and 2, and both Michael Quadrini and Tiffany Fox collected two assists.  Captain Chris Tran was sharp as ever, stopping 19/20 when not busy watching the fireworks at the other end in the 6-1 romp.  Green was grateful to have booked playoff passage the week prior, with the lopsided loss meaning little beyond seeding and momentum.  It was desperation, turned to inspiration, turned to domination for Captain Tran & Company, who needed a win and some help to complete an impressive rebound from an 0-4-1 start.  The win had them in…as of 7:00pm.  A tie or a loss for Black, who would be facing the league’s only undefeated team, and Purple could wipe the slate, and start game planning for a January opponent…   

Jordan Pynn is a game-changer.  He missed over half of the first eight games of the season for Black, but he stood on the court to face Red with Black standing on the brink of elimination in the final game of the final week.  It was ‘win and in’ for Black, who held their fate, and the fate of the onlooking Purple players in their hands.  Purple just needed the immovable object to stay put…for previously unbeaten Red to hold serve and just…not…lose.  This game was incredible, folks.  Black had all guns blazing from start to finish…shot after shot…chance after glorious chance.  Their desire to win pulsated through every play.  Were it not for Captain Nick Adkins, who was ABSOFUCKLY RIDICULOUS in nets, it might have been over halfway through.  Seriously, this game should have been 6-1…maybe not even that close.  Adkins dove, and shuffled, and crawled, and clawed, and snatched, and kicked and sticked away everything that came his way…everything until Jordan Pynn finally found a hole to make it 1-0 late in the first.  The Purple hearts sank, but Connor Miller lifted them back on high, finishing an incredible, patient, pinpoint centering feed from Melissa Busby to knot it at 1-1.  Black continued to press, but Adkins would not crack.  As time wound down to the final minutes, Captain Kayleigh Marsolini was forced to indulge the rare desperation of pulling a goalie in a tie game.  Less than a minute to play…draw in the Red zone to Adkin’s right…Trevor Marsonlini…:59…back to Jordan Pynn…:57…shot on the way…:56….back of the net…:55.  To paraphrase The Simpsons, I have actually pinpointed the second when Purple’s heart ripped in half.  Black had done it.  Beaten the unbeatable…beaten the odds…beaten the clock.  A 2-1 Christmas miracle win to send them to the playoffs as the six seed, and send Purple out into the bitter cold.  What an incredible way to end the regular season (unless you’re Purple…then…bah, humbug)!      

Captain Ennsmann and his EnnsMen Without Hats came off their bye week with a strong rebound from their 6-0 Week Seven loss to Orange.  The 4-0 shocking of Pink was also a playoff ticket-puncher for the hot and cold crew, as four different goal-scorers scored goals in a dominant first period.  Eric Caligiuri kept rolling in what may be the best season of his career, scoring first for the winning side.  Captain Ennsmann added insurance, and added an assist on Brian Sheptycki’s goal to make it 3-0.  Sheptycki, in turn, had the primary helper on Tom Darlington’s goal, with the Kim Hernandez’ contributing the second assist…her second assist on the night.  Bringing everything back full circle, Hernandez and Darlington were primary and secondary table-setters on Caligiuri’s game-winner to start all of this.  Christian LeClair picked the right night to have the best game of his career, stopping 27/27 to earn his first career shutout, and help propel his team to playoff safety.  Pink’s season is a wrap at 5-3-1, and their playoff positioning is set in stone in the three spot.  The results of this Sunday’s games could result in an immediate Pink v White rematch, and you can bet that Captain Chad Goins will have his troops (including super sniper, Kris Tosczak, who missed round one) ready for revenge, if that is the case.

I should probably just whip up a recap template for cases like the Purple v Blue Week Nine showdown.  It seems to happen every season…two teams, both desperate for two points…both walk away with one…thereby assuring mutual destruction.  Captain Chris Tran (13/14), who (ironically) was a major reason that Royal Blue wasn’t already eliminated (see his 32/32 Week Eight heroics versus Green), was solved my Min-Soo Smith late in the second.  Carl Vankoughnett evened the score early in the third to account for Nick Adkins’ only blemish in a fill-in role for Blue (15/16).  This season’s installment of ‘Tragic Tie Theater’ does leave a shred of hope for Purple, who have one game remaining to save their season.  They’ll need some help, but their destruction is not yet assured (lest you took my earlier words literally).  All is lost, however, with the 1-1 woe-is-me tie for Captain Jon Salt and Blue.  The aforementioned Week Eight win over Green looked to be a season-saving turning point, but the Week Nine tie means ‘Ferris Blue-er’ and his pals will have quite a few days off between now and mid-February.  The playoff possibilities tend to hurt my tender little brain, but suffice it to say that Purple will need a win, and some help if there is to be any hope of an eleventh hour redemption.

Captain Brett Cohen and ‘The BrettFast Club’ will graduate with playoff honors after all, securing the second seed with a 3-0 win over Tie Dye.  Stephanie Chen recorded the game-winner in the early going, with help from Sailboat Lewis and Jon Zygelman.  Zygelman doubled the lead minutes later with the assists from Justin Stege and Dorothy Kline, and Eric Willard’s empty-netter removed any aspirations of a Tie Dye rally.  Chuck Bender chalked up his first shutout on the season, stopping 17/17, while Sean Kelly continued to be that ace pitcher with no run support, stopping 10/12 to dip to 2-3-1 on the campaign.  Tie Dye are the ones who find themselves in detention at this point.  The loss leaves them in the trailing pack going into their final game.  Still, the Linke-O-Matic 5000 has indicated that they are ‘likely to make the playoffs’, with a win or a tie locking up a spot in the second season.  They can still get in with a loss, but their destiny will be out of their hands, and in the hands of Green and Red, at that point.  First thing’s first…they need a strong result against White.  We all know Sean Kelly will do his job, but can the lowest scoring team in the league (tied with 10 goals-for with Purple) find a way to put some orange behind the opposing goalie?

Karma is a bitch, and that bitch was in nets for Green in Week Nine, serving up a steaming pot of karma stew for your humble narrator and his (innocent) teammates.  Yes, Melissa Busby, the much, much, much maligned punchline punching bag punched back, shutting up her number one ‘critic’, and shutting out Orange with a 15/15 dazzler.  The perfect, and poetic performance featured (of course) several incredible, point blank stops on golden chances for…you guessed it….yours truly.  As you all (should) know, I tease because I love (and because I find it fun).  Melissa and I go WAY back, and I was really proud of her for this one…it was awesome!  Love you, Simma!  Meanwhile, Zach Siemer was no slouch at the other end, stopping 21/22 in a hard-luck 1-0 loss for Orange, who back into the playoffs with a 1-2-1 stretch leaving them the (current) four seed.  Matt Hanley’s second career SDFHL goal was not only pretty (nifty backdoor tuck), but pretty crucial for Green, who punched their playoff ticket with the two points.  They can move as high as the five seed with a win over Purple in their regular season finale, or slide as low as seven with a loss.  As noted, Orange are locked into the four spot, and will wait until Sunday’s results to determine their January 5^th opponent.