Black’s momentum continued to mount, as they maintained co-ownership of the top spot in the standings with a 3-1 win over previously unbeaten Royal Blue. Brett Cohen sparked the scoring, Steve Jones added one and one, and Bill Casey collected two assists, including a helper on Glenn Pinto’s power play game-winner. Cory Brin stopped 21/22 in the winning effort, which keeps Black nestled at the top of the pile with Orange.

In the land of the desperate teams, the one-pointed result is king. Both Dark Green and Grey had certainly hoped to find a way to win (and, as importantly, hand their neighbor in the nether neck of the standings a loss), but a point is a point. Justin Stege and Danny Antonelli did the honors for Grey and Dark Green, respectively, and both goalies held the line from there (Don Tran 14/15…Tiffany Fox 15/16). Both teams are still very much in danger of missing the playoff mark this season. To add another fun twist, Dark Green will be without the services of Tony Thinh for the remainder of the season. Sources close to the team have reported that Arnold Gonzales will be the second Gonzales boy to come off the shelf to fill a roster hole this season…

Captain Shawna Hamon continued her campaign of terror, with a goal to start the scoring, and assists on the second and third tallies in a 3-2 win for Orange over Light Blue. Captain Jon Salt had equalized Hamon’s first marker, and had his team up 2-1 with his second of the evening, but Alan Razoky struck on the power play to make it 2-2, and Jon Zygelman’s fifth of the season would be the game-winner. Meanwhile, Hamon is now legitimately a threat to become the first ever female season scoring champ. Her eight points (4 and 4) have her just three points back of Black’s Steve Jones at eleven…and she has a game in hand! Definitely another layer to look for in the April 14 showdown between these two great teams.

Captain Jeremy Copp and his NetsCopp Navigators were looking to clear the cache after suffering their first loss of the season in Week Seven, while Captain Mark Ennsmann’s as-yet-unnamed side were out to prove that they could do more than just not lose games. The latter did just that, as Ennsmann put White on the board early in the first, and Evan Melcher’s strike later in that period stood as the game-winner. Chris Tullio gave Teal life with a late first period goal, but neither goalie would surrender anything further (Alyce Perry’s insurance market was deposited into an empty net). The 3-1 win is just White’s second in five tries, but they remain one of only two teams without a loss. Forgive the PSA, but in case you hadn’t noticed, Steve Testen is damn good goalie. His .976/0.40/3 SO line is tops in the league this season by a good margin. His success should come as little surprise to anyone paying attention to his past few seasons.

The sublime serendipity of the schedule never ceases to amuse me. The St. Patrick’s Day slate wrapped with…what else…a clash between Green and Gold. Unfortunately for Green, it was once again not their lucky day. It has not been their skilly season, frankly. Patrick Fusco gave Green life with his tying goal in the second, but that was just the fourth goal Green has scored in six games, and it was the only goal they would manage against Gold. Mark Nagy netted the game-winner just forty seconds later, and Chris Tran stacked two insurance tallies on top in the third. Philip Nguyen threw one last shovel of dirt on the grave in the final minute, to go with his an assist on Nagy’s GWG, and make the final 5-1. Chuck Bender stopped 15/16, helping Gold move above the cut line and into the middle of the pack at 2-2-1. For Green, a Week Nine bye means one sad truth…at least they will not lose this weekend.

Andrew Jacobsen scored in the first and third periods, and assisted on Ryan Owen’s goal in the second, as Pink cruised to a 3-0 win over Dark Green. Captain Sean Kelly stopped 10/10 to earn his first shutout of the season, and help his team to their first win in five tries. Pink have officially moved above the cut line, as they enter their bye week at 1-2-2. Dark Green remain in deep trouble at 1-4-0, and Captain Vankoughnett & Company will need a good result against standings neighbors Grey this Sunday…or else.

Kris Tosczak made the most of his return from a one game suspension, dropping two and one on Grey, including the game-winner with 3:00 to play. The 3-2 win for Gold has them joining Pink on the right side of the playoff picture, with the added advantage of a game in hand on their nearest rivals. Chuck Bender earned his first win of the season with a 13/15 effort, Eric Willard rounded out the scoring for Gold, and Dan Jurgens and Jordan Pynn tallied for Grey in the loss.

Don Tran stopped 17/17 in a fill-in role, and Steve Testen (14/14) kept his sheet just as clean at the other end, as White and Green battled to a 0-0 draw. The result keeps White out of the loss column, although it is unclear what to make of their Cup hopes with three ties in four tries. Green, meanwhile, remain winless in five tries, having scored a league low three goals through half a season…sad.

Nick Adkins scored just :22 in, and it looked like Teal would be on their way to collecting yet another two points in the standings. Royal Blue had other ideas, with Vance Morra evening the score in the second, and London Peters finishing a brilliant Param Gill feed in a waning seconds stunner. The 2-1 upset win keeps the ‘L’ column clear for Captain Goins’ crew, and knocks Teal from the ranks of the unbeaten in the process. Both teams are solidly entrenched in the top half of the slate, but Royal has served notice that they are not a team to be overlooked.

Glenn Pinto’s legend in this league is now secure, as the man lost his mind and dropped THREE GOALS AND FOUR ASSISTS on AmaJon Prime. Pinto factored in every one of Black’s goals in the 7-0 bitch slap… an appropriate score, considering the Madden-esque ridiculousness of the feat. Brett Cohen (2 and 0) and Steve Jones (2 and 1) accounted for the rest of the scoring, and Jerry Russell yawned his way to a 10/10 shutout in place of the absent Cory Brin.

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Week Five sputtered to a start without the league’s Director Of Operations on hand, but the first game proved to be a gem, in spite of the rough setting. Ryan Owen spent nearly half of the first period in the box, but made the most of his freedom in the second to open the scoring for Pink, then assist on John Gamm’s first career marker, and Ty Pereira’s first since his return on the power play to build a 3-0 lead. Gold would rally in the absence of their suspended star, Kris Tosczak, as Mark Boulanger and Phillip Nguyen closed the gap to 3-2. Captain Chris Tran netted the equalizer with Gold’s goalie pulled, and 0:40 on the clock. The 3-3 thriller gives Gold their first point on the season, and keeps Pink below the cut line, in turn. Neither team has found a way to win, and they will share a fate with the winless Green if they do not find a way to elevate their game in the second half of the season slate.

Julie Ott put Grey on the board first in the second, but London Peters evened things minutes later for Royal. Those would be the only blemishes for either goalie, as both Royal’s Jerry Russell (15/16) and Grey’s Don Tran (17/18) kept the balls at bay the rest of the way. The 1-1 tie keeps Royal out of the loss column and Grey out of the win column. Grey will look for their first win of the season against another winless side, Green, in Week Six, while Royal will face a struggling Dark Green.

There was renewed hope in Green’s ranks entering Week Five, as OG stud, Jerry Gonzales, had joined the team to replace injured rookie, Rick Brutchey. Steve Jones slashed that hope with his first of the night in the first, and dashed it for good with his second on the power play with minutes to play. Cory Brin was stellar in nets, stopping 18/18, while Andrew Lockard absorbed yet another hard luck loss (10/12). The 2-0 win keeps Black in striking distance of the top of the standings while Green remain in a fight for their lives at the other end, now at 0-3-1.

Alexis DaCosta racked up the rare in-vain-hat-trick for Dark Green, as his three goals could not match the four posted by Nick Adkins and Jim LaGrossa in Teal’s 4-3 win. Adkins and LaGrossa also collected a pair of assists apiece, and Adkins game-winner came on the power play with 0:40 remaining in the game (an eerie echo of Gold’s heroics earlier in the evening). The win moves Teal into a tie with Orange atop the standings at 3-0-1, while Dark Green drops closer to the cut line at 1-3-0.

White and Orange met to produce the third no-win situation in Week Five, battling to a 1-1 tie. Evan Melcher broke a scoreless tie midway through the second, and with time winding down, it really looked like the upset result would hold. Rookie sensation, Connor Miller, had other ideas, scoring his third of the season with 0:59 to play (no 0:40 for this kid, folks…he’s advanced) to save a point and preserve first place for Orange. White, while undefeated, have just one win in three goes this season. There are no ties in the playoffs…

The recent rains washed out Week Four, and put a damper on holiday tournament play, but have also provided teams a chance to relax and regroup. We’ll pick up with a full Week Five slate this Sunday…if things stay dry. How will the month-long drought affect your team’s mojo?

There’s a certain sad irony to two desperate, winless teams at the bottom of the standings playing to a draw. Avoiding a loss, and earning the first point in the standings may feel like a positive change of course, but splitting two points may ultimately spell doom for both teams. Of course, it’s a long season, and there is plenty of time for redemption, but both Pink and Green have to hope the 1-1 draw doesn’t go down as another missed opportunity, come season’s end. Nick Vacchio got Pink off on the right foot late in the first, and Captain Mark DeGraffenreid evened things with his first of the season on a nifty deflection in front early in the third. Both goalies were steady, with Sean Kelly stopping several breakaway bids in his 13/14 afternoon, and Andrew Lockard standing tall at the other end (16/17). The result was much rosier for Pink, who managed it without perennial super stud, Andrew Jacobsen, while Green lost their top pick, Rick Brutchey, for the season to a nasty hamstring pop midway through the third. Kamal Gill and Raj Patel are the only remaining players on the initial short list to replace Brutchey. Whoever comes in, they will need to find instant chemistry if Green has any hope of survival.

The second game of the night produced another draw, this time with Teal and Black having to halve, 2-2. Alaa Razoky planted a wacky bounce of the back boards into a nearly empty net just fifteen seconds in to give Teal an early lead, and Nick Adkins doubled the edge with Razoky and LaGrossa’s help in the second. Black hung tough, and Steve Jones converted a scrappy goal to get his team on the board in the third. The goal was initially waived off for a hand pass, but the refs got together, and the call was quickly reversed. Black rode that reversal all the way to redemption, with Bill Casey scoring another hard-nosed goal on the doorstep to knot it for good with 2:11 to play.

Another Week Three game, another tie! The 0-0 draw is never a fan pleaser, but it allows White and Royal to remain undefeated on the young season, which may be the other side of the Pink v Green tying coin. Both goalies were, of course, perfect, with Steve Testen racking up another career shutout (22/22), and newcomer, Jerry Russell (18/18), registering the first of his SDFHL career.

Cover team, ‘Freddit’, kept beating the winning drum, this time snaring Dark Green, 3-2. Tim Vick and Alexis DaCosta actually staked Dark Green to a 2-0 lead through the early second, but second year stud, Jon Zygelman, got the top dogs barking soon thereafter, and Andy Strathman tied the game later in the frame. It was Zygelman again with his fourth of the season to win it in the third, and keep Orange perfect in January. Vick and Zygelman are now the unlikely leaders in the goal scoring clubhouse as we enter the middle stretch of the season.

Captain Jon Salt made his return to Light Blue’s lineup triumphant, scoring both of his team’s goals in a 2-0 win over Grey. Ashish Wadhwa, Chris Malki, and Greg Mallinger each collected an assist, and Matt Henderson stopped 10/10 to earn his first shutout of the season. Neither Captain Salt, nor Jordan Pynn could be reached for comment on the status of their once bubbling bromance after meeting face to face as foes.