Captain Jeremy Copp and ‘NetsCopp Navigator’ don’t feature any of the fresh faces of the league, but they continue to serve up great content with tried and true code. Their third win of the season has them sharing the top search hit for ‘undefeated SDFHL teams in first place through six weeks of play’.
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…