Captain Salt has delivered yet another team to the doorstep of Cup glory. ‘AmaJon Prime’ seems to have the whole package, but the porch pirates are lurking, and one of three teams in action this Sunday still has a chance to steal the goods.
The clock struck midnight on Grey’s Cinderella season, and this time, the glass slipper did not fit the next day. A fantastical finish to their regular season, and a first round encore that stunned the wicked Orange stepmother had many of us believing that fairy tales do come true. Not once upon this time. Anthony Cerasuolo’s second of the season gave White a lead in the first, and Justin Stege leveled the sheet at about the same point in the second. Two of the league’s best goalies stood tall, otherwise, and the playoffs saw yet another game bleed into OT…then shootout. The first three shooters found the back of the net, and White shot first, so…2-1 White over Grey. Josh Wirt and Mark Ennsmann did the honors for White, while Jordan Pynn accounted for the lone conversion for Grey. It was definitely a fun and furious fable for Captain Jack Traughber & Company, and the moral of their story is something hackneyed like ‘never give up…follow your dreams’. For White, they face the reality of having to beat Pink, then Royal this Sunday if they hope to see their story through to a happy ending.
The scoring king is dead…long live the king. Steve Jones romped through the regular season with a ‘you-killed-every-member-of-my-family-and-all-of my-pets-for-good-measure’ style fury, racking up 15/8/23. His playoff numbers showed no drop off at 6/0/6 through three games. All great things must come to an end, however, and Week Three was that end for Black and their effusive scoring engine. Jones went out with a bang and a bow, scoring on the power play with 1:19 left, but it was too little, too late to save Black, who were sitting in a 0-4 hole at the time. That hole was dug with expert care by Lena Amelang, Dale Stuzka, and a double shovel effort from Andrew Jacobsen. Ty Pereira collected three assists on the night, including the second on Jacobsen’s game-winner. Captain Sean Kelly led his team to the 4-1 victory from the back, stopping 21/22 to propel his team on to the ménage à trois action this weekend. Pink will need to best White, then topple Royal to earn a shake (or two) with Salt & Sons.
Speaking of Captain Salt, he continued the key captain contribution trend of Week Three, scoring twice for his team in a 5-1 win over Royal. Steph Chen led the proceedings early in the first, followed by Salt’s PPG GWG. ‘Prime’ poured in another pair in the second, with the Malki boys (Chris and Joe) doing the honors. Janet Goins got Royal on the board bright and early in the first, but that would be the only response, and the only blemish on Andrew Lockard’s slate (12/13). Salt’s second of the game rounded out the box score, and punctuated his team’s punched ticket to the promise land. Royal Blue live to fight another day, but after losing their leading scorer, Param Gill, to an MCL tear, this Sunday may be the last Sunday on their Winter League schedule. Light Blue will have the weekend off, then enjoy another week off in observance of Memorial Day, as they lie in wait for a matchup with the sole survivor of White/Pink/Royal on June 2nd.