Captain Luke Wolmer and super stud, David Schlatter, were not in the lineup for Neon’s 1-0 season-opening loss to our cover team, Black, so the pair were eager to show Grey what they could do in Week Two. What they could do was power Neon to their first win. Wolmer opened the scoring for his team (for the game, and the season), with the powerplay game-winner midway through the first (from Rob LaVigne and Will Heinl). It was Wolmer again to double the lead in the second, this time on a feed from Schlatter, then Heinl from Schlatter and LaVigne to make it 3-0 in the third. Schlatter added an empty-netter to round out the scoring in the 4-0 walk in the park win, leaving both Neon and Grey at 1-1-0 to start the season. Sean Kelly was…Sean Kelly, stopping 16/16 to collect the SO, even his record, and dip his GAA to 0.50. Nick Meglich absorbed the loss, in spite of a valiant 18/21 effort, while still maintaining a stake in the upper half of the goalie stat pile.
Getting old sucks, but Carl Vankoughnett is taking it in stride…and then some. The half century old Canadian relic led his team in scoring last season, and has carried his new team, Black, to a 2-0-0 start, having scored all of their goals to this point. Granted, Black has only scored three goals, but…scoreboard…standings…only team with two wins through two weeks. Carl put Black on the board first at 6:06 in the first, with first year Young Canuck™, Brennan Abel, collecting his first career point, and Black’s first non-Vankoughnett point with the lone assist. Jon Salt answered just over a minute later (from Gary Peters and new comer, Justin Ker), and the 1-1 tie limped along through the second, and deep into the third. You already know how this ends…Vankoughnett (from Abel, again) at 1:55 to bounce Black to a 2-1 win over Green. Young Canuck™, Silas Perks, suffered his first career loss with a 15/17 line, while Chris Tran (21/22) suffered his first goal against in six full periods of play, jumping out to a nutso .966/0.50/1 SO start to what looks to be an incredible season.
Our creamy middle game was completely devoid of any semblance of our league’s trademark parity. Both sides were short-benched, but White made it a long night for Gold…whom they made short work of…words are weird. Don Tran (18/18) and Alex Theis (5/5) combined on a shutout in a sub role for the still-sidelined Matt Henderson, but the real stories in this one were Zach Salt and Steve Linke. The scoring went Salt (from Andrew Wong and Linke), Linke (from Salt), Salt, Salt, Linke (from Captain Tomáš Jankovic), Salt (from Jankovic), and Linke (from Sally Jackson and Jankovic). If you’re scoring at home (which would be weird, but…you do you), that is seven goals for two dudes, one of whom is ancient and obese. The 7-0 shellacking came at the expense of Captain Parsa Mostafavi, his pride, and his season stats, and Gold now find themselves at the bottom of the pile as the only team with no points in the early going. White remain lossless at 1-0-1, with a big game against 2-0-0 Black up next. Gold will hope for a full bench, and a resilient captain in nets when they take on Navy this Sunday.
The parity that briefly departed in the previous game returned in all its glory in game four, as two titans of the twine battened down the hatches in a heated battle between Red and Navy. A scoreless first saw plenty of action, but few recorded shots (six…total), and not much of note beyond Janine Ulloa’s first career penalty. The shots ramped up in the second (six for each side), and the scoring came with it, as Dan Jurgens converted for Red at 9:21 (from Bao Nguyen) and Mark Nagy responded for Navy at 2:06 (from Jim LaGrossa). That would be the only scoring the Don Tran (13/14) and Alex Theis (17/18) would allow, however, leaving both teams with a bittersweet one point in the 1-1 draw. The result preserves the ‘no loss’ record for both teams, although Red remains one of four teams without a win at 0-0-2. They have their chops pre-licked for their run at fellow winless wonders, Blue, this Sunday, while Navy hope to prolong the misery of 0-2-0 Gold to cap the first third of their season in style.
The nightcap was a blowout-to-be turned barn burner that was worth the wait for eight (PM). After an embarrassing/demoralizing 7-3 loss to Navy in their opener, Captain Chuck Bender and Blue were hopeful that the debut of their first round pick, and first season star, John Boddy, would change their early season course. The first period saw no such shift, as Young Canuck™, Kalen Hunter, set out on his seek and destroy mission with a pair of goals in the first. A third Hunter tally late in the second had Purple up 3-0, and Blue wondering just how bad and how long a season could be. Mark DeGraffenreid deposited an end board Alan Razoky rebound past sniper-turned-stopper, Chris Malki, to cut the lead to 3-1 late in the second, then set up John Boddy for his first career goal early in the third to make it 3-2. Razoky fired another long shot at Malki midway through the third, and this one found home to knot the score at threes. It was Boddy from DeGraffenreid again at 1:55 to give Blue their first lead of the season, and set up an improbable come from behind victory story to tell the grandkids one day. One problem…the very same problem for Blue from earlier in the story…Kalen Hunter. Hunter’s fourth of the night came at 0:55…somehow finding a path through legs and feet to stun the stunners, and leave both teams wondering what just happened in a 4-4 tie. Chris Malki (17/21) was sharp and solid in his nets debut, and Captain Chuck Bender (21/25) was back on his A game, making several crucial stops to preserve the point.