Up & Brown

It was ‘another week, another tough loss’ for Captain Bryan Ossa’s slumping ‘FlamingOssas’. After a promising 2-1-0 start to the season that saw them rack up twenty goals and hang tough with the likes of Orange, Pink had drooped to 2-3-0, with a 7-1 loss to White and a 4-2 loss to Lime serving sobering notice that they had A LOT of work to do to stay safe through the regular season. The Week Eight matchup with Black would be a golden opportunity to rebound into the win column and deal a major blow to one of the few teams remaining below them in the standings. When a full compliment of Pink players gathered in warmups to find Papa Jon Salt out of the lineup at the other end, the anticipation of that much-needed rebound abounded all the more. I mean…if you read the first part of the first sentence of this recap, you already know that it was ‘a new week, a new life’ for Captain Hima Joshi’s Black, who came in at 1-4-0, desperate for a detour from their cutline course. Any win would work, but a win over Pink would be particularly prized, given the additional tiebreaker ammunition at stake. Geoff Downes kicked off the scoring at 6:59 in the first, completing a chain from Eric Willard and Rob LaVigne, and Downes quickly (1:10 later) doubled Black’s lead from LaVigne and Evan Melcher. A familiar fear and frustration crept through Pink’s ranks, and those emotions were only intensified by Eric Willard’s strike at 1:30 (Downes and Wendy Enright), then exponentially exacerbated but a (literal) last second Steve Pugliese breakaway conversion to cap a mic drop four spot for Black through one. Pink knew they had the time and talent to recover, but a tortured psyche is not an easy thing to soothe, especially in the course of a live game. Carl Vankoughnett would lead that recovery effort in the second, though, chipping one (Josh Wirt & Elyse Shattuck), then two (Mostafa Azab) past super sub, Nick Meglich, to calm the nerves and focus the resolve of his mates. Alas for Captain Ossa & Company, those would be the last balls past Meglich (28/30) who was stout to say the least in relief of Pink’s own Will Heinl. When Wendy Enright shoveled home an insurance goal on the power play at 8:41 in the third (LaVigne and Willard), there was a collective shoulder slump and heart sink in the Pink ranks, knowing they had let another crucial game go the other way. The 5-2 win was massive for Black, pushing them above the cutline for the first time all season by virtue of the head-to-head tiebreaker with their fallen Pink foes. Neither team is dead, nor (certainly) guaranteed second season survival, but Pink’s free fall has removed them from the current playoff picture, and a recovery from this kind of crash and burn calamity is unlikely, at best…

The Week Eight slate pivoted from the Pink v Black trench battle to a much loftier link-up between Captain Zach Siemer’s 3-1-1 White and Captain Ryan Karns’ 3-1-1 Flint Blue. While it is always beneficial to see how your team measures up to teams of similar caliber and playoff trajectory, there was very little at stake in this intriguing battle of second seed contenders. A win would officially (or, as officially as need be) punch a playoff ticket, and might also serve to increase the odds of holding on to a higher seed, so there was certainly more than pride on the line as the team’s lined up for the opening faceoff. Dan Jurgens put Flint Blue on the front foot with a powerplay goal at 3:41 (John Boddy and Ryan Loughran), and when Boddy doubled the lead at 1:44 (Jurgens & Captain Karns), some mid-volume alarm bells rang through the Siegulls’ hearts and minds. As we all know, one goal is usually all you get when you face Silas ‘The Silencer’™ Perks, and tallying two through one period of play is a win unto itself. The actual win, of course, was still at stake, and Scott Wieland wanted that win. Wieland was a man possessed in this game for White, by far the most impressive performer from either side. His solo strike at 4:07 in the second was the epitome of extra effort, with Wieland collecting his own rebound and sniping home a much-needed response from a bad angle to put his team back in the mix. Wieland’s blast from the point found the twine behind Nick Meglich at 9:29 in the third (Steve Linke), knotting the score at twos, and sending a surge of swagger through White’s ranks. Wieland’s heroics were indeed impressive, and while he was the best player on the court in this game, he did not make THE BEST play. That honor belonged to the humble, unassuming, dare I say unlikely personage of Mr. Ramsey Ksar. Ksar found himself in a battle along the near half boards in the attacking zone, and most in attendance probably assumed that the outcome of that scrum would be something rather benign and ordinary…the defender would chip it out, or Ramsey would struggle through and snap a bad angle chance toward Perks. Nope! As if he had found the exact combination of button presses and joystick wiggles in a very realistic video game, Ramsey spun off the defender, collected the ball in stride, strutted in alone, and sniped the game-winner over Perks’ shoulder…absolutely sublime! It’s tough (to say the least) to put two past Perks, but Ksar’s kshocking ksolo kshelf-job would be the difference in a truly thrilling regular season clash, with Flint Blue coming out on top, 3-2. Meglich (24/26) notched a ‘real’ win on the heels of his successful sub stint, outdueling the biggest baddie in goalie gear (Perks 18/21) to make Ksar’s star turn stand. Both teams remain in very strong playoff position, of course, slotting safely above the ‘six (point) pack’ of teams, but likely out of reach of an untouchable Orange as we wend into the final third of the season.

While SDFHL oddsmakers were not predicting a twist in the Week Eight Wing League ‘Citrus Bowl’, Captain Joel Gattey’s Lime could not be discounted outright from being the team that would finally find a way to fell Captain Jeremy Copp’s ‘Overpowered Orange Ogre’ (not their actual team name, so much as a nom de punishment I conjured just now). While Lime’s two wins coming in came at the expense of two of the worst teams in the league (Pink and Green), their ties came against two of the best (White and Flint Blue)…the latter of which coming as the result of a last minute lapse. There’s really no nuance to Orange’s back story…they just win…every…damn…week. At 5-0-0, I suppose the only motivations are staying perfect, and keeping the law offices of Perks, Perks & Cooney simmering at the top of the scoring silo. For Lime, a win would be a massive boost to their playoff potential, if not an outright ticket punch, and would put the big dogs on notice that anything can happen in a playoff rematch…including an upset encore. Before there can be an encore, there needs to be show, and Jordan Pynn staged his own two act shooting performance to put the underdogs on top with seeing eye snipes from distance early in the first and second periods. His blast at 9:36 in the first (Leah Gonzales & Joe Malki) served noticed that Lime was by no means cowed by Orange’s lossless legacy, and his similarly-sizzling strike at 8:32 in the second (Craig Russell) had onlookers on high alert for an upset. There would indeed be an ‘upset’ in this one, but not in the ‘unexpected win by an underdog’ sense of the word…more in the ‘damn…I thought we had that one’ usage. Yes, Orange would come to life with Aaron Cooney’s eighth of the season at 7:19 in the second (Owen Perks & Silas Perks), then Silas Perks would level the ledger at 9:24 in the third (Cooney). The teams were now on ‘even footing’, but the rink was clearly tilting in favor of Captain Copp’s crew. Cooney’s second of the game gave Orange their first lead at 5:55 (Owen Perks & Shelby Shattuck), and Owen’s empty netter at 0:36 iced yet another Orange win, this time 4-2 over Lime. Will Heinl (19/22) was very solid in Matt Henderson’s stead, weathering the Orange storm as well as any have so far, while Mason Holcomb (14/16) kept both his and his team’s record perfect at 6-0-0 with another strong effort. To add injury to insult, Captain Joel Gattey suffered a freak calf injury in the second period, and looks to be out for some time. He will need to hope that his team can earn a few more points in their remaining three games to lock in a playoff spot and await his return. Orange has the formidable front of Red, Blue, and White remaining between them and a flawless regular season, and I for one am not betting against them.

While our cover team, Captain Shawna Hamon’s ‘Turds Of A Feather’ are ‘making the paper’ for all the right reasons, it is safe to say that their Week Eight opponents are…not. Green were already in ‘must win’ mode coming into the contest, but with Captain Alan Razoky himself serving a two game suspension, and at least one (likely two) other players refusing to play in an apparent protest of that suspension, there was some concern that Brown might not even have an opponent to face in their bid for a third straight win. To the relief of all involved in keeping this league running strong, all but Alan and the expected AWOLs were suited and booted for Green, and beyond simply ‘showing up’, genuinely fought for their playoff lives from start to finish in perhaps the most exhilarating match of the week, if not the season. Eli Schonbrun put Green in front at 4:50 in the first (Brendan Jew & Trice Harvey), and Schonbrun’s second of the game and fourth of the season at 5:12 in the second (Maureen Ruchhoeft and Chris Tran) doubled the upset edge. When Tran struck to make it 3-0 Green just over a minute later (Jew & Chuck Bender) the long-awaited Green revolution was well and truly underway. Like many revolutions throughout history, however, this one was snuffed out as quickly as it rose up. Weston Oakley began his POTW campaign with his second of the season at 9:10 in the third (Kalen Hunter & Jim LaGrossa), then a pair of Hunter lamplighters at 6:56 (Andy Strathman & LaGrossa) and 3:33 (Oakley & LaGrossa) erased every trace of Green’s advantage. Jason Northrup would finally answer for Green with a solo goal with 2:48 to play, but it took just FOUR seconds for Brown to respond to that response with LaGrossa finishing a Hunter feed to make it 4-4. He wasn’t named POTW for nothing, folks…Weston Oakley, sitting on two career goals, both having come in his last five periods of play…0:45…game-winner (Strathman)…Green heart and back breaker…game over…Brown 5, Green 4…wow! Neither goalie will want to frame and hang their line from this one, but Sean Kelly (23/27) did JUST manage to outduel Chuck ‘Hard Luck’™ Bender (13/18) in this one to keep his team rolling. The stunning win finds the ‘Turds’ all the way back from the winless depths of the standings to 3-3-0, with all of the momentum and mojo you could ever hope for going into their final three games. The loss…obviously devastating for an already devastated Green side, but (contrary to my previous ‘must win’ indication), they are still alive in the playoff hunt. Two of their remaining three opponents are just four points ahead of them in the standings (Pink and Black), which keeps a fair amount of their fate in their own hands. The trickier part will be their March 23rd match with White, but they WILL need a win in all three of their remaining games (and some help) to survive into April…

The Week Eight nightcap was one of those ‘crossroads’ games, with Captain Chad Goins’ Red hoping to snag a second straight win, even their record at 3-3-0, and establish themselves in the thick of a mid pack of teams with solid playoff prospects. Captain Rob Gaudio’s Blue were hoping to avoid a third straight loss, which would see them slide from a 3-0-0 early season record to a 3-3-0 mark heading into the final third of the season. While Jason Remple was already plugged in a producing points, Blue’s two game tumble started with a stunning 3-0 loss to Brown in Kyle Snyder’s Week Five farewell foray, and continued with perhaps the gut-punchiest-of-all-time losses to Flint Blue in Week Six…building a 3-0 lead through two, then allowing four goals, including two in the final 2:07…eeeesh! So, two teams one tick on one side or the other of .500, a great ‘on paper’ matchup…a nice way to wrap Week Eight. Unfortunately for Captain Gaudio & Company, this one was all but wrapped after one period of play. Jackson Tomaszewski muscled his way into thick of the race for second place in scoring pace on the strength of two second period assists, and two first period goals. JT put Red up bright and (super) early at 9:49 (Brennen Abel), then doubled the damage at 6:26 (Abel & Captain Goins). Min-Soo Smith padded the lead with his first of the season at 5:04, and it would be all smiles for Red in the first intermission huddle, up 3-0. Jason Lee finally responded for Blue on the powerplay at 6:39 in the second (Tony Thinh & Captain Gaudio), but Steph Palomo Schmidt restored the three goal advantage at 5:04 (Abel & Tomaszewski). Steph’s lesser half, Gordon Schmidt Palomo, pushed Red’s lead to four at 2:58 (Tomaszewski & Palomo Schmidt), but Jason Remple put Blue back where they left off after the first, rattling home his second of the season at 1:54 (Lee & Dorothy Kline). Lest there was any fear that Blue might do unto Red as Flint Blue did unto them, an Abel solo snipe made it 6-2 Red with 6:33 to play. Tim Vick’s conversion with 0:33 remaining (Remple & Lee) was little more than a minor moral(e) victory for Captain Gaudio’s gang, and a minor ding on Jon Cima’s solid outing (13/16). The 6-3 loss is Blue’s third straight, which puts them in lockstep with Pink for coldest team in the league (not counting Green), while the 6-3 win is Red’s second in a row, and has them liking their chances of making it to April. Don Tran (19/25) and Blue are certainly not in ‘must-win’ mode, by any means, but you really want to snap a regular season losing streak, especially when you have not yet sewn up a playoff spot. The problem…Blue has the 3-2-1 White, and the 6-0-0 Orange up next on the schedule. The silver lining…they play the aforementioned froze bros, Pink in their finale.