Tournament update Valencia

In the first game of the Valencia Holiday Tournament, the Dragons of Bakersfield were the opposition. Last time, we played a fine game, falling 2-1 on a late breakdown in front of our net at Paramount. This time, the breakdowns came early and often, as it was 3-0 before anyone but maybe Austin had broke a sweat. Shots ended up like 24-18 in favor of the Dragons, so we did have chances, but could not get one past the netminder.

Back in action tonight, we face Jolie and Amanda's team in a non-checking battle. I pity the poor girl who gets in front of Rey at full throttle--I pity the team if we don't work hard and mop the ice with them!

Wednesday at noon we face the Valencia Express A team..not Bantam A though. Again, we should be able to pound them, but one never knows which version of the Leafs we will see! Video highlights will appear if our play is suitable for the young viewer on the internet!

Leafs Send Jr Gulls Home Happy

A strange game all around, as it began with a defenseman sitting up front waiting for his gear, and a goalie and a forward being dropped off with barely enough time to be dressed and ready to play. So, we looked ready for a while, playing an entertaining 9 minutes or so, and then, we collapsed, giving up three goals in the first, two in the last minute and a half. Outshot 37-16, we did manage eight and six shots in the second and third, but six penalties were too much to overcome, although they only had one official power play goal. Final score was 7-0.

Amanda ran in to help during the last half of the third, but not even her extra effort could right the ship. Austin helped it from being double digits, making many saves on hustle and positioning. The visitors took four penalties in the second period, but the Leafs could not capitalize. They added two more in the second, as the game was out of reach by the end of the second.

Next game, in Valencia the day after Christmas. The field is not strong, and we should be able to compete quite favorably. Cross your fingers Bantam Leaf fans--it might be our time!

SDIA rolls past Bantam Leafs at Paramount 12/12

Sunday afternoon had great personal potential. Little old me, proudest hockey dad around, was going to enjoy a doubleheader, back to back Jack and Blake, 415 and 6pm. No Sunday crack of dawn in outer Slobovia, and back home and then back to Paramount in the late afternoon--one trip, two boys, two games!! What could be better?? Hockey heaven, here I come..

The Pee Wee version of the Michelle family, Jack, and his mates dispatched of the Lady Reign as expected, and he logged a bunch of ice time, and had some chances and played well. I filmed the game, and went to find the box with my charger in it to charge it between games. Sadly, in a heinous act, my power cord that connects to my charging block was pilfered from the TV/game room at the rink. No power, no video for game number two. Bummer--or was it? Maybe the 6pm game would not be fit for viewing...so I took my seat in the stands and sat with my wife Debbie and son Jack.

Marty McSorley inhabited the body of number 19, as a combination of slashing, cross-checking and good old fashioned hijinks ensued, as his uniform displayed his penalty minutes on the day. Three power play goals and a 40-9 shot advantage told the story, as the SDIA Oilers team we battled in a pre-season tournament and fell just 3-1 to (remember the shorthanded wrap around goal when the game was 1-1?) transformed into a juggernaut before our very eyes. Numbers 10, 11 and 12 combined for 6 of the 8 goals, scoring the middle six goals, all but the first and last of the game.

Anyway, the good news is Blake was sick and did his best, no one was hurt, I found a replacement cord from an older camera I had, and we have some nice photos which are less telling than the video would be, but a nicer momento and allow me to best remember Daddy's Doubleheader the way I want to.

As I look at the scoresheet, the only thing I can draw from it is the way the penalty was written four times, two per team. Sort of sums it up for me..and I quote.

"Unsports Man Like"

Yes, this man unliked that sports activity without a doubt. Gnarly, dude!

Jack Holiday Santa Beard from holy sock!

UNceremoniously, and somewhat UNsports-like, 

man, the water bottles have been retired. Here is 

the last official photo we have of them. 

No one is blaming them--they just weren't helping. 

As they say, if you ain't part of the solution, 

you must be part of the problem, eh??  

Good riddance I say!

The family tree is now up, and yes, Blake does excel at putting the
star on the tree. As we head into the holidays, we must remember to
keep our spirits bright, and keep in mind it is nice to give, but getting
is in fact, under-rated, as in getting Another WIN SOON!!

Where was I --- oh, actual game photos..I went all Ebenezer there for 
a couple minutes..

Blake: "Hey, Amanda, don't they usually put a winger in the slot when we lineup like this?" "He's there Condor, you just can't see him!" "You mean like, he's invisible--seems a bit unfair man like!!" "No, you have to bend down to see him!!"

     "Come on now, there's no "i" in team, unless Apple announces a product called the iTeam at CES or Comdex in January!"

Lightning take early Holiday gifts from Leafs in 5-3 game

At lovely KHS Arena in Anaheim, home to Edward and Blake's former team the Beach City Lightning, the Maple Leafs were in far too giving a mood, and Beach City thankfully accepted. In a game that we should have taken handily, they oustscored us 3-1 in the final two periods, even though we outshot them 21-12 during that stretch. For the game, Leafs outshot them 28-20.

The PML team took two penalties in each period, too many against a team we had more size and skill than. The bad giveaway early in the 2nd and the PP goal early in the third sealed our fate. A tough loss in so many ways, as both teams were short a couple key players, but we suffered too many breakdowns in front of our net to pull out a win.

Robert followed in a shot by Ryan, Rey knocked in a rebound off Amanda's shot, and Blake swooped in after poking the puck free at the blue line and making a nice forehand to backhand move for the score on the breakaway.

You will notice a couple text additions to the video hi-lights, and where necessary, major sound modifications were made to omit ugly (though truthful) comments. Edward, Blake, and his father badly wanted this one, and it was a bitter disappointment indeed.



Leafs vs Lightning KHS recap

Final game Valencia Tournament Sun 11/28

In a battle that went down to the final buzzer, the Bantam Leafs plus 3 Jr Kings were able to give a Bantam A team all they wanted. Blake scored the first goal of the game on the power play, and Devyn kept us in it with like 40 saves! Amanda killed a 5-on-3 on her own pretty much, blocking shot after shot. Blake pulled double duty, moving back and forth from forward to defense as Otto sat in the box. Rey scored late to pull us to 3-2, and we had a shot at the buzzer on a 2-on-1 but could not tie it up.

Pardon the choppy highlights, as the new camera has to use a new version of the editing software on my Mac. In addition, I had just moved from the stands by the Lovely Leaf Ladies (aka screaming moms!) near center ice seated, as I was tired from all the standing and filming, but I decided to move, and headed to the far corner up high for a change. Well, I had not yet re-set the camera when Blake scored so there is an earthquake and a weird angle thing going on. But, you can clearly hear Coach Harold asking if I got it on tape. Yes, sir, I did!

Leafs vs Mariners highlights

Skills Competition Highlights

First up, sporting some cool goalie threads, the unmistakable glove, stick and pad work of Ryan Wormsdobbler. He actually uses a glother, as in one part glove, two parts smother! Watch as he checks the kid in the skate to throw him off. The goalie who does more than poke check--I LOVE IT!

NOTE: These are some of the first videos shot with the new HD camera, so quality is higher. On the toolbar below the video in youtube, change resolution to 480p from 360p, and even click on the four directional arrows to use the whole screen..enjoy!

Ryan getting busy in goal

Ryan takes on some breakaway chances

Robert Davis got loose, popping in a goal in the shootout competition, and showing off some serious celebratory hijinx! You go boy!!

Robert electrifies the crowd

Comments from Joe's Tournament Recap

In the interest of time, I will borrow from Coach Joe some info from his email detailing the Valencia Toast of the Coast experience. When I have time, I will go ahead and put up some photos and video of the skills competition and some other goodies.

From Joe:

It was by far the most enjoyable weekend of hockey seeing the team step up and play up to and with the level of competition, the team appeared to be getting stronger with each game, scored first in two games and never gave up, bouncing back on more than one occasion when events took a wrong turn.

To the parents it was four games of hockey, to our players it was twelve mini-games where each period was its own game.  One of the reasons I did not pull the goalie in the Nevada or Mariners game was to keep the game close and not give up an empty net goal.  We have not really worked on six players on the ice and I wanted to avoid confusion.  We were 2-9-1, but of the nine periods we lost five were lost by one goal, three by two goals and one by three goals.

The team had a 79% penalty kill percentage, not bad in terms of who we were playing against, stopping a five-on-three against the Mariners.  We had a 20% power-play scoring percentage, which is good for who we were up against and scored one shorthanded goal, with 16% scoring percentage overall.

Rey (4), Julian, Amanda, Cole, Blake all scored, with Rey (2), Amanda, Julian and Ryan contributing assists.  The defense played a very strong and aggressive game, every player contributed.  Our two guest skaters contributed one goal and two assists, and we would like to thank Hayden Funk (G) and David Valencia for filling in from our PW team, and Quinn Baker, Otto Endresz and Devyn Smith (G) who attend our Wednesday clinics on loan from the Jr. Kings.

 

Thanksgiving game a hockey feast at Valencia

Coach Joe, Blake, Heatley and Camalleri look on

Otto and David were solid on D all game

Jolie "Let's Play Two" Hall pulled double duty in back to back games on turkey day!

Early third, Leafs on the attach, Ryan in front, Will at the point

In a very entertaining high tempo game, the KHS Wildcats broke open an even game mid way through the second period, and left with a 5-0 win. As 5-0 games go, this one was fun to watch, looked fun to play, and was closer than it looked. Here is a photo that summed it up with just over 3 mins in the first remained...

Shots are 5-1 for KHS, but the game is still tied just over three left in the first

Our Wed night clinic buddies Quinn and Devon brought us Otto on defense to solidify our squad, and the Wildcats had to work hard to get the best of us. It was apparent that once they were checked, they liked to stay down to get either a penalty or a stoppage. The effort was solid, and although the shots were something like 34-12 as the horn sounded, we were forced to play the middle of the game without Rey due to a penalty for knocking one of their little fellas down. The kid did not miss a shift, so he must not have been too bad off, eh? Thanks for the help Jr Kings...you and your parents are class acts and a nice addition to the team. 

 

Can't wait for the next game!!

Leafs start tough, OC delivers knockout blows in 2nd

Well, my bold prediction that we could hold our own in the game against OC Hockey looked good...33% good! From prophetic-to-pathetic in the blink of an eye in period number two.

Despite being outshot 17-5, the game was knotted at 1 at the first intermission. Perhaps we should have snuck out, said we had a prior engagement or something, as we were on the ropes from the second period bell and staggered around to give up four second period goals in barely six minutes, as they outshot us 17-2 in the second. For the game, shots were 47-13.

Of course a game is three periods long, and as we have done in many games this season, we played solid defense, got the puck out of our zone (except for the first goal when we had chances to and could not..), and were even after the first fifteen minute stanza. The roof fell in, as OC forced their will on us, and pushed us around and crowded Roman and controlled the blue line and pressured us non-stop.

As we head into the tournament, it is apparent we don't have a chance if the game turns run and gun, so we need to stay out of the box (two power play and a short-hander in the 3rd period), and stay in our positions and work the puck up the ice and create some time on attack.

Both Bantam and Pee Wee teams will be in action, once I think they play right before out Bantams do, so try and join the support for the young Leafs as they face some top teams.

Opponent this Sunday OC Hockey at Aliso

Here is a quick scouting report on the Bantam OC hockey team we face Sunday at Aliso Viejo Ice Palace. They are a lot like us, not terribly fast, but they try to jump on the puck, get in and forecheck, and put pucks on the net and crash. They have a number of bigger kids, none of whom can skate very well.

They had a 4-1 lead late in the second, and had to hang on to get a 6-6 tie vs Bakersfield Dragons in Yorba Linda. Their coach makes Joe look like Mother Theresa, as he constantly yells at and be-rates his kids. If things start going against them, they can easily self-destruct. We can outwork them.

Here is a player by player run-down:

Defense Pairs

97 Nathan Pulver       DEF    Rt hand Pairs with #27 , big strong guy, not good skater..go wide                                                           on him--struggles to keep up
27 Jacob Dopudja       DEF   left hand not a factor


PAIR 2           One solid, other soft..make #2 handle the puck
2 Joseph Voyles      DEF   Not physical, misses checks, easy to get around..go right at him, we                        can win battles against him easily. Pressure him when he has the puck..will cough it up
3 Logan Peck           DEF    Pairs with #2 likes to hit, not big, but will hit. Handles puck alot


PAIR 3              Twins, not physical, need forwards to help around net or are in trouble
83 Zechariah Sellona    DEF    Rt hand Pairs with #44, not tough, will lose battles, not physical
44 Jake Orsini             DEF    Rt hand Pairs with #83, not tough, will lose battles, not physical


FORWARD LINES
4 Phillip Kasko     Ctr right shot  Scored nice hard wrister from slot--has ability to create
54 Zachary Taylor  Rt shot --Big hard shot..gets to the net, hard worker
17 Derek Wang       Rt shot, handles puck well

8 Ryan Olischefski
13 Parker Clare    Big slow, poor skater--Homer Simpson on skates--goes through not around you.                    Strong  and wants to handle the puck--bump him off puck, force him away from net. They rely on him to get the puck into the zone
20 Ryan P. Green   left Big slow, center..wants to get to the front- Decent shot

25 Dylan Zanki   Center, big tough, slow Played on various lines wing and center

45 Connor Webster      Ctr  Left shotBig slow, only physical player on this line
55 Strom Ossenmacher  left shot...Soft, will quickly back down, hides behind the net
88 Kyle Pellegrino       Left shot   Smallest guy, fast, quick..likes to fish around side of the net,             stays away from contact. Can make plays if allowed to make moves--take  away time


POWER PLAY LINES

13, 8, 28   Power Play use big body of 13 down low and behind net

4, 20, 54   PP line  Want to work the puck to 54 for shot and crash

No point presence--don’t even look for them

First clip shows defenseman #3 who is always looking to hit--you play a loose puck, he’ll take a shot at you. Head up, know he is coming

Second clip goal scored by OC from faceoff just outside the blue line. Wing lines up wide..take puck in, other wing heads for far post--BE AWAKE! #88 may be their best play-maker--shifty..

Third clip is typical entry into zone--low hard shot rebound, set up behind net, try to center it or (as shown here) bang it in from behind net off the D-man for a cheap goal--

2nd period Action vs Dragons

These next couple clips show some breakdowns and weak coverage in front, as well as shoddy goal-keeping. Play like we have been against the Reign and the last two periods against the Bears and we can win this game handily..we match up well against them.

The third clip shows big 25 luggin the puck up..not pretty..decent shot by number 4 Kasko for the goal.

 Dragons come back..pardon my giggles!

Indeed, you can go home again!

This Sunday, Blake will return to his hockey roots, where it all began in Dec of 2003. Blake was in Kindergarten and he came to me when he was star of the week and told me (in front of the class) that he was named after a hockey player (Rob Blake), and when he grew up, he was gonna be a hockey player! Mind you, this had never come up before, so before Christmas, in a class with about a dozen girls in sparkly glitzy fashions, Blake took the ice in his signature blue sweats, long sleeve hockey shirt, and black mittens. Two eight week sessions of ring around the rosey and duck-duck goose with the girls, and Blake was in hockey skates. Termites, mini-mites, and on to Mites.

Much nostalgia will follow Blake as he takes the ice at Aliso come Sunday morning, where he has not played a game since the June 2006 photos you will see below. From there, he was contacted by the Beach City Lighting Squirt coach, and the rest, as they say, is history!

Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear--

June 2006--Can you find the two current PML players? A number of these kids still play for OC and Anaheim and Beach City

Notice the scoreboard in the back, a 3-2 win. The game went to a shootout, and the kid standing, 4th from the left won the game-- Elijah. Everyone had a chance, and it went around again, 14 rounds to settle it. Literally, the most exciting game in Aliso Viejo history! Coach Jay is our neighbor, and Blake was taller than him three years ago! His son still plays for OC..small freakin' world, eh??

Blake was the 13th shooter, last of the first round..no, he did not score, but he sure had cool gloves! Oh my, who is that strikingly handsome coach in the background in the white Kings jersey?? Yep..he went on to be a famous blogger or something--

Blake was the only kid who could lift the "Gino Cup" on his own!

Gino is a staple at Aliso, been there since day one. He used to sort of run things, now he sort of just hangs out, but every summer, the kids play for the Gino Cup in house, and the winner celebrated like there is no higher prize in the game! NICE!!!!!!!!!!!

Summer 2005--can you pick out Blake and his buddy?

Leafs rough up Reign 6-0 in Riverside

Roman turned aside every shot he saw, and the Leafs went into Ice Town and left with a 6-0 victory. Blake moved to forward in the absence of Ryan and Justin, and Amanda and Rey had four points each, and Will played inspired end to end hockey, as did our captain, Jeffrey, who notched his first goal of the season--a sweet shorthanded slapper from the faceoff dot!! Shots were 37-16, including and 18-6 advantage in the second. The Leafs scored 3 each in the last two periods, and they killed off five minor penalties, three in the first, two in the second.

Here are some photos--video posts will follow in a couple days. Enjoy!!

Amanda flying as Austin and Rey watch in awe!

Cole and Tommy  ready to defend

Robert swoops in for a shot

Austin ready in front--

"Will--go play D! The rebound is mine!"

Blake screens while Rey fires--go big men!

Julian never met a shot he didn't like--

Jeffrey looks for Amanda in front

Will to the net after an awesome rush--

And, yes...it is gone! So you can all feel a part of it, here are the final phases of the beard! Just to make sure, I bottled up the "winning whiskers" so we can call upon the badness of the beard with a sprinkle on the ice, or in our skates, or whatever--ya never know!!

BEFORE

DURING........

 

AFTER!!!

Holy Crap! Apparently winning makes me channel my "Inner Austrian"!!

 

Without further ado, here are some lovely moments from the epic victory at the Ice House in Riverside. The shorthanded goal by Jeffrey with about 5 left in the game put a capper on this one quite nicely! 

Jeffrey blast a shot by the goalie for a shortie!! 

The opening faceoff set the tone, as Rey drilled #4, then Blake got knocked down due to a soft pass from the D...put it off the boards so innocent wingers don't have to get clobbered! Put something on the pass-- 

1st shift--Introductions pretty much over! 

Jeffrey, Amanda and Austin came right out for their first shift and created two nice chances--the Jr Reign are back on the junior heels I would say!

Ist shift for Jeffrey Amanda Austin causes some trouble 

While killing a penalty, Amanda clobbers a dude, and just after that, Robert jumps from a change and rips a shot off--big save!

Amanda and Robert get the men on the glass all excited!

With 8:30 left in the first, Blake gets a chance from the slot on the backhand, and Roman has to make one of just four saves in the period--just makin' sure you were awake Roman! Then Will makes a break for it as the period comes to an end, a tie at zero, Leafs dominating territorially and with a 10-4 shot advantage.

1st period Highlights continue

Amanda did it all, working it to the net and giving her team a 1-0 lead just over a minute into the period. (Camerman was a bit slow to aim and zoom at the far end--can hardly tell what happened--) As we go deeper into the 2nd, Cole joins the hit parade, and Austin finds it a bit lonely in front on the power play, until the puck arrives, he pops it in, and friends join to celebrate! With 5:42 left in the 2nd, the Leafs earn a 2-0 lead!

Cole goes hittin', Roman nice save, Austin bangs in PP goal 

Blake takes a hit and springs Rey and Julian 2 on 1, nice back-check by Julian and a quality glove grab by Roman, and Ed ties a dude up on the wall so Rey has a clear path to the net and the third marker of the game for the Leafs as the second period comes to a close. Somewhere in there, Robert stands up for Jolene in the corner..well done! 

Further 2nd period action

As we head to the third, Amanda does what she does, jumping on a loose puck in front for a power play tally with just under 10 left in the game. Leafs go up 4-0. Blake muscles one out, chipping it out of the zone off the boards to send Rey and Julian away on another scoring chance. Moments later, 19 Madison shows off some nifty moves to the net! About nine left in the game..

Amanda scores it, Blake chips it, Julian dances with it..

Leafs power play with under 7 mins lefts to play leads to a goal in front by Julian from Rey, for a 5-0 score. Jeffrey caps a fine all around game with the slap shot we showed you earlier--bears another look! Amanda has apparently been working out, as she lifts their tallest player and tosses him to the ice with ease! To close, Jolie takes it wide, fights off a check and flings it to the net as the Leafs crash.

Late third period action

And there you have it--if you want a DVD of the game, just ask or email me. See ya next time Leafs fans...

Two and a half weeks..will it be bye bye Beardie??

As we approach three weeks, including a weekend bye, we will head to Riverside to take on the Reign.

–noun

1.  the period during which a sovereign occupies the throne.

2.  royal rule or authority; sovereignty.

3.  dominating power or influence: the reign of law.

–verb (used without object)

4.  to possess or exercise sovereign power or authority.

5.  to hold the position and name of sovereign without exercising the ruling power.

6.  to have control, rule, or influence of any kind.

7.  to predominate; be prevalent.

September 25-26, 2010
09/26/10	4:25p	4045	Jr. Reign	1	OC Hockey	16	OC Ice Palace	Pre
October 2-3, 2010
10/02/10	12:00p	4046	Lightning	7	Jr. Reign	3	Ice Town - Riverside	Pre
10/03/10	4:15p	4050	Jr. Reign	2	Maple Leafs	5	Paramount Iceland	Pre
October 9-10, 2010
10/09/10	3:00p	2400	Bears	22	Jr. Reign	1	Ice Town - Riverside	Reg
October 23-24, 2010
10/23/10	3:15p	2410	Jr. Reign	0	SDIA	10	San Diego Ice Arena	Reg
October 30-31, 2010
10/30/10	4:40p	2416	OC Hockey	15	Jr. Reign	2	Ice Town - Riverside	Reg
November 6-7, 2010
11/07/10	8:40a	2420	Jr. Reign	3	Lightning	9	KHS	Reg

It would appear that number 5 would apply, as they have yet to exercise any ruling power. Not that we have engaged in any "total world domination" (any Pinky and the Brain fans out there??) thus far, but they have 12 goals in 7 games, while giving up 84, which means they give up on average as many goals per game as they have scored in the entire season. I like our chances..I will head to Target and get me a nice new electric shaver for my Saturday afternoon shave..The Lightning have put up 7 and most recently 9 against them--so again, I like our chances.  Confidence, from the drop of the puck, the simple key!

But forget all that! We will win because we have improved defensively, and the Riverside team will find us even more impenetrable than when they saw us and were able to sneak two goals by us when we met just five weeks ago.

Honestly, with a hint from a local barber, my beard itch is well under control, and I have no doubt I could maintain my scruff as needed...here is a quick photo montage. Enjoy..the greying puppy is our chocolate lab, Roxy!

Go Leafs!  Bring their evil Reign to another bitter end!

Another Pickwick trip with nothing to show--7-0 loss

Bright spots, Austin in net, and the checking of Robert, and all around fine play of his linemates Jolie and Edward, who got off the majority of the teams' shots. After a slow start and a timeout with about three left in the 1st, already down 4-0, things settled down, and we played them even for about a period, as they got a goal late in the 2nd, and two more in the third. Amanda was hustling as always, and was greeted rather unkindly a couple times! How's about you soft-spoken bigger guys chat with the young man next time, and pay him a bit more attention and let him know we don't approve?? Could ya--huh? Nothing dirty, just return his unwanted advances--capiche??

The beard continues to grow and itch, at equal rates pretty much, but I am certain that after our bye this week, we will start a win streak of our own! No Rip Van Winkle length beard for this old fella! No comments on the increased amounts of grey--that is mostly the lighting!

Complete Schedule has been posted!

The complete schedule has been released--nobody we can't beat!  What a relief!!

10/31/10	7:15a	2418	Maple Leafs		Bears		Pickwick	Reg
November 13-14, 2010
11/13/10	10:20a	2428	Maple Leafs		Jr. Reign		Ice Town - Riverside	Reg
November 20-21, 2010
11/21/10	9:15a	2431	Maple Leafs		OC Hockey		Aliso Viejo Ice Palace	Reg
December 4-5, 2010
12/05/10	8:40a	2435	Maple Leafs		Lightning		KHS	Reg
December 11-12, 2010
12/12/10	6:00p	2443	SDIA		Maple Leafs		Paramount Iceland	Reg
December 18-19, 2010
12/19/10	4:15p	2446	Jr. Gulls		Maple Leafs		Paramount Iceland	Reg
January 8-9, 2011
01/09/11	9:20a	2450	Maple Leafs		Jr. Ducks		Anaheim ICE	Reg
January 15-16, 2011
01/15/11	5:00p	2458	Maple Leafs		Dragons		Bakersfield Ice Center	Reg
January 22-23, 2011
01/23/11	6:00p	2463	Bears		Maple Leafs		Paramount Iceland	Reg
February 5-6, 2011
02/05/11	8:40a	2472	Maple Leafs		Jr. Reign		Ice Town - Riverside	Reg
February 12-13, 2011
02/13/11	4:15p	2478	OC Hockey		Maple Leafs		Paramount Iceland	Reg
February 26-27, 2011
02/27/11	4:15p	2483	Lightning		Maple Leafs		Paramount Iceland	Reg
March 5-6, 2011
03/06/11	4:15p	2488	SDIA		Maple Leafs		Paramount Iceland	Reg

 
The season starts with this four game road trip, including the home rinks for Blake and Edward, Aliso Viejo and KHS in Anaheim, where they played together with Beach City for two seasons. After Bakersfield in mid January, five of the final six are in the friendly confines of Paramount Iceland.

My pledge to the team

Until we win a game, be it in regular season or tournament play, I pledge to have some sort of facial hair on display. Depending on how crazy I get, it could lead to Maple Leaf Blue hair, or sideburns shaped like hockey sticks--no telling. I will vary and post it each week with an update.

The current look is a blend of honest Abe Lincoln, and the Uni-bomber, both of which I have been called in my other bearded days. When I was in my mid 20's, my mustache did not come in at the same rate, and I was known as honest Bill, as I had the mustache-less beard going. Then, on a rainy day in my early 40's, I wore a hood with my beard on a wet day and was dubbed the Uni-bomber by the guys I played basketball with. The grey speckles are starting to take over the chin--the goatee look could give me sort of a Col Sanders vibe!

For historic purposes, here it is!  Anyone joining me in a show of solidarity??

Dragons Squeak by tough luck Leafs at Paramount

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

!@#$%^&*())(*&^%$##@

Shots on goal were 30 to 19 in favor of the Dragons, and it looked like Amanda's forecheck goal earned with tough work early in the second would gain us a tie, or a chance to win. The Leafs mustered just 4 shots in the 3rd, and couldn't clear the puck out when a chance arose, and the winner was netted with about two minutes left.


A Reunion with the Bears in Burbank awaits Sunday morning--

Jr Ducks hang 10 on Leafs at Paramount

Early in the regular season, it is apparent we don't like the friendly confines of Paramount Iceland very much, as a solid first 10 minutes quickly was forgotten as we allowed three goals to close the first. The Jr Ducks struggle to score against many teams, but their 3 or 4 stars played like stars, and that was all they needed.

The Maple Leafs from Pasadena continue to be unable to generate chances, as they were outshot about 33-11. Sure, some of the goals were a little soft, but the bottom line is we have to battle much harder before we can see any results on the scoreboard.

Fortunately, the Bakersfield Dragons have to make the trip once again, as they will visit Paramount once again. Last time we were beaten 5-2, with a five minute major leading to three power play goals and the victory. The Dragons also do not have many players, so we can wear them down if we pressure them and push them around early and often. Interestingly, they have not lost yet, with four ties and two wins. They have ties with the Lightning, Jr Gulls, Jr Ducks, and OC Hockey, and they beat us and the Lightning. Last weekend they took it to the Lightning 7-0, after three straight ties, so they are on a bit of a roll.

Still very early in the season, and we are able to play with these teams, but just can't seem to do it for more than a period or so. Once we can do that, we will start seeing better some pucks get in the net.

Jr Gulls swoop past Leafs 7-1

Another strong start, and two late 1st period goals led to a "swan" dive downhill as the Jr Gulls never looked back. A strong 3rd period with a power play goal, as Amanda rebounded a shot from the point by Blake, as well as a grade A penalty kill gives us something to build on as we welcome our neighbors to the south from Anaheim next Sunday 6pm. The Ducks beat the Lightning just 3-0 at KHS. They are certainly beatable, if we shut down their big guns, and be aware of the big hitters.

Notes from Sunday 10/10/10 6pm tilt with Jr Gulls

They dressed 20 players, to our 14 including the debut of Austin Stanovich, who will serve as backup goalie as well when called upon. Austin did himself proud, smartly sending the puck to the point to Blake on the power play which led to a goal.

Roman got stronger as the game went on, turning aside 35 of 42 shots, while we had 13. We battled well in the 3rd, with each team getting just one goal. The end of the 1st and the 2nd, our usual bugaboo, dug us a 6-0 hole, and we didn't pack it in. Interestingly, they had 7 different goal scorers, a sign that they shared the ice evenly with their four full lines and 3 sets of D-men.

The Leafs took just one minor penalty, which we skillfully killed, and the Gulls were called for two head contact minors (scored on the one early in the third), and a goalie interference whistle with just under four minutes left in the game.