Another strong game against a team who is better than the score would indicate.  The Ice Hawks played a strong game, and things got a bit rough, but we mostly kept our cool and played up to our abilities.  Exellent goal tending from Jeff, who is still nursing a groin injury, kept us in control of this game.

It was a tight game for most of the first period with each team getting quite a few chances.  After being unable to score on a power play, Chris M. was able to pick up a rebound and launch a wicked backhanded shot.

In the second period, new guy Keith was able to steal the puck and then used his speed to get the goalie to cheat too far to his left.  Keith then fired back across to the far post for a pretty impressive goal.  Not bad for a guy who hadn't played in four years.

The third period was a penalty-filled extravaganza.  Things were getting a little chippy, and by "a little" I mean "a lot."  In between penalties, Chris M. was also able to steal the puck and score unassisted.  Then during a power play, Tony launched a wrister from the blue line, which the goalie caught in his glove.  Unfortunately (for him) the goalie went to do some show-boaty move where he flips the puck in the air and then catches it, but he ended up throwing it into the net instead.  Oops.

They actually outshot us 30 to 15!  We probably should have more shots because we did have long series of constant pressure, but Jeff stepped up and stopped everything.  They had 6 penalties to our 5 with most of them coming in the third period.  We did have a PP goal, but it was that weird goal.  All goals count, though, even the ugly ones.  Here is the online scoresheet.

Scoring:

Player	G	A	Pts
Chris M.	2	0	2
Keith	1	1	2
Tony	1	0	1

The duck goes to both Chris Montgomery for his two goals, and to Jeff Edwards for his shutout with his gimpy groin.

Wow, when it rains it pours.  I think it's safe to say that this was a good game.  Xilinx was without their two "top" scorers from last season and, while they did have some talent, didn't put up much of a challenge.  It was a slow-paced and clean game so we had lots of time to make good passes and settle the puck.

John started off the scoring just 28 seconds into the game with an unassisted goal.  It was a nice pull-back move, but he also reinjured his thumb in doing so.  About 10 minutes later Chris Diggs got his own unassisted goal to give us that "most dangerous" of leads.  Almost profectically, Xilinix was able to get an odd-man rush and cut our lead to just one goal.  Fortunately, we are not the Sharks and Larry got the eventual game-winning goal with 48 seconds left in the first.  Fisrt intermission score: 3 - 1

In the second period, Roger got the first of his two goals when he tucked in Wilson's rebound.  Diggs piled on another goal, also with an assist from Wilson.  Second intermission score: 5 - 1.

Xilinx drew a penalty in the third and was able to score on the power play after a long scramble in front of the net.  However, Jay killed any momentum they had when he scored on the very next shift.  Roger then got his second goal and Randy capped the night's scoring with our insurance-insurance-insurance-insurance-insurance goal.  Remember, no lead is safe in the new NHL.

We outshot them (a little) with 35 shots to their 30.  Frankly, I don't remember 30 shots, but I know that sub goalie Jeff did stop quite a few good chances and a few breakaways.  They had three penalties and we just had one, but they scored on their PP and we didn't.  Here is the online scoresheet.

Scoring:

Player	G	A	Pts
Diggs	2	1	3
Roger	2	0	2
Jay	1	1	2
Randy	1	1	2
Wilson	0	2	2
John	1	0	1
Larry	1	0	1
Steve	0	1	1
Inga	0	1	1

The duck goes to Chris Diggs for his 3 point game.

I had a whole write-up about how this game sucked due to ringers and bad refs, but I grow weary of such "Groundhog Day" stories.  It was a preseason game and doesn't matter.  If I see those ringers again, however, I will mention it to Tyler so I can be promptly ignored.  We actually played a good game, despite the score.

We scored first at the end of the first when John took a feed from Jay.  It was a nice shot and John requests the rest of you to "give him the slop" in the center.  But then they scored three in the second period and two more in the third, mostly due to ringerness.  We a load of quality chances but none went in.  Theirs did and that was the difference.  We also spent quite a bit on time on the penalty kill so that limited our chances.  We killed off all of those penalties, so that's good.

Shots were almost even at 27 (them) to 25 (us).  We took six penalties to their three.  I'd like to point out that I am not in the PIM lead this season (so far).

Scoring:

Player	G	A	Pts
John	1	0	1
Jay	0	1	1
Jingleheimer-Schmit	0	0	0
Damon	0	1	1

Thanks for Jeff Edwards for subbing in net.

Not a bad way to start the season.  A little rust and weak lungs here and there, but not too bad of an effort.  We also got a look at the new and supposedly revamped Cougars.  The scoresheet shows lots of familiar names, but not all of them were at this game.  They seem to have recruited four new players, possibly from the same roller team.  Two were pretty good, one likes to fall down a lot, and the other liked to take penalties.  A lot.  We'll see how that shakes out.

As for the game, the Cougars scored first when Wu (!) wristed it in at 5:10 in the first.  Minutes later, Tony pretty much did the same thing at 3:15.  But shortly after, at 2:27, one of their new guys banked the puck off the far post and in for the 2 - 1 lead.

No one scored in the second period even though both teams took over 10 shots each.  In the third period, during what actually looked like a real power play, Kerry did his own Wu/Tony impression and wristed it in from the high slot at 6:27.  The game ended in a tie.

Shots were basically even at 21 to 22.  They had five penalties to our three, and we scored the PP goal.  We lost Phess early to knee problem and I don't know his status yet.  We also lost new-guy John for a couple of series while he tended to a dislocated thumb and separated nail, coutesy of their PIM-master's vicious slashing.  He's having it drained this week, so update to follow.

Scoring:

Player	G	A	Pts
Tony	1	0	1
Kerry	1	0	1
Larry	0	1	1

The duck goes to John for coming back and playing with that dislocated thumb.

Welcome to another season of Gang Green ice hockey!

Here are the details for this season:

1. Welcome new player John Boswell!  John will be playing wing and also helping out in net from time to time.  John be our youngest player so let's be sure to bore him with stories about how things were tougher when we were his age!
2. Welcome returning alumnus Randy Ishimaru to the team.  Make sure you let him bore you with his stories.
   
3. USA Hockey registration from last season is still good this season.  If you didn't pay for USA Hockey membership last season then you need to go to their website and register.  It costs $32 and will only last through this season.  :-(  (As of today, everyone has registered, so excellent job).
4. If you haven't played for Logitech Ice before then you need to sign their waiver form.  If you signed it last season then it's still good.  I will also bring blank forms to the first couple of games.  Only John and Randy need to sign waivers.
   
5. League Fees:
1. Pay me, not Logitech.
2. Cost:
1. Fulltime: $400
2. Halftime: $200
3. Sub: $20/game
3. Payments:
   
1. Bring check (to me) to first game.
• Make check out to: Kevin Chu
  
2. Paypal: klchu@yahoo.com
• MUST BE PAYPAL to PAYPAL!  No credit cards!
  
6. Web Links:
1. Gang Green schedule
2. Team Standings and other stats
3. Team blog (includes lots of these links)
   
4. Google Calendars
1. Gang Green
2. Other Teams (more for me than you, but if it's helpful...)
   
5. Logitech Ice
6. USA Hockey
7. Game Sign Ups
1. Continue to use Evite
2. RSVP yes or no.
3. Subs reply maybe if you can sub.  You will be contacted if we need you, at which time you should RSVP yes.
4. If you don't get evite email, let me know.
8. Subs
1. Fees: $20 per game
2. Please try and pay the day of the game.
3. See Game Sign Ups for evite process.
4. NEW / IMPORTANT:
   
1. Due to the limit of 25 players I will have to juggle roster spots for subs so you appear on the signup sheet.  Sometime during the season the roster will lock and I'll have to cut the roster to 25 names.  The subs with the lowest number of games will have to be cut.  Sorry.
   
9. Halftime Players
1. Most of you will have a partner.
2. Try to coordinate with your partner as to who will play each game.
3. Yes, the schedule doesn't go that far ahead, but do the best you can.
4. If you're not playing, but can, RSVP maybe to the evite to be added to the sub pool.  You will be contacted if you're needed.
   
10. League and USA Hockey Rule Changes:
1. Team Game Misconduct: If the team gets more than 10 penalties in a single game then the whole team is assigned one Game Misconduct.  There is no suspension but it counts towards the playoff tie breakers.  GMs are now the third tie breaker behind points and wins.
2. No actual USA Hockey rule changes, but...
   
3. The refs say that more stick play penalties will be called.  i.e. any use of the stick other than playing the puck can be a penalty.  "Lifting the stick" is still supposed to be okay as long as you don't hook.
4. Scoresheet corrections still need to be made right after the game, but the scoresheets should remain in the box all night, so we're supposed to be able to ask for corrections as long as the sheet is there.
   
5. The refs and scorekeepers are also recruiting.  So, if you feel that you have too many friends, feel free to apply!  :)

Here is the current roster.  Note that it's larger than 25 players, so please see the IMPORTANT notices about subs above.

#	Player	Type	Position
22	Steve Arsenault	Full	C
14	Chris Baldwin	Sub	W
64	Karen Bechtel	Sub	W
2	John Boswell	Full	W/G
11	Kevin Chu	Full	D
20	Chris Diggs	Full	W/G
28	Inga Drepper	Half	C
86	Pat Hess	Full	W
1	Lou Hocker	Half	G
81	Randy Ishimaru	Half	W
27	Howard Johnson	Sub	W/D
55	Larry Johnson	Full	W/C
8	Chris Kerry	Half	W/C/D
32	Lisa Kvarda	Sub	W
4	Damon Le Roy	Half	W
3	Brian Lowe	Sub	G/O/D
57	Tony Martinez	Half	C
98	Ken McHale	Full	W
89	Chris Montgomery	Half	W/C
29	Randy Scholz	Sub	C/W
100	Roger Shinmoto	Full	W
17	Jay Smestad	Sub	W/D
97	Chris Wilson	Sub	D
18	Tim Wojtaszek	Half	D/W
88	Dale Yamamoto	Full	D
7	Peter Yee	Full	D
44	Phil Young	Sub	D
47	Christin Zienkiewicz	Full	D

Yup, we lost, but it was a close game.  They scored one lucky goal in the first and then shut us out for the rest of the game.  We had our chances, but couldn't close the gap.  It was a clean game and we did play well, so this was a good game to end the season with.

We had 23 shots to their 24 and had just one penalty to their two.  No team scored any PP, SH or EN goals.

Scoring:

No scoring.

The duck goes to everyone for a great season!

It took a long time, but we finally got a win against Team Beer, and during the playoffs, too.  The score really should have been higher, like 4 to 0, but I'll take it.  They were missing some personel and were skating kind of slow.  We did a good job of controling the game, but our power play still went "O fer" the game.  At least we had lots of power play chances, so that part of the game plan came together.

Inga got the first goal when she tipped in Kerry's slapshot at 13:04.  Then as the first period was winding down, Jay broke away and hit Damon during a two-on-one breakout.  Damon's shot from wide right found the five hole.

We sat on the lead during the second period and let off the gas a bit, but still had some good series in their zone.    But at 14:48 of the third period, a turnover at our blue line led to a goal for them.  That woke us up (a bit) and we were able to maintain good pressure the rest of the game.

We drew lots of penalties, and even though we didn't score, it kept them off the scoreboard.  The game ended with us on the powerplay, but they pulled their goalie for a 5 on 5, empty net situation.  We missed two empty net chances and Diggs was able to keep their last flurry of shots out of the net.

We dominated the shot clock 22 to 11.  They had 7 penalties (including a GM for mouthing off) to our 2.  No team scored a PP goal and we squandered some 5 on 3 time.

Here is the online scoresheet.

Scoring:

Player	G	A	Pts
Inga	1	0	1
Damon	1	0	1
Kerry	0	1	1
Jay	0	1	1

The duck goes to Chris Diggs for holding that one goal load and for telling us to stop dicking around on the power play.  That's our new team motto.

Our wins have been few and far between lately, so this win felt good.  The whole team played very well this night.

I actually started the scoring with assists from Jay and Inga.  That goal was a microcosm of the whole game in that both O and D were involved and passing well to each other.  Jay then got his own goal with an assist from Damon, and then Damon continued the chain with his own goal.  All of this was in the first period.

With a three goal lead we let off the gas a little but still held them scoreless for half of the second period.  However, they did manage a goal at 9:20 to cut the lead to two goals.  Any momentum gained from that was lost when Ken tipped in my rebound to regain the 3 goal lead.  Inga then scored with 7 second left in the period to push the lead to 4 goals.

That's the way it stayed untli the Red Hawks were able to score a PP goal, but that would be in for the comeback.  Things got a little ugly at the end of the game and a bunch of penalties were piled on (to them).

We outshot them 25 to 17 and had only two penalties to their six.  But they scored one PP goal and killed off all of ours.  Here is the online scoresheet.

Scoring:

Player	G	A	Pts
Jay	1	2	3
Damon	1	2	3
Kevin	1	1	2
Inga	1	1	2
Ken	1	0	1
Wilson	0	1	1

The duck goes to Jay and Damon for their three point night!

Even though we lost this game, it was a fun one.  I've said it before, but ACME is a fun team to play against since we're pretty evenly matched.

ACME scored first on an unassisted play but we tied the game later during a power play.  Dale's slap shot knuckled in past the screened goalie.

No one scored in the second period, which is amazing since there were eight penalties called in that period alone.

In the third period we took the lead when I scored off an assist from Steve.  Again the goalie was well-screened and he didn't have his paddle down so my shot just slid in through the five hole.  Unfortunately, they would score on the very next shift to tie the game once more.  Then they took the lead on their own power play goal.  Penalties kept us from mounting a real attack at the end.

Shots were 18 to 16 in their favor.  A total of 14 penalties were called and each team scored one PP goal.  Here is the online score sheet.

Scoring:

Player	G	A	Pts
Dale	1	0	1
Kevin	1	0	1
Pete	0	1	1
Steve	0	1	1

The duck goes to the defense for getting 3 of the 4 points.

This game was a pure ass-kicking.  They play well and we played like crap.

It was close for the first period until they scored with 2:26 on the clock.  But in the second period things broke down and they scored 3 goals in 4 minutes.  A third period comeback was not to be as they scored again at 13:05 and then again with just 2 seconds left in the game.

They outshot us 36 to 19.  Neither team had a penalty.  Here is the online scoresheet.

Scoring:

No scoring

No duck