Summer 2015 Playoffs Review

It’s ova’! The summer is done, playoffs are over and it is time to start preparing for winter. The winter season is just a few short weeks away.
“But Squirrel! What happened in the summer playoffs?”

Settle down there, and I’ll tell you. The Piranhas (2nd seed) would play the Shooters (3rd) to get to the championship. The Piranha line up is out on the ice, taking warm ups, and there’s only two Shooters on the ice. The fish start hearing that they have no goalie.

The referee came up with these rules on the fly that neither side fully understood, allowing the Shooters to put one of their 8 skaters into the net and cover the puck. Oh, and the Shooters are missing their top center.

It was brutal. The Piranhas played down, and the Shooters played desperate. It made it into a difficult game. I could not get anything going. I would try to use my wingers to help break out of the zone, but I couldn’t do it. I didn’t have the endurance to skate the puck down, I didn’t have the patience to look. The Shooters played outstanding, and it threw me off. My frustration grew and grew. I would put one into the net, and it would go around the bottom so fast, that the official would not see it go in and out, and not count it. Even Shooter players admitted it went in, but obviously aren’t going to admit it. Piranhas win ugly, 6-5.

The very next night, the Moose would play the Force for the championship. I would jump onto the wing for the first time with that team, playing with an old team mate from the Coyotes. I kept making mistakes in the first period. I wouldn’t play my “safe” hockey. I would stumble, drop the puck, make bad passes, pretty much anything I could do poorly in the first two periods. Going into the third we were down by a couple of goals, and I knew I had to play better. I had to carry the puck, and dig quite a bit deeper. The entire team had to carry the puck – especially me. I would eventually pick it up and try to take it end to end. I did a lot of work below the goal line, and stayed strong on my skates. I would kick a backhand pass out to the slot, allowing my center to put one home. Ultimately, it wasn’t enough and the Moose lost.

I wasn’t frustrated or angry after the Moose lost. I spent more time focusing on the next steps. The winter moose, the Piranhas next game, and that was about it. I wasn’t playing well, and there’s little you can do to play better in the short term. Just mentally prepare.

The Piranhas would have a full bench against the Mastodons (1st). I would pop the goalie’s water bottle in warm ups, something I had never done before. I had my time to get my skates right – which is nice because they had felt off for a month or two. We shook up the lines a little bit, and gave me a little bit stronger of a winger as my line had been struggling a lot lately. Dividends would immediately pay off. My line’s first shift, I would poke check the puck away from the puck carrier in the neutral zone, and my new winger would cut across, pick up the puck and score on a break away. It set the tone. Each shift from every line was hard. The Piranhas didn’t give up anything easy, and that helped me out and play my best. It is easier to dig deeper when you’re surrounded by guys who are digging deep as well. A couple of penalty kills, a few solid defensive plays, and the Piranhas would win the championship.

I finished the summer on a down note performance wise. When I was rolling fairly well, I hit a dry patch. I now know why. I stopped working to get better, and as a result, I got worse. My conditioning didn’t improve, I lost battles, and I lost confidence. I’m fortunate to have had the team to pick up slack. Now it is just time to get ready for the winter.

Goaldiggers vs. Chicago Blue - Playoff Round 1 - 2011-08-02

Playoffs! I had to skip a Piranhas game to play in the Goaldiggers first playoff game this session. Again with a short bench, and against a team with a decent record, we'd have to work hard to get a victory.

All night it seemed I was always playing against giant defense-men who could move really well. What did surprise me was they weren't as physically strong, or didn't use all of their strength against me. More than once I was able to pin their bigger guys against the boards for a few seconds. I wasn't playing the puck at all because I knew I couldn't control their body and play the puck at the same time. What I didn't do was call for help in this situation. I just assumed it would show up, but it did not, and we would lose those battles.

Several times I was able to skate the puck out of our zone, and push the defense-men back. Once it generated a decent scoring chance, and the other, I blew a great opportunity for the player coming down the wing. I knew he was coming, I heard him calling for it. I knew he'd be alone, but I didn't look and put the pass 10 feet in front of him. I was kicking myself for that.

I think the short bench really hurt our team. Guys were taking 3:00 shifts. I understand they feel fine, they're trying to give more rest to the guys on the bench, but most of the time, players are ready after just a minute of sitting. I can play the entire game without coming off. I've done it before, but I didn't play hard or effectively in those games. When I don't play hard, I'm useless, so why do that? Unless we had an issue where we didn't have enough guys to come out for subs, I changed every minute like I normally would. I was also ready every 45 seconds of rest, just like a normal game. I can't play 2:00 shifts hard. When I can't play hard, I get off the ice.

I'm also noticing a small trend in the past couple of games. I'll be turning, and just lose an edge. Am I leaning too much? What am I doing wrong? Maybe a recent change in my skating stance/stride?

The opponents generated all of their goals on shots from in the slot. There was no real rebound goals. It was just a simple pass from the corner into the slot and in. Their defense-men would jump up into play constantly and burn us. Our team has had issues with this in the past. It was hard to get the puck out of our own zone, and made us so tired that we couldn't generate any real shots. We'd end up losing something like 5-2, and being eliminated from the playoffs.

Goaldiggers Playoff Game 2011-04-25

I went into this Goaldiggers playoff game a little unsure of How I'd play. I haven't played much in the past month for some personal reasons, but was still excited to be there. We were playing against a team that I know we were better, so I expected to win.

I read back on some of my posts and noticed when I come back from not playing for a while that I get soft. I become paranoid of getting hurt, and once I make some contact, I play better. With it being a playoff game, I'd have to step it up a little bit. My second shift, I put a guy into the boards as hard as I could, which still wasn't enough to get a penalty. We battled for the puck for a good 5 seconds before it got loose and I got hit in the face with an elbow. I was wearing my cage, but it was enough of a jolt for me to bite my cheek and draw blood.

In the second period, behind their net, I lost a puck battle along the boards against two opponents. Still skating, one of their players tripped over my stick which was down the whole time anyway, and cried about not getting a call for a little bit. The defensemen kept the puck in and then I gave the player that tripped over my stick a small jab in the skates, trying to make him a little paranoid or maybe even bait him into taking a penalty. He knew what I was doing, gave me a small shove and then I skated off as I saw the ref closely watching us.

In the third, we had a three on two down the ice, the puck came over to me. I settled it down, and just fired it short side as hard as I could about 10 feet away from the net. Just as I got the shot off, A defensemen attempting to block it came sliding by and tripped me and I went flying. As I was falling, I saw it hit the goalie. I hit the ice, hear the whistle, and get up. The other team is crying about the penalty, but then I noticed everyone was going to center ice. I didn't realize the puck had gone in. So that's a good note for tonight.

We then tied it at 3. I spent my time fore checking very hard putting a lot of pressure on players. I noticed there were a handful I was faster than, but not fast enough to get around them and their protecting of the puck.

At the end of the third, tied, we were in their zone. The d-man got the puck and tried to skate down low with the puck. A bigger guy, I tried to get in his way, and knock the puck off his stick. Somehow he got around me and my arm and his stick got tangled up. He kept yanking on it and nearly tore my arm off. I let him go to avoid a penalty, and he walked into the slot and scored what would be the game winner.

I felt I played poorly because of conditioning, and rust. I played hard and Am sore all over. I felt I would have done a lot better tonight had I been working on my balance and strength. It wouldn't feel as bad as it does though if my guy didn't score the game winner. It is really starting to eat at me.

Goaldiggers Playoffs - Semi-Finals - 2010-12-20

Second night in a row of Goaldigger hockey - very intense hockey at a higher level. I made some quick skate changes after last game because I broke the lace lock, but that's a different post.

Last game I felt that our d-men pinched way too much - but that is our team's game. This game made yesterday's game less extreme. We were short staffed on the blue line, and still they continued to jump up. At the same time, even by bringing it up with speed, we as a team had a hard time keeping the puck in our own zone.

Me, I didn't make too much of a difference in the game. I worked harder this game than the night before, and got my nose dirty a little bit in the corners. I had won a small battle in the neutral zone to keep the puck in their end, but with the size and skill of the guys against me, it is no surprise that the entire team was prepared for me to lose the battle.

I had another battle in the same spot almost that resulted in me putting a player on his wallet, but I still lost the battle to another guy who came in and helped.

My passing and recognition is getting better. Last night I was able to recognize the other winger streaking up the middle towards the end of my shift. There was a player between us but I could see how he was balanced and had a good opening between his feet and stick. I was able to slide it between him, and put it slightly ahead of my team mate. Unfortunately, it was a bit too far out ahead.

My main goal tonight was to go out, and skate hard every shift, and make some more contact with the opponent. I feel I did just that, so I guess it was a good game for me, despite the fact that I felt mostly invisible. The one thing I did forget though is that when you're skating hard, at the end of your shift, you're going to lose any battle to a fresh guy, despite their talent level. Line changes need to be fast and frequent, and I needed to be better about that.

The Goaldiggers lost the game and were eliminated from the playoffs. They just weren't a more talented team than the group of players we played against. Players from both side lost their composure at times, and they had better legs, and more talent. The team as a whole played well.

Just have to prepare for next season - which starts in like 2-3 weeks.

Goaldiggers playoff game - 2010-12-19

Quarter finals for the Goaldiggers in the playoffs tonight, and the game started early, at 8:10. Strange for me playing that early but I’ll take it. I show up a few minutes later than I would have liked. I guess it is a side effect from living closer to the rink, because I did it last week too.
Our opponents tonight have been familiar to us. A handful of our players played with some of them years ago, and we played them last year in the playoffs as well. They are a chippy team, and very hard working. We’d have to work hard, and keep our cool. My first shift on the ice, a defensemen pinched in, and I covered for them. They came back but it still led to a 2 on 2 against us, and I felt had I back checked harder, I could have prevented the first goal of the game. It really is deflating to let a goal in on your first shift, especially when there are guys who haven’t even seen the ice yet.
Later in the period, I tried to make up for it by working harder and did a half assed job at a board battle. I refused to go in against two opponents against the board. Instead, I stayed three feet away from the boards trying to work the puck out. That is just lazy in my opinion, and it doesn’t give you a good chance. Yeah, you have more control of your stick, but you lose the ability to use your feet to move the puck. I need to go in, and make some contact with the opponents to move the puck, and stop being afraid.
Still down by one, I again covered for a pinching d-man. The puck got around me and I didn’t skate full speed to recover it. As a result, the opponent chased it all the way down with me. And as a result, I had to crash into the boards to get to the puck. Had I skated hard the whole time, the opponent wouldn’t have had a chance. Either way, I still won the puck. The problem is it remained in play. I threw it around the boards, and some how it came down to the slot. Unfortunately, I again didn’t skate hard enough to cover him and the center was able to chip it in. The second goal I felt was my fault. While it was frustrating, I still tried to play shift to shift, and tried to make the best of it. The problem is, this time, when I crashed into the boards trying to recover the puck, I went funny into the boards. It was a lot like when I hyper extended my knee, where I spun around really fast with all of my weight on one foot. Luckily it only “shocked” my ankle, and it only bothered me for another shift or two.
In the second period, I played more of a solid period effort wise and results wise. We were still down by one. At one point, I found myself skating too hard, and found myself below the goal line. I’m a winger! Why am I under the goal line in my own zone!? I hustled back up to the point and luckily I wasn’t burned. I kept coming down too low tonight, but after I noticed this, I did a better job of just covering my man. It was a good thing too. Towards the end of the second, I got the puck at the top of the faceoff circle in my own zone. Normally I would play it safe and just try and chip it out of our zone. But I had time. I didn’t panic. I skated with it, and was able to get past the first d-man. The second d-man caught me at the red line, and was able to disrupt the break out, but still, I would never have dreamed of even trying that even 4 months ago. I’m gaining confidence with the puck.
It reminds me of something I was told very early when I started playing on ice. Look! Don’t just throw the puck away. You’ve probably got more time than you think. It is better to lose the puck in a fight, than it is to just throw it and give it to the opposition.
In the third, we were still down by one. I’m getting pretty nervous about losing the game, and the d-man keep jumping in to the play. Again, I’m on the blue line, covering for a d-man who went in on the rush. Then I noticed the other d-man went into the play as well. Why is the winger the only one standing on the blue line? Oh well. The puck came out to the blue line and I just flipped it on net. I don’t have a big shot, and I was somewhat off balance (like always) so it was stopped well before it got to the net. It didn’t bother me because when I play defense, the only thing I care about is keeping the puck as far away from my goal as possible. I stayed on the blue line as the other four skaters were working very well in generating chances. The one d-man came back out and played on the right side, so I was able to shift over to the left. The opponent tried to flip it out, but I was able to stop it, take a look and give it to the left winger. It ultimately lead to the goal that would tie the game.
The team would go on to win the game. I think everyone had a big part in the win tonight, from the talented guys with big shots, to the guys still lucky to stay balanced on their skates like me. I felt though that my effort wasn’t all there tonight until late in the second. I had no points, but in theory helped out on a few goals I kept it in on the blue line, I screened a goalie, but I also was partially responsible for a few goals going in on our own night. I walked way with bumps and bruises, and I’ll be feeling it going into the next game which is tomorrow, but I still have to be better. I have to keep balance but most of all, I have to give it my all on every shift.

Goaldiggers playoff game - 2010-12-15

It had been like three weeks since the Goaldiggers’ last game. The league just had a crappy schedule. There was a lot of confusion about our tie for second place and who we’d be playing in the first round, but because of tie breakers, we finished a lot lower than 2nd.

I felt really confident with the game because they were a team I played before, and I had a lot of ice time recently. The first two shifts I felt a lot slower than I thought I’d be. Perhaps the skill level was higher than I had been used to over the past three weeks, but that is ok. I kept composure and played my best. The third or fourth shift, a rebound went in the corner and I was able to pick it up in the opponents zone. For some reason, I didn’t panic. I had confidence and examined my options. The center and d-man came to close in. I saw the point open. I turned, gave him a nice pass to walk into and he one timed it to make it 1-0. Up to this point, I really felt that the opponent had the upper hand.

The next couple of shifts, I still took my time and was patient. For the first four goals of the game, I was on the ice for all of them. The problem was, I felt like I had a part in the two opponent’s goals. The defensemen went up, and I stayed up high covering for him. Unfortunately, my skating is still not very strong, and I blew coverage twice because of it and it lead to goals.

At one point in the second, I was in the slot with a puck just drifting towards me. It was behind me, and I tried to cradle it and shoot, but my balance was bad and if I were to move my stick, I’d fall. It was a bad feeling. Those are the ones that drive me nuts.

In the third, again in the slot, the center threw me a pass from the corner and I was able to onetime it. It was a great shot, and I’m impressed I got as much power behind it as I did. I miss one timers a lot, so it felt good to connect. Anyway, it was blocked by a defenseman and didn’t make it to the net. Good chance, right idea.

With five or six minutes left, we were only up by one. Kind of concerning to me, but I knew that the team was a little rusty as we were clearly better than the other team. At some point the flood gates just opened and our team went on a tear, and it became 7-3. There was a two on one, the puck came over to me, I stopped the goalie went down and I lifted it over his shoulder to make it 8-3. My third goal for the Goaldiggers. Felt nice to have everyone congratulate me afterward.

One assist and one goal on the night.

Semi-Finals, Goaldiggers 2010-08-02

Last night we had the semi-final game for the Goaldiggers. I was ready for it. I had gotten to the rink early, got nice and warmed up and I was ready. Went through warm ups, sat on the bench prepared.

Our team knew that they had one standout player, who scored more than 50% of their goals, so he was the guy to watch. Tonight he was playing defense.

I played good for the first six minutes of the game, then I kicked it up a level. My fore checking was more aggressive than normal tonight, which would later show benefits. By the second, our team was really clicking. At one point I did a give and go with our d-man, which gave us a lead, and my first assist of the night.

After that, I had a great night. I had a decent check on their star player while on the forecheck. I also used my body more than once to keep the puck in and protect the puck. Any time the puck would come to me, it felt like I made the right choice. Multiple times I had the puck behind the net and just took it to the front, hoping for a rebound or mishandle by the goalie. My forecheck was great tonight – and caused a lot of bad passes, which left their players stuck inside the zone, causing a few odd man opportunities.

We won 6-3 and have the championship game on Sunday.