SKATER & GOALIE OF THE WEEK #15
| CLARENCE SKATER | TEAM | GP | GOALS | ASISSTS | POINTS | PM | +/- | SOG | S% |
| Linseman, Ken | CHA | 4 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 4 | 9 | 33% |
| CLARENCE GOALIE | TEAM | GP | GOALS AGAINST | G.A. AVERAGE | SAVES | SAVE % | |||
| Bounchard, Dan | CAP | 3 | 4 | 1.47 | 71 | .947 | |||
| WALES SKATER | TEAM | GP | GOALS | ASSISTS | POINTS | PM | +/- | SOG | S% |
| Middleton, Rick | BIL | 4 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 33% |
| WALES GOALIE | TEAM | GP | GOALS AGAINST | G.A. AVERAGE | SAVES | SAVE % | |||
| Esposito,Tony | QUE | 4 | 8 | 2.00 | 117 | .936 | |||
| Syracuse Bulldogs | |
| Vermont Foresters @ Syracuse Bulldogs | The Bulldogs hold off the best team in the league. Syracuse 4 Vermont 3 Stars 1 MacAdam 2 Howe 3 Propp |
| San Diego Mariners @ Syracuse Bulldogs | Syracuse scores the first 3. San Diego scores the next 3. These evenly matched teams tie it up at 4-4 Stars #1 Simmer 2 MacAdam 3 Propp |
| Weekly Summary: | The bulldogs win and tie at home against 2 playoff teams |
| CapJack Rangers | |
| Weekly Preview: | Rangers have a short week – 3 games – this week and two of them are at home against Quebec City and Chicago. Both Norris division teams and the Chicago has been playing big as of late … |
| Quebec City Le Blue @ CapJack Rangers | Rangers come out strong and get 2 goals in the 1st and 2nd and put a clamping defense on Le Blue and hold them to one goal, scored by Jonathan (14) in the last 2 minutes of the game – shutout lost. Jordy Douglas joins the 20 goal club when he gets not 1, but 2 in this game (20, 21). Stars (All CAP) 1. Douglas 2 goals 2. Shutt 1 goal, 1 assist 3. Trottier 1 goal, 1 assist2 of the Rangers goals were scored on delayed penalties! |
| Chicago Underground @ CapJack Rangers | Underground my eye – the skaters from Chicago were anything but. First off, this was a battle of backups – Hogosta vs. Smith. Smith faced 11 shots (Chicago only put 18 on goal in the whole game), and of those 11 shots, Smith couldn’t stop 5 of them! Whoa, that’s not good, unless you’re a Chicago fan. Hogosta on the other hand, stopped 91.4 percent of the 35 shots that came his way. Doing the math, you notice Chicago won the game 7-3 – despite the 35-18 advanatage in SOG for the Rangers (and pretty much any other stat – EXCEPT score). Rick Seiling has a game of a lifetime with 3 goals and 2 assists. (Garnered top star award). Clark Gillies gets star 2 with a goal and 2 assists. Norwich is star 3 – a goal and an assist. |
| Weekly Summary: | 1-1 against weaker teams (standing wise anyway) was not what NY wanted (or needed). But you have to play the games, not just compare stats. |
| Saskatoon Cyclone | |
| Weekly Preview: | The anything but fierce and stormy Cyclone play host for three games this week welcoming Biloxi, Quebec City and Mackinac Island. |
| Biloxi Blades | Absolutely putrescent goaltending by Saskatoon’s Bill McKenzie as he never gave his team a chance to be in this game since he allowed five goals on 11 shots which was more than enough to give Biloxi the game 6-3. McKenzie was pulled in favor of Rogie Vachon at the midway point of the game and the veteran netminder stopped 8 of 9 shots he faced. McKenzie’s collapse came early in the 2nd period as he allowed three goals in the first 3 minutes of the period. Saskatoon had a meaningless 31-20 edge in shots. The Blades were selfish in their handing out of goals as the six goals were restricted to three players – Don Maloney, Mike Rogers and Ryan Walter who each had two with Maloney and Rogers adding a pair of assists each. Rick Middleton was Mr. Setup in this one registering four assists. Wayne Gretzky had two goals and an assist for the Cyclone in a losing effort. SCORING SUMMARY: First Period 1. BIL, Walter (2) – Rogers (43), Middleton (53) 18:15 (PPG) 2. SAS, Gretzky (38) – Tardif (34) 19:33 (PPG) Second Period 3. BIL, Rogers (26) – Middleton (54), Maloney (38) 1:05 4. BIL, Walter (26) – Pronovost (18) 1:44 5. BIL, Maloney (35) – Rogers (44), Middleton (55) 3:13 6. BIL, Maloney (36) – Sulivan (30) 9:45 (PPG) 7. SAS, Gretzky (39) – Taylor (49) 15:35 Third Period 8. BIL, Rogers (27) – Maloney (39), Middleton (56) 1:51 9. SAS, Wilson (12) – Gretzky (64) 4:05 (SHG) |
| Quebec City Le Blue | Stan Weir scored twice and Le Bleu scored three unanswered goals as they coasted to a 4-1 win over Saskatoon. A closely played game with Le Bleu outshooting Saskatoon by a slim 32-31 margin, the difference in the game was netminding. Tony Esposito made 30 acrobatic saves for the winners while Rogie Vachon was just so-so stopping 28 of 32. A very rough game which made the highlight reel by having four on-ice fights at the same time in the 3rd period as frustration clearly showed with the Cyclone. If such things matter, the Cyclone had somewhat of a Pyrrhic Victory as only the LeDuc-Rota fight was a draw while Saskatoon’s Rick Vaive, Dave Maloney and Dave Shand downed their opponents Stan Jonathan, Mike Milbury and Terry O’Reilly respectively. SCORING SUMMARY: First Period 1. QUE, Weir (18) – Howe (17), McCrimmon (2) 3:30 2. SAS, Vaive (16) – Lowe (13), Charron (17) 11:27 3. QUE, Ogrodnick (10) – Dunn (33) 16:48 Second Period 4. QUE, Nedomansky (16) – Ratelle (34) 7:52 Third Period 5. QUE, Weir (19) – Howe (18) 2:06 |
| Mackinac Island Moose | Shockingly Wayne Gretzky makes the honor role in the only Saskatoon win this week with a goal and an assist and Rogie Vachon stopped 25 of 27 shots as the Cyclone held off the Moose 3-2. A pretty quiet game with few penalties and few quality scoring chances. Gretzky’s goal midway through the 2nd period on a low wrist shot that beat Jim Corsi held up for a whole 20 minutes when Ron Zanussi tied it up at 9:27 of the 3rd on a blazing slapshot from WAYYYYY outside that Vachon could not handle. The Cyclone’s Dave Taylor and Bob Gainey made it 3-1 with less than five minutes to go in the 3rd, but Blake Dunlop’s nifty deke past Vachon brought the Moose back within one only 19 seconds after Gainey scored. That was it though as the Moose were unable to put any pressure on Vachon after pulling Corsi with a little over a minute to go. SCORING SUMMARY First period None Second Period 1. SAS, Gretzky (40) – Taylor (50) 8:15 Third Period 2. MAC, Zanussi (10) – Ferguson (10), McKechnie (26) 9:27 3. SAS, Taylor (36) – Green (16), Gretzky (65) 13:32 4. SAS, Gainey (13) – Sirois (9) 15:13 5. MAC, Dunlop (17) – Napier (30), Sheppard (8) 15:32 |
| Weekly Summary: | Two points out of a possible six once again driving home the point that no matter how great one line is you need to have other people score in order to contend … and we’re just not getting that as after the Tardif-Gretzky-Taylor line no one has more than Rick Vaive’s 16 goals. Ah well … |
| Silk City Whales | |
| Weekly Preview: | The Whales have one home game this week as Adams Division leading Saint Croix Falls visits. It’s Brass Bonanza Night in Silk City. Each paying fan will receive a replica brass trumpet and during the first intermission there will be a séance to contact the spirit of “Brass Bonanza” composer Jack Say (Brass Bonanza being the signature goal music of the Whalers). |
| Saint Croix Falls Lumberjacks @ Silk City Whales | The Lumberjacks come back from two goals down in the third period to gain a 4-4 tie against the Whales. Tiger Williams and Willi Plett dance seven times, flapping the gums but never dropping the gloves.
1st Star – Bob Bourne, SCW – 2G |
| Weekly Summary: | Another positive week for the Whales, gaining a hard-fought point despite giving up a third perios two goal lead. Media were talking after the game about the surprising healthy scratch of Mark Messier. Messier is thought to be a future captain but has not had a great year and perhaps a message was being sent. |
| Brooklyn Harbor Rats | |
| Weekly Preview: | Harbor Rats host a pair of Adams division teams, Mackinac Island and St. Croix Falls |
| Mackinac Island Moose @ Brooklyn Harbor Rats | Mike Palmateer makes 29 saves for his first shutout of the season, Bobby Smith scores a pair of goals and Brooklyn takes a 5-0 win over the visiting Moose. |
| Saint Croix Falls Lumberjacks @ Brooklyn Harbor Rats | Michel Larocque makes 41 saves for his 3rd shutout of the season, Grant Mulvey scores a pair of goals and the Lumberjacks come in and hand Brooklyn a 5-0 loss. St. Croix Falls went 3 for 6 on the power play. |
| Weekly Summary: | a 5-0 win and a 5-0 loss as thing even out for the Harbor Rats |
| St. Clair Shores Saints | |
| Weekly Preview: | Third place St. Clair Shores hosts both Silk City and Saskatoon. |
| Silk City Whales @ St. Clair Shores Saints | Not a whole lot to report in this low scoring game.
Fitchner scores his 3rd goal of the season for the Whales in the 1st period. Later in the game, with 5:06 remaining in the game, Bordeleau scores his 4th goal to tie the game. No one scores for the remainder of the game. It’s a 1-1 tie. Silk City 1 St. Clair Shores 1 1st – Bordeleau |
| Saskatoon Cyclone @ St. Clair Shores Saints | Different than the first game, this was a high scoring affair.
6 goals were scored in the first period, and both teams score 3. In the second period, each team scores one goal. We go to the 3rd, Ftorek scores his 16th for the Saints. With 3:52 to go, Gretzky scores is 2nd of the game and his 39th goal of the season to tie the game. The game ends in a 6-6 tie. Saskatoon 6 St. Clair Shores 6 1st – Gretzky 2 goals 1 assist |
| Weekly Summary: | In remarkably different games, the Saints tie both opponents. Silk City and the Saints tie, 1-1. Then, the Cyclone and the Saints tie, 6-6. The Saints earn 2 points. |
| San Diego Mariners | |
| Philadelphia Firebirds @ San Diego Mariners | Simmer leads the way with a goal and a couple of helpers. 5-3 Mariners |
| Weekly Summary: | 1-0 |
| Philadelphia Firebirds | |
| Weekly Preview: | Philly has two games at home a tough team and the Rangers. |
| CapJack Rangers @ Philadelphia Firebirds | 1st period 0-0 2nd Period 0-0 3rd period Trottier gets the Rangers on board with his 35th of the season. Bouchard is just stopping everything in sight but 2 minutes left Craig Hartsburg nets his 7th of the season to tie up the game 1-1Bouchard was the star of this game stopping 46 ot 47 shots |
| Brooklyn Harbor Rats @ Philadelphia Firebirds | High on the gritty tie the Birds take on the Rats. The euphoria last 39 seconds before Mike Gartner put the Rats up 1-0. Mel Bridgeman would tie the score up at 1 with a tip of a Carlyle slapper. McAdam then nets two for the Rats that take a 3-1 lead into the 2nd
@nd period saw Bridgeman and Schmautz bring the Birds back to 4-3 but thats as close as Philly would come as the Rats got goals from Wilson, Smith, Gillie, Mahovlich on the way to a dominating 8-5 win even though Philly outshot them 47-27 |
| Weekly Summary: | 0-1-1 for a Birds, they played above their heads against the playoff bound Rangers but goaltending again brought them back to earth against Brooklyn. |
| Pittsburgh Spirit | |
| Weekly Preview: | First place Spirit look to continue the same focused path. |
| Syracuse Bulldogs @ Pittsburgh Spirit | Spirit’s top line of Lafleur, Sittler, and MacLeish is shut down, but the second line of Chouinard, Vickers, and Hedberg steps up as the Spirit win 5-4 on the strength of a Vickers Hat Trick! |
| Saint Croix Falls Lumberjacks @ Pittsburgh Spirit | Battle of the 1st place teams as Adams Division leading Lumberjacks visit the Graveyard!
The difference here is Pittsburgh was 3-5 on the PP and Saint Croix Falls was 0-4. Final 3-0 behind Baker’s 35 saves. |
| Weekly Summary: | Two games, four points. Hitting on all cylinders down the stretch is a good feeling. |
| Chicago Underground | |
| Weekly Preview: | Two home games for the Underground fans to BOO relentlessly at the home team. |
| Vermont Foresters @ Chicago Underground | Chicago scores early but the Vermont squad then scores 3 unanswered goals and take this one. Glen Hanlon with 21 Saves & Ron Stackhouse with 5 Blocked Shots for the ForestersFinal Score: Vermont 3 – Chicago 1 |
| San Diego Mariners @ Chicago Underground | A high scoring game that was back and forth throughout the contest. In the end it was a tie as both teams scored 5. Peter McNab won 17 faceoffs & Rick Seiling had 3 Assists for the Underground.Final Score: Chicago 5 – San Diego 5 |
| Weekly Summary: | 1 Point out of a possible 4 for the home team this week. Fans booed on the way in & out of both games. |
| Biloxi Blades | |
| Weekly Preview: | Biloxi takes 2 of 3 games |
| Pittsburgh Spirit @ Biloxi Blades | Pitts hammers Blades 8-5 |
| Silk City Whales @ Biloxi Blades | Biloxi wins 3-2 |
| Charlestown Chiefs @ Biloxi Blades | Blades take it 5-4 |
| Weekly Summary: | Biloxi takes two of three games, none apparently used an NHL goalie |
| Charlestown Chiefs | |
| Weekly Preview: | Something’s in the air in Charlestown… wait, that’s just pollution. |
| Philadelphia Firebirds @ Charlestown Chiefs | The home fans can’t believe it – the Chiefs score with less than 2 minutes in the game and pull off a 4-3 victory! Seeing a dramatic late game win from the Chiefs is about as common as spotting sasquatch mating with a chupacabra. Regardless, we’ll take it.
Scoring Summary Star 1: CHA Ruskowski 2 G GWG: Ken Linseman Notables: PHI Stephenson 31 saves |
| Saint Croix Falls Lumberjacks @ Charlestown Chiefs | First place Saint Croix comes to town… and gets CRUSHED by the Chiefs 7-2! If baseball is a funny game, hockey is a freakin’ comedy orgy. Every Chief not named Faubert or Kerr collects at least one point, while Payne scores both of the Saint Croix goals.
Scoring Summary Star 1: CHA Gradin 2 G GWG: Terry Ruskowski Notables: SCF None |
| Weekly Summary: | Send a scout team to hell, because surely it’s frozen over — Chiefs collect 4 of 4 points while scoring 11 goals and only surrendering 5. None of those stats make any sense, but a blind squirrel found two nuts this week. |
| Quebec City Le Blue | |
| Sill City Whales @ Quebec City Le Blue | Win for the home team |
| Pittsburgh Spirit @ Quebec City Le Blue | Win for the home team |
| Weekly Summary: | 2-0 this week for Quebec City |
| Mackinac Island Moose | |
| Weekly Preview: | Vermont and Charlestown venture out to the Island for some fun on the ice. |
| Charlestown Chiefs @ Mackinac Island Moose | Charlestown 4, Moose 2. – Charlestown dominates the first 2 periods to build a 4 goal lead before the Moose sneak in a couple in a failed comback bid. 1st star – McDonald 1g1a 2nd star – Bourque 1g 3rd star – Gradin 1g |
| Vermont Foresters @ Mackinac Island Moose | Foresters 5, Moose 4 – Vermont is very efficient with 18 scoring chances on 26 SOG. Close game the whole way with the lead only 1 or tied the last 2 periods. Lukowich with the game winner with only 1 minute remaining. 1st star Lukowich 2g1a game winner 2nd star Nilsson 1g3a 3rd star McCourt 1g |
| Weekly Summary: | After a big week 14, this is a letdown. 0 points in 2 home games. |
| HOME TEAM FOR GAME FILE ATTACHED | |
| Weekly Preview: | The Lumberjacks will host the Mariners for their only home game this week. |
| San Diego Mariners @ Saint Croix Falls Lumberjacks | Saint Croix Falls 5 San Diego 4 1st Star- Federko 1g 3 pts. 2nd Star- Payne 4 assist. 3rd Star-Stoughton- 1g 2 pts. |
| Weekly Summary: | Lumberjacks go 1-0 at home this week. |
| Vermont Foresters | |
| Weekly Preview: | only 1 home game this week for the foresters |
| St. Clair Shores Saints @ Vermont Foresters | vermont nemesis mike liut in net for st clair against ron grahame. vermont starts out red hot outshooting the saints 25-12 for the period and had a 2-0 lead 11:19 into the period after goals from luce and mccourt but grahame is in net for vermont and by the end of the period its 2-2 after marshall scores his 3rd and anderson his 5th for the saints. vermont regains a 2 goal lead at the end of the 2nd after goals by lorne henning, his 1st of the year and rich preston. the 3rd period sees vermont blow another 2 goal lead after polonich and duguay score and the game ends in a tie. ron duguay ends up with 1g 3a for a 4 point night. liut stops 39 of 43 shots. rich preston has a goal and assist for the home team. |
| Weekly Summary: | disappointment blowing two 2 goal leads and settling for a tie |