Hello, I apoligize for the delay on updates. I do not have a good excuse aside from a lot of games lately and the addition of a new TV, it has occupied a lot of my non hockey time. :)
Today on the 'Ides of March' we find ourselves half way to our ultimate goal of winning the playoffs. The first round was a no win situation for us. We played Lorenskog, the 8th place team, if we swept them we were supposed to, if we lost, it would have been a tragedy. That situation brought a lot of pressure. We played like we were afraid to lose for most of the series. We won the first game 2-1 in O.T, then got our asses kicked 5-2 at home in game two. Heading into their rink for game three was a pivotal point in the series. We needed a strong start and we got it. We were up 2-0 after the first and 3-1 after the second. We felt pretty good. Just like during the season though, they didn't quit and they carried the play in the third. They scored to make it 3-2 half way through the third. Then with their goalie pulled, I missed fired on a clearing attempt that lead to a good chance for them..after that chance Goran Hermansson picked up the rebound and got to the red line and dumped the puck in the empty net. Giving us a 2-1 lead in the series and me my first playoff assist. Games 4 and 5 were back in our rink and we took care of business. We won game 4 7-2, (I picked up 2 more assists) and game 5 was ours to have..well not really that easy but we were able to pick up a 3-2 win despite being down 2-1 going into the 3rd period.
We ended up with a full week off of games while we waited to pick our next opponet. When all the series were done we had a choice between our cross town rivaly Sterjne or the defending Playoff Champions Storhamar Dragons. We decided as a organization to pick Storhamar, on the basis that this year they had fewer points in the standings than Sterjne.
During the season we were 4-1 against Storhamar but only 1 win was by more than a goal. They are known to be very good at home and play a tight defense. Also, they have a good goalie, most likely Norway's Olympic goalie next year in Vancouver.
Game 1 started just as Storhamar wanted...we were down 2-0 and they completely dominated us. Late in the period we scored a deflection goal on the powerplay giving us some life before the second period. The 2nd period of game 1 proved to be our best of the series thus far and we got the equalizer. The third period was up and down, both teams with some good chances but no goals. Then we got a fortunate bounce off the refs skate on the stick of our leading scorer. He slid the puck in the net with the goalie looking the other way. We held on for the very important game 1 win on the road.
Game 2 was yesterday back at the Sparta AMFI. It was another near sell-out crowd and the city was decorated with Sparta Flags, store windows had jersey's hanging and Sparta songs could be heard from every pub in town in the early afternoon. We came out flat though, a little nervous and a little tentative. It was like a first date....we didn't know where it was going, but we were happy to be there. In the second period we scored on a power-play to take a 1-0 lead. We played the rest of that period with good confidence and it ended with that score line. In the third we held them, blocked shots, cleared rebounds, we played playoff hockey..The game ended 1-0. Giving us a 2-0 lead in the series. Tomorrow we are back in Storhamar...for a HUGE game. So I ask that everyone (except Marti) thinks some good hockey/goalie thoughts tomorrow afternoon! I hope everyone had a great weekend and talk to you soon!
Today on the 'Ides of March' we find ourselves half way to our ultimate goal of winning the playoffs. The first round was a no win situation for us. We played Lorenskog, the 8th place team, if we swept them we were supposed to, if we lost, it would have been a tragedy. That situation brought a lot of pressure. We played like we were afraid to lose for most of the series. We won the first game 2-1 in O.T, then got our asses kicked 5-2 at home in game two. Heading into their rink for game three was a pivotal point in the series. We needed a strong start and we got it. We were up 2-0 after the first and 3-1 after the second. We felt pretty good. Just like during the season though, they didn't quit and they carried the play in the third. They scored to make it 3-2 half way through the third. Then with their goalie pulled, I missed fired on a clearing attempt that lead to a good chance for them..after that chance Goran Hermansson picked up the rebound and got to the red line and dumped the puck in the empty net. Giving us a 2-1 lead in the series and me my first playoff assist. Games 4 and 5 were back in our rink and we took care of business. We won game 4 7-2, (I picked up 2 more assists) and game 5 was ours to have..well not really that easy but we were able to pick up a 3-2 win despite being down 2-1 going into the 3rd period.
We ended up with a full week off of games while we waited to pick our next opponet. When all the series were done we had a choice between our cross town rivaly Sterjne or the defending Playoff Champions Storhamar Dragons. We decided as a organization to pick Storhamar, on the basis that this year they had fewer points in the standings than Sterjne.
During the season we were 4-1 against Storhamar but only 1 win was by more than a goal. They are known to be very good at home and play a tight defense. Also, they have a good goalie, most likely Norway's Olympic goalie next year in Vancouver.
Game 1 started just as Storhamar wanted...we were down 2-0 and they completely dominated us. Late in the period we scored a deflection goal on the powerplay giving us some life before the second period. The 2nd period of game 1 proved to be our best of the series thus far and we got the equalizer. The third period was up and down, both teams with some good chances but no goals. Then we got a fortunate bounce off the refs skate on the stick of our leading scorer. He slid the puck in the net with the goalie looking the other way. We held on for the very important game 1 win on the road.
Game 2 was yesterday back at the Sparta AMFI. It was another near sell-out crowd and the city was decorated with Sparta Flags, store windows had jersey's hanging and Sparta songs could be heard from every pub in town in the early afternoon. We came out flat though, a little nervous and a little tentative. It was like a first date....we didn't know where it was going, but we were happy to be there. In the second period we scored on a power-play to take a 1-0 lead. We played the rest of that period with good confidence and it ended with that score line. In the third we held them, blocked shots, cleared rebounds, we played playoff hockey..The game ended 1-0. Giving us a 2-0 lead in the series. Tomorrow we are back in Storhamar...for a HUGE game. So I ask that everyone (except Marti) thinks some good hockey/goalie thoughts tomorrow afternoon! I hope everyone had a great weekend and talk to you soon!
Click on this link for some highlights from Game 1 and 2 of the semi-finals. Check the dates, we played on 14-3-09 and 12-03-09 http://dragons.no/DragonsTv/tabid/3178/Default.aspx
Happy Birthday Joe
Happy Birthday Joe
1 comment:
Congrats on the back to back shutouts!!!
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