Silver League Playoffs...

Silver league playoffs are in the throws of upsets, fights and great games...

Here is the story so far...

Ice Kings beat Grean Leaf 7-4 in the play-in game to put the Ice Kings at the 8th seed.

Ice Kings lost to the Ice Dogs in the first game of three 8-1 to follow it up in game two with their part time goalie and won 4-1 in game two. Game three follows on Friday May 14th to finish this up and down series. Can the ice Kings pull it off and upset the number 1 seed?

Crank it up have forced the Borrachos out in a 14-2 win in the first game and a 9-6 win in the second game. The Borrachos quest in cleaning up for the second years hopes have been dashed.

The Blazers beat the Indians in a heart fought battle to win 6-4. Second game for the Blazers and Indians is tonight at 9:00 PM with the thrid game if required to be played on Wednesday.

Last but by no means least is the Ice Cracks and the Hornets. Ice Cracks are up 1-0 in the series with a 6-3 win with the second game tonight, Monday 10th at 7:30 PM...

Proposed teams in the semi-finals are...

Blazers make it, beating the Indians 6-4 in the second game, sweeping the Indians.
Ice Kings upset the Ice Dogs in a close 4-3 victory.
Ice Cracks sweep the Hornets winning 4-2 in the next game.
Crank it Up are there having disposed of the Borrachos.

Great hockey, great goal-tending, great spirited playing!

Love this sport!

My Daughter is asking for Donations

Hello

As some of you may know my daughter Amanda and her boyfriend Alex, moved here about a month ago from Nashville. My daughter has been in contact with her mother and friends back in Nashville and finding out about the people who some have lost everything in the flooding. Most people didn't have flood insurance there.

So my daughter has asked me to let people know that if they have any old clothes that they would like to donate, she's wanting to collect it and will send it to her mother there in Nashville and through their church will get it to people that really could use them.

So if you do have any old clothes, I'll be at the Stick and Puck class on Thursday night and I'll be around the rink Saturday before and after my game, to collect and donations.

Thank you
Bandits Coordinator
Greg Perry

Bronze game of the week

The Bronze game of the week features the two Alpha dogs of league over the past few seasons, the Indians and the Stingers. Having dropped a close game to the TD Whalers last week 3-2, the Stingers can drop to second seed through head to head games with the Whalers with a loss to the Indians. The Stingers are lead by Josh Briscoe with 12 goals and 6 assist and Roland Widemann with 12 goals and 5 assist. The Indians play a more balanced game with almost every team mate chipping in with goals and assist this season. Their offensive leader this season is Ryan Kelly with 6 goals and 2 assist. These two teams met earlier this season with the Stingers taking it 5-2 with Widemann finding the back of the net twice and Briscoe once. The Indians have a chance for payback against their old rival by denying them the top seed and opening the door for the Whalers to take the honor.

Prediction: Indians 4, Stingers 3 with the over/under on PIM set at 14 minutes….take the over.

Other games of note this weekend – The Spider Monkeys and Severe Icing, both with one win on their ledger, will be looking to climb out of the cellar in a clash of last place teams. 3 teams are sitting at 6 wins, the Indians, API Sens, Bandits and will be looking to jump each other in the standings.

This weekend should be interesting with the brackets possibly looking a whole lot different by midnight Saturday...stayed tuned!

Spot Light On.....The Westbrooks

While most would agree running off to play a late night beer league game is a welcome break from the old ball and chain, these two don’t have that luxury, they play on the same team! Spot Light On shines on the rare husband/wife skating duo, James and Tracey Westbrook..…



Home Town?

He said: Denver, CO

She said: Dallas

Hockey Experience?

He said: First competitive game at age of 39

She said: Um, I remember watching the US win Gold in the Miracle game when I was a kid. Does that count????

Past/Present teams?

He said: Grapevine Imposter Lite/Spider Monkeys/Greenleafs

She said: Spider Monkeys - I League. Green LeafES, present, D-League.

Hobbies?

He said: Family/Beer/ Hockey when there is time

She said: Who has time for a hobby? I guess keeping James out of trouble counts.

Pre-game ritual?

He said: Avoiding pulling muscles while putting gear on

She said: Laughing at my husband’s cod piece in the locker room (that would be his cup – its hilarious)! And, trying not to gag on the stench of stinky guy ass. I do both before every game.

Hockey Hero?

He said: Gordie Howe

She said: My son, Drew. Boy, I wish I could skate like him.

Hockey Nemesis?

He said: Sean Avery

She said: The kid who dislocated my son’s shoulder in Pee Wee hockey 4 years ago. I would kick the kid square in the shin if I ran in to him today.

If you could be granted one super power, what would it be?

He said: Infinite Knowledge

She said: Hmm. Probably super speed. I spend so much time in the car running kids around, sure would be nice to be able to get every where in a flash!

Ginger or Mary Anne?

He said: Mary Anne – Seems more innocent

She said: Neither. The Professor was really more my speed, being a heterosexual and all.

Your message to the NYTEX hockey community….

He said: I was introduced to inline hockey in 2002 when my 6 year old son tried out for a local inline league – they were short on coaches so I jumped in. Prior to this I had never watched a game of hockey or played. With ¾ members of the family playing and the fourth trying to be a fan, we have shared some great times together. Hockey is a great family sport. You are never too young or old to start!

She said: So, I am well aware that I can’t skate or play hockey with any proficiency. I’m just there for the beer. So, thanks to all of you who have a sense of sportsmanship and humor about my presence. You guys make it fun. The rest of you suck!

Silver League Shake Ups

Word on the Street is that the Chupacabres have folded up operations effective immediately. This drops the Silver League down to 9 teams.

Bronze League Play In Round Talk

Who will the bottom four be in the Bronze League this season? With three games left the playoff seeds are starting to take shape. We have two teams with four points in the Jets and Jumpers, and then three teams with only two points in the Monkeys, Rampage, and Severe Icing. The bottom four teams will compete in the play in round which more than likely will be played during the week before the actual playoffs begin. Jets are having a slow season, after making it all the way to the Keg finals last season, they have been struggling to put together wins this season. Puddle Jumpers are a hard working team that continues to improve week after week, and they square off twice against the Rampage in the final three weeks. Who will finish in the 6th seed for the regular season, and avoid the play in round?

Spot Light On.....The Puddle Jumpers

Spot Light On introduces you to a group of fly boys who soar to great hights on their day jobs but are still trying to earn their wings on the ice. One of NYTEX's new comers,welcome if you will,the Puddle Jumpers.


Team History?

Puddle Jumpers Hockey Club was founded in January 2010. Fresh off my recent banishment to the ROCK (San Juan, Puerto Rico), where there's not a sheet of ice within 1500 miles, I joined the Bandits as a substitute player. I would play late on Saturday or Thursday nights and go to work the next day talking about the fun and camradere I had playing hockey. Usually the first words out of a First Officer's mouth is "ICE HOCKEY?" As this same phenomena would occur week in and week out, I discovered there was more than enough interest to start a hockey team, comprised mostly of American Eagle pilots, or what people refer to as PUDDLE JUMPER pilots. So, with a little bit of encouragement from F. O. Sean O'Rourke and F. O. Brad Locey, I posted sign up sheets around the crew lounges at DFW. As those sign up sheets were filling up, we started gathering information on leagues, fees, uniforms, etc. We even negotiated a gear start up package for guys who have never been on the ice before. We kicked around a few possible names, but when I found that Duck logo the name debate was over. The PUDDLE JUMPERS HOCKEY CLUB was born. We probably have the largest roster in the league. That's because of our crazy schedules. Our team is made up of airline pilots, a few airline ground crew personnel, 1 fire fighter, a police officer, a home builder, and a few corporate employees. It's a great group of guys that have common goals; to learn the game of hockey, continue to improve, and have fun!


Team Philosophy?

We have a broad range of talent on this team. There are players on this team that have played in other ice hockey leagues at some point in their lives. Most of those guys haven't been on skates in many years. Some played on ponds only. Other guys had extensive time playing in-line hockey. A few players on the team have never even owned a pair of hockey skates, including our goalie, Stuart. On March 03, 2010 almost half of that night's line up had never jumped over the wall and onto the ice, EVER! While it's easy to understand with multiple backgrounds comes multiple philosophies and ideas, I will tell you, every player on the Puddle Jumpers buys into our team's philosophy. This philosophy can't be defined by one idea or principle. We have a 4-part philosophy on this team. 1. Increase our knowledge of the game. 2. Increase our fitness/physical level. 3. Always improve. 4. Have each other's back. It's a team philosophy that builds a cohesiveness with our team and our coach. It is also motivating everyone to improve their individual game as well. It's awesome to see everyone in the lockeroom, as the Zam is finishing up, listening to Coach Steve deliver our game plan. It's total focus and intensity at that moment. We couldn't have found a better fit for this team than Coach Steve Hall.

Dud to Stud award?

We have a lot of people improving and each one of these guys makes an impact every game. However, the one person who makes the biggest impact every game has got to be our goalie Stuart Egerton. Here is a guy that I took to Peranis to buy his first pair of skates. That was in February! He has put in the effort and really improved. He works exclusively with Bill Ivey a few times each month. It sure has paid off! Thanks Bill!!!! I have to mention our runner up for this category is non-other than Nathan Horvath, who has definitely tested the durability of the back end protection on his hockey pants. However, nobody's buying into the story that this kid from Buffalo, NY has never been on the ice before. This guy has come a long way since his first skate in February. He always seems to be in the right place at the right time. He has really put fourth the effort to improve and I can't wait to see how good this kid will be by season's end!

You've got one bottle of frabreeze to hand out, who earns it?

The Fa breeze bottle probably goes to Jason Joy or Dan Hankins. Everybody else has brand new gear, so the FUNK hasn't set in!!!! Although, I might mention Stuart Egerton has been seen spraying down his goalie gear with a 24 hour deoderant.

Most vocal on the bench?

Most vocal on the bench is Coach Steve Hall, hands down. You can always tell if our fans have been to a game before, because they will sit on the other side of the ice!!! Disclaimer: if you have kids and you sit behind our bench, bring ear plugs for your kids!!!!

Team high point?

The win over the Jets was definitely this teams high point. Our first win in franchise history. We finally clicked this week with the defense not allowing anyone to harass our goalie. Stuart had a great game. The offense was back checking and moving the puck deep into the offensive zone. It was a good, hard fought battle by both teams.

Team low point?

Had to be that loss against the Spidermonkeys. We out shot those guys by a 3 to 1 ratio. Mike Best had a stellar performance in the net for the Spidermonkeys. In the end, we realized we had not executed Coach Steve's game plan. We were feeling pretty rotten about that. By the way, what the hell is a Spidermonkey????

Our team loves to face off against?

Our team loves to face-off against pretty much anybody! If I had to choose, and apparently I do, I would have to say the Bandits. It's a good coaching rivalry between 2 very knowledgeable and competitive guys, Steve Hall and Bill Ivey. Plus, there's that whole issue about Brandon Davis, James Rust(my brother), and myself defecting and starting up PJHC. But I respect and enjoyed playing with each one of those guys when I was a Bandit and I'm pretty sure that feeling is mutual.

Biggest Rivalry?

After this weekend's win, I would have to say the Jets. I know they'll be gunning for us if we see them in the playoffs. However multiply that times a factor of ten and that's how much we'll be gunning for them. It was a dirty game from both sides and tempers were flaring. We all know how fun that can be!!!!!


Why will we win the Stanley Keg next season....

What's this crap about next season??????

Spot Light On......The Spider Monkeys

Watch out cuz they're gonna come at ya like a spider monkey...Spot Light On shines on our bronze league primates.

Team History?
As pointed out on an earlier Spot Light On, the Silver League Borrachos have a wide range of talent on their roster. A couple of the ‘special needs’ players on the Borrachos thought it would be beneficial to get some ice time in at a more appropriate level. Todd “Thor” Kilgore, who has a man crush on Will Farrell, came up with the mascot based on the recently released Talladega Nights Ricky Bobby quote “ I’m gonna come at you like a spider monkey”. After forming a core of ‘special needs’ Borrachos players, several victims, er, I mean players were recruited to join up. While the roster has churned every season, the Monkeys tend to add many first time players each session thus staying true to the spirit of Instructional League Hockey. While wins have been elusive, the fun has not.

Team Philosophy?
Play hockey, drink beer, keep Strother in check and drive Ivey to have a stroke. Keep your fingers crossed.

Dud to Stud award (team member who has gone from zero to 60 fastest)
4 games in, too hard to tell. I would say Matt Ruble. Most our team is still in idle.

You’ve got one bottle of fabreeze to give away, which team mate earns it?
Who earns it or who needs it. Igor “The Iron Curtain”, our Ruskey D man needs it. Not sure anybody has earned it. I do know if you throw an odor eaters in Tony Digiovanni’s bag his equipment would disappear…

Most vocal on the bench?
Ivey

Team High Point?
Inking Ivey to a coaching contract

Team Low Point?
Inking Ivey to a coaching contract

Our team loves to face off against?
The DSS mite team

Biggest Rivalry?
Each other


Why we will win the keg next season….Huh???

Bronze league stats!

Here we are nearly half way through the season and interestingly enough, goaltending and scoring goals is what wins and loses games! You might say, well der, of course it does, but look at these stats below...

Team Games Shots Save % Position Goals Scored
API Sens 5 100 90% 3 19
Bandits 5 82 83% 2 31
Jets 5 112 87% 6 13
Indians 5 111 83% 5 16
Puddle J's 5 143 70% 9 13
Rampage 5 119 84% 10 11
Severe Ice 4 87 83% 8 5
Spiders 4 153 88% 7 7
Stingers 5 103 93% 1 34
Whalers 5 102 83% 4 20

So to all those teams out there, it takes good offense to find space on the ice for the defense to be able to pass it to you and great defense to be able to clear the trash away from the goalie!

All goalies in this league aspire to be a 90% goalie, but it becomes a numbers game, 90% of 153 shots is always going to be 15.3 goals scored against you.

That is fine so long as your team is scoring 16 goals!

Lost Camera @ Nytex...Keggy Needs Your Help

Hey folks Keggy the Wonder Keg needs your help. One of our good strong friends Chris Mosely lost his fancy HD camera over the weekend up at Nytex, and he really wants it back. The picture below is not of his camera, but just a camera (blog posts are better with pictures) to get the point across. Call Chris if you have any information. Keggy is the new unofficial mascot of the Bronze and Silver Leagues who likes to help his friends out when they are in need. Help him help Chris by finding the camera.



817-729-1944 cell

CMosley@specialized.net