Playoff MADNESS

Okay, non-sports people skip this.

I play in 2 ice hockey leagues- Silver B & Bronze. The teams are Sardogs & Gulag, respectively. (Silver B is the more skilled league)

These past 3-4 weeks have been playoff season @ Oakland Ice, and both teams made it to the finals with me in net.

Sardogs came in 7th (out of 8) for the season, but we went on to beat the #1 & #2 teams in the 1st 2 rounds of the playoffs in tough games. We went to the finals against the #4 team, the Cross-Czechs (made up of Czechs, Slovaks, & some north americans). They were really tough, having 4 high level players, and beat us 3-0. It wasn't for trying though, we just couldn't get through their defense to score. I'm really happy with how I played, considering the # & caliber of shots I faced (25 shots to 10 by us).

Gulag came in 2nd for the season, and we beat the Bronze league Cross-Czechs (they have 3 teams in 3 different levels @ Oakland) 4-0 in the semi-finals. The finals were last night against the #1 team, Gang Green who we've dueled with throughout the season, losing or winning by 1 goal. Their goalie & I were neck & neck for best GAA & Save % throughout the season too. I ended up squeaking out the #1 spot. It was kind of a perfect matchup- #1 & #2 teams, #1 & #2 goalies, a 1-game final.

We played to a 0-0 tie in regulation, then a 0-0 tie in overtime. Both of us were strongly tested by the opposing shooters throughout the game. Unfortunately, I blinked in the shoot-out & let one in. That was literally the game & we lost. It was the best frickin' finals I've ever been involved in, and one of the best games I've ever been a part of. A real goalie battle that was a lot of fun & a lot of work.

Sardog playoff run
Gulag playoff run

Bronze goalie stats GP shots GA GAA Save%

Jesse Townley	Gulag	22	458	33	1.50	0.928
Matthew Powers	Gang Green	16	319	23	1.44	0.928