Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 5

A few last photos from the scrimmage against Mound at Richfield Arena on Sunday, February 1.

Andrew S. taking a shot.

Marco got caught by an errant puck.

Max B. at a face off.

Max B. goes into the game with his eyes open and he keeps them that way. Eyes wide open.

Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 4

Many of the players have really improved in defense, shooting and passing over the past few months.

Here's Henri with a pass under the watchful eye of Coach McCoy.

Our opponent's second goal sailed right over Andy P.'s head or shoulder and into the net.

Andy P. stopped a lot of other shots during the second and third periods.

Teams don't always seem to pay attention when they should. Here most of them are too busy watching the shift change to be alert to Dylan's progress toward the goal.

Jacob waiting for a face off.

Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 3

This next set were all taken after the first period.

Here are Marco and Jacob mixing it up in front of the opponents' net.

Marco looking for a chance at a breakaway.

Andrew S. with a shot.

Gavin, who likes to shoot from a wide angle, with another shot on goal.

Here's another shot on goal from Matthew, who was playing defense at the time.

Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 2

Almost everyone on offense had a pretty good day. Marco and Jacob didn't play for the first period, which slowed us down quite a bit, but they had several shifts during the second and third. Many people took shots on goal.

Gavin played well, and scored our first goal.

Max D. scored our second.

Here's Max K. moving the puck up the ice.

The next two shots look very similar, but they were taken a few minutes apart

For a defenseman, Matthew gets plenty of shots on goal.

Neither of these shots scored, but Matthew really puts the pressure on the other team.

Second Scrimmage v Mound, Part 1

We played Mound several weeks ago on their ice. It was an exciting game, but we tied. We looked to today's match up to give us a decisive victory. Winning has gotten to be a habit for the Richfield team; confidence was high. Alas, our habit was broken, and we still don't definitively know which team is better. Once again, we tied 2-2.

Our offense had many shots on goal. But their goalie had a preternatural ability to keep the puck out of the net, even on several occasions where it looked like we would score.

Our goaltenders also got a work out, although their offense was harried in their shot making by our defense and offense alike.

Gavin at the opening face off.

Garrett.

Wyatt defending the center.

Jackson about to snag a shot.

Perspective can be tricky. This was not a shot by Max B., whose back is to the camera, but by some other player to the right and out of the picture. The puck traveled across the front of the net, but the shot was wide enough so that the goalie's apparent inattention was never a real risk.

Scrimmage v Mound, Part 3

It was another fine game: fun to watch even if you don't know the players. Here are a few more photos from the game, starting with Hunter.

This is Hunter's resounding shot, our first goal of the game. Keep your head down, just like golf...

...Now you can look. He's watching it ricochet off several opposing players.

Here's Henri waiting for a faceoff.

Finally, the the lead-up and aftermath of Max B.'s goal.

Dylan brings the puck up the ice, with Max B. at his side. Eventually, he drops it back to Max B., or maybe he was thinking, "it's up for grabs now." Either way, just a bit after this picture...

...Max B. was celebrating the game-tying goal. Sometimes it just takes a little team work.

And that high note wraps up the shots from the Mound adventure.

Scrimmage v Mound, Part 2

Sometimes you just can't get what you want, but you get what you need, as the song says. I don't have a photo of Max B.'s late-in-the-game goal, but here's a characteristic sequence.

After approaching the net with great momentum (and the puck), Max B. leaves his feet...

...hopefully distracting the opposing netminder and slipping the puck past him. It didn't work this time, but it has in the past.

Here's Jacob escorting the puck down the ice.

And Eric again, this time waiting for the puck to drop during a faceoff.

Scrimmage v Mound, Part 1

The scrimmage against Mound took place at the very spiffy Mound-Westonka High School Rink, which is named after David M. Thaler. My cursory search of the Web to get information on Mr. Thaler scored lots of hits, but no useful information. He'll have to remain a mystery until someone either does a better search or goes back to the rink to find the plaque. There's always a plaque.

The home team in Mound scored early against us. They played a good game and in my opinion looked a bit stronger than the Richfield team at the start of the game. But our Spartans perservered, and their scoring was led by Hunter's rocket shot from nearly the blue line that hit maybe five players before finding the net. You'll see a photo in a later post. Later Dylan was skating on goal, followed closely by Max B. Dylan, faced with oncoming defensemen, drop-passed the puck to Max B. who put it in the net. We finished with a 2-2 tie, in a very exciting game.

Here are some photo highlights, in no particular order.

Garrett getting into position.

Marco stickhandles his way past the red line...

...but in another episode gets hung up in a traffic jam with the opposition.

Here's Eric fighting his way along with the puck.