Well gang, you could smell the A5/35 through the gallows of the Mohawk 4pad Arena from a mile away over the weekend which meant there are some sore players. We saw a mix of upsets and predictable victories in all divisions as the separation of the men and the boys begin to take shape. Let’s dive into the action:

United Division:

Flyers 4 Bruins 4: Flyers' Nick Castelli’s forechecking prowess was absent from the Flyer lineup and it was dearly missed. The former Walpole River Rat is looking to sign a contract extension with term this off-season. Flyers could’ve used Nick as they tied the Bruins 4-4. Jeff “strawberry rhubarb” Pye chipped in with a goal and 2 assists for the B’s while Dylan McInerney and Mike Rostecki both scored a pair for the guys in orange. This game screamed playoffs as was evident by the 5 fans who gathered for the proceedings.

Blackhawks 7 Redwings 3: Ron Cybalski scored a hatty and added a hamburger helper as the Hawks took the Redwings behind the woodshed 7-3. Shawn James, who should be forced to use the other end of his damn hockey stick had a goal and 3 assists for the winners. Peter Tompkins scored the Hawks 6th goal, his 500thcareer playoff goal. Peter’s unwavering optimism keeps him in this league year after year and from an organizational standpoint, he is ready to make a solid run for the cup. Ross LaCasse scored a pair for the Wings in a losing cause. John “hey pass the hose, I want to get all the winter salt off the side of my” Carvalho was a late scratch and he was missed tremendously.

Masters Division:

Senators 5 Sharks 2: Despite the Sharks missing 5 guys, they still gave it their all but fell short to a spirited Senator team, losing 5-2. 5 different Sens lit the lamp while Dave “Le Legende” Langille and Joad Durst replied for the Sharks. Brad Stone kicked away 24 shots for the win. Larry “ballroom” Litzgus recorded a goal and 3 assists for the winning side, who will face the Bruins next, which you can watch live on Cable14.

Bruins 7 Blackhawks 1: Richard Forster had a can of cola before the game. He went out there and scored a goal and added 4 helpers as the Bruins folded up the Hawks like a new tv cardboard box on recycling day. Props to the timekeeper who had to switch to a new pen halfway through this one. Bruins were Farm Boy strong all night, winning races to loose pucks and going into the trenches against a somewhat tired Hawk club.

Devils 4 Penguins 0: Bruno Santanato turned aside 32 shots for the shutout, the 28thof his illustrious career, as the Devils burned the Penguins 4-0. Alfonso Tinebra had the game winner and the Devils put it into cruise control after that. Watch out for these guys, that’s all I have to say. Pens are in trouble and need a win this weekend to keep their odds of making the semi-finals alive.

Grand Masters Division:

Stars 2 Flyers 1: Mike “7-11” Vanderzee (because he is always open) scored the game winner with 2:56 left in the game as the Stars edged the Flyers 2-1. Talk about a defensive battle, I had the over 5.5 on my proline ticket, another 8 bucks down the skimmer. Either Terry Hughes or Mike Lubrick scored the lone Flyer goal, can’t figure out the 4 and 9 on the scoresheet. Nick Polimeni assisted on both Stars goals as he continues to step up in these playoffs.

Redwings 5 Sharks 2: The Sharks scored a pair of goals 36 seconds apart in the 3rdbut it wasn’t enough as the Redwings harpooned the Sharks 5-2. Credit Wings veteran Brian Watson with the game winner (his 12th career playoff game winner by the way) to seal the deal. Paul Buzzelli (got him in the SCOHA playoff pool) chipped in with a pair for the winners while Terry Gudgeon added a pair of assists. Sharks had goals from Ernie Dunston and Ron Cooper in a losing cause. Want my opinion? Well you are getting it anyway: The Redwings are thinking Championship and other teams better get on the phone with each other and get a structured gameplan together on how to beat them. That’s all I am allowed to say given my position in this damn league and contractual obligation to this weekly blog.

Well that’s all for this week. The fiddle is back in the case. Big games Friday night as United Division edge closer to the end of their season. Flyer and Hawks are ready to give it their all in a potential battle of the ages while the Bruins look to dominate the Redwings. We’ll see what happens, looking forward to seeing these games in person. Come out and watch these guys, great hockey!

THE PREMIUM PLUS TOOL REPAIR & PACKAGING WORKHORSES OF THE WEEK:

UNITED: Ron Cybalski      MASTERS: Richard Forster     GRAND MASTERS: Mike Vanderzee

Have a great rest of the week everyone! See you at the rink.

The SCOHA 25/26 Season registration is open! There is a poster that will be handed out to players this weekend and hung up around the rink. It will also be emailed out so you can forward on to buddies who want to join our league.

LET’S GET MORE PLAYERS FOR FRIDAY NIGHTS! We can all do our part and recruit some players!

Chris Marttila

SCOHA Blogologist-in-Chief

Well gang, the Hamilton Police Chief came on the air yesterday to say don’t play on the damn ice. Newsflash… we aren’t playing, SCOHA means business, it’s playoff time! You thought camping was pretty intense, this year’s post-season has proven that the regular season stats are thrown out the window. All teams have an equal chance to lift the cup, makes it great for the fans and viewers from home. Let’s zoom in on last weekend’s action..

What a great day for some United playoff hockey, fellas! We had Flyers Ryan and Mike Haslam on the "Pucks In Deep" Podcast last night as they gear up for their battle with the Blackhawks tonight at 8pm. Tickets are selling fast so get down to the box office this afternoon to confirm your seat but you will only need the edge of it.

Mike mentioned the challenge ahead of his Flyer team going into the playoffs after they finished in 2nd place in the regular season, somewhat of a rare occurrence since they usually finish 1st. “We just have to go out there and keep playing our brand of hockey. We will be fine. Playoffs add a bit of intensity we are accustomed to, should be fun.”

Ryan was asked about the team’s motivation to take down the Blackhawks tonight. “It’s all about the dressing room music before the game”. Turns out Ryan thought Ariana Grande was the name of a font in Microsoft Word so maybe he will pass the DJ duties off to someone else…

For appearing on the podcast, the Haslam’s will receive a gift card for the Zellers Restaurant to enjoy the Big Z Breakfast or their world-famous microwaved tomato soup and grilled cheese lunch.

Best of luck to all 4 teams kicking off their playoffs tonight. Rumour has it Bruins Nick Mol is bringing in a case of Mountain Dew for the boys to ramp up their energy and Redwing’s Yves Bisson is dusting off his Journey cassette to blast during warm-ups, what a treat.

Chris Marttila

SCOHA Blog Correspondant

Well folks, Everything is back to normal in the land of Scohaville. United Division wrapped up their regular season this past weekend and now the real stuff begins this Friday night! Masters and Grand Masters were off for 2 weeks due to Super Bowl and a million feet of snow so there was a bit of rust this past Sunday on several skate blades.

Dear February. I don't want any trouble from you. Just come in, sit down, don't touch anything, and keep your mouth shut. With freezing rain warnings set for the next few days, I better get this blog update posted before my computer freezes.

Can this month end already? Honestly, it feels like this month has been going on since covered wagons drove up and down Barton Street. No games this weekend for the Friday United Division so they have time to heal any soreness before the last push to the playoffs start. These guys can skate!

Congrats to Grand Masters Brian Deanes as he tied the knot! Not his skate laces, his marriage!

.Hey folks, there is no way in hell this guy will ever eat broccoli before heading to the rink. I keep it simple with chicken, pasta and carrots if you give a care. No? ok then let’s move on to last week’s game recaps.

Well folks, the Masters Senators won! This was the equivalent to a free dry cleaning coupon. Besides that, there was some intreresting story lines around last weekend's action, so let's dive head-first into it

Well folks, for all you people that were complaining about the damn heat back in July, how do you like it now?

I’ve got some time to spare before I hit up the murder mystery dinner at the Innsville so I better get the blog done before the United teams hit the ice again tonight.

Well folks, I got an email from Masters Dale Brons who wanted me to pass along some sound advice not to do snow angels in a dog park. He didn't care to go into details but we will follow up next weekend.

Now that the turkey, stuffing and brussel sprout gas has finally left our systems, let's recap last weekend's action in the magical land of Scohaville.