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Ah no, see my note in the dihl forum about inability to collect the stats.
So I’ve got three sets to send him tomorrow.
"Kyle":2b45l70i wrote:First up, Phantoms are taking on Johnnies OB.Kyle’s pick: Phantoms 5-3. King, Christos, Knyvett and Sales to net for Phantoms, Mannerswood and Bode for Johnnies.[/quote:2b45l70i]Well, that was a bit of an unfortunate blowout. Poor Johnnies, no Matt Weir this week (back next week), no Dwayne Cleugh at all, and no Tony Pasco. Andy Wakelin stood in goal for them, and he was starting to play OK by the third period, making some good saves, but you can’t drop three of your top players, including your goalie, and expect to do very well in this grade. Phantoms racked up a big 15 goals, with Christos, King, and Aitken all getting hat tricks. Johnnies had some good points, they got one goal in each period, and the last period they were actually one up for about half of it, before letting in three goals to finish it 1-3.
So Johnnies are a bit short on firepower, and in need of a decent goalie. If anyone wants to volunteer to play for them, we’d like to hear. Particularly if people say in relation to you “man, s/he’s a really good goalie”.
"Kyle":2b45l70i wrote:Bullfrogs vs Sharks. My pick, it’s going to be tough, but I’ve got to back my ‘frogs. Bullfrogs 3-2 in a close match. Sanford, Gilchrist and Honore to net for the froggies, Roth and King for the Sharks. Schuck to make some big saves to keep his team ahead.[/quote:2b45l70i]Bullfrogs 4-1! Booyah. That was a good game against a fairly solid team, some nice forechecking really won that game for the Frogs, at least a couple of the goals were just from putting pressure on defenders with the puck and putting away the resulting mistakes. Temp player Wilson netted twice, Andy Noble puts away a lovely one in his first A grade game, and Matthews puts one past Bryant. Sykes gets the solitary Sharks goal. Defining moment of the game: 1 minute 33 of 3 on 5 shorthanded for the Bullfrogs, followed by another 2 minutes of 4 on 5 shorthanded in the first period – no goals scored. Only seven shots on net in that whole period, and Schuck made some solid saves throughout the game.
Hellyer plays two games as a casual player, and ends up on the winning side both times. No points though sorry Ryan.
The official stats for both these games, and the last couple of B grade rounds, will be online in some form soon. We had a small problem of me not collecting the stats so they went home with someone else and it took a while to get them back. We’ll sort that out soon.
We’ll try over the next week to see if we can help John McGlashan out a little, as it’s no fun for them to play when they’ve had some important players pulled from under their team, and it’s also not good for the competition to have one team struggle so much.
George the 2nd. Alright, not really.
Harrison. Or at least, hopefully he’ll be signing up tonight, I suggested on Monday to his father that he should play A grade as well as B grade, and they said they’d be coming along.
You’ve put 9.11 as ‘changed to’, but haven’t listed what you’ve changed it to.
I think the change of ‘player grades’ to ‘player ratings’ should go through, and ‘league grades’ should remain as such.
I’m picking Buffalo. Sentimentally I like Ducks, but I don’t particularly like their team this year, even though they’ve had a good season. Feels too set up solely for the purpose of winning the cup rather than playing good looking hockey, which I don’t really like. I’d pick Ducks or Red Wings to play in the Western Conference final, but I think they’ll both choke on the big stage, so I think an Eastern Conference team is going to win it. Rangers have had the best start in the postseason with a sweep, but I can’t see picking Rangers working out. I’d see Buffalo and NJ playing it out for the Eastern Conference final, and I think the Sabres will topple the Devils and then take the cup in probably 6 games.
Just as a note, an email will be coming out later, but I’ll post here too.
The DIHA has asked us to move DIHL games later to accommodate SIHL games being on at certain times.
So from this Sunday until the end of the DIHL, first game will start at 7pm, 2nd game will start at 8:10.
An updated schedule will be coming out tonight or tomorrow to players.
The bits of paper have all been entered, money has been collected (except for those slack buggers who haven’t filled in a piece of paper or paid!), the rosters compiled, the schedule put out, the rosters re-compiled a couple of times with late entries and the inevitable forgotten person.
Yes that’s right ladies and germs, it’s DIHL A Grade time. Last year the competition between the four teams was very tight, with almost half the games ending up draws, heaps of exciting games, and some top quality play. We’ve got most of the same crowd back again, plus some extras, to see who takes out Autumn 2007. Just think of it like the Stanley Cup, but the money comes from the players, rather than to the players. And the skill level is just a little bit different.
Let’s look at the teams.
Bullfrogs. Oh a team after my heart. Bullfrogs are the ‘almost’ team of the DIHL, losing the final in penalty shootout in 2005, and a very close semi in Autumn 2006. They’ve brought in Christchurch/Nelson/Christchurch/Roxburgh import Kibbelwhite to play casual games, and they’re stacking up the goal with big Toby Schuck. Bulling and Sanford are both in the Prems squad, so look for them to notch a few nets, and Gilchrist, back from NZ duty where she scored a stack of goals as well. There are a couple of players in this team who are playing up from the B grade, so it’ll be interesting to see how they cope with the big time. If the team can keep the shots on Toby down, they shouldn’t see too much scored against them, so then it’s just a matter of making sure they play well at the other end to keep ahead.
John McGlashan Oldboys. Johnnies are working hard on building up a hockey culture here, which is great to see. They’ve added to their B grade team with an A grade team made of current and former students, and they’ve even snuck in and grabbed pro coach Jenel Bode, who played in the WNHL, giving her a part time to claim her as an ‘old boy’. As well as Bode, watch out for Cleugh, Mannerswood, and Weir, all dangerous players, and solid Blake Sinclair on defense. Tony Pasco was the top goalie in the tournament last year, he’s almost impossible down low, and the team is even hoping to get some shiny new tops for their shiny new team. If the team clicks, they’re sure to benefit from the voice of wisdom of Bode on the bench, it’ll be interesting to see if some of the kids who are recently B graders can help them stay in it.
Phantoms. Phantoms, A grade champions in 2006 are back to defend their trophy. New manager Stefan King has put together a formidable lineup – Aitken, Christos, King, Lamb, all big goal scorers, Zanzee Pielak-Jones – just back from representing NZ women in Europe, Wick, always a threat in front of the net, Sales, Knyvett. They’re very solid and absolutely the team to beat as defending champions. It’ll be interesting to see how they work their lines and structure the team, other teams will have to see if they can target the few non-prems in the team, and work hard to give goalie Nick Metzger a rough time. They’re going to score goals, it’s going to take big defence and really hard work when they’re on offense to shut them down and then get it down the other end. Teams are going to have to work it really hard and look to capitalise on the powerplay.
Sharks. Sharks have been stitched together from some juniors and other jumbled players, but this is a good team. Watch for Stampede player Duncan Sykes, juniors Roth and Squire, and MacDonald on attack. Aaron Bryant also an imposing barrier between the pipes, he’s sharing prems duty with Schuck this year, so he’ll be looking to show that he’s top-shelf. Parr, Sykes, Handcock are going to form a fairly effective defense in front of him. For this team, coming together will be the important question – sometimes it’s hard with the DIHL when you’re thrown into a team and it takes a few weeks to sort out who’s playing with who and how your teammates work. If they get that sorted early, look for them to be dangerous.
Alright, game on. Who’s playing who?
First up, Phantoms are taking on Johnnies OB.It’s a big challenge for the new Johnnies outfit, taking on the defending champions first up. The Phantoms have got a few players who have been playing together in Prems, where as most of the Johnnies players don’t play regularly with each other. Johnnies will be looking to Bode and some of the other senior players to sort things out quickly and get that defense up and running fast to prevent the Phantoms running away with it. There’s scorers on the JOB team, but they won’t want to be chasing three goals by the end of the first period. I suspect Phantoms are going to put up a forward line with King, Christos, and possibly Aitken. That’s really dangerous, as they’re all good goal scorers, but if Johnnies can shut that down, they’re in with a chance. Metzger isn’t yet back in Dunedin, so Phantoms will have Sam Smith between the posts. If they can get a good number of shots in on him, they could push for the win. Kyle’s pick: Phantoms 5-3. King, Christos, Knyvett and Sales to net for Phantoms, Mannerswood and Bode for Johnnies.
Bullfrogs vs Sharks. This game will be interesting. Both teams have got prem level goalies, so I’m picking it’ll stay fairly low scoring. Because of the importance of goalies when making up the teams, they’re not quite as strong in skaters, but there’s some nice players here all the same. I’m a Bullfrog, so I’m biased all the way. Bullfrogs will probably be sending out a line with Sanford and Bulling on it. Both these players have been suiting up for Prems practice this year, so they’re taking their hockey seriously and Bullfrogs will be looking for some good scoring from them. Kibbelwhite won’t be playing every game, what with the trip from Roxburgh, but he’ll be there tonight and he’s a reliable defender that should help keep shots down. There’s some Beasts players playing up into the grade however, so their ability to do well in this competition might depend on those players stepping up their speed and skill to match some good opposition. Sharks have a bunch of good attacking players – some of the juniors have been working hard this season and their pace and aggression has picked up a notch. As long as they don’t get caught trying to carry the puck up by themselves, there’s potential goals from a number of players – Roth, Squire, Sykes, King (a late addition to the roster), MacDonald. My pick, it’s going to be tough, but I’ve got to back my ‘frogs. Bullfrogs 3-2 in a close match. Sanford, Gilchrist and Honore to net for the froggies, Roth and King for the Sharks. Schuck to make some big saves to keep his team ahead.
"guest":1fgu3wlv wrote:"Kyle":1fgu3wlv wrote:I like where they start out by saying “The NHL is the fastest game…”.C’mon marketing people. NHL isn’t a game, ice hockey is a game. NHL is a league.[/quote:1fgu3wlv]
I think he was refering the the NHL style of game, which is true it is the fastest. Why pick it apart? Can’t you just watch and enjoy it?[/quote:1fgu3wlv]
What’s it to do with you what I do?
"Ryan":36irzy53 wrote:It turned up a few blocks from her flat, but is now a write off apparently <img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/sad.gif" alt="
” title=”Sad” />[/quote:36irzy53]
Ah well, at least I picked something right for the weekend, but that’s bad news. Sorry Jane.
I’m not sure if it’s more important that we get players for games rather than practice, but anyway. The spectators, yes.
I suspect part of the problem is that DIHL runs for 14 weeks a year. Practices run upwards of 26 weeks, so unless our ‘domestic’ competition runs all season, it would be strange to push practices into marginal times for games which are only on half the time. Yes, practices could fall back into game times when they’re not on, but not everyone can rearrange their lives to make it to floating practice times which change. I also suspect that the association committee, if you asked them, would definitely give priority to practices for teams to compete in the SIHL, over DIHL games.
I didn’t think Tuesday night was good for power-skating, as the peewees practise that night, and juniors, some women, prems, and snc are all involved with A grade. So it only leaves beginners and midgets and unaffiliated (dihl, high school) players able to do the powerskating.
The weekly timetable is a rather complex thing however, and I suspect it’s one of the most contested things that the DIHA does (everyone seems to have an opinion!). No end result leaves everyone happy.
Ideally I’d like to have the B grade and A grade played on the same day, as there’s not much cross-over in terms of players. Time in the ice rink doesn’t have tardis-like qualities however, and SIHL games rule out weekend days (weekend hockey is about twice times as busy as it was last year, with prems now having regular games and the tournaments being on more often). Even on the few weekends that the rink is available, one or more teams are away elsewhere.
"Azzy77":vt28z7b0 wrote:Why are the games so late on tuesday nights, if there are two games why don’t we play 7 and 8 instead of 8 and 9.playing after nine gets the blood going to much so you can’t get to sleep to 1 o’clock and that sucks[/quote:vt28z7b0]
Bloody aggressive goalies.
It will I suspect however be the ‘way of the future’. As more people play hockey, kiwi skating, adult skating etc, rink times are going to become more and more busy and times are going to head more towards the marginal side of things.
Eventually practices will all finish at midnight or something.
"Kyle":2x9k8j61 wrote:John McGlashan vs Bears: My pick: Johnnies to take it 5:2.[/quote:2x9k8j61]Well, Johnnies were short a goalie for the first few minutes, and Bears took advantage with Hellyer netting early. From there the game settled down and was played with good feeling. Johnnies got one back fairly quickly, but Bears pulled ahead again were playing well. Some of these peewee players are getting a heap out of coaching this year – nice passing around when they’re in the zone, setting things up well, I was impressed. Johnnies were working hard on getting an equalizer, and Bradfield thought he’d rammed one in by the post, but goalie Jaimee Wood had her pad on it and when the whistle blew the puck was sitting clearly on the line – no goal sorry! However a couple of minutes later a shot from a very high slot snuck in, and the game finished up a draw. Both teams finish with a point and the rematch in three weeks will be interesting.
"Kyle":2x9k8j61 wrote:Kings vs Beasts: My picks: Beasts to take it 5-3 with a late goal making it safe.[/quote:2x9k8j61]Oh, Kings are stepping it up this season. Where did we finish up? 7-3 to Kings? The game was played at a fairly fast pace, and there was a bit of niggle out there, but nothing came to a head thankfully. Both teams played fairly well, but Kings were helped out by Harrison King who caused all sorts of chaos for the Beasts defence – he got his first goal straight from the opening face-off, and the Beasts just weren’t able to shut him down. I was surprised not to see them pick a player and have them stick to him like glue. Refereeing (and I say this as one half of the crew) wasn’t top-notch – we didn’t have a good system and missed a couple of things. There were also a lot of players crying foul when players were running into them however – remember, it’s non-checking, not non-contact, players aren’t always the best skaters and sometimes contact is just because people can’t stop.
"Kyle":2x9k8j61 wrote:Off Ice: Janey’s car to turn up abandoned, in seriously bad condition. Sorry Jane <img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/sad.gif" alt="” title=”Sad” /> Kyle to referee four games over the weekend and to finish a third weekend in a row ‘seriously knackered’.[/quote:2x9k8j61]
No news on the car, Kyle ended up refereeing 7 games over the weekend, and knackered doesn’t cover it at all.
The A grade games start at 8 because the DIHA has scheduled powerskating from 7 – 8. Presumably they’ll get organised and that’ll start sometime soon, but the answer as to why the games start then, is that’s the time we were offered.
Just removed another one. They’d only made one post, but they’d embedded a whole pile of porno photos in the post, so it was a lot worse than previous ones. They just started popping up on my work screen, and we’ve got a real fast connection so they were popping up fast.
The user I deleted as well and now I can’t remember their name. Larnit? Began with L, the logs will no doubt tell you.
Haha… no. Live streaming isn’t impossible, but you need a decent internet connection which sends material up fast, and anything that they have at the rink won’t do that (I presume they use broadband, which is fast down but not too fast up).
It wouldn’t at all be impossible to video the games and then youtube them though. Split them into 10 – 15 minute sections.
