Ahh the holidays. Busy busy, but not much ice time. Booo! That doesn't stop the GoalieBrain though. There are some thoughts rattling around up there so I figured I'd get them out on "paper"... er.... "screen"? *scratches head* Anyway:
It hit me during my last game, and I just never got around to writing about it, how cool it is to be able to identify team-mates solely by their stride. Ok, I guess their size is a visual cue as well. But I might not be able to see someone's jersey, but I can tell just by how they're skating, who they are. That's pretty awesome. I've had that ability with the Hawks for some time, but I only just recently noticed it when playing with the QCats. It made me smile- it was sort of a bonding moment for me, I guess. Man, I love my teams!!!
Just a few nights ago GoalieHusband and I played in a pick-up game with @gionta182 and @hkygrl12 and some of their team-mates. This group has rented ice a few times, evidently, but I guess they needed a goalie, so gionta182 asked if we could come. (What's odd is, when I got there, there were actually two other goalies. And what's even odder is that one of them was a skater just playing goal for that night. But hey, with a 90 minute slot, taking shifts isn't the worst thing in the world.) It was a good skate, and I think I did pretty well. It wasn't until about 45 minutes in that I got scored on. How often does THAT happen in a pick-up game???
Towards the end of the game, my D suddenly disappeared and there was hkygrl12 coming down the ice on a breakaway, with gionta182 not far behind. GoalieBrain perked up for that one. It's always fun to face off against a friend, it adds that little extra competitive spirit. So I came out nice and aggressive to challenge her... and she totally blew it. It's ok, I can say that, because she told Twitter that I scared her into "Kovalchuking" herself. Gotta love it when a new word is coined. (And I'm sure she'll get me next time, so I'm staying humble. Maybe. Hee hee.)
And last but not least, GEAR!!!!!!! Merry Christmas to me! I finally was able to get that new pair of pants I've been wanting for oh, almost a year now. Yay! I also got a new bag. I've been using an old one with a broken zipper ever since my cat peed on my regular one this summer, and it's really a pain in the ass. What's also a pain in the ass is walking through doors and up stairs with a hockey bag balanced on one shoulder and a pair of pads balanced on the other. I always took some kind of dumb pride in the fact that I carried my bag, none of that wheel shit for me, thank you. Guess it's a bit of female machismo (machisma?), proving that hey I may be a girl but I can still lug my gear around without resorting to wheels.
Well, the guys at Goalie Crease made me see the light. Take the stupid machismo thing out of it, and really, it's pretty dumb to be struggling with a load like that when you could just be pulling it around behind you. Add to the fact that I suddenly began having problems with the shoulder I carry my bag on, and I figured maybe it was time to puss out and get a wheeled bag since I needed a new one anyway. I decided if I'm going to be making things simple I might as well go all the way and get the enormous goalie bag that you can put ALL of your gear in, including your pads. I can't wait to just go up to a door, open it and walk through, instead of having to maneuver myself to one side to get the bag through, then pivot slightly to get myself and the pads through, all while holding my sticks in one hand and water in the other. It took me so long to realize this, why? Dumbass.
Anyway, there is yet another reason why this bag will come in handy. I'm going to be *gulp* flying to a tournament in April. Most of you have only come to know me recently and probably don't know that I. Do. Not. Fly. Last time my ass was in a plane was in 2000, and that was for work so I had no choice. And no it has nothing to do with 9/11. But the QCats are going to Womens Rec Nationals (don't get too excited... it's the "over 40" division and last year there were only 4 teams. I'm allowed to go because you're allowed 3 players under 40 but over 35. So there, now you know how old I am.) So yeah, I'm flying with my gear, and somehow I don't think a goalie bag with a broken zipper is going to make it past security. The stench alone will set off the bomb detectors probably. And where the hell was I going to put my pads? So now at least everything will be all zipped up nice and tight and cozy and safe, and the bag handlers won't have to wear HAZMAT suits to load it onto the plane.
OMG did I just say plane? Aaaaaaaaaaaah! I confided in my captains that I am petrified of flying, so they'll have to take good care of me. They assured me that there is a bar right at the gate, so there's no problem. Also GoalieHusband will be going, so that helps too. He may want to smack me by the end of the flight but he'll be there. Yes, this flight is over 4 months away and I'm already stressed out about it. ACK!
Ok. Fun. It's going to be fun. And I have blathered on long enough for a post that's really about nothing. This is one of those ones that no one is reading at this point, isn't it? Hello? Anyone there? Oh well... off to do some work...
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Friday, December 24, 2010
Fooled you!
With the Hawks in between seasons, and no practices or games for the next two weeks for the QCats, I find myself suddenly with... NO ICE TIME! Gaaah! I figured I'd hit the regular Friday morning open hockey session this morning, but was kind of dreading dealing with the influx of college kids home on break. Fortunately, the QCats coach rented out ice at another rink, and invited all of us. Only a few of us could make it, so besides me there were only 2 other women, and one (high school? freshman in college?) girl. The rest? With the exception of about 3 "old farts" (who can skate circles around me with their laces tied together), it was High School Hockey morning. Probably about half of them were still in high school and the other half were college age. So much for avoiding that college crowd eh. (Please note: I have no problem with, and quite frequently do, playing in games where the skaters are eons ahead of me skill wise. It's just that in general, the college crowd has a much higher d-bag percentage and I really just don't need that B.S.)
At first I started out grinning like an idiot behind my mask. I'm so lucky to be a goalie- we can get away with playing in games where we're in waaayy over our heads, and its not as obvious as if we were skaters, who had to physically keep up with and win footraces against the other guys. If I was a skater, I'd have hated this game. I did ok for a little while (about 5 whole minutes) and then it was Christmas-tree time. There really was no D at all on that side, and the opposing forwards had breakaway and odd man rush and 2-on-0 after the other, and I did end up getting pretty frustrated. Not that I had any delusions that I was on their level- what was frustrating me was the realization that my body knew what to do, it just couldn't do it quick enough. As each goal was scored, I growled inside (ok maybe once on the outside too) because I knew exactly what I did wrong and what I should have done, I just couldn't do it fast enough. What a humbling feeling.
I guess they got sick of having me on their side because all of a sudden as I was holding the post and tracking the puck behind the net, I moved back towards the middle and there was the other goalie. In my crease. Saying "switch sides". Ok buddy, knock yourself out. Off I went to the other side. I was barely situated before this kid got beat twice on the exact same plays I was getting beat on.
Ok then... maybe it wasn't ALL me. And I feel very guilty for thinking this about a fellow goalie, but man I was kind of glad to see this kid get lit up too. Not only that, but on the other side, there was some actual defense, and I clicked into my groove and started really kicking ass. In fact I only let 1 goal in during that whole 2nd half, and I was horribly screened. (Thanks, Coach.) Plus there was one guy who I just absolutely owned. I know for sure that I kept him scoreless. And at one point one of the kids turned around and said (with surprise in his voice) "hey you're doing great! good saves!" Ha ha. Thanks. Go wash your gear please.
Yeah that's the other thing. Teenage boy hockey players are really, really... fragrant. In the locker room afterward, the other women were talking about how they had to be pretty aggressive on the bench to get a shift, and one said that she spent some time out of the rotation, down at the end of the bench, just because she couldn't stand the smell of sitting amongst all of them. "God they smell bad," she said. "And they were farting."
All in all, it wasn't too bad. I had fun, I definitely got a workout, and got to challenge myself. When I was leaving the ice, one of the adults came over to me and thanked me for coming and said "I really give you a lot of credit, that really took guts". Dude. Thanks for the compliment but relax. It's still hockey. I'm still going to come out here and give it my all regardless of who else is out there. Russians, college kids, high school kids, whatever you throw at me, I'll at least attempt to stop.
So I guess next week I'll go to the Friday morning session after all, college kids or not. F 'em! I'm bringin' it!
At first I started out grinning like an idiot behind my mask. I'm so lucky to be a goalie- we can get away with playing in games where we're in waaayy over our heads, and its not as obvious as if we were skaters, who had to physically keep up with and win footraces against the other guys. If I was a skater, I'd have hated this game. I did ok for a little while (about 5 whole minutes) and then it was Christmas-tree time. There really was no D at all on that side, and the opposing forwards had breakaway and odd man rush and 2-on-0 after the other, and I did end up getting pretty frustrated. Not that I had any delusions that I was on their level- what was frustrating me was the realization that my body knew what to do, it just couldn't do it quick enough. As each goal was scored, I growled inside (ok maybe once on the outside too) because I knew exactly what I did wrong and what I should have done, I just couldn't do it fast enough. What a humbling feeling.
I guess they got sick of having me on their side because all of a sudden as I was holding the post and tracking the puck behind the net, I moved back towards the middle and there was the other goalie. In my crease. Saying "switch sides". Ok buddy, knock yourself out. Off I went to the other side. I was barely situated before this kid got beat twice on the exact same plays I was getting beat on.
Ok then... maybe it wasn't ALL me. And I feel very guilty for thinking this about a fellow goalie, but man I was kind of glad to see this kid get lit up too. Not only that, but on the other side, there was some actual defense, and I clicked into my groove and started really kicking ass. In fact I only let 1 goal in during that whole 2nd half, and I was horribly screened. (Thanks, Coach.) Plus there was one guy who I just absolutely owned. I know for sure that I kept him scoreless. And at one point one of the kids turned around and said (with surprise in his voice) "hey you're doing great! good saves!" Ha ha. Thanks. Go wash your gear please.
Yeah that's the other thing. Teenage boy hockey players are really, really... fragrant. In the locker room afterward, the other women were talking about how they had to be pretty aggressive on the bench to get a shift, and one said that she spent some time out of the rotation, down at the end of the bench, just because she couldn't stand the smell of sitting amongst all of them. "God they smell bad," she said. "And they were farting."
All in all, it wasn't too bad. I had fun, I definitely got a workout, and got to challenge myself. When I was leaving the ice, one of the adults came over to me and thanked me for coming and said "I really give you a lot of credit, that really took guts". Dude. Thanks for the compliment but relax. It's still hockey. I'm still going to come out here and give it my all regardless of who else is out there. Russians, college kids, high school kids, whatever you throw at me, I'll at least attempt to stop.
So I guess next week I'll go to the Friday morning session after all, college kids or not. F 'em! I'm bringin' it!
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Oh! Also...
See, this is what happens while I'm waiting for GoalieHusband to get home from his ungodly retail-at-Christmas-hours. I think of all kinds of things to tell the internet that the internet doesn't really care about.
The Hawks got our winter season schedule today, and right away several things stuck out at me. First off, there were more than three games on it. I'll be damned. Maybe this new league coordinator is actually going to tighten the reins a little and be quasi-organized. For quite some time, we'd get an email roughly 4 days before the first game saying "Ok guys here are your first 3 games. I'll get the rest of the schedule to you soon." Gee, thanks. At least the fact that most of our games are at 11pm means there really isn't a whole lot of schedule juggling you have to do when you finally find out what nights you're playing.
So, having a full schedule right off the bat is pretty nifty. Second thing I noticed? We have TWO new teams in the league! The drunk punks are back (whee!), and that other blue team from the level just above us dropped down. Might as well call 'em by their actual name, since it's pretty damn cool. The entire team is comprised of doctors and med students, and they very cleverly call themselves the MedWings. I have to come up with a blog name for my Quarry Cat d-girl who plays on that team, since I'm sure I'll be mentioning her throughout the season. Hey being in both leagues I'm in doubles your chances of being blogged about. At least I don't use real names. So, suggestions welcome. She's a kick-ass defenseman and sticks up for me. I love playing behind her. (Shut up, no ass jokes.) Playing against her? Well I hear she plays forward on that team so we'll just have to see about shutting her the hell down. Muahaha.
The last thing I noticed was that all of our games are either on Wednesday nights or Sunday nights. Wednesdays are Quarry Cat practices, so I'm going to have several more of those practice-to-game double headers (3 right off the bat). Only once is the game at the same time as practice, and I'll just have to miss practice that night. My attendance is stellar, so they'll just have to cope without me for one night. As for the Sunday nights, thankfully there is only one conflict, and it's only a partial conflict at that. QCats have a 7:50 in Westchester, NY, and the Hawks play at 11 in our home rink. Let's assume the QCat game gets over at 9, and I'm in the car and headed back to Jersey by 9:30 at the absolute latest. (If I leave my gear on and make GoalieHusband drive, it can be even sooner than that. I've also been informed that if I do that, photos must be taken for Facebook). That gives me a good hour to get to the rink with time to spare. Now... we learned our NYC traffic lesson this weekend, however I think going in the opposite direction (who the heck wants to go toward Jersey?) at that time of night will be pretty painless. *knocks on wood*
Wow that was a lot of babbling about essentially nothing. Bring on the double-headers and the metro-area mad dash! Well... after this nice little holiday rest, that is. I'm quite enjoying getting to bed at a decent hour.
The Hawks got our winter season schedule today, and right away several things stuck out at me. First off, there were more than three games on it. I'll be damned. Maybe this new league coordinator is actually going to tighten the reins a little and be quasi-organized. For quite some time, we'd get an email roughly 4 days before the first game saying "Ok guys here are your first 3 games. I'll get the rest of the schedule to you soon." Gee, thanks. At least the fact that most of our games are at 11pm means there really isn't a whole lot of schedule juggling you have to do when you finally find out what nights you're playing.
So, having a full schedule right off the bat is pretty nifty. Second thing I noticed? We have TWO new teams in the league! The drunk punks are back (whee!), and that other blue team from the level just above us dropped down. Might as well call 'em by their actual name, since it's pretty damn cool. The entire team is comprised of doctors and med students, and they very cleverly call themselves the MedWings. I have to come up with a blog name for my Quarry Cat d-girl who plays on that team, since I'm sure I'll be mentioning her throughout the season. Hey being in both leagues I'm in doubles your chances of being blogged about. At least I don't use real names. So, suggestions welcome. She's a kick-ass defenseman and sticks up for me. I love playing behind her. (Shut up, no ass jokes.) Playing against her? Well I hear she plays forward on that team so we'll just have to see about shutting her the hell down. Muahaha.
The last thing I noticed was that all of our games are either on Wednesday nights or Sunday nights. Wednesdays are Quarry Cat practices, so I'm going to have several more of those practice-to-game double headers (3 right off the bat). Only once is the game at the same time as practice, and I'll just have to miss practice that night. My attendance is stellar, so they'll just have to cope without me for one night. As for the Sunday nights, thankfully there is only one conflict, and it's only a partial conflict at that. QCats have a 7:50 in Westchester, NY, and the Hawks play at 11 in our home rink. Let's assume the QCat game gets over at 9, and I'm in the car and headed back to Jersey by 9:30 at the absolute latest. (If I leave my gear on and make GoalieHusband drive, it can be even sooner than that. I've also been informed that if I do that, photos must be taken for Facebook). That gives me a good hour to get to the rink with time to spare. Now... we learned our NYC traffic lesson this weekend, however I think going in the opposite direction (who the heck wants to go toward Jersey?) at that time of night will be pretty painless. *knocks on wood*
Wow that was a lot of babbling about essentially nothing. Bring on the double-headers and the metro-area mad dash! Well... after this nice little holiday rest, that is. I'm quite enjoying getting to bed at a decent hour.
I found my tennis ball
I work out in our (partially) finished basement. There's a wall at the bottom of the stairs which I use for my special tennis ball torture. So where did I find it?
At the top of the basement stairs.
W. T. F. ????
Alright. Who broke into my house and is fucking with me?
**Edit:
WAIT! Hold the phone. I've just been informed by GoalieHusband that that's a different tennis ball, one that was under a pile of cardboard boxes for recycling. I'm relieved... yet still curious about where the hell that damn thing went.
At the top of the basement stairs.
W. T. F. ????
Alright. Who broke into my house and is fucking with me?
**Edit:
WAIT! Hold the phone. I've just been informed by GoalieHusband that that's a different tennis ball, one that was under a pile of cardboard boxes for recycling. I'm relieved... yet still curious about where the hell that damn thing went.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
My laundry room ate my tennis ball
Can I just come clean for a second? I mean, we all know I have an atrocious glove hand and no hand-eye-coordination whatsoever, but good lord, you'd think I'd be able to catch a freakin' tennis ball off a wall. It's truly amazing how ridiculously awful I am at this exercise. Like, to the point that it's pretty humorous. Here I am, doing goalie off-ice stuff, one of the biggest no-brainers of which is catching a tennis ball off the wall, and I'm all thumbs. I can't catch the damn thing to save my life. And I end up swearing a blue streak at myself, which really does wonders for my performance, I'm sure. No wonder the cat perches on top of the wall and watches me.
Anyway. There I was this morning lobbing the ball off the wall and trying to catch it (I'd nab it about 4 times in a row and then it would all go to shit again), when it took a very weird bounce, hit the table to my left.... and completely disappeared. As in gone without a trace. I didn't even hear it land. I'm mystified. In searching for it I found an awful lot of dust bunnies, but no tennis ball. It's going to drive me nuts until it turns up, too.
Oh yeah, and I got another shutout. Yay! Looking strictly at the numbers, that's 2 shutouts in the last 3 outings. Woo and hoo! However... I can honestly say I really didn't do much to earn the last one. I may have had 12 shots. That would be a generous estimate, too. Pretty much the entire game was played in the other team's zone, so much so that after the first period, one of my D said to me "Hey. Nice... stop." Har har. I informed her that I did in fact have TWO shots thank you very much. So, I feel a little guilty being all happy about the goose-egg, because I almost feel like I really didn't earn it. I'll shut up now.
One thing I've noticed myself doing lately is getting all ballsy with the poke-check. Several times I've completely surprised a player by lunging and stabbing the puck right off their stick. I usually do it if I'm already down and I can't maneuver my stick the way I need to in order to corral it, so I shoot it out instead. I know not everyone's a fan of the poke check but I'm really starting to love it. It's not something I come charging out and do on breakaways*, so I don't really feel like it's a big risk, technique wise. It sort of just happens in certain situations. The bench always seems to love it, and the player who just got sniped usually makes some kind of extremely unsatisfied noise. And I love making players make noises like that.
*Hmmmm, I think I actually did do it on two breakaways in mens' league this season. So that's not a completely true statement. But both times it worked, so there.
Anyway. There I was this morning lobbing the ball off the wall and trying to catch it (I'd nab it about 4 times in a row and then it would all go to shit again), when it took a very weird bounce, hit the table to my left.... and completely disappeared. As in gone without a trace. I didn't even hear it land. I'm mystified. In searching for it I found an awful lot of dust bunnies, but no tennis ball. It's going to drive me nuts until it turns up, too.
Oh yeah, and I got another shutout. Yay! Looking strictly at the numbers, that's 2 shutouts in the last 3 outings. Woo and hoo! However... I can honestly say I really didn't do much to earn the last one. I may have had 12 shots. That would be a generous estimate, too. Pretty much the entire game was played in the other team's zone, so much so that after the first period, one of my D said to me "Hey. Nice... stop." Har har. I informed her that I did in fact have TWO shots thank you very much. So, I feel a little guilty being all happy about the goose-egg, because I almost feel like I really didn't earn it. I'll shut up now.
One thing I've noticed myself doing lately is getting all ballsy with the poke-check. Several times I've completely surprised a player by lunging and stabbing the puck right off their stick. I usually do it if I'm already down and I can't maneuver my stick the way I need to in order to corral it, so I shoot it out instead. I know not everyone's a fan of the poke check but I'm really starting to love it. It's not something I come charging out and do on breakaways*, so I don't really feel like it's a big risk, technique wise. It sort of just happens in certain situations. The bench always seems to love it, and the player who just got sniped usually makes some kind of extremely unsatisfied noise. And I love making players make noises like that.
*Hmmmm, I think I actually did do it on two breakaways in mens' league this season. So that's not a completely true statement. But both times it worked, so there.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
"Totally worth getting changed in the car"
What's worse than NYC traffic on a Saturday night? NYC traffic the Saturday night before Christmas. GoalieHusband and I don't usually carpool to away games, because we live pretty far from the home rink (which is where everyone meets). But last night we were in the area anyway, so met up with a bunch of the team, and thank god for that. Because if I had been driving in that mess, there's no way my head would have been in the game. I think it took us about an hour and 15 minutes to get from Montclair to the GWB. There was Gionta182's car, with her, me and GoalieHusband, and another QCat's vehicle (some kind of insanely enormous SUV) with a total of 5 players and all their gear, with my pads perched on top of the pile of bags. When it became painfully clear that we weren't going to be at the rink anywhere near our scheduled ice time, the girls in the SUV decided to start getting dressed in the truck, and took turns digging around in the bags in the back for their gear. Evidently they even jumped out and switched places (half dressed in gear) at one of the toll booths, much to a policeman's dismay. Fortunately he knew better than to interfere. (One of our Canadian players pointed out that if this was Canada, the cop would have cleared the way and escorted us to the rink. Especially when he saw the goalie pads in the back.)
With GoalieHusband's knowledge of the area and Gionta182's creative driving (and liberal use of horn and middle finger), we got to the rink probably about 10 minutes after the game was supposed to have started. Since the majority of the team had been stuck, the game hadn't actually started yet, but the home team was already on the ice, as were a few of the early birds from our team. The ref started the game without us, which kind of pissed me off- you waited this long, and you see we've just gotten here, and NOW you're going to start? Whatever. I threw my gear on and got into the net with about 8 minutes left to go in the period. Evidently they'd scored 2 goals (and we had scored 1) during that time, but they were nice enough to keep the scoreboard at 0-0 until I and the rest of the team got out there.
After that kind of beginning you'd think we'd all be frazzled and out of focus. I guess it was the adrenaline that spurred us on because we played a GREAT game. We were up 3-1 by the end of the second, and were playing some of the best hockey we've played yet. Great passing, good communication, good pressure. I was pretty strong as well, though there was one dramatic moment when my D really saved my ass. I'd stopped a shot and knew it had bounced somewhere weird but had no clue where it was in the scramble. My D (the same one who fell on the puck and got us that penalty shot a few games ago) snagged it out just as it was reaching the goal line. WHEW.
But in the 3rd it felt like we let up just slightly. I let in 2 goals, neither of which I was too happy about, but one in particular pissed me off. The forward was coming down on a semi-breakaway, got me moving to the left and put it right through the 5-hole. Yes, I was moving. But jumpin' Jesus on a pogo stick, why can't I keep my stick in front of my damn 5-hole when I'm going side to side?!!!? UGH. I felt like that goal negated all the really good work I'd done up until that point. The next one was a scrambly bouncy cluster-fuck, and I should have been able to freeze it. So with just a few minutes left we were tied 3-3 and I was really praying they'd be able to break the tie before the clock ran out.
And they did! With a minute left, we scored. I don't usually cheer for our goals, out of respect for the other goalie, but I let out a whoop and a holler for that one. Way to go teamwork. Naturally, they pulled the goalie to try to tie it up again, but we got the puck into their zone as she was coming to the bench, and she played it. With the 6th skater already on the ice. BUSTED! We finished up easily after that.
It was a fun game, but did get a little chippy toward the end. They started whacking at me late, and I was more than happy to return the favor. So was the rest of the team. When one player slashed at my back while I was covering a puck, one of our girls said something to the ref, who said "she was going for the puck". Oh really? The puck was on my back? That's a new one. But they all stood up for me and I stood up for myself pretty well. I think it's just one more indication that this team is really getting solid. Naturally it's the D I'm most familiar with, but I really think we have a great defensive unit and we work really well together.
Now on to the next game- tonight at 6:30. It's another away game, but not quite as far, so hopefully we won't have the same problem with traffic. Last night was our second win in a row. Definitely striving to extend that streak tonight.
With GoalieHusband's knowledge of the area and Gionta182's creative driving (and liberal use of horn and middle finger), we got to the rink probably about 10 minutes after the game was supposed to have started. Since the majority of the team had been stuck, the game hadn't actually started yet, but the home team was already on the ice, as were a few of the early birds from our team. The ref started the game without us, which kind of pissed me off- you waited this long, and you see we've just gotten here, and NOW you're going to start? Whatever. I threw my gear on and got into the net with about 8 minutes left to go in the period. Evidently they'd scored 2 goals (and we had scored 1) during that time, but they were nice enough to keep the scoreboard at 0-0 until I and the rest of the team got out there.
After that kind of beginning you'd think we'd all be frazzled and out of focus. I guess it was the adrenaline that spurred us on because we played a GREAT game. We were up 3-1 by the end of the second, and were playing some of the best hockey we've played yet. Great passing, good communication, good pressure. I was pretty strong as well, though there was one dramatic moment when my D really saved my ass. I'd stopped a shot and knew it had bounced somewhere weird but had no clue where it was in the scramble. My D (the same one who fell on the puck and got us that penalty shot a few games ago) snagged it out just as it was reaching the goal line. WHEW.
But in the 3rd it felt like we let up just slightly. I let in 2 goals, neither of which I was too happy about, but one in particular pissed me off. The forward was coming down on a semi-breakaway, got me moving to the left and put it right through the 5-hole. Yes, I was moving. But jumpin' Jesus on a pogo stick, why can't I keep my stick in front of my damn 5-hole when I'm going side to side?!!!? UGH. I felt like that goal negated all the really good work I'd done up until that point. The next one was a scrambly bouncy cluster-fuck, and I should have been able to freeze it. So with just a few minutes left we were tied 3-3 and I was really praying they'd be able to break the tie before the clock ran out.
And they did! With a minute left, we scored. I don't usually cheer for our goals, out of respect for the other goalie, but I let out a whoop and a holler for that one. Way to go teamwork. Naturally, they pulled the goalie to try to tie it up again, but we got the puck into their zone as she was coming to the bench, and she played it. With the 6th skater already on the ice. BUSTED! We finished up easily after that.
It was a fun game, but did get a little chippy toward the end. They started whacking at me late, and I was more than happy to return the favor. So was the rest of the team. When one player slashed at my back while I was covering a puck, one of our girls said something to the ref, who said "she was going for the puck". Oh really? The puck was on my back? That's a new one. But they all stood up for me and I stood up for myself pretty well. I think it's just one more indication that this team is really getting solid. Naturally it's the D I'm most familiar with, but I really think we have a great defensive unit and we work really well together.
Now on to the next game- tonight at 6:30. It's another away game, but not quite as far, so hopefully we won't have the same problem with traffic. Last night was our second win in a row. Definitely striving to extend that streak tonight.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
A Blowout, and a Shutout
Ya gotta love a league with 4 teams in it. Even a team with a 1-11 record gets a "playoff" game. It's also great when the league has this rule, that all players must sign in before each game, so they can keep track of how many games people have played. Beacuse if you haven't played 4 games (i.e., are a ringer), you can't play in the playoffs. Pretty good system, right? (Leaving out the part where anyone can put a check mark next to anyone's name, whether they're there or not...) It was great to see that policy enforced on Sunday night when we got to the rink for our "playoff" game. There were no less than five non-rostered names written in on the D-bag Team's sign-in sheet. I guess they weren't happy with beating us 5-2 a few nights before that, so they had to bring in their ringers. Rolling over us 11-0 is so much more satisfying, don't you think?
And as Senator discovered when he did a little digging on the league website, this team is 11-1-1, with - wait for it! - 74 goals for and 26 goals against. Yep. They belong in our league. Clearly. (The point could be raised that if they weren't in the league, it would be just 3 teams, but that is a non-issue now with another team coming down from the level above).
I'm not sure if anyone's going to say anything to the new league coordinator, who's come in with all kinds of plans on cleaning up the leagues. We've heard all of that before though, which is why I'm personally not making any noise about it. Nothing like apathy right?
Fortunately I got a little pick-me-up a few days later, in the form of an outdoor game with the Quarry Cats. I have to tell you, I was not nearly as excited as the rest of the team with the prospect of playing outside. Yeah, yeah, hockey's roots... but there's an awful lot to be said for being able to feel your hands and face while playing hockey, and playing indoors has totally spoiled me. Although it was on our dinky flooded outdoor roller rink that I fell hard and fast for hockey on blades instead of wheels, I wasn't all that anxious to get back out there in the biting cold. Most of what I remember from playing outside is literally not being able to feel my fingers at all- except when I gloved a shot or stopped one with my stick. Then it was all nerve endings firing pain signals at once. Frozen water bottle... runny nose... fogged up glasses... none of that was on my list of things to look forward to.
However, I was pleasantly surprised. There is no comparison at all between a posh country club rink and a town-run outdoor cement rink flooded in the winter for skating. The country club rink has a zamboni. So right there, there's no divets or bumps to ruin your skates. They also have REAL INDOOR LOCKER ROOMS, so getting dressed doesn't reduce you to the equivalent of a popsicle before you're even ready to play. (An added bonus of country club locker rooms is, not only do the showers not smell like pee or have bugs coming out of the drains, they're actually clean and have soap provided!)
As soon as we got out on the ice I realized this was a piece of cake compared to what I remembered, and I relaxed and had fun. We had no coaches, but the team played a great game. It was probably the most pressure we've had offensively in any game yet, and it paid off in the 3rd period with 3 goals. Going into the game our record was 0-2-1, so it was our first win on the season. And, a shutout! That was certainly not a bad feeling after all the winless games, both teams combined.
But I really need to work on something. Now that I've got the stick angle thing figured out, I desperately need to not give up so many rebounds. Some Twitter and message board pals linked me some videos and suggestions, and I pin-pointed one thing I'm doing that's causing them, but I can't fix it without massive repetition. There's no time to think "do this with your pad, not that" when making a pad save- it needs to be burned in, rote muscle memory. So I have to figure that out. Because trust me guys (and gals), I know, the rebounds are bad.
It's a busy hockey weekend coming up- team party on Friday night, and an away game each on Saturday and Sunday. My goal, besides to deny all of them, is to keep my rebounds in check. Oh yeah, and to have fun on Friday night. If there's one thing the QCats know how to do, it's party.
And as Senator discovered when he did a little digging on the league website, this team is 11-1-1, with - wait for it! - 74 goals for and 26 goals against. Yep. They belong in our league. Clearly. (The point could be raised that if they weren't in the league, it would be just 3 teams, but that is a non-issue now with another team coming down from the level above).
I'm not sure if anyone's going to say anything to the new league coordinator, who's come in with all kinds of plans on cleaning up the leagues. We've heard all of that before though, which is why I'm personally not making any noise about it. Nothing like apathy right?
Fortunately I got a little pick-me-up a few days later, in the form of an outdoor game with the Quarry Cats. I have to tell you, I was not nearly as excited as the rest of the team with the prospect of playing outside. Yeah, yeah, hockey's roots... but there's an awful lot to be said for being able to feel your hands and face while playing hockey, and playing indoors has totally spoiled me. Although it was on our dinky flooded outdoor roller rink that I fell hard and fast for hockey on blades instead of wheels, I wasn't all that anxious to get back out there in the biting cold. Most of what I remember from playing outside is literally not being able to feel my fingers at all- except when I gloved a shot or stopped one with my stick. Then it was all nerve endings firing pain signals at once. Frozen water bottle... runny nose... fogged up glasses... none of that was on my list of things to look forward to.
However, I was pleasantly surprised. There is no comparison at all between a posh country club rink and a town-run outdoor cement rink flooded in the winter for skating. The country club rink has a zamboni. So right there, there's no divets or bumps to ruin your skates. They also have REAL INDOOR LOCKER ROOMS, so getting dressed doesn't reduce you to the equivalent of a popsicle before you're even ready to play. (An added bonus of country club locker rooms is, not only do the showers not smell like pee or have bugs coming out of the drains, they're actually clean and have soap provided!)
As soon as we got out on the ice I realized this was a piece of cake compared to what I remembered, and I relaxed and had fun. We had no coaches, but the team played a great game. It was probably the most pressure we've had offensively in any game yet, and it paid off in the 3rd period with 3 goals. Going into the game our record was 0-2-1, so it was our first win on the season. And, a shutout! That was certainly not a bad feeling after all the winless games, both teams combined.
But I really need to work on something. Now that I've got the stick angle thing figured out, I desperately need to not give up so many rebounds. Some Twitter and message board pals linked me some videos and suggestions, and I pin-pointed one thing I'm doing that's causing them, but I can't fix it without massive repetition. There's no time to think "do this with your pad, not that" when making a pad save- it needs to be burned in, rote muscle memory. So I have to figure that out. Because trust me guys (and gals), I know, the rebounds are bad.
It's a busy hockey weekend coming up- team party on Friday night, and an away game each on Saturday and Sunday. My goal, besides to deny all of them, is to keep my rebounds in check. Oh yeah, and to have fun on Friday night. If there's one thing the QCats know how to do, it's party.
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