Thursday December 14(Playoffs, round 1)

(7)SBS Trashers vs Mighty Drunks(3)

Third period does Mighty Drunks in against SBS Trashers

On Thursday, a meltdown by the Mighty Drunks in the final frame, turned a one goal lead into a 7-3 loss. This was a contest that the SBS Trashers struggled to get traction, at least in the first two periods. But once P.Hodhod riffled his second to level the score, the SBS Trashers never looked back. The quicker side roared with five unanswered tallies in the span of only eight minutes. F.Gentile bagged the fourth goal that held for the winner and P.Nadeau closed off the game for his second of the night. Despite the loss, the Mighty Drunks knew they had their hands full versus the top seeded Trashers, but managed a good fight anyway. M.Beaudry launched a pair of beauties that R.Pampena wished he had back.

(7)Raging Rhinos vs Chiefs(2)

Chiefs effort not nearly good enough

The Chiefs deserved no credit what so ever in a poor performance versus the Raging Rhinos. Granted, the Rhinos are a deep team and entered the night as favourites, but they didn't really have to work too hard for this result. A 3-0 first period lead turned quickly into a 6-0 lead and the Chiefs season became just a memory. S.Labrecque, G.Vouloumanos each scored twice and S.Pilon was very productive accumulating four points. With so many factors going against the Chiefs, the biggest turning point in the game was when G.Vouloumanos scored shorthanded late in the first period for a three goal cushion. That tally ultimately deflated the Chiefs morale for any sort of comeback.

(5)Ottarks vs Mohicans(4)

J.Mandracchia's two goals help extinguish Mohicans

 Although the Ottarks rely heavily on their overall team game, it's always nice to have that ace in the hole. J.Mandracchia will surely make a difference on most nights as tonight was just another day at the office for the young talent. After setting up the Ottarks' first tally, J.Mandracchia decided to score as well by bagging two out of his clubs five goals. The match went back and forth with the Mohicans grabbing two leads only to find themselves behind when L.Dulcetta snapped a 2-2 tie. They did manage to even the score with an early third period marker in hopes of regaining some momentum. However, that shifted immediately with the Ottarks responding right away when M.DiSalvio and J.Mandracchia tallied only four minutes apart. In the end, the Ottarks held off a solid quick team as they now advance to the final four.

(5)Bramabulls vs Werewolves(2)

Bramabulls jump on Werewolves early

After jumping off to a commanding 3-0 lead, the Bramabulls were able to button things up-from there en route to a 5-2 victory. C.Fragkiudakis set the match in motion with the games first two goals. There is no question that the Werewolves would have liked to re start the game on a better note, especially knowing that they were missing key elements versus a stacked Bramabulls team. Already with a deep line up, the Bramabulls had four particular players doing most of the damage up front. C.Fragkiudakis, D.Verta, G.Pisanelli and M.Maggiore accounted for an impressive eleven points. Goaltending was also a factor as C.Muccino kept a cool composure allowing only two goals on 19 shots.

The SalumiVino player of the night goes to Jonathan Mandracchia of the Ottarks. In a 5-4 close game versus the Mohicans, the natural centre man produced three big points that included a pair of goals.

There were no surprises or upsets on Thursday night as the top four seeds won to advance to the semi finals. The match ups are as follows:

(1)SBS Trashers vs Bramabulls(4) And while the seeds may suggest the SBS Trashers to be slight favourites, that notion can be thrown out the window. The Bramabulls match up in every area and possess one key component which is years of experience. The onus is on the SBS Trashers to figure out how to compete with a difficult opponent.

(2)Raging Rhinos vs Ottarks(3) Flip a coin for this series. Both sides are a carbon copy of each other. They both have an established number one line surrounded with a sound supporting cast. It's one of those series that will come to uncontrollable details such as ball luck, timely penalties, shaky goaltending, mistakes etc.......