Thursday December 9 (D conference semi finals)

(2)United Arms vs Punishers(1) S.O Game 1

R.Ricaurte and United Arms earn statement win

No question both teams were grateful for how brilliant there net minders were. On one end, N.Mackeen was solid facing 23 shots for the Punishers while his counterpart R.Ricaurte stood tall stopping over 40 shots. Goals only came in the second period as both sides played your prototypical playoff styled game by not giving much room on the field. The combination of defensive brilliance along with sound goaltending forecasted this opening game to go the entire distance. Even a ten minute sudden death period solved nothing. In the end, it went to the dreaded shootout where five players-from each side had the opportunity to make an influence. But it was again the goaltenders making the difference instead, expect for H.Jerjian, who was the only one to figure out N.Mackeen. On the flip side of the court, R.Ricaurte couldn’t have asked for a better finish to his night denying all five attempts after allowing one single goal on 41 shots.

(8)Armadillos vs Panthers(1) Game 1

Armadillos use balanced scoring to topple Panthers

This was not what the Panthers had in mind in their first semi final game versus the Armadillos. Even though they knew the challenge ahead, a closer contest was expected for M.Blackman and the rest of his club. Unfortunately, nothing went right for them as they had to endure a long and difficult night. Being down 3-0 after one period is discouraging, and rather than things improving, it only got worse. The Armadillos are balanced with loads of experience. All eight of their goals came-from different players. S.Athanasopoulos was very productive scoring once while setting up four teammates. The Panthers nearly went without a goal until T.Parr finally solved C.Stavriadis. As disappointing as this was, the Panthers will have a week to reflect, re group and adjust on how to approach game two. Maybe netting the first goal while getting sound goaltending can shift the series. Anything is possible in the playoffs, and the Panthers will need to remain positive if they plan on extending their season.

The SalumiVino player of the night goes to Robert Ricaurte of the United Arms. After facing over 40 shots and allowing only one goal while denying five straight shootout attempts, there is no question the net minder stole the show on Thursday night.

E conference semi finals

(5)Horsemen vs Fatal Demons(3) Game 2

A.Lepore ,a vital reason why the Horsemen advance

He just came off a great performance yesterday night, and clearly the Fatal Demons didn’t get the memo on how to solve A.Lepore of the Horsemen. Top notch defensemen play impactful minutes, they control conditions in their own end while knowing when to join aggressively the offensive flow. A.Lepore has all that in his arsenal, and the Horsemen are glad to have him as part of their team. In the first period alone, Lepore scored two goals and collected an assist before capping off yet another hat trick. Its one thing for a talented forward to do so in back to back games as its rarely the case for a d-man to score hat ricks twice in a row. Add to all that, he does have an equally skilled partner in D.Greco, who is also a threat. The major difference between the two is that Lepore shoots the ball while Greco loves to feed the open man. With that being said, the Fatal Demons found themselves dug to deep early on despite pushing back as the game went on. The majority of the damage had already been done.

(6)Brew Crew vs RCGT Knights(0) Game 2

Brew Crew continue-from where they left off, punch ticket to final

The RCGT Knights couldn’t address a key area of their game, and that was to get a good start. Only ten minutes had gone by for the Brew Crew to put a strangle hold in the series. With a comfortable 3-0 lead, it didn’t even matter that there was more than enough time for the RCGT Knights to pull something off. The Brew Crew were in the right gear-from the get go while the RCGT Knights remained stalled throughout the entire night. M.Maggiore enjoyed his hat trick, A.Belanger buried a pair, P.Barrett-Doucet collected three helpers while C.Muccino never faltered earning a 20 save shutout. The task was perhaps to overwhelming for the RCGT Knights as they just had no answers on how to keep up with a solid opponent. In the end, the heavy favourite will advance .

The SalumiVino player of the night goes to Anthony Lepore of the Horsemen. It wasn’t enough for him to merit the honour only a night ago. In his second game vs the Fatal Demons, Lepore collected another hat trick in the first period alone to help advance his club to the final.

The Brew Crew will now take on the Horseman for all the marbles. Both teams match up well for how they are built. Even though they have a different style, this series is simply up for grabs. The goaltenders are solid, the coverage without the ball will be applied, and the offense will come with so many game changers.