Wednesday December 22 (Masters 35+ final)

D.Massa behind 4-0 victory in Game 1

National opened the final with a brilliant 4-0 victory over the Armos. O.Valiquette opened the scoring while doubling the lead on a power play marker. Prior to National’s second goal, the Armos missed out on a golden opportunity when awarded a 5-3 power play. Instead, they found themselves in the box shortly after, and National made sure to not waste their chance. That tally came very late in the second period giving National a decent advance heading into the final stretch. With the next goal so crucial, M-A Simard was able to provide it for National, who surely knew by then that game one was in the bag. It wasn’t like the Armos didn’t have their fair share of chances. They hit two posts, but more importantly, a net minder that never flinched. D.Massa was again spectacular stopping every shot he faced that included some grade a scoring chances. You always want to get off on the right foot when entering a series. Since game one went to National, the Armos would be the ones faced with all the pressure knowing they have to win two in a row.

M.Pinheiro seizes the moment, nets OT winner to claim Masters 35+ championship

(2)Armos vs National(3) Game 2

The Armos knew they got close. They were able to see the mountain top, but couldn’t get there. They got their break with S.Marricco striking for a second time late in the game to force the overtime. By that point, its pretty much up for grabs. It took barely two minutes into the sudden death frame however for M.Pinheiro to seize the moment. The Captain placed him self at a perfect spot receiving an easy pass -from C.Dagenais resulting in a tap in goal. National had another great start in game two scoring twice in the opening frame. Till that point, the Armos have yet to find the back of the net in this series. The frustrations carried through until the early stages of the second period where S.Marricco finally broke the spell. Sometimes, it takes that one tally to loosen up your bench a little, something the Armos were longing for despite getting enough decent scoring chances. Eventually, they evened the score late in the game which put them in a great position to tie the series. Unfortunately, with overtime usually going either way, the Armos couldn’t catch their break. Instead, M.Pinheiro was there to decide matters capping off an impressive playoff run. On behalf of Hockeyballe.com, congratulations go out to Marc Pinheiro and National for winning the Masters 35+ division.

The SalumiVino player of the night goes to Marc Pinheiro of National. It can be easily argued that the captain posted his clubs biggest goal of the season. You never want to take your chances in a fifteen minute mini game where anything can happen. National avoided that situation thanks to Pinheiro’s positioning and reflex to bury the winner.