The Windmill Turns Circles Around The Wings

 The Windmill was spinning and the Buffalo Wild Wings were unable to stop it.

Windmill's MacDougall and Famiglietti 

Veteran goaltender Mark Crowley pitched a shut out and made history as the first netminder to have a shut out in a CCHL playoff game. Crowley allowed only one goal in two playoff games this season. His efforts earned him the Brian Smith Trophy (The Smitty) as playoff MVP. On saturday Crowley was inducted into the CCHL Hall of Fame along with Tom "Badger" Carroll. Carroll was quickly signed to a contract in the NAHL on sunday. NAHL management was on hand to watch Crowley play on sunday and they made him a qualifying offer for the 2013-14 season.

Hall of Famer Tom Carroll sits with NAHL braintrust.

Sunday's final match up looked good on paper as the number one seed took on the number two seed, but it was never close once the puck dropped. Chris Doherty got things started for The Windmill, popping home a rebound to give The Mill an early 1-0 lead. Minutes later, Bill "Hawkeye" MacDougall set up Gavin "You Betcha" Faretra to put the Mill up by a pair. Travis "Gang Bang" Banga took over and scored three straight goals and the Breeze Boys could smell victory in the air.  MacDougall's late tally was the icing on the proverbial cake. Mark Crowley made 22 saves on the evening.
"It was a total team effort", said a humble Crowley of his record setting performance. "Our defense was solid. I give credit to Steve Arndt, Matt Famiglietti, Dennis Molnar, John Stallsmith and Nick Dominici for giving me so much support." Then he added, "I'd like to thank the Academy as well as Kurt Russell for his outstanding job playing Herb Brooks in Miracle.  I'd also like to give a special shout out to Louis Chabot for everything he taught me at hockey camp. He told me to never give up on my dream. This one is for you Louie!".
After the game, we spoke with Dave "Murph" Murphy the head of scouting  for the NAHL to find out what he thought of Crowley's chances to make the big league. "I like the way he handled himself out there. He was composed. He controlled his rebounds and didn 't seem to be rattled by Shane LeBreton's trash talking. Do I think he's ready for the NAHL? We'll see. We will give him a look and if's he's not ready, we'll give him another season to mature in the CCHL." Then we asked about Tom Carroll's chances. "Oh he is definitely ready. He could fit right into the starting line up even on a team like Blue or Green. He is definitely going to make an impact next season."
Stay connected to the Pucking Files all year round. Don't forget the upcoming NAHL banquet at The Gas Lighter and find out who takes home the hardware. On behalf of the NAHL and the CCHL, we would like to thank everyone to tell them to find something useful to do for the next six months.