Green Rolls Without Toe

TC ate six pizzas prior to the game

Thursday night brought another epic battle of Green vs. Blue to the Doug. Many believed that Green would lose their way since long time coach Gary "Toe" Blake retired just prior to the start of the season. The reason for his retirement is still unclear, but rumor is that Blake believes he is being tormented by lawn gnomes. This has not been officially confirmed. Blue was out to an early 3-1 lead before Tom "TC" Carroll took control of the game. TC carried Green as they defeated their arch rivals in Blue 8-7. Carroll had six points on the evening which earned him first star honors. The third star went to "The Other TC", Tom "Shemp" Champagne who had the hat trick for Blue. The games second star was awarded to Phil "Commish" Stuart who scored two goals including the game winner. Green brought up rookie netminder Zac "The Giesha" Guercia from the CCHL to replace the injured Kenny "Rebel Without a Rebound" Dean. Mike "The Little Cum" Commerford added to his league scoring lead with two goals and two helpers. The win moves Green into sole possession of first in the eastern conference. Blue drops to third while Teal moves into the second spot.  
Sunday brings the NH Legends of Hockey Banquet to the Capital City. It will honor the Concord High Hockey program. Featured speakers include Olympian Tara Mounsey and stand-up comic Dunc Matthews. No word as to whether the Cozy brothers will be on his wing. All former Brady players have been warned to stay home until the danger has passed.

CCHL News

This week in the CCHL featured a battle of two unbeaten teams as well as a short handed Cimo's squad. On monday night BWW overwhelmed an undermanned Cimo's squad 12-6. Mike Richards led the way for BWW with four goals. Travis "Gang Bang" Banga scored a hat trick and Ryan Williamson added a pair. The line of Richards, Banga and Williamson seem to be the hottest trio in the CCHL at this early juncture. Cimo's was forced to play with only seven players since the "Peruvian Flu" has run rampant amongst the Cimos locker room. Captain Mick Mounsey's absence was very apparent to the disappointed home town fans. Cimo's fans can only hope that things will get better for their team as the season progresses. "For what I pay for season tickets, I would like to see more W's", said Earl Ballsac, a long time fan of Cimo's. It may be that too much of Cimo's payroll is tied up in Mounsey's long term contract and they can't afford the role players to support him.
On tuesday night The Doug was packed to see the battle of the unbeatens. What was billed to be "The Thriller on Vanilla", turned out to be a blowout. Windmill blew away Cheers 16-5 to up their record to 3 & Oh!  Gavin "You Betcha" Faretra led the way with four goals, which increased his league leading goal output to nine. Chris Doherty  and Joel "The Arsenal" Arsenault  each had hat tricks. James Moskos (The Artist Formerly Known as Jimmy Santos) was stellar in net once again. Cheer's dynamic duo of Tim "The Timinator" Walsh and Corey "Cockroach" Laroche each scored twice for Cheers. Team defense seems to be an issue for Cheers. Their high flying style may be outdated to fit into today's game. Let's face it; the CCHL has come down to team defense ruling the day.
In other hockey news; In the NAHL, long time coach Gary "Toe" Blake has stepped down as coach of Green. Blake is the winningest coach in NAHL history. Blake has yet to address the media as to his reason for retiring. Many believe that he is battling person demons (yard gnomes). This week's NAHL round up will come out on friday night due to a scheduling conflict.

Dead Man Skating

Player's jaws dropped when the locker room door opened and in walked Mark Rudz. Just weeks before a scheduled memorial service was to take place at The Doug, the improbable happened yet once again on Thursday night. Rudz, who was last seen in early July parachuting from the Knat just moments before it plummeted in the side of a mountain in North Korea, strolled into the locker room as if nothing had ever happened out of the ordinary. His teammates gathered around him to hear his tale of survival.  He told them that he walked from North Korea all the way over the North Pole then down through Canada and finally into New Hampshire. As his teammates clamored for more details, Rudz told them, "It's time to put that behind and start focusing on the upcoming game. " I think the shock of seeing Rudz had an effect on us in the early going", said Mike "The Little Cum" Commerford. Green got down 4-0 in the first period, but they woke up in the second period as the line of Casavaugh, Bergault and Commerford led the Green attack. The guys in Green took the lead in the third period, but Blue's Jim "Heathy" Heath tied it up. Moments later Green scored again to end the game in a 6-5 tie. "I was actually looking forward to the memorial service on Halloween", said Joe "Joe" Farrelly. "It was going to be one hell of a party because Mark's brother Moe was going to pay for it, which means we'd be drinking the good stuff", he added.
In other news; a huge blockbuster deal in the CCHL saw Cheers land defending champion goalie Mark Crowley in a multi-goalie deal. BWW inked rookie netminder Mike Spillane to a multi-game deal. Cimo's signed "The Giesha", Zac Guercia to a one year deal.  In game 1 this week Cheers improved to 2-0 with Crowley getting his first win for Cheers. Cam "Bam" Heath had the hat trick to go along with "The Timinator" and Jake "The Iron" Curtain who each had a pair.  For BWW, captain Travis "Gang Bang" Banga, Ryan Williamson and Mike Richards each scored a pair, but Crowley and company skated away with the 10-7 victory. In game 2, Windmill defeated Cimo's 5-3. Despite Zac Guercia's 43 saves, Cimo's fell to Oh and two. Pat Lacasse led the way for The Mill with two goals while Bill "Hawkeye" MacDougal, Jack Mullen and Chris Doherty each had a goal. Mick Mounsey, Matt Nadeau and Chris "Green" Acres scored for Cimmo's.  Matt Nadeau is still searching for his first CCHL victory. Sometimes it's darkest just before the dawn Matt.

And Away We Go!

Blue raises championship banner

Korean Zamboni

The 2013/2014 hockey season is underway at The Doug. Last night the NAHL defending champs Blue raised their banner before their adoring fans who packed The Doug. They took on arch rival Green. Blue looked like champions as they defeated Green 6-4. The night marked the return of George "Dumpin" Chase who missed most of last season with a sports hernia which resulted while playing miniature golf. Last night was also the debut of number one draft pick Darren "Sabe" Sabian. He showed rookie jitters early in the game, but he appeared lethargic midway through the second period. By the third period Sabian just appeared fatigued. Earlier in the evening, the NAHL held a charity event at the Grappone Center to benefit Hockey Fights Obesity (HFO). Many of the Thursday Night stars were on hand to sign autographs. A number of them were never seen the rest of the evening. Fines were handed out this morning. The NAHL season kicked off on wednesday in Seoul, South Korea as Chrome crushed Magenta 8-1. No one seemed to care that the game was a lopsided affair. Chrome now  has a huge following in South Korea. Dit Clapper Jr. had four goals for Chrome. Magenta coach Ingy Arnold complained about the ice conditions that were a result of poor ice surfacing equipment.
Elsewhere, the CCHL kicked off it's season this week at The Doug. The Windmill raised it's championship banner before humiliating Buffalo Wild Wings 13-3. The Mill's captain Gavin "You Betcha" Faretra led the way with five goals. BWW is still looking for it's chemistry as they have many new faces in the line up this season. Many are still looking for their jockstraps. Joel "The Arsenal" Arsenault and rookie Jack "The Ripper" Mullen had multiple goals for the Windmill. Ryan Williamson was the lone bright spot for BWW, scoring two goals.  In game 2, Cheers defeated Cimo's 9-4. Cheers was led by captain Tim "The Timinator" Walsh and linemates Corey "The Cockroach" Laroche and Cam "Bam" Heath. Each had a pair of goals. Power forward Dennis Molnar had the hat trick. Number one pick, backstop Ryan Simpson had a rough start to his career as he was pulled in the third period and replaced by back-up Homer Simpson.
For Cimos it was a disappointing night. After finishing in the cellar last season, captain Mick Mounsey was hoping for a better start to the 2013-14 season. One bright spot for Cimmos was veteran defenseman Jeff "Hurricane" Cain who established his physical presence on the blue line as well as scoring his first goal of the season.  In other news from the CCHL; Cheers goaltender John Tuttle left the team  for the KHL in Russia. He has been replaced by former UVM and Bow Falcon netminder Mike Spillane. Tuttle is looking at a frigid Russian winter.

CCHL Preview

Number One Overall Pick

Despite lingering financial problems, the CCHL will indeed have a season. Thanks to a huge financial bailout by Moe Rudz, the CCHL will once again take to the ice. "We need the CCHL in order to develop talent for the NAHL", said Moe. The CCHL held it's annual draft this week and to no one's surprise, Cimmos addressed their goaltending problems with the first pick of the draft by taking Lisa Simpson number one overall. Mick Mounsey was elated with the pick. Simpson is expected to be our starter and the future face of this club. The first forward selected also went to Cimmos. It was "The Badger", Tom Carroll, younger brother of "TC" Carroll of the NAHL. Captain Jeff "Hurricane" Cain said, "Badger has tons of potential. He is just starting to come into his own. His future with the club is very bright".  Cimmos also got the steal of the draft by getting skilled defenseman Phil Lacasse in the 4th round. "We couldn't believe Phil was still available", said Mounsey.  Phil, however, was the third of the three Lacasse brothers to go in the draft. The Windwill picked up his younger brothers in the first and second rounds. New Windmill captain Gavin "You Betcha" Faretra was looking for some speed to play along side Bill "Hawkeye" MacDougal.  Look for Cimmo's to move up in the standings this season, but, The Pucking Files picks Cheers, led by league leading scorer Tim "The Timinator" Walsh to take home the hardware this year after a disappointing early playoff exit last season. Mark Crowely may have something else in mind. Travis "Gang Bang' Banga and his B2W teammates may also make a run at it this year after their no-show performance in the finals last year.
Elsewhere, the NAHL will opens it's season overseas in Seoul, South Korea on October 9th as Magenta takes on Chrome. Then on Thursday October 10th, Blue will raise it's championship banner to the rafters of "The Doug" before they take on long time rival Green. The 2013-2014 season should be a dandy.