| Nordiques tie Parts Unknown 1-1, but drop shootout |
January 25, Stamford CT: Despite wins and losses, some games are just flat-out fun to play.
This was the Nordiques' best performance of the winter season, and the most enjoyable as well. It was a high-tempo contest, and both teams skated hard. At the end of regulation the scoreboard read 1-1, a testament to both goalies' phenomenal nights, and both teams' unwillingness to crack.
The only official goal scorer of the evening for the Nords was Andrew Vranos, who clearly played his best game of the season, and won accolades from all his teammates. Early in the first period, the Nordiques scored a goal that was disallowed by the official because he lost sight of the puck. Unfortunately for the Nordiques, the Parts goalie never had possession of the puck, and the disallowed goal effectively took the win away.
The Nordiques rolled two 4-man offensive lines and 5 defensemen. It worked well as the guys consistently got to pucks and forced Parts defenders into penalties. Fittingly, the shootout went the distance as well. All Nordiques players had a turn, and Justin Matijcio was the only Nordiques scorer. The shootout went to the Parts 2-1.
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| Nordiques drop close match to Pub Crawlers 4-3 |
January 18, Stamford, CT: Two very closely matched teams met up again last night, this time with the Pub Crawlers winning a 4-3 contest. (Earlier in the season, the Nordiques defeated the Pub Crawlers by the same score.) It was a well-played and gritty contest. Seaweed was superb in net, making many key saves to keep the game close. The loss drops the Nordiques' season record to a disappointing 3-6.
The Pub Crawlers skated well and controlled play early-on via smart positioning. Despite this, the Nordiques posted the first goal of the game, with good work down low by Eric Farrell and the entire second line. By the end of the second period though, the Nordiques trailed 3-1 on the scoreboard, letting in two short-handed goals in the process.
The Nordiques fought back in the 3rd period and tied the game on a strong rush by Anthony Gencarelli off an outlet pass from Steve Dryer. With several players from each team visiting the penalty box in the final stages, Pub Crawlers managed to score the even-strength winner.
After the game, Paul Modugno was relieved to be reunited with a lost hat which he received as a Christmas gift. (It was necessary to include this bit of news so we can end the story on a positive note.)
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January 7, Stamford, CT: (No game report available.)
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| Nordiques drop heated contest to Puck Bandits 4-2 |
December 28, Stamford, CT: A hard-fought game against the Puck Bandits ended in a 4-2 loss for the Nordiques (really it was 3-2 with an empty net goal) on Tuesday night. The Nords quickly fell behind on a shorthanded goal by the Bandits, and, despite a full bench and two beautiful goals by Jim Cook and Kevin Unger, were unable to catch up. The game was characterized by scrappy play, as sticks were chopped and there was a great deal of shoving and body contact, which was largely ignored by the referees.
The Puck Bandits, as is their usual practice, had brought down a strong player from an upper tier who singlehandedly outskated the Nordiques and scored three of the Puck Bandit goals. Seaweed, between the pipes for the Nordiques, made many amazing saves and kept the score from being lopsided.
The Nordiques take a rest and resume play on January 7 in the new year.
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| Nordiques Plow Trashers 4-0 in Blizzard |
December 19, Stamford, CT: Question: Guess who showed up at Stamford Twin Rinks late Saturday night along with the snow, wind and the hazardous blizzard conditions?
Answer: Two goalies, two officials, and enough Nordiques and Trashers to make a game of it.
That's right, a 10:30pm game was played Saturday night, and it was a lot of fun. Both teams had very short benches, naturally. Each squad had about 2 extra players, so there was plenty of ice time for all.
At the end the scoreboard read 4-0 in favor of the Nordiques, whose record is back to .500 at 3-3. The final score didn't seem to matter much though, and the spirit of the game and its players were celebrated more than the outcome.
At first it appeared the contest would be a battle of the goal tenders, both of whom played strong. In the final minutes of the first-period, Peter DiMartino got the scoring going by turning a nice pass in the slot from Justin Matijicio into a hard wrister that beat the Thrashers goalie 5-hole. Midway through the second period, Richie "Stone Hands" Bruno, playing forward position, fought vigorously amid a frenzy of players in front of the Trashers goalie. Bruno managed to fit the puck into the net alongside an assortment of Trashers and Nordiques players.
A couple of goals came in the third too, but despite the weather and short benches, Nordiques goalie Seaweed was on his game. He played confidently and made a number of highly-skilled and genuinely sweet saves. Trashers have a number of hard shooters and gritty players in front. Seaweed was strong throughout the contest and recorded the shut-out victory.
The fun continued post-game in the lounge as a number of hearty patrons waited for the blizzard to pass. The Nordiques play another late contest next Monday at 10pm vs the always tough Puck Bandits.
Post Script: The Nordiques, and frankly all hockey players at STR, are happy to see a spry-looking Mr. Gioia back at the scorer's table. A blessing indeed! An injury sustained during a tour of duty (score keeping a game) kept this man's-man away from the rink for a while. We all appreciate him coming out to manage the clock, watch games and hang out with the team.
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| Nordiques Drop Pivotal Game Against Parts Unknown 7-2 |
December 8, Stamford, CT: Coming into game 5 vs Parts Unknown, the Nordiques had a 2-2 record and a chance to take control of their goal to qualify for post-season play. In addition, they could have gained a valuable tie in the season series against Parts who beat the Nordiques in game 1. Instead, the Nordiques were strongly outplayed in a 7-2 loss. The Nordiques are 2 wins against 3 losses and will look to even it up again Sat Dec 19 vs Trashers.
In an identical start to Game 1, the Nordiques were not prepared when the puck dropped. Before half the first period elapsed, Parts jumped out to a 3-0 lead. The Nordiques clawed back to 3-2 in the second period with goals by Kevin Unger and Peter DiMartino (power play goal).
Trying to make a game of it at 3-2, things quickly got away from the Nordiques with inattentive play down low and in front of the net. Parts capitalized with 4 more tallies and the game ended 7-2.
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| Nordiques take revenge in 4-3 victory over Pub Crawlers |
November 29, Stamford, CT: It was a late season loss last spring to the Pub Crawlers that ended the Nordiques long run of post-season qualifications. The two teams met again last night for the first time since. In what was a hard fought game against a tough team, the Nordiques prevailed 4-3. The win evens the Nordiques Winter 2010 record at 2-2.
A layoff that spanned more than three weeks since the team's last game did not appear to affect the offense as each line contributed goals. However, a 3-1 lead after the first period became a 3-3 tie after the second period.
The third period was a hotly contested and very well-played by the Nordiques. From corner to corner as well as north and south the teams battled for every puck. The D played strong in their zone, particularly Cookie and Dryer, and Seaweed made several key saves in net.
The warlike tone in the final half of the third period caused the Pub Crawlers to take two undisciplined penalties, both against Bill Farrell who played another inspiring game menacing his defenders. The game winner came with about 5-minutes left, on a power play goal by that same Mr. Bill Farrell, and the Nordiques stifled Pub Crawlers the rest of the way to take the satisfying win.
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| Nordiques edged by Puck Bandits 3-2 |
November 5, Stamford, CT: The Nordiques played a close game against the Puck Bandits Thursday night, edging ahead 2-1 in the first period, but then dropping behind 3-2 in the second. A penalty against the Nords with 1:23 left in the game squelched their chances of a last minute attack with the redoubtable Seaweed (filling in for regular goaltender Anthony Gencarelli) prepared to dash off the ice. The Nordiques played 5-on-5 during the penalty anyway, with their net empty, but were unable to put the puck in the Bandits' net.
Despite the loss, all agreed it was a fun, clean game and a good time was had by all.
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| Nordiques thrash Trashers 5-3, post first Tier 5 win |
October 27, Stamford, CT: The Nordiques posted its first Tier 5 win last night with a 5-3 thrashing of the Trashers. All three offensive lines scored goals, as well as the D. Five different goal scorers hit the net including Rick Gioia, Peter DiMartino, Eric Farrell, and Steve Hepensteil. The Nordiques record is now 1-1. After its T5 debut last week, in which the Nordiques suffered its first defeat of the season at the hands of Parts Unknown by a 3-1 score, the team regrouped and skated with purpose. When commenting on the Nordiques chances in T5 play this year, captain Rick Gioia said before the game that if his team skated hard and had fun, as Nordiques teams normally do, he likes our chances despite the higher level of play in T5, which most notably is a faster game.
The Nordiques welcome Steve Hepensteil and Justin Matijcio to the team this season, and welcome back ALL of its players from last year as well. Steve and Justin played with some of the Nordiques this summer for the Moondogs.
Last night's penalty-free contest saw the Nordiques force the play and maintained at least a one-goal lead throughout the contest. Perhaps as a result of some rink-rust from the long layoff, Nordiques intensity dropped precipitously after a goal, resulting in a quick tally by the Trashers to narrow the gap and keep it relatively close on the scoreboard.
The Nordiques repeatedly were guilty of allowing too much traffic in front of Anthony Gencarelli, who again was magnificent in net, and also of allowing too many point shots. There are areas that the Nordiques will look to improve in its upcoming contest.
The Nordiques team is thrilled to be reunited again and look forward to the winter season. There was some early action being taken on the selection of the next Torche winner, which is awarded at the end of the season by the current trophy holder. When asked by reporters what he'll be looking for, present Torche trophy holder Peter DiMartino said, "I will be looking for a player who brings a full compliment of contributions...responsible defensive play, offensive participation and perhaps most importantly, someone who brings an uncommon passion for his game and his team this season". When asked if he could handicap a potential front runner, he replied that there aren't any yet. But DiMartino said he "genuinely looks forward to seeing the emergence of this special player".
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| Nordiques defeated 3-1 by Parts Unknown in first Tier 5 contest |
October 18, Stamford CT: Tier 5, but alive.
The Nordiques entered into their first Tier 5 game against Parts Unknown, not knowing what to expect in this new tier. They found out that they can not only survive, but compete and compete well.
The Parts notched the scoreboard three times while dominating the first period. However, the Nordiques, rusty after the summer layoff, finally got their ice legs in the second period and scored a goal; they then settled down to play a steady back- and fore-checking game which resulted in a final score of 3-1. Both goaltenders were very much on their game, with Anthony Gencarelli turning away several three-on-one rushes by the Parts, and Seaweed, known to many as a longtime cordial friend of the Nords, made several spectacular stops between the pipes for the Parts.
The next contest for the Nordiques in Tier 5 is Tuesday, against the Trashers.
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