I think I played four games with the Barons this summer, including the playoff game we lost 10-1 to the Coaches on Sunday. My best game was probably the third one, when I was still sore from the game two nights before. I think I skated harder and faster in that game despite the soreness, possibly because we had a deep enough bench to give me rest between shifts, and possibly because we had enough ringers to make the game more fun and exciting.
That would have been the game to bring my camera to, since I'd have had enough time between shifts to shoot some clips, but of course I forgot. Instead I only remembered to bring my (new) camera to our last game of the season, when we had only 9 skaters.
Despite the fact that the Barons take waaaay longer shifts than we do on the Freeze, I still only got one clip because I didn't want to be filming when the Winger on my side finally decided to come off. Better to plan for 45 second shifts and be wrong than plan for 2 minute shifts and be wrong.
The clip is from the very start of the game, the other line's first shift out. I wish it were easier to see how efficiently the Coaches break out of their own zone, but you can infer it from seeing one guy with the puck back at the goal line and then the Left Wing with it up at the red line about a second later.
Not only did that Winger body check Tony when Tony tried to poke check him, but he also nearly checked his own teammate when they both went for the puck right after that.
I didn't have any trouble (if you don't count having noodle arms and dull skate blades as trouble), but the check in the video wasn't the only one in the game. There were at least two that resulted in penalties on the Coaches, and one that resulted in a fist fight (and two five minute penalties; I'm not sure why both players weren't ejected, as they would have been at any rink in Northern California).
The Barons will be playing at the Igloo in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey this fall (I think the season starts in late September), and I'll be subbing on the nights that Al can't or doesn't want to play (provided the games don't conflict with my Freeze practices, which I've totally come to look forward to—me, look forward to drills! I know!). I think it'll be a bit closer to my—and the rest of the Barons'—level than this summer's "C30" league, which felt more like the Bay Area over-35 leagues that hosted former pro, semi-pro, and college players. The guys who played in those called them the "old and slow" leagues, but that's only compared to the speeds they reached when they were in their early 20s. Their skills were still far beyond anything in our C/D and mixed-level leagues.
In other hockey news, we're having our Freeze pre-season get-together tomorrow night at Cafe Intermezzo (leave a comment if you're interested in playing on the Indy D team or our C+ former MAWHL team, and I'll hook you up with the team captains), and we'll have our first practice at UPenn on September 22. I can't wait!
Posted by Lori at 09:54 PM | Link to This Entry