Wildcards strike back!

Rishabha 15, 2078, m249

In another edge-of-your-seat game, the Wildcards and Moles proved they were worthy adversaries.  Playing to a full house with over 1,200 spectators, it was do or die for the Wildcards as the Moles were hunting for the series sweep after yesterday’s shutout victory in overtime.

2 minutes into the game, the Wildcards had a scare as Kara Okeke plowed into the Wildcard net after a rush, taking down Jules Arquette, the goaltender. Okeke was sent to the box, but for a few moments, Arquette seemed down for the count.  An ISMO medic came on the ice to examine Arquette and, fortunately, giving her the thumbs up to stay in the game. Without a strong back-up player capable of playing goal, the Wildcards averted what could have signaled a quick end to their championship intentions.

Arquette was tested immediately after with a blistering shot from Fredrick Mattila, followed by a dangerous rebound shot by Captain Janice Campbell on the opposite angle.  Arquette prevailed.

This game was, indeed, a battle of the goaltenders.  Despite the aggressive play and numerous scoring chances, both Bailey and  Arquette locked the doors, fending off 15 shots-on-goals apiece over the 3 periods.

The game was to be decided in overtime.

While both teams were evenly matched during regulation play, the Wildcards must have had an epic pep talk over the 5 minute intermission because they absolutely exploded onto the ice.  They controlled possession of the puck forcing the Moles on defence, holding them to only one shot on goal before Okeke was sent to the penalty box for tripping 12 minutes into overtime.

lehmann converts a pass from phan into the winning goal

With the advantage, the Wildcards seized their moment.  After winning the faceoff in the Moles’ zone, the Wildcards sent a volley of shots at Bailey, whose luck eventually ran out. Brandon Phan looped along the left ramp, faked a shot that sent Bailey the wrong way, and connected a cross ice pass to Peter Lehmann who easily tipped it into the wide open net.

Lehmann, a Chariton resident originally from Germany,  said, “I felt like I was playing to a home crowd. I love this colony for making this series possible. I want to thank everyone who supported us, even when it looked like the season was over. Bring on game 3!”

The Wildcard win extends the series to a third game to decide the championship.  As an ‘unofficial’ final to the ISMO exhibition tournament, there won’t be a trophy or cup at stake, though you would hardly notice with the passion and intensity radiating from the teams and fans.

“This is the best thing to happen to ISMO,” said a fan, “This is the first time the games felt like they were for the people instead of a lab experiment on the voluntary players.”

The deciding game will be played next Saturni on Rishabha the 21st.

Moles hit hard to take first win against Wildcards

Rishabha 14, 2078, m249

The Moles and the Wildcards made history on Mars tonight playing the first match of the Martian Hockey finals!

It’s been hours since Vicky Li of the Moles smashed the puck into the right-corner of the net to win the game 1-0 for the Moles. But Europa is still abuzz with triumphant Moles’ fans and dejected supporters of the Wildcards.

The rink was packed to the roof tonight as the Moles and Wildcards faced off for the first game of the playoffs, where the champion will be decided by a best-of-3 series. Europa officials have coordinated with ISMO organizers to host up to three games as a finale to cap off the 12 weeks of exhibition games.

“ISMO is definitely milking this for all it’s worth, but who wouldn’t? I’m just glad I got a ticket to the second game!” said one excited fan.

vicky li of the moles celebrates after scoring the winning goal in overtime

Game 1 of the finale was a tense, drawn-out affair as the three regulation periods flew by without a single goal scored.

Samuel Marquez of the Wildcards made several breakaways down the ice, but each attempt was thwarted by Moles’ goalie Sam Bailey. Both goalies, Bailey and Arquette were on fire tonight as they shuffled, dived, and snatched pucks out of the air to defend their nets.

Moles forward, Bryan Taylor was sent to the box twice in second period for cross-checking. Vicky Li and Laura Hall really dominated as they took complete control of their zone to kill the two consecutive penalties. The dynamic duo played a tight defense—shutting down attempts by Harris and Lindberg to rush their offense during their powerplays.

“The Moles really wore us down physically. No one was injured, but when you’re taking multiple hits every period, it starts to show,” said Lindberg of the Wildcards.

Even so, the Wildcards gave a good as they got, with Lehmann and Lindberg hitting back hard during the longest overtime of ISMO’s history.

Unfortunately, the Wildcards were not able to kill their penalties as effectively as the Moles. With almost 4 minutes of powerplay in overtime, the Moles were able to wear down the Wildcard’s defense.

The one-man-advantage allowed Vicky Li to breakaway from the defense and slip the puck right between Halvorsen’s legs before flipping the puck past Arquette’s shoulder into the net for the deciding goal.

With game 1 of the finale wrapped-up, the results will be determined tomorrow. Should the Moles be able to snag another victory, the title of ‘champion’ will be theirs for the taking.

Chaos with Khimik as they move to bottom of standings

Taurus 1, 2078, m249

In front of a raucous home crowd, the Wildcards escaped with a last minute 1 - 0 over Khimik at Wendland rink. And with the win, the Wildcards move to 2 and 2 for the season while Khimik moves to the bottom of the second exhibition round with a 1 – 3 record.

Despite a barrage of scoring chances from Khimik throughout the game, the Wildcards’ Jules Arquette was brilliant in net and steady defensive play from Amelia Harris and Brandon Phan also helped shut down Khimik attempts.

“Very frustrating,” said Khimik Captain, Alex Yanovna. “I feel like we were the better team as we had so many scoring chances but luck was not on our side.”

Luck was clearly not on Khimik’s side but frustration was, as Khimik exhibited wildly aggressive play throughout the game resulting in four penalties – two in the 1st and 2nd periods respectively.

To Khimik’s fortune, the Wildcards were unable to capitalize on the power play opportunities as Khimik goalie Veronica Danilenko matched Arquette’s brilliance with repeated saves.

And just as all signs pointed to overtime, the Wildcards forward, Mateo Martinez was able to provide a spark of magic. With less than a minute to play in the game, Martinez was able to cut through two defenders and fire a wrist shot just over Veronica Danilenko for the winning goal.

For Martinez, it was his 18th goal in 10 games.

martinez breaksaway down the ice to score the only goal of the game

After the goal, a number of Khimik players smashed their sticks on the ice and refused to speak to members of the press.

Yanovna did offer this statement, “No, we are not happy with our record so far and it does not help that the media is focusing so much on our losses. I think this is fueling all the negative comments we are getting from Europa fans. As pioneers of hockey on Mars, we think Europa colony should give us a bit more credit. All I hear are their complaints.”

Europa resident and Khimik player Peter Lehmann tried to defuse the situation upon hearing his teammate’s comments.

“Look, losing sucks period. For all my Korolev teammates, it’s been a hard adjustment for them in a new colony. They take losing hard and don’t feel like being out so it’s not like they are purposefully trying to insulate themselves from the Europa colony,” said Lehmann.

“I tell my teammates that Europa fans are complaining because they are passionate about sports just like they were with their MAFL team, Europa United. They gave it to them so that’s why they’re also giving it to us. I’d rather they say something than nothing because then, that means they don’t care. The best solution to this is just win.”

Regardless of how they feel, Khimik will be playing at their host colony, Europa. Stay tuned  next week as Khimik takes on the Cosmonauts on Taurus 15.