Nicko 12 Franchise Hockey 1
Playing perhaps the most vulnerable team in the league, Franchise Hockey was able to penetrate the offensive zone but couldn't quite get comfortable. Robby Merk scored the lone goal, his first career tally, on a pass from Matt King. King was forced to miss most of the second period with an equipment problem.
On defense, the Franchise was victimized by overall sloppy play. Unfortunately, the defensemen failed to activate offensively, as King and Sheraj Ragoobeer were held at bay. Ray Cleverly made his debut.
Mikey Stanzler made his second start in net and gave up 12 goals. Stanzler had a rough game and allowed several soft goals.
The return of Winn and defenseman Chris Cornelius will make next week's showdown with Monte Vista the most crucial game of the whole season.
Box Score:
3rd Period:
Merk 1 (King)
Goaltending:
Stanzler 0-2 (12 GA)
Captain's Thoughts:
This was a good news-bad news type game. As a team, we've really matured defensively. Our problem today was that too many players tried to do too much. This is something we can work on, as communication is a vital part of being on a team.
But the main area of concern was puck possession. The team we played was weak. I'm definitely at fault for not exposing their holes on defense. We probably would have been better off activating both defenseman on offense to play point roles. From there, we probably should have taken our chances with a mroe aggressive style of all-out offense.
We skated with this team pretty okay, but we just didn't have the breakaway speed. Penetrating and maintaining possession in the offensive zone is our new goal. With our defense mostly figured out, it's important to maintain good spacing and give and receive good puck support.
Practice is everyday at 7. We're close. I'll see you there.-
Your Captain
#37