Early Game – Italy vs Portugal

The early game featured two teams on winning streaks — Portugal looking for their SIXTH straight win while Italy looking to keep a tidy little two-game run going.

Both teams feeling eachother out for the first few minutes, but then Italy pots two quick ones (Napolitano/Zeppa) to put the Portuguese in a sudden two-goal hole. Alan Robb drifted one over Conn Smythe winner Arty Senkowski’s shoulder to cut Italy’s lead in half, but Chris Johnson added a little insurance in the waning minutes to end the first period Italy 3, Portugal 1.

Italy came out firing in the second with goals from Dave Wodar back from the IR list, Matthew Zeppa, and Steve Davis to make it 6-1 for Italy. Over on the Portuguese side, Al Robb was having none of it and ends the second period by completing his hat-trick with two goals in the final minutes. 6-3 for Italy going into the final period.

Davis picked up his second of the night early in the third followed quickly by Ciro Napolitano and Jay Cummings — this thing starting to get out of hand — 9-3 in the waning moments. But these Portuguese aren’t in first place on talent and they gut out two more in the final five minutes to make it respectable — Alan Robb with his FOURTH of this game and Don Hambly with a nice snipe over Arty’s shoulder to make it 9-5.

That’s how it would normally end, but in the final 30 seconds, with his team up 9-5, one of the Italians picked up the puck at centre ice and raced madly towards the Portuguese net and deposited the puck past a goalie whose shits had been completely given by that point, leaving everyone wondering who he was and what he was doing. We’re still not sure.

But that’s how this one ended. A really stellar performance by the Italian squad who looked like definite contenders against the first place Portuguese who looked like pretenders. Let’s see how they rebound from this one.

Portugal’s Player of the Game goes to veteran Conn Smythe winner Alan Robb. With FOUR goals for the red team, he WAS Team Portugal. Italy’s POG goes to the new guy for running up the score in in the last 30 seconds.

Late Game – Scotland vs Ireland

This Battle of Britain (apologies to the Irish Republic) looked to be a lopsided affair. Scotland spending a good part of the season so far in first place while Ireland has absolutely dominated position five.

But that’s why we play ’em.

Some tense action in the first frame until Dr. Joel May bulges the twine to make it 1-0 for the Leprechauns. Then D-man Peter McKay doubles Ireland’s lead with four minutes to go, which looked like the final score for period one until pesky Brad Stoll got one by Nieminen to finish the period Ireland 2, Scotland 1.

Irish eyes weren’t smiling in the second, however, as Scotland takes that period 3-0 with goals from Mike Paciuc, celebrating a new grandchild by going naaasty on Nieminen, and two from goal leader Tim Randa. 4-2 for the Scottish after two periods.

Some people would count Ireland out at this point. But the feisty fighting Irish didn’t give up. Jeff Boulton brought his team within one halfway through the final frame followed by veteran Pat McCormick tying the game — to the MAD cheers of the Irish crowd singing “Low Lie the Fields of Athenry” while clinking their Guinness mugs together. That’s how they’ll recount it to their grandchildren anyway.

This one should have gone Ireland’s way. They deserved it. They needed it. But with three minutes to go, Randa completes the hat-trick to pop the Irish balloon. Final Score, Scotland 6, Ireland 5.

MASSIVE kudos to this plucky Irish squad who seem to be turning a corner with this game against a top team that clearly could have gone either way. Indeed, Ireland seemed to control matters, particularly in the first and third period. This sets up a nice match with Portugal next week, both teams licking some wounds and looking for redemption.

Ireland’s Player of the Game goes to the spry Dr. Joel May. Scotland POG goes to the man with the moves, Timmy Randa.