After 30 regular season games, Whistler’s A League hockey is finally gearing up for playoff action. The six teams are prepared for what promises to be a spirited first-round tournament.
Commissioner Ian Pike has followed through on his objective to make the A League as competitive as possible. This will be the first year that a round-robin format has been used in the A League, though it has been used extensively in the Women’s League. Way to go girls, you can teach the boys a thing or two about hockey!
For those not familiar with the format, the six teams will play each other once; however, the teams that placed higher in the standings in the regular season will be awarded points going into the tournament. Therefore, first-place Mongolie Grillers are allocated four points; second-place Garfinkel’s Icemen are given three points; third-place Merlin’s are awarded two points; fourth-place Amsterdam Blazers gain one point; and finally, fifth-place Cooperators Insurance/Maxx Fish and last-place Tapleys Winterhawks go in with no extra points.
The final total of combined points will determine which four teams progress to the second-round semifinals. Be prepared for upsets as each team will bring its A game to the rink when the playoffs commence after the Olympic break. No doubt this would be a good time to hit the spin classes to get the body prepared.
Sunday night (Feb. 7) proved to be a lively game between The Cooperators/Maxx Fish and Garfinkel’s Icemen, with both teams showing up to the midnight show prepared to do battle and finish the regular season on a high note. Each team managed to provide a skeleton crew of eight players prepared to duke it out in the early morning.
The Cooperators/Maxx Fish players managed to stage a comeback from a two-goal deficit to take the win in a final score of 7-6. Adam Ward of The Cooperators/Maxx Fish contributed to the win with two goals and two helpers to lead the victory parade, followed by Iwan Beynon — the Rec League call-up, former Cooperators/Maxx Fish team member and Welshman — who completed a hat trick with the game winner with less than two minutes to play.
Garfinkel’s captain Mike Borelli added to his stellar season points total to finish in the top three for individual points. The game was not without its heated battles, as a minor bout of fisticuffs led to the coup de gras for The Cooperators/Maxx Fish, who shortly afterwward scored the game winner on a two-on-one break from the neutral zone. The rush caught the lone Garfinkel’s defenceman flatfooted and got the puck past netminder Terrence Kosikar, who despite his best “Chico” Resch impersonation came up empty-gloved.
In other A League action, the Mongolie Grillers continued to sizzle with a 6-1 victory over Tapley’s Winterhawks. Coach and player/captain Chris Miron finished the regular season on top of the individual points standings with 60-plus points, surely a record in the past five years.
The Mongolie Grillers look to be the hot team for the playoffs with 22 wins in 30 games on the season. Look to see them slice and dice their way to an A League finals.
In the Women’s League, the playoffs start Feb. 11, when round-robin play begins. Murphy’s Hammers will be the team to beat as they managed to pound out 15 wins in the 20-games regular-season schedule. Next in line, the Pemberton Ice Caps carved out a respectable nine wins and five ties for a second-place finish.
Gone Wild placed in a natural third; Roland’s Thunder cracked fourth place, followed by Players Chophouse in fifth; in sixth place, the Blackcomb Killer Bees are stung with last place but do possess in their arsenal the player who sits second in the league for scoring and points, Elisha Peterson with 47 points.
Michelle Chang of Gone Wild tallied an impressive 41 goals and 13 assists in 19 games. Be sure to catch the action tonight (Feb. 11) starting at 8:30 p.m., as the women’s playoffs have always proven to be unpredictable and exciting to watch.
The Rec League regular-season action continues throughout the Olympics, with most games being played on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays in February. A large fan base of team players’ girlfriends and amused visitors always populate the Meadow Park stands for enthusiastic and charged Rec League games.
On Friday (Feb 12) the Blacks Pub Marmots will attempt to dig out a win against the Longhorn Mighty Moose for the early game of the evening, commencing at 8:15 p.m. At 10 p.m. the Walsh Restoration Shooters, looking for win No. 12, intend to blank Dusty’s. Playing at the dreaded 11:45 p.m. timeslot, the Pemberton Chainsaws are revving up for a showdown with the Blackcomb Blackhawks.
Let’s not forget our furry four-legged friends at WAG over the Olympic celebrations; get into the community spirit and volunteerism at the animal shelter, as donations and dog walkers are always appreciated.
