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12-7-2009
The losing streak is over, last night the Stars defeated the Rangers in a hotly contested game. Goals by Jack, George and Doug posted the stars to their 1st win in 8 games.
Last night also say a first for the season, as Jayne Martino picked up her 1st assist . Jayne fed Jack with a sweet little pass, which jack snuck through the legs of the Rangers goalie.
The rangers answered back with a goal of their own, bringing the score to a tie at the end of the first period. Late in the second period George and Jack hooked up to score a goal to put the Stars back on top . A short time later Todd Samuelson would tie the game at 2 apiece.
Doug Roy takes the 1st Star honors with his game winning goal . Now the Stars try to build on their win as they Face the 1st place Red Wings.
11-24-2009
Let me start by wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. With that said, Tuesday nights' game between the Pens and the Stars featured something rarely seen in Men's league play and beyond that not just once but twice. Have you guessed yet? ..... PENALTY SHOTS!
That's right not one but two, the referees awarded one to each team.
The Pens were awarded theirs, when the referees forgot that there was supposed to be a stick throwing exhibition by the Stars captain. That's right he threw his stick in the direction of the puck carrier. So to center ice we go. The Stars goalie Andy Harmon comes up big and saves Gerry much shame, " we were already down a man due to a penalty", Said the Stars captain after the game when asked, Why the heck did you do that? " I was beat, by a good deke by their player and the long shift, if I trip him I go to the box and we are down 2 guys. I throw the stick and if the referees make the call it's a Penalty Shot, with running clock " . " Time runs off for the guy in the box as well as the game and we get a short rest. Andy comes up big and makes the stop".
Later in the game with a mad scramble around the Pens net, the defenseman laying in the crease gathered the puck into his body. So once again to center ice we go, this time Michel Blais is awarded the shot. He wasted no time putting a move on the Pens goalie and slipping the puck into the back of the net.
But that would be all the fireworks for the night as the Stars losing streak continues, falling to the Pens 9-3. The League now takes off for Thanksgiving, bringing a much needed rest for all the players.
This should allow Tim ( ribs) and Gerry (knee) some extra time to recover and refresh for the final 4 games of the Fall session.
11-8-2009
The streak continues , Jacks hard work on offense led to goals by Josh and Rob. But that wasn't enough to overcome the swarming offensive thrust by the Caps. Compounding matters the Stars were without the services of Tim, Bob, and Michel.
Tim was injured refereeing on Saturday night , taking a stick to the ribs. The time off should allow this to heal and return him for the Rangers. Michel should also be back by the 17th. And lastly Bob is expected back from his trip.
Last night saw the return of Greg Anderson to the line-up.
Next up for the struggling Stars are the Rangers. With game time set at 9:45 it will probably mean another short bench. With 9 days off this should allow time for some R&R .
So for the first time this session the Stars drop below 500.
11-3-2009
Unfortunately the streak lives on! On Tuesday night the stars went down kicking and screaming, all 8 of them. That's right, 7 skaters and 1 goalie, due to the late start time and the weekday game. The final margin is a little misleading as 1 goal was an empty net goal, scored as Andy had been pulled in exchange for the extra attacker.
The Pens center Justin was just too much to contain tonight, as he kept the heat on the Stars throughout the game. The stars kept it close skating to a score of 3-2 after 1 period and 5-3 after 2. The final score 8-5 reflects a hard fought battle.
11-1-2009
Sunday night the bench was full, skating for the first time in at least 5 weeks with 3 forward lines and 2 defensive lines . The only players missing were Paul Ross and Greg Anderson. The Stars needed all 13 skaters as the young Redwings were all over the place .
They took it to the team in black all night, bottling up the middle and pinching at the corners. Making it difficult for the Stars to get anything going offensively. The Stars did strike first on a goal by Jack Maloy, and managing to keep the puck out of their net, for a 1-0 score after one period.
Then the Wings would put up 3 straight goals to post a 3-1 score after 2. Both teams would notch 2 goals in the third to reach the final margin 5-3.
After spending one week on the IR team captain Gerry Vidal returned to the ice, "My knee feels much better after the week off" said the Stars blue liner. "It was tough for me to sit out last week, knowing we were short on defense. But I couldn't even think about getting into skates ".
Sundays loss brings the Stars to 3 losses in a row, going into a Tuesday night late game against the Pens.
10-26-2009
Playing with a short bench against a good team , is bad news , playing without Jack, Bob and Gerry puts a lot of weight on everyone's shoulders. On Sunday night the Stars played to a 2-1 score after 2 periods. But then the wheels came off and the Rangers scored 5 unanswered goals to hand the Stars their second loss in a row.
Next Sunday the Stars look to have all hands on deck.
10-23-2009
The Stars luck ran out on Wednesday night. After digging themselves into a hole, they fought back to make it close. But as the old saying goes " Close but no cigar". In this case, the boys in black came up 1 goal short.
Wednesday nights contest between the Sharks and Stars featured 11 total goals and multiple penalty minutes. The teams skated to a 2-2 tie at the end of one period, but the second period was very unkind to the Star as they gave up 4 goals.
The Stars had a plan though , the 8 skaters on the Stars bench ratcheted it up a notch. Kicking it into high gear and throwing in 3 goals of their own in the 3 period, all while shutting down the Sharks.
The penalty box door swung open 3 times for the Stars. Earning the honors were Stave, Michel, and Bob.
Goal scorers Doug (2), George (1), Michel (1), and Jack (1).
Next up Sunday 7:15 Rink 2 the Rangers.
Scoring Recap:
Higgins from Blais & Maloy, Roy from Maloy, Roy from Maloy ,Maloy from Blais & Ueber, Blais from Maloy & Roy
10-19-2009
Sunday nights meeting between the Stars and Pens produced 9 total goals. The Pens were able to scrape together 3 goals, but that only offset the 3 goals scored by assistant captain Tim Bator on this night. Tim was aided on his goals By Jack Maloy (3) and Michel Blais (1). Also putting the puck in the back of the net tonight were George Higgins (2) and Rob leach (1).
Tonight the Stars were whistled for 2 penalties, but neither of them were on penalty minutes leader Gerry Vidal, instead they got called for "Too Many Men On the Ice" served by Rob Leach, and Jack Maloy got nabbed for Tripping.
Once again the defense played a solid game bottling up the powerful offense of the Pens. Backstop Harmon turned in another solid effort, as he has continued to be a force in net.
Next up is a Wednesday night date with the Sharks, and the 9:40 pm start is the last one this session in rink 1 .
10-13-09
Goals: A. Cowles from Michel and Gerry
Jack from Todd S.
Tim (unassisted)
Penalties: Michel (hooking)
10-8-2009
Playing without Gerry and Tim on Thursday night , would mean that everyone else would have to fill the gaps . Michel was called upon to lead the team in their absence, and he did a marvelous job.
With George, and Rob on his line, and Greg, Jack, and Steve on the other forward line, the Stars set about the job of putting the puck in the oppositions net. Bob would lead the defense corps, of Dave , and Josh. Also out for the night was Stars net-minder Andy Harmon. The Substitute minder played a fantastic game, holding the Wings to just 1 goal.
Scoring for the Stars with his 1st goal of the year Dave Henderson and , Michel Blais.
Not wanting to be outdone Bob had to sit and feel shame, for a really nice Hook.
Tuesday night the Stars look to avenge their only loss this season , as they take on the Caps . Game time is set for 9:45 pm on rink 2.
10-4-2009
The Stars skated for the first time of the season in Rink 2. This is always an unknown as the ice is never the same from rink 1 to rink 2. Last night the ice in 2 was the best we have seen in the last 3 years. The Stars found the ice to their liking , as they posted their highest goal total of the season.
After the fog cleared the scoreboard showed 7-1 Stars, with Michel posting his first HAT TRICK of the season along with 1 assist for a 4 point night. Getting the scoring off to a start was Michel taking a pass from Josh and sliding it home. At the end of the 1st period the score was tied at one apiece.
The second period started much the same as the first, ( all even). Scoring the second goal ( and eventual game winner ), we have Michel taking a break out pass from Gerry and rushing up the wing and dropping a pass to Tim, who banged it home, bringing the score to 2-1 . This would be the score at the end of two periods.
To start the third period the Stars felt confident, as they had numbers on the bench. Skating with 3 forward lines and 2 defense lines, compared to the Pens 8 skaters. This would turn out to be an advantage for the Stars as they would have fresher legs going into the final stanza. And the good guys ( and Lady ) in black took advantage of the numbers . Pushing the attack at every turn. The result would be 5 more goals.
Next up is the first rematch with the Red Wings. The team will be without the services of Team captain Gerry Vidal and assistant captain Tim
Bator, as both will be refereeing High School hockey games during at the same time as the Stars play. The rest of the Stars will continue on without missing a beat no doubt.
Next game Thursday October 8th 8:00 pm rink 2.
Goals: 1) 40 from 24 2) 32 from 40& 71 3) 40 from 10 4) 40 from 32&71 5)32 unassisted 6) 00 from 80&29 7) 80 from 29&00
9-30-2009
Monday nights game between the Stars and Sharks was the second game in 2 nights for both teams. Add to that the 9:45 start time and you have short benches.
The Stars had 9 skaters and one goalie, this would mean short shifts. There would be 2 forward lines and 3 defensemen. The defense would try to rotate every 1:30 . This seemed to work and the blue-liners were able to stay fresh for the most part.
The stars would strike first on a goal by Michel, assisted by Bob and Jack, shortly thereafter Tim Bator would score what would be the game winning goal, on an assist by Stave and Michel. Next would come jacks 1st of the night with help from Rick. Goal 4 was scored by Bob with Jack and Doug getting assists. The final goal of the night was put in by Jack to cap off his night with 4 points. Michel and Rick helped him out with some nifty passing.
Another outstanding performance by Andy in net, made it possible for the team in black to improve to 2-1-1. " Andy stood on his head and shut them out for 2 periods" said captain Vidal after the game. " It took the pressure off of us, some and allowed us to play more loosely".
On the bad boy list for the night we find once again Team captain Gerry Vidal and Michel Blais. The next game will be the first of the season
9-20-2009 Lexington, Ky.
Opening nights euphoria was replaced with an equal amount of dejectedness . After the events of the prior week Sunday nights loss hurt the Stars. Solid efforts were turned in by all 12 players present. Missing from the line-up were Rick, and Jayne Martino, Rob Leach, and assistant captain Tim Bator.
Once again the Stars dug themselves a hole ,by falling behind 2 goals to zip. Then it was time for newcomer Maloy to pick up his second goal in as many games . Shortly thereafter team captain Gerry Vidal pinched in from his defensive point , to retrieve a loose puck and skate it in behind the Caps net. One quick pass to a waiting Paul Ross ( camped out on the doorstep) found its way into the back of the net. But alas that would be all the scoring by the stars tonight.
Another solid effort by Stars netminder Harmon kept them in the game . Allowing only 4 goals ( 1 empty net goal in the last :45 ), gave the Stars a fighting chance. But in the end the Caps led by stand out forward Paul Yezzo were too much to overcome.
Captain Vidal found himself on the Bad boy list again tonight , this time he was not alone as Doug Roy, and Paul Ross added their names to the infamous list. But as always after feeling much shame they were allowed to rejoin the team. The stars are now 3-0 on the PK.
Next up are the Rangers in another 7:15 start on Sunday night the 27th.
1-20-2009 Lexington, Ky. Disappointed, That is how the Stars felt after the effort of Tuesday night. The boys and Lady in Black were all set and ready for the Pens. The Stars struck first early, getting a goal on the 1st shift from Terry Sharanowski, with an assist from Michel. Later in the same period the Stars struck again on a tip in by Tim Bator on a shot by Gerry Vidal. This put the Stars out to a 2-0 lead.
But all good things come to an end sometime as Justin Gish ripped the Stars for 4 goals tonight. Many of these were screen shots, not leaving Andy much of a chance at seeing the shot. The Stars did fight back with another goal to pull within one.
Once again with time running out in the game the Stars pulled net-minder Harmon for the extra attacker. This wasn't as detrimental as Sunday , as they didn't give up an empty net goal. They were not able though to get a goal of their own, So this left the final score 4-3 Pens.
Missing from the line-up tonight were Rick and Kasey . The Stars are getting solid efforts from all players but the bounces don't seem to be going their way just yet. Next week starts the 2nd time thru the teams
In a sudden change of events, and after burning the midnight oil , management has worked out a deal to bring back Tim Anderson. There will be a press release at a later date .The Stars take on the Rangers 8:30 next Tuesday.
1-18-2009 Lexington, Ky. With snow outside and snow inside the Stars took to the ice, to face the Red Wings. The stars were sporting a full bench tonight as the only players missing from the line-up, were Kasey , and the Newest Star Derek Standifer. Derek is the latest acquisition by management. With this addition, it brings the roster to 13 skaters and 1 goalie.
Tonight's contest provided some fast paced hockey , as both teams exhibited speed and skill for the full 3 periods. After an early goal by the Wings , the Stars got on the Scoreboard with a tip in goal by Tim Bator on a feed from captain Gerry Vidal, with an assist from Michel Blais.
But the Wings fought back to take the lead, and the Stars were forced to play catch-up once again. With goals by Terry Sharanowski and Doug Roy, the Stars were able to pull to within 1 goal. With 1 minute left on the clock Andy hit the bench , for the extra attacker, but the stars weren't able to control the puck and the Wings were able to get a cheap empty netter.
Next up is a Tuesday night match with the Pens.
1-13-2009 Lexington, Ky. Rebound, bounce back, both of these words can be used to describe what the Stars were setting out to accomplish Tuesday night. After their showing on Sunday night, the boys in black were on a mission. There were 2 more sets of legs tonight, as Tim Bator and Dave Henderson were ready to go tonight.
The Caps on the other hand had the short bench, just as the Stars had on Sunday night. Only 7 skaters meant that there would be some tired legs on the home team bench. The game started out with a bang as Kasey won the face-off back, and rushed ahead to receive a pass and before you could Boo the score was 1-0 Stars. And that was just the beginning, by the end of the game there would be 3 players recording "Hat Tricks" Tim Bator, Kasey Thomas, and Doug Roy.
Also hitting the charts tonight with multiple points were Team captain Gerry Vidal 1 goal and 4 assists, and Steve Campbel, with 2 helpers, ( and 2 real pretty hook slides).Also tonight with his first point as a Star is newcomer Terry Sharanowski with an assist. Tonight the blue liners of Josh, Bob, and Dave were solid taking away the passing lanes and getting the puck out of the zone to the forwards. In net tonight continuing to post solid efforts night in and night out was Andy Harmon. "Andy has been getting better and better as the season goes along" said captain Vidal after the game. "He has been keeping us in them every night all we need to do is get him some goals".
Tonight the Stars put up a big number, and they know what its like to be on the bad side of a score like this, with 11 goals for the Stars to 4 for the Caps, it was a might bit lopsided. Next game is Sunday and the Stars look to have team leader Michel Blais back on the bench, and that should leave it in good shape.
Tonight's final score 11-4 Stars.
1-12-2009 Lexington, Ky. Sore losers, that is what the Stars were Sunday night. With a short bench there was plenty of ice time for everyone as the Stars faced off against the expansion Sharks and our former team mate Steve Sampson. Through two periods the game was kept close in large part to the great play of backstop Andy Harmon. Goals by Bob Bourget and Kasey Thomas, with Gerry Vidal setting up Bob's goal, and Steve Campbell and Bob setting up Kasey's goal.
The third period found the Stars tired, sore, and out of gas leading to several late goals by the opposition. Try as they may the Stars just could not seem to keep up, especially the last goal where everyone just ran out of gas. The final tally was Stars 2, Sharks 5. And with that, let's get to the three stars of the game. Number one star goes to Bob Bourget with one goal and one assist. Number two goes to Kasey Thomas with one goal. Lastly the third star goes to the bench, that fine piece of wood the provided so much rest to the tired, weary, and sore players during Sunday's game.
1-4-2009 Lexington, Ky. A new season has arrived, with it brings a new team to the Lexington Amateur Ice Hockey Assn. The Sharks now Captained by Heather Kuwabara. The stars will face them in game 2 of the winter session.
But first things first. Tonight the Stars faced their rivals the Rangers. These always shape up into good matches, an tonight proves to be no exception. The Rangers missing Paul Martin ( IR) and the Stars were missing Kasey Thomas. This should leave the teams evenly matched.
The Starr started off slowly, taking a page out of the UK Basketball playbook. Before you could say new season, they were in a 2-0 hole. After the first period captain Gerry Vidal shuffled the forward lines and switched places with Steve ( soupy ) Campbell putting him on the line of Blais, Campbell and New comer Terry Sharanowski. This moved seemed to pay off, as Campbell had his best night . A career high 2 goals and 1 assist earning him 1st star of the game honors.
This combined with Michel's 1 goal and 2 helpers would fall short of the fierce fore-checking Rangers. The Stars managed to get to within 1 goal, but couldn't seem to get that fourth goal.
A good effort by all, and a fantastic goal saving slide by Bob Bourget , ( with Andy Off for the extra skater ) wasn't enough to catch the Rangers tonight . With only 3 games against each team before the round-Robin play-offs every game is important. The Stars are getting better and better with each game. Stay tuned , better yet come on out and give them a look .
12-11-2008 Lexington, Ky.
Wow 2 games in 2 nights, which is really something to look forward to! But that is exactly what the Stars were faced with going into Tuesday nights' game. With match-ups' against the Red Wings and the Rangers ahead of them the boys in black were looking to finish with flair.
On Tuesday night the late night feature of the LAIHA league pitted the Stars and the Red Wings. Both of these teams have played very competitive games against each other lately, so it looked to be an exciting night. And the 2 teams didn't fail to deliver either.
The game progressed quite well for the Stars, with Devon Lent filling in for Andy till he could get to the rink. The wings put the pressure on early and it led to a scoring opportunity, which they capitalized on. Shortly after the goal regular net minder and Zen master Harmon arrived and took over from Devon. Andy played well keeping the puck out of the net and allowing the offense to put the pressure back on the Wings.
Good play pays off, as the Stars were able to tie the game at 1 apiece. At the 1st intermission confidence was high on the Stars bench, with the score 1-1 a win was within their grasp. At the start of the 3rd period they were still riding in high gear pressing their attack and trying to keep the Wings at bay. But bad things do happen to good teams (I really can't say what I want to say, as this is read by all ages), and late in the period Michel was whistled for tripping, (because you cant call tackling in Hockey).
The Stars on the penalty kill got caught a little flat-footed and before you could say Noooooo! The puck was in the back of the net. A late gamble to pull the goalie for the extra attacker didn't pay off and the boys in black take one on the chin after a great effort by all. Final score 4-1 Red Wings.
Wednesday night brings a match-up with the Rangers. The last time these 2 teams met there were multiple penalties, and one really close stare down, between 2 players. The Stars still resigned to end the first half on a high note did some line shifting, moving Tim Bator to center on the second line and Kasey onto the left wing of the 1st line.
This would prove to be a stroke of genius, (Bob Told Gerry to do it), as Michel and Kasey hooked up early and often. The Rangers were without their all star Paul Martin, but brought in replacement player Scott Pirelly from the B league. This just seemed to enliven the Stars all the more.
Pressure on the Rangers goalie was stiff, Michel, Kasey and company were buzzing around the net. The boys were passing the puck around the defense, and looking to set each other up for shots. This looked like a team possessed. The constant pressure yielded goals by Michel, Kasey, and Bob. With the assists going to Dave, Doug, Steve C, Tim A, Gerry, and Michel.
At the end of 2 periods the Stars had managed, with some great play by their net minder, to keep the puck out of their own goal. A shut-out was in sight, but as with some things that you never mention so as not to jinx yourself,(we did talk about it during the intermission), midway through the 3rd period the Rangers broke through the brick wall known as Andy Harmon, for their 1st goal of the night.
12-2-2008 Lexington, Ky.
If the night could have started any worse I don't know how. Before the game started goalie Andy Harmon had his goal stick stolen out of the stick rack outside locker room 4. There were a lot of people milling around the rink, as there was a fund raiser skate hosted by U. of Ky. Students. This most likely led to Andy being ill at ease early in the game.
The Caps came out firing, off the opening face-off they rushed up ice and scored , before anyone could take their seats on the bench. This was just the beginning.
The Stars fought back with a goal of their own , keeping the Caps close for the better part of the night, answering Caps goals with one each time in the 1st period. After managing to keep it within 1 goal thru 2 periods , it looked good going into the third.
But in the third period the wheels fell off the cart, and the Stars got caught by breakaway goals by the Caps on couple of occasions . Soon the margin began to grow and the hill started to look like Mt. Everest. The only thing in doubt would be the final score.
With the score standing 9-3 Caps , Tim Bator and Kasey Thomas combined , to score the fourth and final goal for the Stars. "In the end the Caps have one player score 5 out of their 9 goals, we had no answer for him tonight." Said captain Gerry Vidal after the game, " we just couldn't seem to stop him, we will try something different next time".
Speaking of next time , there are only 2 games left this session, one against the Red Wings and one against the Rangers. It will be a challenging week with back to back games on Tuesday and a rare Wednesday game next week.
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