The National Strat-O-Matic Hockey League Newsletter League Established May 1, 1997 Volume #13, Issue #18 - June 3, 2010 ********************************************************************* Current League Officers: Commissioner: Doug Norris Vice-Commissioner: Brian Leahy (7/15/07 to present) Email the whole league: mailto:nshl at yahoogroups dot com NSHL Chat List: mailto:nshlchat at yahoogroups dot com Web Page Administrator: Guy Caron League Web Site: http://nshl.org Files Adminstrator: Brian Leahy / Tom Vinacci League Files Site: http://www.highrantdistrict.com/SOM/NSHL Team Websites: Capital City Cougars: http://members.tripod.com/~CapCity/ Seattle Rainiers: http://math.colorado.edu/~norrisdt/rainiers/rainiers.html ********************************************************************* DOWN TO THE FINAL TWO! PRIVATEERS VS. WHITECAPS FOR THE CUP! When it comes to battles between conference powerhouses, home ice advantage is a coveted benefit, indeed. This was demonstrated to the extreme in St. Michael's, Montreal, Vancouver, and Topeka over the past two weeks, as the home teams went an impressive 14-0, with both series going the distance. And the defending champs survived, ready to face the NSHL's dominant regular season power over the past several seasons. Out east, St. Michael's netminder Tim Thomas was solid gold in the deciding Game Seven, stopping eight of nine Goalie Ratings in a 3-2 Privateer win over Montreal. The Wanderers, who had an impressive run to get as far as they did, were hampered by injuries, losing Mike Green, Marek Zidlicky, and Ryan Malone each for parts of the conference finals. Meanwhile, the Privateers played with their full top roster for the entirety of the series. After a Game Six 5-1 victory in Topeka, it appeared that the trade deadline maneouvres of owner Doug North would pay off in spades. After all, even though the series was tied at three games apiece, the Whitecaps were narrowly winning their contests, while Topeka was dominating in their victories. That would all change in Game Seven, where Vancouver put an eight-spot on beleagured Scott Clemmensen, who played his first season as a starting goaltender and may have finally run out of game (six goals on 19 shots, 0/3 Goalie Ratings). Sidney Crosby and Henrik Zetterberg each tallied four points as the Whitecaps advanced. Back to the initial thesis of the article - home ice. Who gets it for the 2010 Farley Cup Finals? Both Vancouver and St. Michael's finished with identical (and staggering) 59-16-7 records over the past year. Beyond points and victories, the next tiebreaker is head-to-head advantage. Let's go to the ledger: November 30: at St. Michael's 4, Vancouver 2 December 31: at Vancouver 4, St. Michael's 1 March 17: at St. Michael's 3, Vancouver 1 And there we have it - the Privateers will have home ice in the Finals. And if you've really been paying attention, you'll note that the home squad held serve in each Vancouver - St. Michael's matchup this year. So there we have it - either St. Michael's will become the first back-to-back champions in NSHL history, or Vancouver will capture its first and break a string of underwhelming spring performances. Who are you rooting for? (As commissioner, I can't say who I'm rooting for - or even if I have a rooting interest. I *am*, however, hoping for more overtime games in the Farley Cup Finals than there were in the conference finals (a total of one). Don't let me down, Andy and Junu!) *************************************************************************** DUAL GAME ENGINES? A lot of talk has come across the board over the past month, discussing whether or not the league should stick with Strat-o-Matic as its game engine, or switch to the new competitor. First, to answer a question I've seen more than once: The league will continue to remain strong, regardless of what we decide to do here. The chief asset of this league is its ownership, and we have the best ownership around. Hopefully you don't think that I'm blowing smoke here (although I am surely biased), but you've all been in other leagues before (and currently), and I hope that you agree. Part of it may be that we're choosey when it comes to owners, and the long waiting period as an associate undoubtedly scares some folks off. And part of it is the great example set by owners here, who generally pitch in to help wherever is necessary. Regardless, we have great owners, and that will persist. I am intrigued by the notion of running "dual leagues" in 2010-11. If we do this, I would ask that: * I continue to run the Strat-o-Matic league. * I do not run the Action! league (not having time to run two leagues). * Rosters and schedules are the same for both leagues. * If an owner doesn't want to participate in both, they would continue to own and general manage in both leagues (as rosters and schedules would be the same). A designated associate could then do the in-game management for the league which the owner does not participate. Above all, I ask that everyone keep an open mind here, and know that we aren't going to do anything on the spur of the moment. In my mind, for us to switch game engines, the alternative has to be demonstrably better. Does this seem reasonable? *************************************************************************** 2010 CONFERENCE FINAL RESULTS: (EAST) #3 MONTREAL WANDERERS at #1 ST. MICHAEL'S PRIVATEERS Montreal Wanderers 1, St. Michael's Privateers 3 MON DAN ELLIS (32/35 shots, 9/11 GR) MON MIKE GREEN (1 goal, 4 hits, 52 AC) STM ERIK COLE (2 assists, 1 hit) INJURY: MON LOUI ERIKSSON (0 gm) Montreal Wanderers 1, St. Michael's Privateers 3 STM TIM THOMAS (28/29 shots, 8/8 GR) STM ANTOINE VERMETTE (1 goal, +2, 1 TA, 9/12 FO) STM MARTIN St. LOUIS (2 assists, +2) INJURY: STM TODD BERTUZZI (3 gm) St. Michael's Privateers 4, Montreal Wanderers 5 MON JONATHAN TOEWS (3 goals, +4, 2 TA, 7/8 FO) MON RYAN MALONE (4 assists, +4, 1 TA) STM PAVEL DATSYUK (1 goal, 1 assist, 5 SOG, 1 hit, 7/11 FO) INJURY: STM ERIK COLE (0 gm) St. Michael's Privateers 1, Montreal Wanderers 4 MON JONATHAN TOEWS (1 goal, 2 assists, +3, 1 TA, 8/11 FO) MON MIKE GREEN (2 goals, +2, 1 TA, 1 hit) MON DAN ELLIS (36/37 shots, 3/3 GR) INJURY: MON MIKE GREEN (2 gm) Montreal Wanderers 0, St. Michael's Privateers 3 STM TIM THOMAS (38/38 shots, ShO, 10/10 GR) STM DUNCAN KEITH (1 goal, 1 assist, +2, 5 SOG, 2 TA) STM NIK ANTROPOV (1 goal, 8 SOG, 3 TA) INJURY: MON MAREK ZIDLICKY (1 gm) St. Michael's Privateers 1, Montreal Wanderers 4 MON JONATHAN TOEWS (2 goals, +2, 6 SOG, 1 TA, 9/11 FO) MON DAN ELLIS (36/37 shots, 5/6 GR) MON RYAN MALONE (3 assists, +2, 1 TA) INJURY: MON RYAN MALONE (2 gm) Montreal Wanderers 2, St. Michael's Privateers 3 STM TIM THOMAS (26/28 shots, 8/9 GR) MON JONATHAN TOEWS (1 goal, 12/16 FO) STM PAVEL DATSYUK (1 assist, 5 SOG, 2 TA) INJURY: MON ERIC FEHR (3 gm) (WEST) #3 TOPEKA TARANTULAS at #1 VANCOUVER WHITECAPS Topeka Tarantulas 4, Vancouver Whitecaps 5 (OT) VAW CRAIG ANDERSON (44/48 shots, 11/12 GR) VAW HENRIK ZETTERBERG (1 goal, 1 assist, 1 TA, 11/16 FO) TPK ILYA KOVALCHUK (1 goal, 1 assist, 2 TA) INJURY: VAW SIDNEY CROSBY (1 gm) Topeka Tarantulas 2, Vancouver Whitecaps 3 TPK SCOTT CLEMMENSEN (42/45 shots, 11/11 GR) VAW HENRIK ZETTERBERG (2 goals, 6 SOG, 1 TA, 1 hit, 5/7 FO) VAW JAMIE LANGENBRUNNER (2 assists, 1 TA, 2 hits) INJURY: VAW HAL GILL (2 gm) Vancouver Whitecaps 2, Topeka Tarantulas 3 TPK ILYA KOVALCHUK (1 goal, 1 assist, 6 SOG, 2 TA) VAW HENRIK ZETTERBERG (1 goal, 1 assist, 1 TA, 11/19 FO) TPK SHEA WEBER (1 goal, 7 SOG, 3 TA, 1 hit) INJURY: TPK SHEA WEBER (0 gm) Vancouver Whitecaps 2, Topeka Tarantulas 6 TPK SHEA WEBER (3 assists, +3, 1 TA) TPK TOBIAS ENSTROM (2 goals, 1 assist, +2) TPK SCOTT CLEMMENSEN (33/35 shots, 7/8 GR) INJURY: VAW DUSTIN BROWN (0 gm) Topeka Tarantulas 3, Vancouver Whitecaps 5 VAW NIKLAS KRONWALL (3 assists, +2, 2 hits) VAW MICHAEL CAMMALLERI (1 goal, 1 assist, 9 SOG, 1 TA, 1 hit) VAW SIDNEY CROSBY (1 goal, 1 assist, 7 SOG, 1 TA) INJURY: TPK GREGORY CAMPBELL (0 gm) Vancouver Whitecaps 1, Topeka Tarantulas 5 TPK SCOTT CLEMMENSEN (41/42 shots, 5/6 GR) TPK SHEA WEBER (1 goal, +2, 1 TA, 1 hit, 52 AC) TPK GREGORY CAMPBELL (1 goal, 1 assist, +3) INJURY: TPK TOBIAS ENSTROM (0 gm) Topeka Tarantulas 3, Vancouver Whitecaps 8 VAW HENRIK ZETTERBERG (1 goal, 3 assists, +3, 1 TA) VAW SIDNEY CROSBY (1 goal, 3 assists, +3, 1 hit) VAW NIKLAS BACKSTROM (30/33 shots, 11/13 GR) INJURY: VAW JAY BOUWMEESTER (0 gm) ********************************************************************* 2009-10 REGULAR SEASON LEAGUE STANDINGS: NORTHEAST DIVISION GP W L OL SL Pts Pct GF GA Long Island Berserkers 82 47 25 5 5 104 0.634 273 255 Lyndonville Blades 82 47 28 6 1 101 0.616 259 219 Corner Creek Green Calves 82 47 29 0 6 100 0.610 249 210 Buffalo Bulldogs 82 42 33 2 5 91 0.555 230 227 Pittsburgh Hornets 82 32 43 3 4 71 0.433 243 305 Brooklyn Fourteenth 82 28 48 2 4 62 0.378 208 291 ATLANTIC DIVISION GP W L OL SL Pts Pct GF GA St. Michael's Privateers 82 59 16 3 4 125 0.762 286 164 Montreal Wanderers 82 51 22 2 7 111 0.677 306 256 Florida Hellcats 82 42 30 3 7 94 0.573 268 263 Quebec City Patriotes 82 29 48 3 2 63 0.384 233 322 Stone Harbor Sound 82 27 46 3 6 63 0.384 230 292 Manayunk Bullies 82 27 48 4 3 61 0.372 194 296 NORTHWEST DIVISION GP W L OL SL Pts Pct GF GA Vancouver Whitecaps 82 59 16 1 6 125 0.762 307 199 Seattle Rainiers 82 49 25 5 3 106 0.646 292 231 Fort Garry Fiddler Crabs 82 48 28 1 5 102 0.622 298 240 Nevada Thunder 82 39 38 1 4 83 0.506 242 277 Seattle Sasquatch 82 36 41 1 4 77 0.470 271 261 North Calgary Hawks 82 29 43 2 8 68 0.415 266 346 CENTRAL DIVISION GP W L OL SL Pts Pct GF GA Houston Aeros 82 57 22 2 1 117 0.713 287 194 Topeka Tarantulas 82 55 21 1 5 116 0.707 348 233 Kansas City Scouts 82 43 36 1 2 89 0.543 258 258 Minneapolis Massasauga 82 32 44 2 4 70 0.427 201 261 Pittsburgh Sound Chasers 82 31 44 3 4 69 0.421 226 302 Capital City Cougars 82 28 46 2 6 64 0.390 221 294 ********************************************************************* CALENDAR OF EVENTS: May 12: conference finals begin! May 26: all conference final games must be reported *************************************************************************** INCENTIVE POINTS 2009-10 CUMULATIVE INCENTIVE POINTS BUF -1 CGC 2 FLO 1 HOU -5 LIB -1 NEV 2 PIH -1 QCP 2 STM -1 SES -1 SHS -2 TPK -2 VAW -19 *************************************************************************** ASSOCIATE LIST: SINCE GP Francois Lessard December 10, 2006 8 Steve Kramer December 13, 2004 0 Greg Ralls December 14, 2004 0 Andrew Smith November 19, 2005 0 J.J. Schrems May 1, 2006 0 Scott Bruner June 18, 2007 0 Steve Beren February 2, 2008 0 If you're still an active associate, and aren't on this list, please get in contact with me. Thanks! Doug *************************************************************************** FARLEY CUP FINALS INJURIES: This will change with every playoff game, and will be announced to the relevant owners at that time. (none) *************************************************************************** TRANSACTIONS: All free agents *must* play in at least six of your team's games the following biweek. Violation of this results in the player being released immediately. *************************************************************************** League Governing Boards Responsibilities of the following governing boards are outlined in the Constitution. Review Board Tom Vinacci, Buffalo Bulldogs Patrick Shea, Long Island Berserkers Mark McNeil, Lyndonville Blades Constitutional Council Head: Patrick Shea (patrickjshea at verizon dot net) Doug Norris, Commissioner Brian Leahy, Vice-Commissioner Andy Bartalone, St. Michael's owner Jeff Tsuruoka, Brooklyn owner ***************************************************************************