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2011-2012 Winter Season

3 goalies, 3 wins

Watchmen reprimanded by league for too many trips to the sin bin

9-February-2012

EDMONTON – Instead of earning kudos from the league for their back to back wins, the Watchmen were scolded by the AMHL for having racked up 279 minutes in penalties 2/3rds of the way through the season. The total placed them 8^th in the entire league and 1^st in their division (we’re number 1!, we’re number 1!). Leading the charge are Rory “Dr. Hook” Shott, and Matt “Matt’s a killer” Pastorius with 48 and 41 minutes each, both over half-way towards the season-ending 80 PIM limit, with team captain, and spiritual leader Tom “F-bomb” Jacknisky trailing only by a single minor infraction. Rounding out the top five were defensive forces Tim Warner and Luke van Weiren, with VW finding himself in a rare position of having several players ahead of his tally. Darren Hockman has been sent for a 3-week conditioning stint in Australia by team management, as well as preventing him from piercing the top-five PIM leaders.

The warning seemed to resonate with the Watchmen, who would only sit for two penalties before their game was out with the EPA Leafs. The Leafs went into the game near the bottom of the division, and came out guns a-blazing looking to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Leafs hemmed the Watchmen in their zone with a hard forecheck for periods of the first frame, but were only able to find the back of the net once when they whacked in the rebound off of a stopped breakaway.

The momentum stayed with the Leafs carrying their one goal lead into the second period and adding to it by bouncing a sharp-angled puck off of Tom Jacknisky’s face. Being unable to score in the first half of the game despite having three power play opportunities, it was looking like the return of the Watchmen’s goalie was going to be a curse for the boys. But the Watchmen would explode in the final few minutes of the second period kicked off when Cam Philips buried a hard wrister in the slot on a feed from Cole Geiger. Philips was only part-way into raising his hands to celebrate when an EPA Leaf came to run him. This proved to be a mistake, as Philips set the Leaf down, ass-first, with a one armed self-defense before finishing his celebration. A minute later Cole Geiger would tie the game with assists going to Clinton Paul and Rory Shott. Just over 90 seconds later Shott would notch a goal of his own after JP Glaves dished him what would have been a beautiful one-timer pass, had it not been to his backhand.

The Watchmen took a 2-goal lead when Clinton Paul blocked a point shot, earning himself a breakaway and made no mistake tallying the Watchmen’s fourth unanswered. The momentum had clearly swung to the gold and purple, but the Leafs managed to stem the tide holding the Watchmen off the scoreboard until the dying minutes of the game. With two minutes left on the clock, a face off deep in the Watchmen zone, and the goalie pulled, the Leafs brought themselves back into the game, sliding a shot through the five-hole on a broken play just off the face-off. With plenty of time left on the clock to tie the game the Leafs pulled their goalie a second time when they gained possession of the puck, but Cam Philips would chase down a loose puck to re-establish an insurance goal, and moments later Tim Warner would add another empty-netter, this time from almost 150 feet out.

The win marked the first time the Watchmen put together back-to-back-to-back wins since the beginning of the season. The Watchmen will face a tough test to see if they can keep the momentum rolling as they face-off against the division leading Gamblers, who not only boast a 15-2-4 record, but also the division’s top two scorers, and division’s lowest GAA.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Cam Philips 2. Clinton Paul 3. Tim Warner

Watchmen – 6 EPA Leafs – 3 SOG – Watchmen: 29 EPA Leafs: 31 Record 14-5-1

Bubba’s Blackhawks fall to Watchmen

Kulmatycki’s last minute heroics gives Watchmen second win in a row

4-February-2012

EDMONTON – Clare Drake arena was the venue for the Watchmen facing off against Bubba’s Blackhawks. The Watchmen have been .500 since moving up a division, and were looking to string together their first back to back wins in bigs. It didn’t take long for the gold and purple to get on the scoresheet as Matt Pastorius, paying homage to the #4 he wears on his back, went coast to coast just over a minute into the game, finishing off a beauty to give the Watchmen an early lead. Coltan Moscrip would double the tally on a feed from Cole Geiger at the midway point of the period, and the Watchmen would take a two-goal cushion into the second period.

The Watchmen were playing without their regular tender for the second game in a row, but Eric “Misty” Mitskopoulos was drafted for the outing and kept the BB’s at bay fending off back to back power plays to start the period. The BB’s would cut the Watchmen lead in half ten minutes into the second period, but Moscrip would answer only moments later restoring the 2-goal lead. Before the period was Geiger tripped a BB, but the penalty was never served as the Blackhawks buried the biscuit with the goalie pulled for the extra attacker on the delayed call.

The Watchmen were given a chance to get their lead back on a powerplay at the end of the second but were not able to capitalize and the final period was a barn burner with Watchmen just holding on to their single goal lead. A Matt Pastorius penalty was killed off midway through the period, and it looked like the Watchmen’s lead might hold up, but only 2 minutes remaining, the Blackhawks would score for the second time in the same game with a delayed penalty being assessed to the Watchmen, this time Kulmatycki being the perpetrator of the crime.

Having fought valiantly back from a two-goal deficit, the momentum was on the BB’s bench looking to sneak out a victory before the end of the game, or carry their upswing into overtime. But they would accomplish neither, instead Matt Pastorius would complete his Gordie Howe hat trick by feeding the puck to Preston Kulmatycki who would atone for his sins of only moments ago burying the puck with only 43 seconds left on the clock in what would be the eventual game-winner. The win would officially be registered in the books until after a late-game melee was settled sending Dr. Nisky to the box with a rare unsportsmanlike, and Pastorius rounding out a hat-trick of penalty with a roughing minor earning him an early shower.

The win moves the Watchmen into the top half of the table as the squads enter the final third of the season.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Matt Pastorius 2. Coltan Moscrip 3. Preston Kulmatycki

Watchmen – 4 Bubba's Blackhawks – 3 SOG – Watchmen: 24 Bubba's Blackhawks: 18 Record 13-5-1

WM walk all over VW

Watchmen’s yo-yo continues in Div4

22-January-2012

EDMONTON – Following the boys in the gold threads this year this storied reported is happy to report that all seems well in the season thus far. With the Watchmen starting out to one of their hottest starts in years it was only a matter of time before the powers that be would try to throw a wrench into the plans of the cup parade. After watching last week’s dismal loss at the hands of their latest Div 4 opponent, the second place Spoilers, it was a huge question mark as to which Watchmen squad would actually take the ice.

Having only barely dressed two lines for an early game last week it was a mystery sat to how almost the entire 2011-2012 squad managed to drag their collective asses off the couch to strap on the pads and don the war paint.

Before even hitting the ice the boys were thrown a curve ball. Tonight's opponent was none other than the team that held the top spot in the current Div 4 standings, Vue Weekly.........what the hell kinda name is that? Regardless the battle lines were being drawn as the opposition informed us that they didn't bring their alternate jerseys. Looking at the baby shit green threads it was hard to imagine how try could possibly be mistaken for the regal golden threads of the Watchmen, however the zebras seemed to have other ideas. Now resembling more of a rouge bunch of bumble bees than the fearce Watchmen squad that had skated to a very respectable 11-5-1 start.

The Watchmen open up the scoring early as the grind line (and fan favorites) comprised of Dr. Nisky and Hawk pillaging the rampaging Rory "Prettyboy" Shott, who's beak looked rather nice considering the years bad luck. Hard work fellas, that was the battle cry as to how this tired squad was gonna compete on the current night. The Watchmen let their legs , good positioning and strong work ethic put them in front as Clinton Paul buried another gino with only a few ticks left on the first period. This great start coupled with the exceptional play of call up Matt Benson put the Watchmen in front after the first frame.

The second brought more of the same as the the drink was clearly being stirred by none other than Preston "PK" Kulmatyki as he turned the natural trick in the second. This outburst included the now signature howitzer at the goalies head finding its way once again under the red iron. Touché 5-zip Watchmen after 2.

The third period started with the Watchmen forces getting cocky allowing the Vue squad to bury two quick goals in the first 5 mins. That proved to be the wake up call that was needed as Mr.Benson put the team on his back the rest of the way and the power line of Cam Phillips and Clinton Paul flexed their muscle to get back the two that were surrendered early in the period. The scoring was rounded out by newcomer Coltan Moscrip whose stick smashing tantrums have drawn the ire of local media, fans and league officials this season.

All in all it was a gutsy effort for the Watchmen defenders who held their line and allowed the young Benson to see the black disc most of the night. Kudos goes out to the entire squad as a complete effort was put in even in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. Let's hope this continues so that the proposed Jasper Ave route can still be filled with gold and purple streamers t the seasons close.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Preston Kulmatycki 2. Luke van Weiren 3. JP Glaves

Watchmen – 8 Vue Weekly – 2 SOG – Watchmen: 38 Vue Weekly: 24 Record 12-5-1

Watchmen outplayed

Watchmen writer too lazy

15-January-2012

EDMONTON – Spoilers dominate Watchmen. Badly.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. 2. 3.

Watchmen – 2 Spoilers – 6 SOG Spoilers: – Watchmen: Record 11-5-1

Shott goes down in blaze of glory

First win in Div 4 for the Watchmen

8-January-2012

EDMONTON – Short-staffed for the second game in a row, the Watchmen were able to face off against the less-than-poorly named “Rock It Out Salon” at Glengarry arena Sunday night. The roster wasn’t without its drama, with 4 of the 11 skaters rolling into the dressing room only minutes before the puck drop. To add further drama to the short line-up question, Rory Shott had opted to come to the rink without his helmet (and visor). After some negotiations, team captain Tom Jacknisky managed to acquire a bucket freshly used during the preceding ice time allowing Shott to hit the ice just as the action was kicking off between the two squads. A few shifts into the period a crisp centering attempt by the RIOS rose abruptly off a stray stick sending the puck, full force squarely at the un-visored nose of Shott sending him, and a quarter-pint of his blood to the ice. When he came to, perhaps unaware of the gash on his beak, Shott bravely inquired if he could finish the game, but decided a trip to the hospital was probably a better option. Perhaps it was the loss of Shott, the now even-shorter bench, or the fact the RIOS are a solid team, but the Watchmen found themselves playing in their own zone for most of the first period. The Watchmen managed to fend off the early assault, sending the game into the second period knotted at zeros.

Tim Weis’ shut-out didn’t last long however, as a slapshot from the top of the circle was hammered off the cross bar into the back of the cage only a minute into the period. Instead of letting the RIOS revel in the lead, the Watchmen buckled down and roared back. Less than 5 minutes after the RIOS had opened the scoring, Darren Hockman found himself cradling the puck on the offensive blue line. This season’s oft-wounded soldier waited patiently for his team-mates to get on side and danced in through two unsuspecting RIOS players dishing a pass to Preston Kulmatycki, who administered a how’s-she-going to another RIOS defended before slipping a pass back on the tape of Hockman in the slot who slide the puck into far corner to tie the game at 1. The Watchmen took the lead when Tim Warner broke out of the Watchmen zone, head-manning a pass to Cam Phillips, who dashed in on a partial break, and made no mistake sniping a perfectly placed shot into the top corner of the short side after kissing the edge of the post and the crossbar. Instead of protecting their lead, the Watchmen took back to back slashing penalties, overlapping for 1:30. The Watchmen fended off the two-man advantage and took the lead and the momentum to their dressing room for the flood.

The Watchmen kept rolling early in the third with Dino Vlahadamis powering his way into the RIOS zone early in the third. Vlahadamis curled to the outside of the RIOS defenseman, fending him off with an outstretched hand before putting the puck on net. While the initial shot didn’t find its mark, a melee ensued and when it was over the puck was in the net and Vlahadamis was credited with a goal and Kulmatycki and Pastorius the assists. The 2-goal cushion wouldn’t last long though as the RIOS got back into the game when a well-timed chip shot on a partial-break eluded a Weis-poke check attempt as well as a back checking Hockman. Phillips would stem the RIOS comeback though by feathering a pass out from the corner on the tape of a streaking Kulmatycki who had the puck on his stick for 1.2 milliseconds before introducing the puck to the peanut butter on the top shelf. Phillips was not done there however, as he single handedly muscled his way through the RIOS team only moments later, putting a deke on the RIOS goalie who was barely able to respond before Phillips slide the puck home, notably notching Weis’ first point of the season in the process. It appeared the RIOS were all rocked out, but a late slashing penalty called against Luke van Weiren put the Watchmen a man down and the RIOS bolstered the advantage by pulling their goalie for a 6 on 4. In spite of Clinton Paul’s effort on the faceoff to lift and lug the RIOS centre and the puck from the dot to the top of the circles, the RIOS would manage to bulge the twine in the dying seconds of the game, but it would turn out to be too little, too late and the Watchmen took home their first win in Div 4 and remain undefeated in 2012.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Cam Phillips 2. Preston Kulmatycki 3. Tim Weis

Watchmen – 5 Rock it Out Salon – 3 SOG – Watchmen: 21 Rock it Out Salon: 31 Record 11-4-1

Short bench sinks Watchmen in 2011 swan song

Old Balls double up on Watchmen

28-December-2011

EDMONTON – The holidays drew a number of Watchmen out of E-town, and the gold and purple took to KC arena full of holiday cheer, but short on staff. With only 7 regulars suiting up, management needed to call up 3 players from the minors to dress 2 lines of forwards and defence.

The pace of the game was markedly faster in the new division, but after an initial flurry by the Old Balls, the Watchmen took charge. Rory Shott opened the scoring on a setup from Cam Phillips and call-up Darren Rath five minutes into the frame. The Watchmen would get a golden opportunity strengthen their lead when the Old Balls took a holding penalty, followed up by a personal F-bomb to the ref, earning another three-minutes in the sin-bin. The Watchmen helped to neutralize this when a flaccid clearing attempt followed by a cross-check to the OB’s fore checker evened things up for 3 minutes. Once all the penalties were killed on both sides of the board Rath got his second point of the game finishing off a pass from Tom Jacknisky to give the Watchmen a 2-0 lead, one that they would hold onto until the end of the frame in spite of a high stick from Rory Shott giving the OB’s a power play to finish the last two minutes.

The 2-goal lead would evaporate quickly in the next period when the OB’s notched 3 unanswered in the first five minutes of the second. Shott would stem the tide by taking his second penalty of the game and a successful penalty kill returned some of the lost momentum back to the Watchmen bench. Jarrod Miles tied the game on a single-handed effort in the last two minutes of the period, but the OB’s would regain their lead only 30 seconds later taking a single-goal advantage to the flood.

The third period was all OB’s though, who scored twice to put the game out of reach. While the OB’s outshot the Watchmen, the score didn’t end up reflecting what could, or should have been a closer game if the Watchmen had a full roster and a few bounces go their way. But it wasn’t meant to be, and with the re-tiering the Watchmen now find themselves in the middle of the pack and without either of the two points that were up for grabs in their Div 4 debut.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Darren Rath 2. Rory Shott 3. Coltan Moscrip

Watchmen – 4 (SO) Old Balls – 3 SOG – Watchmen: 25 Old Balls: 33 Record 10-4-1

Watchmen sneak out SO win over Voice Vipers

Watchmen bid farewell to Division 5

23-December-2011

EDMONTON – The Watchmen took to the ice for the last time in Division 5 against the same team they kicked the season off against the aptly Voice Vipers, who sustained an impressive level of whining all game. The Watchmen, who were missing Pastorius, Warner, Hockman and Quinney from the lineup, also played the first few shifts of the game short staffed, until JP Glaves casually wandered onto the ice, rounding out 2 lines and 2 sets of d-men. Before Glaves hit the ice, van Wieren was already sitting in the sin bin taking an elbowing penalty just over a minute into the action. The VVs sustained some pressure in their first of many power plays on the night but couldn’t bury one. Rory Shott got the Watchmen on the board first burying a centering pass from Cole Geiger in the low-blocker side. The VVs would strike back less than four minutes later on a similar play at the other end, the difference being six full barrel rolls by the goal scorer after receiving a “welcome to the front of the net” tap from Luke van Weiren. While there wouldn’t be any more scoring in the period, the refs would dole out a holding penalty to Clinton Paul and pair of coincidentals.

The Watchmen would kill of the penalty to end the first, but found themselves shorthanded again less than two minutes in the second period when Jacknisky took a trip to the box for a trip. The Watchmen would kill off this third penalty in a row, before going on the power play for the first time in the game, and all that was required was for Cam Phillips to get laid out into the back boards. The Watchmen would regain the lead on the power play as van Weiren corralled the puck after the Vipers failed to capitalize on a breakaway, and lug it the length of the ice, put a shot on net and find his own rebound, not once, but twice before the lamp was lit. The VVs were handed a golden opportunity to get back in the game when Cam Philips was ejected for an alleged elbow to the head, and moments later Dino Vlahadamis would get called for a trip putting the Watchmen down two men. Instead of capitalizing on their five-on-three, the Vipers would equalize on of the offences by dishing out a nasty spear, and equalize the other penalty by chirping at the ref that apparently spearing should be allowed. The two teams faced off in a rare three on three configuration with a minute left to play in the second period. Cole Geiger would loosen up a free puck from a sprawling tender all the way back to the point, where Tom Jacknisky threaded a slapshot through a Viper’s legs and into the empty cage giving the Watchmen a two goal lead heading into the flood.

The Vipers scored early in the 3^rd keeping the fans on their toes. The Watchmen would give the Vipers two more power play chances before the end of the game. The second penalty coming with only four minutes left would prove to be costly as the Vipers tied up the game sending it to a sudden death shootout. Preston Kulmatycki made no mistake dangling in on the first shot of the shootout (unlike another unnamed Watchman – you know who you are – who could have avoided OT if he would have finished a breakaway late in the third) putting the pressure on the Vipers shooter, who bobbled the puck but managed to recover to wire a hard shot to the glove side which was met by the Watchmen tender’s left pad bringing the game to an exciting finish. The Watchmen face off again next week in their first test getting moved up a division with what will likely be a short bench with a good chunk of the squad out of town for the holidays.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Luke van Weiren 2. Tom Jacknisky 3. Tim Weis

Watchmen – 4 (SO) Voice Vipers – 3 SOG – Watchmen: 25 Voice Vipers: 38 Record 10-3-1

Watchmen go 6-3-1 during writers’ strike

Watchmen go 4-0 to start the season

Hurricanes’ goalie stands tall preventing a rout

13-October-2011

EDMONTON – The Watchmen took to the ice at Argyll Arena to face off against the Hurricanes. The Hurricanes were sporting Penguins uniforms, causing significant confusion for the Watchmen, but the Jedi mind tricks would not prevent the Watchmen from pouring on the offence. The first period was largely spent in the HPs zone with the Watchmen peppering shots on the opposing team’s net, only to be repulsed time and again by Eric Mitskopoulos. Preston Kulmatycki would eventually find the back of the twine on a setup from Rory Shott halfway through the period. The HPs would spend 6 of the remaining 10 minutes of the period short-handed, but the Watchmen couldn’t capitalize again.

The HPs started the second period where they left off the first, chasing the Watchmen and taking penalties as a result of being one step behind. The HPs got sent to the box for a tripping call early in the period, and it was only as a result of continued goaltending heroics that they didn’t get scored on, but almost immediately as their penalty expired, Kulmatycki found the back of the net for a second time on a setup from Jacknisky. Having handed the HP’s three penalties in a row it was almost inevitable the refs would look to hand the Watchmen the next call, and Tim Warner happened to be the lucky candidate for an equalization call, and was sent to the box for “tripping” at the 13:00 minute mark of the period. The Watchmen killed off the penalty, but not the period, as the HP’s would get on the scoreboard, cutting the Watchmen’s lead in half by the midway point of the game. Watchmen goaltending Tim Weis would turn aside a breakaway that could have tied the game, and Coltan Moscrip would respond on the ensuring play for the Watchmen knocking in a setup from Rory Shott to restore the Watchmen’s 2-goal cushion before the period was out.

The third period was much of the same, with the Watchmen peppering the net to little avail. The HPs did try to make a game of it with some early pressure in the third, but couldn’t get one passed the golden jersey #30, and six minute into the third Clinton Paul would drive a stake through the HPs heart with some help from Kulmatycki and Warner. Matt Pastorius would take an interference penalty a few minutes later, and managed to do so without causing a complete goaltender meltdown. The Hurricanes were unable to claw their way back into the game, and the game ended with a the Watchmen retaining their perfect record for the season.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Preston Kulmatycki 2. Rory Shott 3. Tim Weis

Watchmen – 4 Hurricanes – 1 SOG – Watchmen: 28 Hurricanes: 21 Record 4-0

Watchmen down Crossbow Vipers to go 3-0

Six unanswered goals frustrate Vipers into submission

5-October-2011

EDMONTON – The Watchmen iced their first complete roster against the Crossbow Vipers, sporting 3 full lines of forwards and defense in gold and purple glory. Only goaltender Tim Weis was sitting out this early October evening, but Matt Benson stepped in and stepped up in his absence. Matt was busy in the first period with the Vipers striking first potting a goal at the half-way mark of the period, and again five minutes later to take a two goal lead. Jarrod Miles cut lead in half on a feed from JP Glaves to get the Watchmen on the board before the end of the period.

Having struggled in the first, it was the flood between periods, the Jacknisky berating, or the presence of Weis in the stands with camera in hand, or a combination of all three that got the Watchmen’s engine firing. It took eight minutes, but Clinton Paul would score back-to-back goals both assisted by Cole Geiger, with Tim Warner and Matt Pastorius picking up an assist each to start and to finish a shift that saw the Vipers’ one-goal lead turn into a one-goal deficit. Cam Phillips would pot an unassisted marker to round out the second.

The Vipers were given a chance to get back in the game when Geiger and Pastorius were sent to the box. But instead, the Watchmen tallied back-to-back short-handed markers, with Paul rounding out his second hat-trick in as many games, and Rory Shott putting the icing on the cake and frustrating the Vipers who were now spiraling out of control. The Vipers first took their frustrations out on Matt Pastorius with body check as he was keeping the puck in. The hit was responded to by Jacknisky who was subsequently handed his first ejection of the season in his first game. But the Vipers were not done, as another skirmish broke out, with Pastorius finding himself in the midst of the action again, as the sunburn on the back of the Crossbow Vipers’ goalie neck apparently caused him to slowly lose his mind. With less than five minutes on the clock and the game well out of reach and out of hand, the refs made the wise decision to call it a night, and the game ended with the 3^rd straight win having mopped up three of the bottom 4 teams in the league. The Watchmen will face their first real test as they face off against second place PWC Monday night.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Clinton Paul 2. Cole Geiger 3. Matt Pastorius

Watchmen – 6 Crossbow Vipers – 2 SOG – Watchmen: 27 Crossbow Vipers: 24 Record 3-0

Watchmen unload artillery on Young Guns

Paul nets 4, Hockman 3 and Phillips 2 in offensive explosion

26-September-2011

EDMONTON – It was hard to tell whether it was the new jerseys, the opening game win, the fact that the legendary WatchNET was back on line, that the Watchmen had a fan out to watch, or that team player/coach, and team captain Tom Jacknisky was reportedly back on Canadian soil, but the mood in the dressing room was a-buzz before the Watchmen took to the ice Sunday night. The squad welcomed a few new faces to the line-up, including Clinton Paul, Jarrod Miles and JP Glaves, who after years of flirting with the Watchmen in summer seasons finally consummated a winter campaign having successfully put his doctoral thesis defense behind him.

It didn’t take long for the Watchmen to pick up where they left off, particularly Cam Phillips who coming off a hat trick, potted back to back goals at the 3:30 and the 4:30 mark of the first period, each assisted by Darren Hockman, who “wasn’t even supposed to be at the game”. The Watchmen let their early lead go to their head, and the Young Guns quickly capitalized on their opponents’ over-confidence, potting three retaliations markers in the span of a minute and a half and before the game was even half-way through the first period, the squads had combined for 5 goals. But the teams would not be done scoring yet, as Preston Kulmatycki took a feed from Phillips and wired a slapshot of the tenders ear and into the top salami to tie the game at three. The seesaw would swing back in the Young Guns’ favour after a deflected shot from the top of the circles found its way behind the Watchmen tender.

The buzzer and a flood gave the Watchmen some time to lick their wounds and re-group. Hitting the ice for the second period, Darren Hockman nearly threw his back out putting the pegs in the net, but the back strain was apparently what was needed to awaken the scoring hands. Playing through the ponds in the corner of the rink, Hockman would tie the game on a feed from Miles after 5 minutes had ticked off the clock. After allowing 4 goals in the opening frame, Tim Weis decided a better strategy would be to save the puck and with the help of a few posts, and a spectacular diving save from Luke van Weiren, the Watchmen tender was able to shore up some confidence in the back end, so the purple and gold could unleash the offensive canons. In the final 6 minutes of play in the second Clinton Paul would light the lamp twice, bookending Hockman’s second of the night.

Having gone into the 2nd period trailing by a goal, the Watchmen found themselves up by three going into the final period. There would be no letting up going into the 3rd, and that was clear the moment Kulmatycki fired a howitzer squarely off the Young Guns goalie’s helmet, with the rebound bouncing out almost to the blue line. Paul took advantage of Kulmatycki’s cage-rattling, pounding a slapper home to kick off the third period for a hat-trick on the night. Hockman would follow up with a hat-trick of his own capitalizing on a stretch pass from Philips. With the clock winding down the Watchmen would put two more nails in the coffin as Rory Shott would finish off a set-up from Glaves, and Paul would tally his fourth of the night off a one-timer pass from Miles.

After a shaky first period, the 7-0 run in the final two frames gave the Watchmen their second victory of the campaign, keeping the gold jerseys with a perfect record.

Footnote: Dr. Glaves bails on BPs after the game. TFC.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Darren Hockman 2. Clinton Paul 3. Preston Kulmatycki

Watchmen – 11 Young Guns II – 4 SOG – Watchmen: 43 Young Guns II: 29 Record 2-0

Watchmen kick of new season, new league and new jerseys in style

Phillips, Kulmatycki each tally 3 point nights in season opener

20-September-2011

EDMONTON – The 2011-12 season kicked off on the 18th of September with a lot of firsts, including the first time the franchise, that was founded a decade ago, stepped on the ice outside of the comforts of the ERHL. The 10th anniversary of the storied franchise also saw the unveiling of the squads first new uniforms since their founding, with a new gold and purple look modeled after the ’72 Kings (and professionally delivered by Elite Sportswear). The new look didn’t stop the squad from an old school performance though, including an early shower for non-other than Luke van Weiren, here’s how it unfolded…

Coming off a painful summer stretch, the Watchmen were retooled and welcomed a few new faces to the squad thanks to hours on the phone with free agents around town by Dr. Nisky Jacknisky over the off season. The good doctor wasn’t in for the season opener however, doing some final prospect-scouting in France, while Watchmen legend Dino Vlahadamis rounded out the final days of recruiting in Vegas. The Watchmen hit the ground running though, jumping on top of the Voice Vipers. The early control didn’t translate into a lead for the gold and purple however, and the teams wrestled with goose eggs on the board for much of the period. The deadlock was broken when Cam Philips’ wrist shot from top of the circles powered its way almost literally through the Vipers’ goaltender’s glove. Philips shot, off a pass from Preston Kulmatycki would official break in the new jerseys. A two pad stack moments later would signify that the old guard was back.

It was part of the new(er) guard that gave the Watchmen a two goal lead early in the second period, when Rory Shott, a mid-2010/11 campaign pick up, playing in his first full season with the Watchmen, would bury a rebound for his first of the season. Not about to roll over and die, the Vipers would respond – with a little help from the referee’s decision to make off-side an optional call – making the game 2-1. It wouldn’t be the refs’ only quest for factor of the game, when moments later a cross-check to the visor of Pastorius would also be deemed not worthy of the effort required to blow the whistle. With Pastorius lying on the ice, a few pleasantries were exchanged setting the stage for typical beer-league descent into chipping and chirping. Cam Phillips would throw some water on the fire potting back-to-back tallies, with an assist each from the dynamic Haligonian duo Matt Pastorius and Tim Warner rounding out a season opening hat-trick, while simultaneously forcing the Vipers to focus on scoring rather than chirping if they wanted to stay in the game.

The reprieve was short lived however, and a small-skirmish broke out with 1.1 seconds left on the clock. In spite of it being a minor incident, it somehow resulted in the ejection of Vee-Dub, notching 14 of his allowed 80 PIM in just the season opener! The slew of penalties kept the time-keeper busy, as the ensuing face-off was lost in the Watchmen zone back to the Vipers’ defence, who had enough time to corral the puck and put it on net. The shot was stopped, but somehow, all within the span of 1.0 seconds the rebound was whacked into the net bringing the game to a 4-2 result. When questioned about the apparent warp in the space-time continuum, the referee responded by saying he assumed 11 seconds were left on the clock, yet the goal stood and the Vipers were given a 2nd lease on life heading into the 3rd.

The final frame remained tight with the Watchmen trying to seal the deal, and the Vipers trying to bring it within one. The context would remain as it was until a solid fore-check by Cole Greiger, would have stood on its own as one of the plays of the period, if he hadn’t outdone himself in threading the needle to Kulmatycki, who waiting in the Vipers’ slot sniped it into the top shelf rounding out a three point evening. The play restored the Watchmen lead three goal lead with less than half of the period left, and while the two squads would eventually tally the same number of shots on net, the Watchmen would hang on for a season opening victory.

The Watchmen hit the ice again Sunday at 9pm at KC Arena.

Three Watchmen Stars 1. Cam Phillips 2. Preston Kulmatycki 3. Luke van Weiren

Watchmen – 5 Voice Vipers – 2 SOG – Watchmen: 28 Voice Vipers: 27 Record 1-0