Sababa Bears Deny Tigers; Win Open Division Championship Two Games To One
Game One: Friday, May 28th
Short their top defense man on the night, the Bears knew a huge challenge lay in wait for them in game one. In the end the challenge and some costly mistakes proved too much, as the Tigers took the lead in the championship series with a win of five to three.
The Bears jumped out first, taking advantage of the power play, as Mighty Mal Turner got a piece of Murray Richardson’s shot to put the Bears up one nil. Anderson Cheng replied for the Tigers where he was left unguarded at the side of the net, tapping a pass on the tape from Mark Paas on the point in for the equalizer.
Turner would score again, this time off a feed from Johh Long, to put the men in blue up again. The effort would not hold the length of the stanza as Cheng got his second on the night to bring it back to two apiece.
The Tigers showed their mettle capitalizing on fatigue and mistakes on the part of the Bears in the third, as Robin Ripley scored his first of two on the night with a one handed shovel pass along the ice that somehow beat two defenders and handcuffed goalie Jeff Cuvillier for the goal and the three two lead. Ripley would add insurance, picking up the puck at the side of the net and having all the time in the world to pick his spot to make it four two. Finally, a failed clearing pass from a Bear defender landed on the stick of Hubert Lee who put it on net and left it to team mate Dan Wei to put it away for the Tigers’ fifth on the night.
The Bears would do their best to mount a comeback, and it looked it might be in the cards when John Long potted one just twelve seconds later to narrow the gap back to two. But Tigers tightened up and closed the door for the last six miles, as the Bears had trouble gaining control to even get their tender out to add the extra skater.
In the end, it stayed at five three and advantage to the underdogs heading into game two. Final score, five three Tigers.
Three Stars:
1.Robin Ripley
2.Anderson Cheng
3.Mal Turner
Game 2, Saturday, May 29th
The Tigers looked set to make a sweep of it on an early goal by defenseman Mark Paas, but the Bears were tenacious and came back to take it in the last four minutes with a three two win.
Despite outshooting the Tigers thirteen to nine, the Bears were shut down offensively in the first. Credit goes to Tigers tender Mario Beaulac for that, as he frustrated the Bears offense with solid stops and determination. Mark Paas put the Tigers up on a bullet shot from the outside hash marks to beat Bear goalie Jeff Cuvillier through the pads on the sheer strength of speed to find the twine and the one zero lead.
The Bears came back in the second though, getting two goal and what looked to be the lead into the third. Dylan Liu let a bullet go from the point on a pass by Mal Turner, as Turner read the defense and found Liu open cross ice at the blue line. Turner would then set up John Long at the four minute mark to make it two one. The Bears looked good until a late penalty with fourty-two seconds remaining. The Tigers would hold on to get a goal at the one second mark, as Anderson Cheng was left alone behind the Bears’ net to find Robin Ripley out front for the one timer.
Into the third and both sides looked to feel the weight of the first two periods, as things slowed a bit. The Tigers took a disputed delay of game call, claiming that a clearing attempt by their defender first hit the glass before going out of play, but the call stood and they were at the disadvantage. The Bears ran into trouble next, getting called for holding at the six minute mark. Their kill proved effective, as they turned away the attack and repeatedly cleared the puck down the ice to run the clock. Finally, the deadlock was broken, as John Long got his second of the night, again assisted by Mal Turner, giving Turner three key assists on the night. The Bears looked good to go from there, but ran into their own bit of trouble with a delay of game call of their own for a botched clearing attempt.
But at the end of the day, despite heavy pressure and everything the Tigers could muster, the Bears held on to that three two lead for the victory and forcing a third and final game on Sunday night.
Final score, three two Bears.
Three Stars:
1. Mal Turner
2.John Long
3.Robin Ripley
Game 3, Sunday May 30th
Deadlocked at one game apiece, the CIHL Open Division 2010 Championship came down to the first and second place season seeds facing off for a final three periods to decide it all. When the dust had settled, the Bears held on to a lead solidified in the second period to outlast the Taipei Tigers and take the title of 2010 Open Division Playoff Champions.
Scoreless throughout most of the first, the Tigers went ahead when Anderson Chen found the twine on feeds from Hank Tseng and Mark Paas with just two minutes remaining in the period. It looked as though the Tigers would ride the lead into the second, until Dylan Liu let his big shot go from the point to beat Tigers tender Mario Beaulac for the second time in the series with only thirteen seconds on the cloch. Liu has cemented his prospects as a defenseman that not only knows his way around his own zone, but can also generate some offense in the opposing end. Look for him to rank markedly higher in next year’s open draft.
Into the second and the Bears jumped out strong early. Mike Lin, silenced for much of the playoffs so far, chose his moment to shine and got his first of the night on a feed from Alex Guppy. Lin then showed his supersonic speed, as he got a short hander, as Bob Ford cleared to Murray Richardson and Richardson hit Lin with a pass right up the middle. Lin made no mistake on this one, going to the backhand and putting it high over the goalie. Jay Wong replied for the Tigers, getting a much needed goal to bring it back to within one. Assists to Steve Mossing and Clay Laughren. But the Bears brought the lead back to two when Jason Roy potted a Mal Turner rebound for the four two lead.
There it stood until two minutes to go in the third, as goalie Jeff Cuvillier stood tall and turned away a massive eleven shots in the third. The Tigers finally breached his defense, as Hank Tseng let a ripper go that beat Cuvillier glove side, but the Bears put out their best and shored up things from there, never allowing another shot in the game. Credit to the Bears for their resolve and also to the Tigers for their persistence, as this brought an end to one of the most memorable and exciting series in CIHL Open Division championship history. Final score, four three Bears.
Three Stars:
1.Mike Lin
2. Eric Shen
3. Jay Wong
Club Division Final Game 2
Ice Men Crowned Club Kings
The Ice Men made a clean sweep of their finals series with the Typhoon Wave winning the second game four to one. The Ice Men are the inaugural season Champions in what promises to be a fruitful expansion of the CIHL International Division.
Into the first and the Wave looked set to make a game of it on the efforts of #93 Bin Fan. Fan got the opener just three and a half minutes in with some surprise offense for the Wave. The Ice Men returned the favor when Tommy Lin scored at six forty-five in the first.
The Ice Men shut down the Typhoon in the second, keeping them scoreless and limiting them to just three shots on goal. Offense was abundant on the other side, as the Ice Men notched ten shots on goal for one tally by #98 Andy.
Third period was all about insurance for the Ice Men, as they added two more late in the third. The first came on the power play scored by Tommy Lin for his second of the game. The last came on a short handed effort by #14. With just sixteen shots on goal for the game, the Wave were limited to too few opportunities to ever make much of a challenge.
Congratulations Ice Men!
Three Stars:
1. Tommy Lin
2. Ice Men Andy
3. Bin Fan |
