Site Last Updated: Tuesday, April 15th, 2019 at 4:32pm (EST)
2018/19 PLAYOFF COVERAGE The Pirates (3-1) are True North Hockey Canada Cup Champions once again after defeating the Dirty Pucks (3-2) in overtime of Game #7! Click here for round-by-round playoff coverage and recaps!
Against All Odds!
An epic Semi-Final battle tonight... either the top-seeded Grrrowl go home, or the Pirates relinquish their Cup! April 09, 2018
The Pirates (1-1-0) survived a harrowing Round-Robin to fight another day and defend their Cup, and having to follow it up with a Semi-Final matchup with the top-seeded Grrrowl (2-0-0), who are undefeated in these playoffs, seems a little unfair. But, hey... one had to assume we would face them eventually, right? To win The Cup, you have to be (and beat) the best!
Captain Sousa will have a full 15-skater roster tonight. Sturgeon will return to the pipes after Lella's standout performance last week. Lest we forget, the Sturgeonator stopped seven of nine shootout shots in last year's Final! The Pirates are in good hands.
Doc M. Sager remains sidelined with his torn rotator cuff, but the playoff experience from sub Mola will be welcome on the bench. There are also rumours that L. Klein has been stricken with some kind of bug... however, the young defender, S. Klein, will be there to take his place, if required.
The Pirates will need to be marking the "-Wicz's"... #32 Jakubowicz (19G, 10A, 16PIM) and #9 Malkiewicz (7G, 8A, 14PIM) have lit up the goal light this year, and they've also made their way to the penalty box more times than Don Cherry has suits! The Bucs will want to be involved, but not too involved, with these guys.
Goaltender Payne is also a huge factor, as he and his team allowed a mere 1.91 goals against per game during the regular season. However, the Pirates did score three on him in their final matchup of the year, so the Pirates know they can put the biscuit in the basket against this crew. In fact, plenty of Pirates have put up points against Grrrowl in the past: Gallivan 8 (5G, 3A), Leggett 6 (4G, 2A), Mutch 6 (4G, 2A), Mola 6 (3G, 3A), Mandell 5 (1G, 4A).
However, it's true... oddsmakers are not favourable on a Buccaneer win. Yet, it's this type of adversity the Pirates have thrived on in years past. They've battled the best before, and they can do it again tonight. It will take an all-out effort from everyone on the ice... on every shift... but, this is what playoff magic is made of!
Will there be playoff magic tonight? Come down to Rinx 1 at 9:20pm to find out!
As always, if we missed anything, send an email to webmaster@piratehockey.ca with the details!
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Player |
Injury |
Status |
#1 Leggett |
Family Values |
Out 1 game |
#1 Lella |
Travel Bug/ Workaholism |
Out 1 game |
FINAL Standings: Grrrowl (14-5-3) top the standings again... though, they must be peeved they finished second in penalty minutes this year! How will they face their fans... and their Moms? The Pirates (5-14-3) finished the year in seventh place... but, that didn't stop them winning their fifth historic True North Hockey Canada Cup!
• The Pirate Movie!
Apparently some key actors have received their scripts and are practicing their accents. It's possible that D.T. has been shuttling some of these superstars around in his Tesla. We'll keep you posted on word of a trailer or behind-the-scenes clips! Exciting!
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