March 18, 2023 – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Voodoo Puckers 5 – 1
Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com//oss-scoresheet?game_id=24515&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/MUuwTOR7RCs
Goals at: 03:21, 07:14, 28:55, 34:31 and 46:09

We finally got our white jerseys, and they look fantastic! More importantly, we are undefeated while wearing them! Last night we squared off against the Voodoo Puckers, the best team in our division and one that we had never beaten in our previous 6 meetings. We have now beaten each team in our division at least once.

But last night was different. True, we had a packed bench, while they only had 10, but I could point to that if we squeaked by with a one-point win. But a dominant 5-1 win? You can’t blame that on bench depth. Dorsey even stayed vertical, except when he was pretty spectacularly tripped. 🙂

Our numbers did allow us pretty quick changes, which meant we could skate more aggressively, which translated into more puck battle wins and more shots on goal. Our passes were crisper and more accurate, leading to more than one odd-man rush into the offensive zone.

But it probably comes as no surprise to anyone who has read these posts that yet again, the key to our success was our amazing tendy, who only let one puck fired from a very skilled set of shooters past him, earning him the substitute MVP trophy. Why substitute? Well, because Sanguinet hasn’t made it back to the rink since the last time Shae won! 🙂

We still need to work on maintaining posession, breaking out of our zone and general awareness on the ice, but my favorite quote of the night came from our fearless leader on the bench when he exclaimed, “I want to take this team to the playoffs!”

Hopefully we can keep this momentum going against our nemesis, the Horned Broncos, when we meet them on Sunday the 26th. See you there!

March 5, 2023 – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Polar Bears 5 – 1
Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com//oss-scoresheet?game_id=24623&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/WvL9kSArHdE
Goals at 37:54, 42:28, 45:30, 53:20, 56:55

This time we feature a late-night game against the Polar Bears, the funnest team to play with, and not just because they are the only team we have a winning record against. According to Team Cowboy, we were going to have a short bench, but we wound up with 12. The ‘Bears were not so lucky, bringing only 8 to the party. But one of them, Manny, pulled an iron man. And not only was he on the ice the whole time, he was freakin everywhere on the ice. Every time I went for the puck, there was Manny. Every time I passed the puck, there he was picking it off. Early in the first, you can see him skating, almost leisurely, around the offensive zone, weaving in and out of not only purple, but also white jerseys. You get the feeling he was f**king with us.

After a slow start (the first goal coming with just 4 minutes left in the second), the flood gates opened. Kevin got us off the schneide with a nifty goal toward the end of the second. We started the third knotted at 1. But then it was time for the Mason show. After regailing us in the locker room with stories of his time as an infant in the Finnish army, learning to fight terrorists by walking through napalm, he turned on the jets in the third, pulling off a natty hatty and putting the game out of reach for the ‘Bears. JR tacked one on with a bit of a floater with 4 minutes left to bring us to our final score, 5 – 1.

In the “Battle of the Randalls”, Shae was his usual awesome self, keeping 22 of the 23 shots sent his way out of the net, whereas dad faced far fewer shots, but more found their way past. See, Shae, this is why we don’t back-check: so you can get those sweet, sweet .950+ save percentages!

In the end, it was time for Sanguinet to find a new home, and even though Shae was a hero as usual, and the next day was Laurel’s birthday, the hat trick made the choice obvious, and he went home with Mason.

After the game, I was proud to be able to present the team with a commemorative puck I put together. Because all of you show up week after week, I get to actually play a game I’ve loved most of my life. Thanks! For those that couldn’t make it, I’ll keep bringing the box until everyone does. I have a few extras; I’ve got one for Ryan Reed, and I figured one for each of our sub goalies. If there is someone else you think deserves one, let me know.

February 26, 2023 – Tacoma Twin Rinks – South Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Voodoo Puckers 3 – 5
Game stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com//oss-scoresheet?game_id=24743&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/MEKmp9_T8W8
Goals at 15:39, 16:43 and 40:32

Our first game on the south rink in quite some time was a match-up with the top team in our division, the Voodoo Puckers, who doubled our tally earlier in the week and who have double our points for the season. We were looking for redemption, and it looked like we might just get it with two goals barely more than a minute apart in the first period to take the lead!

But then the Puckers had their own scoring streak, with 3 pucks finding the back of the net within 3 minutes in the second and another one mid-way through the period to pretty much put the dagger in. But, with just over a minute left in the second, we scored what we hoped would be a momentum changer heading into the third. Alas, there was no scoring in the final period at all, thanks to some pretty awesome saves on Shae’s part, so the score remained the same.

We’re getting more aggresive while fighting for the puck, but still need a lot of work breaking out of our own zone. The official scorer was maybe more interested in his insta feed, because he credited me with our first goal when I wasn’t even on the ice (sorry, JR), and robbed me of our final goal, handing it to Randy, instead.

New on the scene was our mascot, Sanguinet (pictured above), who watched the game from the penalty box (which no one else visited in a penalty-free game). In a fresh tradition, he was presented to the MVP of the game, who has the responsibility to keep him safe and well-fed for the week until presenting him to the MVP of our next game. I was beyond honored to be the inaugural recipient, and look forward to bringing him back to the rink on Sunday when we face the Polar Bears.

February 5, 2023 8:45pm – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Voodoo Puckers 3 – 6
Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com//oss-scoresheet?game_id=24610&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/eMCiw2yhZH4 / https://youtu.be/xEuSTIrHAnA
Goals at 18:50, 35:51, 38:20

February 11, 2023 7:30pm – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Horned Broncos 3 – 3
Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com//oss-scoresheet?game_id=24496&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/zGgs_BJu0xA
Goals at 44:54, 52:16, 57:49

February 18, 2023 10:30pm – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Bandits 5 – 4
Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com//oss-scoresheet?game_id=24502&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/_oZGhzgUmqI
Goals at 3:43, 25:48, 29:08, 30:49, 58:08

A loss, a tie, then a win. Does anything else show improvement more than that? We followed up our win against the Polar Bears to start the month of February with a pretty tough loss to the Voodoo Puckers, the best team in our division. The Puckers scored early and often, holding the offensive zone almost at will and pretty consistently finding someone open in front of the net, making it so hard to defend. Still, even so, we did hold them to less than 30 SOG, which is actually a bit of an improvement for us.

Okay, so time to shake that off because our next test was against the dreaded Horned Broncos. These matchups are getting more and more “chippy” as the season moves on. They have had our number for the most part this season, responsible for one of our worst defeats (9-1 in January). But this game was different. Our passes were crisp and on-target. We held the offensive zone so much better than we have in the past, giving us 36 SOG to their 26. Our first line (Quaid, Nico & Mason) were pretty dominant, moving the puck around very nicely and generating lots of quality shots. It looked like we might come up just a bit short, when Kevin knocked one through with only 4 minutes left in the game, and we were able to hold off the Bronco’s attack to wind up with a tie. We had one scary moment when Kurt Stroude went down hard on a shoulder that was already banged up. But impressively, he skated to the bench instead of the locker room and returned to the ice in the 3rd.

Now then, admittedly a tie is like kissing your sibling, but against a team that has stuck in the knife and twisted it a few times, it almost felt like a win. We carried that momentum into our next game against the Bandits. We were without that entire first line that produced so well in our previous game, but that’s okay because Shae was awesome as usual, and Kevin put the team on his back with 4 points (2 goals, 2 assists), including the game winner with less than 2 minutes left in the game. The game had it’s lighter moments, too, including a 4-player pileup and something I’ve never seen at any level of play: a goalie taking a face-off completely solo (https://youtu.be/_oZGhzgUmqI?t=486)! Everyone (and I mean everyone, except for Savage) was lined up on the right wing circle. The whistle blows and there goes Shae, whacking the puck out of the zone! Overall, it was a great win with a few players having a multi-point night. The captain of the Horned Broncos was in goal for the Bandits, so it was a lot of fun to throw pucks at him all night, and especially fun to put a few past him.

February 2, 2023 8:45pm – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Polar Bears 3 – 2

Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com//oss-scoresheet?game_id=26503&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/-G828tDuaFY
Goals at 2:07, 4:57 and 55:33

Okay, so most of us were at the game anyway, so you don’t really need me to tell you what happened. But I did promise, so here we go.

After a couple tough losses, we pulled out a win against the Polar Bears, the funnest team to play in my opinion. Unlike other teams that will remain nameless, the ‘Bears understand that we’re all really out there to have fun.

Early on, it looked like we might really light up the scoreboard, with goals from Mason and Quaid in the first 5 minutes of the game. Mason’s was particularly sweet as he had his date in the stands. Awwwww….

But if we surprised him early, Nathan engaged the mechanism, facing a total of 53 shots. Now, a few of them were like the ones I offered, hacking away just inches from his pads, but there were lots of other quality shots, not a few of which we were completely sure had gone in from the bench. One of his saves was off the back corner of the blade of his skate?! Holy crap!

After our early lead, the Polar Bears tied it up half way through the 2nd (the first goal was a bit greasy, causing even the great Shae to curl into a ball of regret), and it stayed that way until there was only 4 minutes left in the game, and not a few of us figured we were headed to a tie. But Randy decided he’d had enough of this s**t, took the assist from Quaid and finally poked one past for the game winner!

Overall, we did a fantastic job holding the offensive zone, which you kind of have to do to notch over 50 shots. Our passing was crisp and on-target, including a circus-like centering pass from Marc while on his ass! Looking at the list of penalties (high-sticking, slashing, hooking), you’d think we were all out there swinging clubs like maniacs, but it really was a friendly game.

Let’s go, Hamsters!

It’s been a while since I posted here. Sorry about that, folks. A combination of sickness, work insanity, holidays, and a LiveBarn outage combined to make an extended dry spell for this particular blog. I hope to do better for the rest of the season.

January 28, 2023 10:30pm – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Horned Broncos 4 – 6

Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com//oss-scoresheet?game_id=24490&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/6XvqGJM5BZA
Goals at: 21:49, 30:13, 54:45 and 56:46

January 29, 2023 10:15pm – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North RInk
Muscle Hamsters vs. Bandits 3 – 6

Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com//oss-scoresheet?game_id=24608&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/8jrikj6imw0 (warning: video quality and sound degrade at the end of the 1st)
Goals at: 2:49, 39:53 and 1:01:55

Another weekend of back-to-back games, and with a somewhat shortened bench for the second game. We faced a couple of defeats, one to the Horned Broncos (dang it!), but overall, we can see steady improvements in our team. We still have so much to work on, but there are flashes from time to time that make us believe we will someday be at the top of our division.

Shae continues to be awesome in net for us, and is the main reason we aren’t seeing double-digit scores for the opposing team. He’s consistently facing 30-40 shots a game, with a lot of those being quality chances, but he still finds a way to block most of them.

Our mid-season addition, Mason, has provided some much needed speed and a few highlight-reel moments (we would have actually had those highlight reels if LiveBarn didn’t go dark on us), leading to a couple MVP speeches in the locker room afterward. He’s also helping to bring down the average age of the team, having just turned 22 yesterday.

Chelsie has shown herself to be our “Iron Woman”, showing up at every game (the only team member with a perfect attendance record), even if she just got off a plane from South Carolina. She’s held the offensive zone for us more times than I can count, and can be counted on for critical blocks and steals in the defensive zone.

Overall, the skating, passing ans shooting have improved for all of us. The “passes to nowhere” haven’t disappeared, but as we get used to each other, and we all start covering our responsibilities better, we’re able to count on people to be in certain places, which makes breaking out of our end easier and holding the attack zone better. Good times are ahead for this team.

November 17, 2022 10:15pm – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Polar Bears 8 – 3

Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com/oss-scoresheet?game_id=26522&mode=display
Video Link: https://youtu.be/arSQNspdaaY
Goals at (takes a deep breath…): 7:20, 13:30, 17:11, 22:26, 24:20, 38:31, 45:02 and 55:53

November 20, 2022 7:45pm – Tacoma Twin Rinks – South Rink

Muscle Hamsters vs. Bandits 7 – 2

Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com/oss-scoresheet?game_id=24687&mode=display
Video Link: LiveBarn feed was absolute crap. Here’s the first 2:00: https://youtu.be/oEycc0K16Ds

Our last couple of games really highlight the improvements we are making as a team. Our first meeting with the Polar Bears ended in a 1-1 tie, then they snuck past us with a 2-1 win in our second matchup just a couple weeks later. But this time, we were a different team. Yes, they were very short-handed, which could explain a 1- or 2-goal win for us, but the 8-3 tally at the end of the game was huge for us.

Toward the end of the 2nd period, Randy decided he’d had enough of this defense s**t, and decided to get a little wing action. And yeah, he did okay. I guess. Just a HAT TRICK, and almost a natural at that! If it hadn’t been for Todd channeling his inner goon and taking a roughing penalty that led to a power play goal for the ‘Bears, he would have had the natty hatty. The hit was so vicious, apparently, LiveBarn decided to skip over it, lest young children be watching.

Okay, so a breakout win against a short-handed team that only has a couple more wins than us is one thing. But our next game was against the best team in our division, the Bandits. The last time we met, they pretty much ran over us, but as with the Polar Bears game, this was a much-improved Hamster squad. They scored early, just 23 seconds into the game and a lot of us were thinking, “Okay, here comes another beat-down.” But we quickly turned things around, scoring 5 unanswered goals, prompting Nico to suggest the centers play more back in a defensive mode! This is the Hamsters we’re talking about, here!

Things got a bit chippy when a Bandit kept poking at Shae after he had frozen the puck and Nico “tapped him on the shoulder” and asked him politely to please get the f**k off 😉 . The offending Bandit even had the nerve to drop the gloves (well, one anyway), which spawned some animated discussion on our bench, and in the text chat after the game.

November 13, 2022 6:15p – Tacoma Twin Rinks – South Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Horned Broncos 3 – 2

Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com/oss-scoresheet?game_id=24682&mode=display
Video Replay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sODdQi-7g3E
Goals at 23:04, 42:26 and 1:01:20

I’m back to posting after a couple weeks off. LiveBarn has been so very buggy that I have to babysit the stream to pause and restart when it lags, and I just haven’t had the time to dedicate to it. Anyway, on Sunday we were back on the ice again, once again facing the Horned Broncos, but this time we came away with a win!

We continue to improve. Shae only had to face 24 shots instead of what had become the customary 45+. Chelsie got her first goal, our latest addition Russ joined in the fun, too, and JR even netted a shortie! At one point, we were actually passing the puck around in the offensive zone! We still have lots of areas to improve, but it’s really fun to see us growing as a team. This was our first game without our captain, Seth, who was laid low by the flu, but Chelsie and Justin picked up the slack nicely.

Chadd, unfortunately, continues to be a penalty magnet. He’s been called for body checking when he was standing still, and this time got a cross-checking penalty when he had a stick in his face. I took another forceful trip to the ice, and there was some more post-game “discussion”. It’s going to be interesting to see how things develop between us and the Horned Broncos as the season rolls on. We don’t see them for a couple weeks, so hopefully things cool down.

October 22, 2022 9p – Tacoma Twin Rinks – North Rink
Muscle Hamsters vs. Horned Broncos 3 – 5

Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com/oss-scoresheet?game_id=24433&mode=display
Video Replay: https://youtu.be/w1um8O_bjsw goals at 24:40, 28:50 and 57:11

Feeling confident after we won our opener against the Broncos, we took to the ice in search of win #2. We didn’t have Ryan Reed in net this time, but holy crap, did Shae show up and show out for us! He faced 47 shots on goal, only letting 5 past him. We had far fewer shots (9), but we made the most of them, putting the puck in the net 3 times.

Despite the huge number of shots on goal, this was probably one of our better defensive games. Forwards swapped back when defense went deep in the offensive zone, and several players made key blocks by sacrificing the body. This score could have been so much worse.

October 15, 2022 7p – Tacoma Twin Rinks – South Rink
Nemesis vs. Muscle Hamsters 12 – 2

Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com/oss-scoresheet?game_id=24292&mode=display
Video Replay: None, yet. Will update here when it’s done. Sorry

October 16, 2022 4:45p – Tacoma Twin Rinks – South Rink
Bandits vs. Muscle Hamsters 7 – 3

Game Stats: https://stats.ttr.timetoscore.com/oss-scoresheet?game_id=24665&mode=display
Video Replay: None, yet. Will update here when it’s done. Sorry

Okay, so maybe I’ve been procrastinating on getting this uploaded because these were a couple really tough losses, where we were never really in the hunt. We only had 8 people on the roster for the 15th, and those folks were pretty gassed already when we showed up to play on the 16th.

Still, our lines are starting to gel, and many of us are learning fundamental strategies for our positions (usually by making a big mistake that leads to an opposing goal).