2026 Summer Season 5 Weekly Update

Week 23 delivered two huge games with playoff implications, a battle between the league's top two teams, and one very expensive penalty.

The Knights punched their ticket to the playoffs with a gritty 4–3 victory over the Red Wings, officially condemning Brian Daley and his crew to the dreaded Toilet Bowl. With the Red Wings desperately pressing for the equalizer, Mitch Malin picked a spectacularly bad time to visit the penalty box, taking a penalty with just 1:03 remaining. Somewhere, a toilet flushed.

Meanwhile, the Flames made a statement with a 7–5 victory over first-place TechniPower, closing the gap at the top of the standings to just two points with a game in hand. Scott Pearson and Braden Houston each scored twice, while Tim Conti added another pair to keep the Flames' offense firing.

With the playoffs right around the corner, TechniPower remains in the driver's seat, but the Flames are making things very interesting.

Knights Clinch Playoff Berth

The Knights jumped out to a 3–1 first-period lead behind goals from Mike Zowine, Jerome Feuiltault, and Stephen Fisher. The Red Wings battled back with goals from Mitch Malin and Dru Trimble, but Paul Asman's third-period winner proved decisive.

With the season on the line, the Red Wings pushed for the tying goal until Mitch Malin's penalty with 1:03 remaining effectively ended their comeback hopes.

The Knights are playoff-bound. The Red Wings are Toilet Bowl-bound. Captain Brian Daley may want to start shopping for a plunger.

Box Score

Game 1: Red Wings 3 vs Knights 4

First Period

• 18:30 Red Wings - Josh Josephson
• 14:50 Knights - Mike Zowine
• 8:55 Knights - Jerome Feuiltault
• 3:34 Knights - Stephen Fisher

Second Period

• 14:55 Red Wings - Mitch Malin

Third Period

• 16:18 Knights - Paul Asman (GW)
• 14:26 Red Wings - Dru Trimble

Shots on Goal By:

• Red Wings - 29
• Knights - 35

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Red Wings - Bill Yox .886%
• Knights - Paul Gwyn .897%



Battle for First Place

The Flames came alive in the second period, scoring five times to turn a 1–0 deficit into a 5–3 lead. Scott Pearson and Tim Conti each scored twice, while Braden Houston added two third-period goals to secure the victory. Ron Shostak answered with two goals for TechniPower.

The victory moves the Flames within two points of first place with a game in hand, setting up an exciting finish to the regular season.

Box Score

Game 2: TechniPower 5 vs Flames 7

First Period

• 5:01 TechniPower - Ron Shostak

Second Period

• 21:23 Flames - Scott Pearson
• 16:10 Flames - Tim Conti
• 8:23 TechniPower - Tom Dolan
• 5:15 Flames - Tim Conti
• 1:35 TechniPower - Jeff Moonshower
• 0:50 Flames - Tyler Edgarton 
• 0:06 Flames - Scott Pearson (GW)

Third Period

• 19:04 Flames - Braden Houston
• 17:30 TechniPower - Rick Fossier
• 13:50 TechniPower - Ron Shostak
• 12:35 Flames - Braden Houston 

Shots on Goal By:

• TechniPower - 39
• Flames - 39

Goaltender Save Percentage

• TechniPower - Sean Wheale .821%
• Flames - Dave Gibbard .872

TechniPower (26 points): Still the team to beat, sporting the league's best record and an impressive +27 goal differential. However, the loss to the Flames proves they aren't invincible.

Flames (24 points): The league's highest-scoring team with 99 goals and a game in hand. Their late-season surge makes them a serious contender for the top seed.

Stars (19 points): The defending champions sit comfortably in third place. Don't underestimate a team that knows how to win when the games matter most.

Knights (14 points): Six wins, a -26 goal differential, and a playoff berth. It hasn't always been pretty, but the Knights have survived. Their next challenge is proving they belong.

Red Wings (11 points): Despite scoring 86 goals, the Wings have surrendered a league-high 101. Their season has featured plenty of offense, questionable defense, and now a date with the Toilet Bowl. Brian Daley has some explaining to do.

Rick Fossier leads the league with 45 points, holding a four-point advantage over Tim Conti. Fossier's 29 assists are also the league's highest total, making him the engine behind TechniPower's offense.

Tim Conti isn't going quietly. The reigning scoring champion has 41 points, and with the Flames heating up, another scoring title is still within reach.

TechniPower's offensive depth is remarkable. Four of the top five scorers wear TechniPower jerseys, with Fossier, Lozano, Moonshower, and Shostak combining for 138 points.

Scott Pearson is playing in a different league. His 24 points in just five games translate to an absurd 4.80 points per game. Fortunately for the rest of ATL50, he's a substitute.

Live from the ATL50 studios, where playoff dreams are made, reputations are destroyed, and nobody is taking responsibility for the Red Wings.

Host: "Welcome back to the ATL50 Hockey Hotline! Week 23 is in the books. The Knights are in, the Red Wings are out, and TechniPower suddenly has the Flames breathing down its neck. Let's go to the phones!"

CALLER #1 – BRIAN FROM THE BAR

Host: "Brian, you're on the air. What's on your mind?"

Brian: "I'd just like to know how we can score 86 goals and finish dead last."

Analyst: "Well, Brian, giving up 101 is generally considered a contributing factor."

Brian: "But we have some of the best offensive players in the league!"

Analyst: "Absolutely. Unfortunately, hockey also involves preventing the other team from scoring."

Host: "Thanks for calling, Brian. Enjoy the Toilet Bowl. And remember, the first step toward fixing a problem is admitting you have a defense."

CALLER #2 – MITCH FROM THE PENALTY BOX

Host: "Mitch, you're live. Tough loss last night."

Mitch: "I don't think that penalty with 1:03 left was necessary."

Analyst: "Neither did your teammates."

Mitch: "The ref was being a little sensitive."

Analyst: "Mitch, you're trailing by one, fighting for your playoff life, and there's barely a minute left. At that point, your stick should be used exclusively for hockey."

Host: "On the bright side, Mitch, you'll have plenty of time to discuss it during the Toilet Bowl."

CALLER #3 – RICK FROM TECHNIPOWER

Host: "Rick, you're leading the league with 45 points. How concerned are you about the Flames?"

Rick: "Not concerned. We're still in first place."

Analyst: "True. But the Flames just put seven past you, have scored 99 goals this season, and are only two points back."

Rick: "We've got four of the top five scorers and if it wasn't for that all world glove save Gibby made on me in the third period we would have won."

Analyst: "That's impressive four of the top five scorers. Have you considered using one or two of them to play defense?"

Host: "Things are getting warm at the top of the standings!"

CALLER #4 – ROBBIE FROM AN UNDISCLOSED LOCATION

Host: "Robbie Moore! Good to hear from you. We haven't seen you in the last 3 weeks. Is this a private Red Wings protest. They needed you tonight. 

Robbie: "I'm just concentrating on my personal life. My mommy and daddy are coming to town this week so I have to prepare".

Analyst: "That's sweetie little Robbie". No sure your teammates agree

CALLER #5 – JEROME FROM THE PLAYOFFS

Host: "Jerome, congratulations! The Knights are officially playoff-bound."

Jerome: "Thanks. Nobody believed in us."

Analyst: "Well, Jerome, you're 6–10–2 with a minus-26 goal differential. There were some legitimate statistical concerns."

Jerome: "Doesn't matter. We're in!"

Analyst: "And that's all that matters. The regular season is about getting into the playoffs. Just remember, you might want to bring some defense with you."

Host: "The Knights are proof that sometimes survival is the greatest achievement!"

CALLER #6 – JIM FROM HIS BASEMENT CRUNCHING PLUS/MINUS STATS

Host: "Jim, what are you up to tonight?"

Jim: "Just down in the basement updating my plus/minus spreadsheet. I've got 23 weeks of data, three monitors, and some very interesting trends."

Analyst: "Jim, did you happen to catch that unbelievable glove save Dave Gibbard made on Rick Fossier in the third period?"

Jim: "I did, but I'm still trying to determine how that save affects the Flames' overall plus/minus."

Host: "Jim, forget the spreadsheet for a second! Fossier thought he had a sure goal, and Gibbard absolutely robbed him!"

Jim: "Well, technically, a save doesn't count towards "my" plus/minus because I was not on the ice, so I'm not sure why everyone is so excited."

Analyst: "Jim, that's because some of us actually watch the games instead of analyzing them in Excel!"

Host: "Thanks for calling, Jim. Now get back to your basement. Somewhere there's a minus-three that needs explaining!"

Final Word from the TSN Panel

Host: "So there you have it, folks. TechniPower is still first, but the Flames are closing fast. The Stars are quietly waiting to defend their crown, the Knights have escaped the Toilet Bowl, and the Red Wings are wondering how everything went so wrong."

Analyst: "I'll tell you one thing. If the playoffs are anything like Week 23, we're in for a wild finish."

Host: "And remember, in ATL50 hockey, you don't have to be the best team all season. You just have to be the best team when it counts."

Except the Red Wings. Their next challenge involves porcelain.

Stay tuned for another exciting week of ATL50 hockey!

The Flames Bring the Heat, TechniPower Keeps Rolling, and the Toilet Bowl Is Calling!

Week 22 delivered two convincing victories as the Flames extinguished the Stars 5–2, while TechniPower continued its march toward the regular-season title with a 4–1 victory over the Red Wings.

With the playoffs approaching, TechniPower has established itself as the team to beat, the Flames are looking increasingly dangerous, and the Red Wings and Knights are preparing for what could be the most anticipated Toilet Bowl showdown in ATL50 history.

GAME SUMMARY

The Flames turned up the heat in the second period, scoring four goals to cruise past the defending champion Stars 5–2. Mike Jones led the charge with two goals, while Craig Maxwell delivered the game-winner and Tim Conti and John Knudsen added to the offensive fireworks.

Jim Kaufman was the lone bright spot for the Stars, scoring both goals, including one on the power play. Unfortunately, the rest of the Stars' offense apparently decided to take the night off.

The Flames continue to establish themselves as legitimate championship contenders, while the three-time defending champions are looking increasingly mortal. The Stars still have their championship pedigree, but at this rate, they may need to bring their old championship trophies onto the ice to intimidate somebody.

Bottom Line: The Flames are heating up at exactly the right time, while the Stars are discovering that defending a dynasty is considerably harder than talking about one.

Box Score

Game 1: Stars 2 vs Flames 5

First Period

• No scoring

Second Period

• 21:27 Flames - Mike Jones
• 17:10 Flames - Mike Jones
• 10:21 Stars - Jim Kaufman
• 2:22 Flames - Craig Maxwell (GW)
• 0:22 Flames - Tim Conti

Third Period

• 17:10 Flames - John Knudsen
• 14:44 Stars - Jim Kaufman (PP)

Shots on Goal By:

• Stars - 39
• Flames 32

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Stars Paul Gwyn - .844
• Flames Dave Gibbard - .949

GAME SUMMARY

TechniPower continued its dominance with a methodical 4–1 victory over the Red Wings. Rick Fossier opened the scoring, Ron Shostak scored twice, including the game-winner, and Tom Dolan added some third-period insurance.

Mike Legros provided the lone Red Wings goal, while Sean Wheale delivered an outstanding performance, stopping 33 of 34 shots for a .971 save percentage.

TechniPower outshot Detroit's finest 43–34 and improved to a league-leading 13–5 record. Meanwhile, the Red Wings fell to 5–12–1, leaving their fans wondering whether the team's next victory will arrive before the next NHL expansion franchise.

Player of the Game: Sean Wheale – 33 saves, .971 save percentage. The Red Wings managed one goal, which apparently counts as offensive progress these days.

Box Score

Game 2: Red Wings 1 vs TechniPower 4

First Period 

• 20:31 TechniPower - Rick Fossier 
• 16:13 Red Wings - Mike Legros

Second Period 

• 14:39 TechniPower - Ron Shostak (GW) 
• 9:50 TechniPower - Ron Shostak

Third Period 

• 7:52 TechniPower - Tom Dolan

Shots on Goal By: 

• Red Wings - 34 
• TechniPower - 43

Goaltender Save Percentage 

• Red Wings Bill Yox - .907 
• TechniPower Sean Wheale - .971

The top three teams have clinched playoff spots, as indicated by the standings. The Knights and Red Wings remain in contention for the final playoff position.

TechniPower – The Team to Beat: With 26 points and a league-best +29 goal differential, TechniPower has become the regular season's measuring stick. Its 90 goals scored and league-low 61 goals allowed are an impressive combination of offense and defense.

Flames – Heating Up at the Right Time: At 10 wins and 22 points, the Flames are four points behind TechniPower with a game in hand. Their 92 goals lead the league, and they have the offensive firepower to challenge anyone.

Stars – The Dynasty Is Looking Vulnerable: The three-time champions sit third with 19 points and a -2 goal differential. They've scored 71 goals while allowing 73. The championship banners still look great, but the current standings aren't quite as impressive.

Knights vs. Red Wings – The Toilet Bowl Watch: Just one point separates these two teams. The Knights have the league's worst goal differential at -27, while the Red Wings have allowed a league-high 97 goals. One team struggles to score, the other struggles to stop opponents from scoring. Something has to give.

Rick Fossier is in the driver's seat. With 42 points in 17 games, Fossier leads Tim Conti by four points and has accumulated a league-leading 27 assists. Apparently, passing the puck to teammates is an effective strategy. Someone should share that information with the rest of the league.

Tim Conti isn't going away. The defending scoring champion has 38 points and continues to power the Flames' offense. With 15 goals and 23 assists, another scoring title remains within reach.

Mike Lozano is the league's top goal scorer. His 18 goals lead all regular roster players, while TechniPower teammates Fossier and Moonshower give the league leaders three of the top four scorers.

Robbie Moore – The Disappearing Goal Scorer. Once known for putting the puck in the net, Robbie now has six goals in 15 games. His 17 assists suggest he's discovered the joy of passing. His 16 penalty minutes suggest he hasn't completely abandoned his other hobbies.

Scott Anderson continues to lead the goaltending rankings with a .908 save percentage and league-best 3.71 GAA.

Dave Gibbard moved into second among the regular goalies with a .895 save percentage, helped by his outstanding .949 performance against the Stars.

Sean Wheale leads all goalies with 719 shots faced and continues to be a workhorse for TechniPower. His .971 performance this week was the best of the night.

Paul Gwyn and Bill Yox continue to face their own unique challenges. Gwyn plays behind a Knights team with a -27 goal differential, while Yox has watched 96 pucks enter the Red Wings' net. At this point, both goalies may be asking whether their contracts include hazard pay.

THE POSTGAME CALL-IN SHOW – WHERE EVERYONE IS AN EXPERT AND NOBODY IS QUALIFIED

Host – James Duthie: "Welcome back to the ATL50 Hockey Hotline, where the hockey is competitive, the excuses are legendary, and the postgame beer is occasionally the best part of the evening. Boys, Week 22 is in the books. What stood out?"

Ray Ferraro: "TechniPower, James. Thirteen wins, a +29 goal differential, and Rick Fossier leading the league with 42 points. They've got everything working right now. Meanwhile, the Red Wings have given up 97 goals. That's not a defensive system. That's a public skating session with scorekeepers."

Duthie: "Let's go to our first caller. Larry from Detroit, you're on the air."

Caller Larry: "Yeah, I just want to know when Robbie Moore is coming back."

Ferraro: "What do you mean? He's played 15 games!"

Caller Larry: "No, I mean the Robbie Moore who used to score goals."

Jeff O'Neill: "Larry, that Robbie is apparently on an extended vacation after falling off a ladder painting his house. The new Robbie is a playmaker. Seventeen assists, six goals, and 16 penalty minutes. He's reinvented himself as a combination of Wayne Gretzky and a parking-lot argument."

Duthie: "We've got another caller. Pete from the Stars, go ahead."

Caller Pete: "We're three-time champions. Why is everyone writing us off?"

O'Neill: "Pete, nobody is writing you off. We're just wondering why a team with three championships has a negative goal differential and is sitting seven points behind TechniPower."

Ferraro: "They're saving themselves for the playoffs."

O'Neill: "Yeah, Ray, they've been saving themselves for about 18 games now."

Duthie: "Next up, we've got Dave from the Flames. Dave, congratulations on the big 5–2 win over the defending champions. What's on your mind?"

Caller Dave: "Thanks, James. Just wondering when people are going to start taking the Flames seriously. We've got the most goals in the league, we're in second place, and we just beat the three-time champions."

O'Neill: "Dave, people are taking the Flames seriously. The problem is your team has spent five seasons telling everyone how good they are. We're just surprised the results are finally catching up with the speeches."

Ferraro: "Come on, O! They've got Conti chasing another scoring title, Brad Graf putting up big numbers, and now Mike Jones scoring twice. This team is dangerous."

O'Neill: "Absolutely, Ray. And with Brad Graf as captain, they're never short on confidence. In fact, I hear the Flames have already booked their championship parade. They're just waiting for someone to tell them where it starts."

Caller Dave: "You guys are going to look pretty stupid when we win the Cup."

O'Neill: "Dave, we're talking about a league where the championship celebration involves a case of Labatt Blue Light in the parking lot. Let's keep things in perspective."

Duthie: "Thanks for calling, Dave. And congratulations again on the win."

O'Neill: "Wait, James. Was that their goalie calling again?"

Duthie: "I believe it was."

O'Neill: "Unbelievable. Even when the Flames score five goals, the goalie still finds a way to get himself on television."

Duthie: "One more caller. Gary from the Knights, you're on."

Caller Gary: "I don't understand why everyone keeps talking about the Toilet Bowl. We're one point ahead of the Red Wings."

O'Neill: "Gary, that's exactly why we're talking about it. Your team is minus 27, the Red Wings have allowed 97 goals, and next week you play each other. This isn't just a hockey game. It's a scientific experiment to determine what happens when an unstoppable scoring drought meets an immovable defensive disaster."

Ferraro: "To be fair, O, somebody has to win."

O'Neill: "Not necessarily, Ray. This league has ties."

Duthie: "And on that encouraging note, we'll move on to next week's predictions."

TechniPower vs Flames

First place vs second place. TechniPower brings the league's best defense, while the Flames bring the most goals. A potential championship preview with serious bragging rights on the line.

Red Wings vs Knights – Toilet Bowl Implications

The Red Wings trail the Knights by just one point in the race to avoid last place. With the final playoff spot also in play, this is a game neither team can afford to lose. Unfortunately, losing has become something both teams are very comfortable doing.

Duthie: "So there you have it. TechniPower looks like a championship contender, the Flames are heating up, the Stars are hoping their playoff experience counts for something, and the Knights and Red Wings are preparing for a showdown that could define their seasons."

O'Neill: "And remember, James, somebody is going to finish last. But in ATL50, everybody gets a beer."

Ferraro: "That's probably the only statistic nobody complains about."

Duthie: "For Ray Ferraro, Jeff O'Neill, and everyone at the ATL50 Hockey Hotline, good night. And remember — keep your sticks down, your heads up, and your excuses ready!"

🏒 ATL50 – Where the Hockey Is Real, the Rivalries Are Personal, and the Postgame Stories Get Better Every Week!

Week 21 featured two very different games. The Knights had TechniPower on the ropes with a 4–2 third-period lead before TechniPower scored four unanswered to steal a 6–4 win. In Game 2, the Stars and Red Wings traded goals for two periods before the Stars pulled away in the third for an 8–5 victory.

The Knights looked ready to hand TechniPower a loss after Jerome Feuiltault’s second goal gave them a 4–2 lead early in the third. Then the game flipped. Trevor Maurer started the comeback, Mike Lozano tied it and eventually scored the game-winner, Rick Fossier added some insurance, and Lozano completed the hat trick into the empty net. Four unanswered goals turned a two-goal deficit into a 6–4 TechniPower win.

Game 1: Knights 4 vs TechniPower 6

First Period

• 17:40 TechniPower - Jeff Moonshower
• 4:23 Knights - Terry Drago (PP)

Second Period

• 19:15 Knights - Jerome Feuiltault
• 17:10 TechniPower - Mike Lozano

Third Period

• 18:55 Knights - Mike Zowine
• 16:30 Knights - Jerome Feuiltault
• 12:26 TechniPower - Trevor Maurer
• 9:21 TechniPower - Mike Lozano (GW)
• 7:15 TechniPower - Rick Fossier
• 0:15 TechniPower - Mike Lozano (EN)

Shots on Goal by:

• Knights - 28
• TechniPower - 24

Goalies

• Sean Wheale - TechniPower
• Paul Gwyn - Knights

This one was a track meet through two periods, with the Stars holding a narrow 4–3 lead. The Red Wings stayed within striking distance until the third, when the Stars finally broke it open. Jamie Henkemeyer scored his second of the night before Jason Bastow struck twice, including the game-winner. Dan Costa also scored twice, while Mike Carlton and Josh Josephson each had two goals for the Wings.

Game 2: Red Wings 5 vs Stars 8

First Period

• 15:55 Stars - Jamie Henkemeyer (PP)
• 8:55 Red Wings - Mike Carlton
• 0:55 Stars - Dan Costa (PP)

Second Period

• 21:10 Red Wings - Josh Josephson
• 15:31 Stars - Dan Costa
• 13:35 Red Wings - Mike Carlton
• 4:38 Stars - Jim Kaufman
• 2:25 Red Wings - Braden Houston

Third Period

• 13:23 Stars - Jamie Henkemeyer
• 11:56 Stars - Jason Bastow (GW)
• 10:41 Stars - Jason Bastow
• 5:20 Red Wings - Josh Josephson
• 2:47 Stars - Robin Staveley (PP)

Shots on Goal by:

• Red Wings - 34
• Stars - 51

Goalies

• Red Wings - Bill Yox
• Stars - Dave Gibbard

HOST: Welcome back to the ATL50 Postgame Call-In Show, where the periods are 22 minutes, the legs are considerably older, and no lead should ever be considered safe.

CALLER #1 – “Knight Rider”

Caller: We were up 4–2 in the third. FOUR–TWO! What happened?

HOST: Apparently the Knights thought 16:30 remaining meant the game was over.

Caller: Four straight goals!

HOST: Correct. That’s generally considered a problem.

CALLER #2 – “Power Surge”

Caller: Can we finally get some respect for TechniPower?

HOST: You were down 4–2.

Caller: And won 6–4.

HOST: Fair point.

Caller: Lozano hat trick. Four unanswered. First place hockey!

HOST: Easy. We said respect, not a parade permit.

CALLER #3 – “Wingless in Atlanta”

Caller: Five goals should be enough to win a hockey game.

HOST: Usually helps if you don't give up eight.

Caller: We were only down 4–3 after two!

HOST: And then Jason Bastow showed up and ruined your evening.

Caller: But the real question — where is Robbie Moore?

HOST: Mystery solved. Robbie was at a concert with his daughter.

Caller: During the playoff push?!

HOST: Apparently so. After years of “I got the puck, don’t touch me now,” Robbie has finally discovered something more important than hockey.

Caller: Family?

HOST: Concert tickets.

Caller: So he'll be back next week?

HOST: We assume so. The Red Wings are hoping Robbie returns refreshed, recharged, and ready to get back to doing what he does best.

Caller: Scoring goals?

HOST: We were going to say arguing about penalties, but goals would certainly help.

CALLER #4 – “Seeing Stars”

Caller: Eight goals. Costa with two. Henkemeyer with two. Bastow with two. Balanced scoring!

HOST: And three power-play goals.

Caller: Pete March has this team peaking at the right time.

HOST: Careful. Compliment Pete too much and we'll be hearing about his three championships before this call ends.

Caller: Three championships!

HOST: Too late.

HOST: That’ll do it for Week 21. TechniPower turns a 4–2 third-period deficit into a 6–4 win, the Stars hang eight on the Red Wings, and somewhere in Atlanta the Knights are still trying to figure out how a two-goal lead disappeared in about seven minutes.

Twenty-one weeks down. The standings are getting serious.

The call-in show? Absolutely not.

With four games remaining in the regular season, TechniPower and the Flames have officially punched their tickets to the playoffs, while the Stars took a major step toward joining them with a 4-3 win over the Knights.

The Flames continued their offensive assault with a 9-5 win over the Red Wings, while the Stars survived a furious Knights comeback behind 40 saves from Martin Cizek.

First Period

• 16:22 Flames - Tim Conti
• 13:56 Flames - Tim Conti
• 12:15 Flames - Travis Estabrooks
• 7:23 Red Wings - Mitch Malin
• 6:50 Flames - Aaron Wood
• 0:16 Flames - Travis Estabrooks

Second Period

• 18:16 Flames - John Knudsen (GW)
• 14:10 Flames - Tyler Edgarton
• 0:33 Red Wings - Mitch Malin

Third Period

• 16:10 Red Wings - Brian Spratt (PP)
• 6:50 Red Wings - Andrew Feinberg
• 6:20 Red Wings - Josh Josephson
• 2:13 Flames - Travis Estabrooks
• 1:29 Flames - Tyler Edgarton

Shots on Goal By:

• Red Wings - 46
• Flames - 45

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Red Wings - Bill Yox .800
• Flames - Dave Gibbard .898

The Flames apparently decided 22-minute periods were simply too much hockey to play before putting this one away.

Tim Conti scored twice in the opening nine minutes, Travis Estabrooks added two more, and Aaron Wood chipped in as the Flames built a 5-1 first-period lead. At that point the Red Wings' defensive strategy appeared to be, “Maybe they'll get tired of scoring.”

They didn't.

John Knudsen scored what turned out to be the game-winner in the second, and Tyler Edgarton made it 7-1 before Mitch Malin scored his second of the night.

Give the Red Wings credit: they didn't fold. Brian Spratt, Andrew Feinberg and Josh Josephson scored in the third to make it 7-5 and briefly turn what looked like a blowout into an actual hockey game.

Unfortunately, the Flames noticed.

Estabrooks completed the hat trick and Edgarton added his second to finish off a 9-5 Flames victory.

The Red Wings actually outshot the Flames 46-45, but Dave Gibbard stopped 41 of 46 for an .898 save percentage. Bill Yox faced 45 shots at the other end and probably spent Thursday morning checking whether his defensemen had accidentally been traded during warmups.

First Period

• 16:27 Stars - Jason Bastow
• 13:04 Stars - Marc Salatino
• 8:10 Stars - Steve Woods

Second Period

• 9:24 Knights - Erik Hendricks

Third Period

• 16:05 Knights - Jerome Feuiltault
• 13:30 Stars - Pete March (GW)
• 4:50 Knights - Chris Quinn

Shots on Goal By:

• Stars - 32
• Knights - 43

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Stars - Martin Cizek .930
• Knights - Sean Wheale .875

The Stars jumped all over the Knights early.

Jason Bastow, Marc Salatino and Steve Woods scored in the first period to give the Stars a 3-0 lead, which apparently triggered the Stars' patented strategy of making the rest of the game considerably more stressful than necessary.

Erik Hendricks got the Knights on the board in the second, and Jerome Feuiltault made it 3-2 early in the third.

Captain Pete March then scored the eventual game-winner to restore the two-goal cushion before Chris Quinn answered with 4:50 remaining.

The Knights couldn't find the equalizer, and the Stars escaped with a 4-3 victory despite being outshot 43-32.

The difference was Martin Cizek, who stopped 40 of 43 shots for a .930 save percentage. Sean Wheale stopped 28 of 32 at the other end.

The Stars got the two points. The Knights got another reminder that dominating the shot clock is considerably less useful when the other goalie keeps stopping the puck.

HOST:

Four games remain, TechniPower and the Flames have clinched, and somehow the former Toilet Bowl dynasty is sitting in first place.

TechniPower is 11-5 with 22 points and a +24 differential.

ANALYST 1:

Three straight Toilet Bowls followed by first place. That's not rebuilding. That's witness protection.

ANALYST 2:

I'm requesting an investigation into Jeff McCoy.

HOST:

The Flames are two points back with 20 and lead the league with 87 goals after beating the Red Wings 9-5.

ANALYST 1:

The Flames' strategy is simple: score so many goals that defense becomes optional.

HOST:

The Stars have 17 points after surviving the Knights 4-3 despite being outshot 43-32. Martin Cizek stopped 40 shots.

ANALYST 2:

That's not a defensive system. That's called, “Martin, please save us.”

Then comes the race for the final playoff spot.

Knights: 12 points. Red Wings: 11.

The Knights somehow hold fourth place despite a -25 goal differential.

ANALYST 1:

Proof that in ATL50, you don't necessarily have to be good. You just have to be slightly less unsuccessful than somebody else.

HOST:

And the big question in the Red Wings locker room:

Where has Robbie Moore gone?

He's still their leading scorer with 23 points, including 17 assists, but only six goals.

ANALYST 2:

Robbie Moore becoming a pass-first player was not on my ATL50 bingo card.

ANALYST 1:

Maybe he's matured.

ANALYST 2:

Let's not say things we can't prove.

The Red Wings are only one point out of a playoff spot, so this would be a very convenient time for Robbie to rediscover his scoring touch.

Meanwhile, the scoring championship is a two-man race.

Rick Fossier: 38 points. Tim Conti: 36.

And TechniPower has three of the top four regular-player scorers with Fossier, Mike Lozano and Jeff Moonshower.

ANALYST 1:

Again — Jeff McCoy investigation.

HOST:

Four games left. TechniPower and the Flames have clinched. The Stars are closing in. The Knights and Red Wings are separated by one point. Fossier and Conti are separated by two.

ANALYST 2:

And Robbie?

HOST:

Still leading the Red Wings in scoring.

ANALYST 1:

We'd just like to see him remember where the net is.

HOST:

Four games to go. This should be fun.

It was a tough week for the ATL50 Goaltending Union except for Yoxie who was strong in the Red Wings net. The league’s shooters apparently decided 22-minute periods weren’t long enough and used nearly every one of those minutes to make life miserable for the guys wearing the big pads.

The two games produced 28 goals and 171 shots on goal, with three of the four goaltenders finishing below .835. The lone survivor was Yoxie, who turned aside 33 of 36 shots for a .917 save percentage while the Red Wings exploded for nine goals.

The night also featured the Scott Pearson Show. Pearson scored six goals, including the game-winner, a power-play goal and a shorthanded goal, as the Red Wings buried the Knights 9–3. In Game 2, TechniPower jumped out to a 6–0 lead, watched the Flames make things uncomfortable, and ultimately survived a wild 9–7 shootout.

After Week 18, TechniPower remains firmly in first place at 10–5 with 20 points and a league-best +22 goal differential. The Flames and Stars remain locked in the battle behind them, while the Red Wings' convincing win may have given them some late-season life.

The Knights and Red Wings were tied 3–3 after two periods before the Scott Pearson Show took over. Pearson scored the shorthanded game-winner early in the third and finished with six goals, including four in the final period, as the Red Wings exploded for six unanswered goals and a 9–3 win. Bill Yox was the only goalie to escape the night unscathed, stopping 33 of 36 shots for a .917 save percentage.

First Period

• 21:00 Knights - Gary Wiseman
• 8:51 Red Wings - Scott Pearson
• 8:01 Red Wings - Dru Trimble

Second Period

• 15:16 Knights - Mike Zowine
• 11:16 Red Wings - Scott Pearson (PP)
• 4:38 Knights - Sanj Joshi

Third Period

• 18:49 Red Wings - Scott Pearson (GW) (SH)
• 16:18 Red Wings - Scott Pearson
• 11:58 Red Wings - Scott Pearson
• 7:23 Red Wings - Shawn Dooley
• 5:24 Red Wings - Dru Trimble
• 0:30 Red Wings - Scott Pearson (PP)

Shots on Goal

• Knights - 36
• Red Wings - 53

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Knights - Paul Gwyn .830
• Red Wings - Bill Yox .917

TechniPower jumped all over the Flames, building a 6–0 lead behind Jeff Moonshower and Mike Lozano before the Flames finally woke up. Aaron Wood led the comeback with a hat trick, but TechniPower held on for a wild 9–7 victory. Moonshower scored four goals, Lozano had a hat trick, and TechniPower improved to 10–5 with a league-best +22 goal differential.

First Period

• 13:11 TechniPower - Jeff Moonshower
• 10:21 TechniPower - Jeff Moonshower
• 9:21 TechniPower - Mike Lozano
• 6:50 TechniPower - Ron Shostak

Second Period

• 16:10 TechniPower - Jeff Moonshower
• 13:22 TechniPower - Mike Lozano (PP)
• 11:38 Flames - Aaron Wood
• 8:58 Flames - Aaron Wood
• 6:44 Flames - Brian Sadlock
• 3:19 TechniPower - Mike Lozano (GW)
• 1:23 Flames - Paul Haarer

Third Period

• 19:56 Flames - Brian Sadlock (PP)
• 16:56 TechniPower - Jeff McCoy
• 13:45 Flames - Mike Jones
• 9:01 TechniPower - Jeff Moonshower
• 1:11 Flames Aaron Wood

Shots on Goal

• Flames - 42
• TechniPower - 40

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Flames - Dave Gibbard .775
• TechniPower - Sean Wheale .833

HOST: Welcome back to ATL50 After Dark, where the periods are 22 minutes, the players are over 50, and apparently defense was optional this week. Twenty-eight goals in two games. Let's go immediately to the phones.

HOST: First caller, you're on TSN.

CALLER — “Anonymous Goaltender”: I'd just like to know who approved 22-minute periods.

HOST: The league commissioner.

CALLER: I'd like his home address.

HOST: I believe you already know where he lives, Dave.

CALLER: No further questions.

HOST: Next caller, “Yoxie Fan Club,” you're on the air.

CALLER: Can we acknowledge that Bill Yox was the only goalie who showed up with actual goaltending equipment instead of a fishing net?

HOST: .917 save percentage on 36 shots.

CALLER: Meanwhile the other game had 16 goals.

HOST: Correct.

CALLER: So does Yox get Goaltender of the Week?

HOST: He gets Goaltender of the Week, a complimentary beverage and the right to laugh at the other three goalies until next Wednesday.

HOST: We've got “Pearson's Accountant” on Line 3.

CALLER: I'm trying to calculate Scott Pearson's scoring rate.

HOST: Twenty goals in five games.

CALLER: That seems excessive.

HOST: Four goals per game.

CALLER: He's a substitute!

HOST: Yes.

CALLER: Aren't substitutes supposed to fill in?

HOST: Apparently Pearson interprets “fill in” as “score six goals and destroy everyone's evening.”

HOST: Line 4, “Concerned Knights Defenseman.”

CALLER: We were tied 3–3 entering the third.

HOST: You were.

CALLER: Then Pearson scored four goals.

HOST: Correct.

CALLER: And the Red Wings scored six.

HOST: Also correct.

CALLER: Can we just say the game ended after two periods?

HOST: Unfortunately Crossbar keeps records.

CALLER: Damn technology.

HOST: Next up, “Flames Optimist.”

CALLER: Look, everybody's talking about us giving up six straight goals. Nobody's talking about the comeback.

HOST: You were down 6–0.

CALLER: Details. We scored seven.

HOST: You also allowed nine.

CALLER: Again...details.

HOST: Fair enough. You did make it interesting.

CALLER: That's Flames hockey.

HOST: Your goaltender had a .775 save percentage.

CALLER: I said interesting, not good.

HOST: We have “TechniPower Dynasty Guy” on Line 6.

CALLER: First place. Ten wins. Twenty points. Plus-22. That's all I wanted to say.

HOST: You gave up seven goals.

CALLER: First place.

HOST: The Flames had 42 shots.

CALLER: Plus-22.

HOST: You nearly blew a 6–0 lead.

CALLER: Twenty points.

HOST: Okay, we get it.

HOST: Last caller. “League Historian,” you're on TSN.

CALLER: I'd just like to point out that TechniPower used to be synonymous with the Toilet Bowl.

HOST: Three-time winner.

CALLER: And now they're 10–5, first place and +22?

HOST: Correct.

CALLER: So we're just pretending this is normal?

HOST: Nothing about ATL50 is normal.

CALLER: Fair point.

HOST: And that's our show. Week 18 gave us 28 goals, 171 shots, one happy goalie, three goalies looking for defensive help, six goals from Scott Pearson, a six-goal lead that nearly disappeared, and TechniPower sitting alone atop the standings.

We'll see everyone next Wednesday — when the Goaltending Union has formally requested that the league return to 20-minute periods, widen the goalie equipment, and ban Scott Pearson.



Week 16 gave us a little bit of everything: an overtime thriller, a four-goal comeback, a goaltending clinic, and one game that was competitive right up until TechniPower decided it wasn’t.

In Game 1, the Stars built a 4-2 second-period lead before the Flames erased it with two unanswered goals in the third. Neither team could settle things during the remainder of regulation, sending the game to overtime, where Pete March scored his second goal of the night to give the Stars a 5-4 victory.

Game 2 was a completely different story. The Red Wings hung around through the first half of the game and tied it 1-1 in the second period. Then Rick Fossier scored shorthanded, and apparently TechniPower took that as permission to spend the rest of the evening filling the Red Wings' net. TechniPower scored six unanswered goals to cruise to a 7-1 victory. Fossier finished with two goals and three assists, Ron Shostak had four points, and Sean Wheale stopped 42 of 43 shots for a ridiculous .977 save percentage.

For the first 22 minutes, the Stars and Flames apparently agreed that scoring was optional. That agreement expired quickly in the second period.

Pete March opened the scoring for the Stars, and Steve Woods followed to make it 2-0. Craig Robson answered for the Flames, but Dan Costa scored on the power play and Robin Staveley added another to put the Stars ahead 4-1.

At that point, the Flames could have started thinking about Game 14. Instead, Paul Haarer scored late in the second to cut the deficit to 4-2 and give them some life.

The third period belonged to the Flames. Craig Maxwell made it 4-3, and Barry Danckert completed the comeback at 11:11, tying the game at four. With both teams getting chances but neither able to finish the job, the game headed to overtime.

That's when Pete March decided he'd had enough.

March scored at 2:24 of overtime for his second goal of the game, giving the Stars a 5-4 victory and ending the Flames' comeback one goal short.

The goaltenders were busy all night. The Flames put 48 shots on Scott Anderson, who stopped 44 for a .917 save percentage. Dave Gibbard faced 44 at the other end as the two teams combined for 92 shots on goal.

The Flames get credit for fighting back from 4-1 down.

Unfortunately, ATL50 does not award points for moral victories, inspirational comebacks, or "we almost had them."

First Period

• No Scoring

Second Period

• 15:10 Stars - Pete March
• 11:58 Stars - Steve Woods
• 9:37 Flames - Craig Robson
• 7:10 Stars - Dan Costa (PP)
• 3:23 Stars - Robin Staveley
• 2:50 Flames - Paul Haarer

Third Period

• 15:05 Flames - Craig Maxwell
• 11:11 Flames - Barry Danckert

Overtime

• 2:24 Stars - Pete March (GW)

Shots of Goal

• Stars - 44
• Flames - 48

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Stars - Scott Anderson .917
• Flames - Dave Gibbard .886

For roughly half the game, this looked like it might actually be competitive.

Rick Fossier scored the only goal of the first period, and Dru Trimble tied it for the Red Wings at 13:10 of the second.

1-1. Game on.

Then TechniPower scored shorthanded.

And everything went horribly wrong for the Red Wings.

Fossier's shorthanded goal at 8:42 turned out to be the game-winner, and Mike Lozano added another before the end of the second to make it 3-1.

TechniPower then turned the third period into target practice.

Lozano scored his second, followed just 20 seconds later by Tucker Kroll. Ron Shostak made it 6-1, and Steve Keener finished the evening with a goal at 1:00.

When the damage was finally totaled, TechniPower had scored six unanswered goals after Trimble tied the game.

Rick Fossier was everywhere, finishing with two goals and three assists for five points, while Ron Shostak added four points.

But the biggest story may have been Sean Wheale.

The Red Wings actually outshot TechniPower 43-42.

They lost 7-1.

Wheale stopped 42 of 43 shots, posting a spectacular .977 save percentage. Somewhere in the second period, the Red Wings must have started wondering whether the net behind Wheale was merely decorative.

TechniPower didn't dominate the shot clock.

They just dominated the part where you're supposed to put the puck in the net.

First Period

• 7:23 TechniPower - Rick Fossier

Second Period

• 13:10 Red Wings - Dru Trimble
• 8:42 TechniPower - Rick Fossier (SH) (GW)
• 2:05 TechniPower - Mike Lozano

Third Period

• 15:10 TechniPower - Mike Lozano
• 14:50 TechniPower - Tucker Kroll
• 11:58 TechniPower - Ron Shostak
• 1:00 TechniPower - Steve Keener

Shots on Goal

• Red Wings - 43
• TechniPower - 42

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Red Wings - Bill Yox .833
• TechniPower - Sean Wheale .977

HOST: Welcome back to ATL50 Overdrive, where the opinions are strong, the facts are optional, and everyone calling in believes they'd be an elite hockey player if it weren't for their knees, back, shoulder, wife, job, and unfortunate lack of talent.

Let's go to the phones.

CALLER #1 – "Flame Thrower"

CALLER: I don't understand why everyone's criticizing the Flames. They came back from 4-1!

HOST: Absolutely. Tremendous comeback.

CALLER: Exactly!

HOST: And then they lost.

CALLER: Well, yeah, but—

HOST: Thanks for calling.

CALLER #2 – "Pete's Burner Account"

CALLER: Pete March scores the first goal and the overtime winner. Isn't it time we start talking Hart Trophy?

HOST: Pete, you're not eligible to vote for yourself.

CALLER: This isn't Pete.

HOST: Your caller ID says "Pete March."

CALLER: New phone. Who dis?

CALLER #3 – "Wing Nut"

CALLER: The Red Wings outshot TechniPower 43-42. That game was much closer than 7-1.

HOST: You're correct.

CALLER: Thank you!

HOST: Other than the six-goal difference, it was practically a tie.

CALLER #4 – "Sean's Mom"

CALLER: Can we talk about Sean Wheale? Forty-two saves! .977!

HOST: Outstanding performance. At some point the Red Wings should've considered shooting somewhere Sean wasn't standing.

CALLER: Like where?

HOST: Excellent question. They apparently couldn't figure it out either.

CALLER #5 – "Advanced Analytics Guy"

CALLER: I've run the numbers, and the Red Wings actually had 50.6% of the shots.

HOST: Interesting.

CALLER: So statistically—

HOST: They lost 7-1.

CALLER: But expected goals—

HOST: Seven.

CALLER: That's not how expected goals work.

HOST: Apparently neither is taking 43 shots.

CALLER #6 – "Fossier Fan Club"

CALLER: Rick Fossier had five points. Two goals, three assists, and the game-winner was shorthanded. How does the defense let that happen?

HOST: We're still waiting for confirmation that the Red Wings actually had defensemen on the ice.

CALLER: I saw guys back there.

HOST: Those may have been spectators.

CALLER #7 – "Flames Glass Half Full"

CALLER: Look, the Flames got a point and proved they can come back from three goals down.

HOST: True.

CALLER: That's a huge positive.

HOST: Definitely.

CALLER: So why are you laughing?

HOST: Because apparently the new strategy is to fall behind 4-1 before starting to play hockey.

CALLER #8 – "Red Wings Optimist"

CALLER: I saw some positives tonight.

HOST: Name one.

CALLER: Dru Trimble scored.

HOST: Correct.

CALLER: And we had 43 shots.

HOST: Correct.

CALLER: And—

HOST: Take your time.

CALLER: I'm thinking.

HOST: We'll put you on hold.

CALLER #9 – "Concerned League Statistician"

CALLER: TechniPower scored seven goals on 42 shots. That's a 16.7% shooting percentage.

HOST: Correct.

CALLER: The Red Wings scored once on 43 shots. That's 2.3%.

HOST: Also correct.

CALLER: That's a huge difference.

HOST: Outstanding analysis. Next week we'll investigate whether scoring more goals increases your chances of winning.

HOST: Final thoughts from Week 16:

The Flames discovered that coming back from 4-1 is impressive, but coming back from 4-1 and winning is apparently the more effective strategy.

Pete March reminded everyone that when you're the captain, scoring the overtime winner is much easier than explaining afterward why somebody else didn't.

Sean Wheale stopped 42 of 43 and probably could've stayed for another game.

Rick Fossier had five points and may still be circling the Red Wings' zone looking for somebody else to pass to.

Ron Shostak quietly put up four points because apparently five-point nights are now required to get top billing at TechniPower.

And the Red Wings proved conclusively that shots on goal are not legal tender and cannot be exchanged for actual goals.

That's all for ATL50 Overdrive.

Remember: 22-minute periods, 66 minutes of hockey, and an unlimited amount of material for the call-in show.



TechniPower is clearly in control. At 9-5 with 18 points, they have a two-point lead over the Flames and three over the Stars. More impressive is the +20 goal differential — TechniPower has allowed only 48 goals, easily the fewest in the league.

The Flames have a game in hand and sit only two points back, so first place is still very much in play. The Stars are just one point behind the Flames but have played one additional game.

There's then a noticeable drop to the Knights at 12 points, followed by the Red Wings at 9.

And the Red Wings may have produced the strangest statistic in the standings: they've scored 63 goals, second-most in the league behind TechniPower's 68 — yet they're 4-9-1 and in last place because they've surrendered a league-high 73.

That gives us some excellent material for the call-in show:

HOST: "The Red Wings have scored more goals than the Stars, Knights and almost as many as the first-place TechniPower."

CALLER: "So why are they in last?"

HOST: "Because apparently somebody forgot to explain that you're also supposed to stop the other team from scoring."

The big story: Rick Fossier

Fossier's five-point night against the Red Wings has turned the scoring race into something approaching a runaway. He now has 34 points in 13 games, six ahead of defending scoring champion Tim Conti.

Fossier also leads the league in assists (21), points (34) and points per game (2.62), while his 13 goals are also the league high among the players shown.

And TechniPower isn't exactly a one-man operation. They have four of the top seven scorers:

Fossier 34 → Lozano 26 → Moonshower 21 → Shostak 20.

That helps explain the first-place record and +20 goal differential.

There's also some good material farther down. Brad Graf has 12 goals in only 10 games, while Robbie Moore sits fourth in scoring with 23 points and has managed to accumulate 16 penalty minutes along the way. However, John Knudsen has quietly taken over the league PIM lead with 17, depriving Robbie of at least one championship he appeared determined to win.

There are a couple of good storylines here for the recap. Scott Anderson leads the league with a .909 save percentage, while David Gibbard owns the best GAA at 3.60. And Sean Wheale's .977 performance against the Red Wings was considerably better than his .881 season number — 42 saves on 43 shots in arguably his best performance of the season.

Knights Keep Rolling, Stars Stop the Bleeding

Week 16 delivered two games with some real consequences in the ATL50 standings.

The Knights continued their midseason resurrection, erasing an early 2–0 deficit and scoring five unanswered goals to beat first-place TechniPower 5–2. The win extends the Knights' undefeated streak to four games and suddenly makes them a team nobody is going to enjoy seeing down the stretch.

Meanwhile, TechniPower has hit its first real pothole of the season, dropping three of its last four. They still sit atop the standings at 8–5, but the comfortable view from first place isn't quite so comfortable anymore.

In Game 2, the Stars snapped their two-game losing streak with a 5–3 victory over the Red Wings, who have now lost three straight and fallen to the bottom of the standings.

And the Stars made one interesting change while stopping their skid.

First Period

• 15:10 TechniPower - Mike Lozano
• 11:14 TechniPower - Mike Lozano

Second Period

• 13:30 Knights - Barry Danckert
• 7:40 Knights - Mike Zowine
• 5:50 Knights - Paul Asman (GW)
• 5:18 Knights - Paul Asman

Third Period

• 16:50 Knights - Erik Hendricks (SH)

Shots on Goal By

• Knights 43
• TechniPower 40

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Knights - Paul Gwyn .953
• TechniPower - Sean Wheale .875

For the first 11 minutes, this looked like TechniPower was going to remind everyone why they're sitting in first place.

Mike Lozano scored twice in the opening period, giving TechniPower a 2–0 lead and pushing his season total to 12 goals. With TechniPower controlling the scoreboard and Paul Gwyn already being tested at the other end, the Knights appeared to have some work to do.

Apparently they weren't concerned.

The Knights completely flipped the game in the second period.

Barry Danckert finally broke through at 13:30 to cut the lead to 2–1. Then Mike Zowine tied it at 7:40.

After that came the Paul Asman Show.

Asman scored at 5:50 to give the Knights their first lead of the game and then, just 32 seconds later, scored again.

A 2–0 TechniPower lead had suddenly become a 4–2 Knights lead.

TechniPower had gone from comfortably ahead to wondering what the hell just happened.

The Knights didn't need much more offense because Paul Gwyn was outstanding.

TechniPower put 40 shots on Gwyn, but after Lozano's two first-period goals, Gwyn slammed the door for the remaining 48:46 of the game.

Erik Hendricks finished things off with a shorthanded goal in the third period, completing a run of five unanswered Knights goals.

Final: Knights 5, TechniPower 2.

The Knights have now gone four straight without a loss, improving to 5–6–2.

Remember when they were buried near the bottom of the standings?

Neither do they.

TechniPower, meanwhile, remains in first place at 8–5, but the trend is getting harder to ignore: three losses in their last four games.

First place is still first place.

But the rearview mirror is getting crowded.

First Period

• 13:25 Red Wings - Andrew Feinberg

Second Period

• 20:50 Stars - Robin Staveley
• 17:10 Stars - Steve Woods
• 2:46 Red Wings - Robbie Moore

Third Period

• 18:20 Stars - Dan Costa
• 15:23 Stars - Dan Costa (GW)
• 11:23 Stars - Robin Staveley (PP)
• 0:40 Red Wings - Jay Arena

Shots on Goal By:

• Stars 31
• Red Wings 30

Goaltender Save Percentage

• Stars - Dave Gibbard (Sub for Anderson) .900
• Red Wings - Sean Wheale (Sub for Yox) .839

The Stars entered Week 16 having lost two straight and needing something to change.

Apparently they found it in the crease.

Andrew Feinberg gave the Red Wings the early advantage, scoring at 13:25 of the first period. That was the only goal of the opening 22 minutes, and the Red Wings carried a 1–0 lead into the second.

Then the Stars started to find their game.

Just 1:10 into the second period, Robin Staveley tied it 1–1. Steve Woods followed at 17:10 to put the Stars ahead 2–1.

Robbie Moore answered late in the period, scoring at 2:46 to tie the game at 2–2 heading into the third.

With both teams desperate to end losing streaks, the game was sitting there for somebody to take.

Dan Costa took it.

Costa scored at 18:20 to give the Stars a 3–2 lead and then struck again at 15:23 for what proved to be the game-winning goal.

Staveley added his second of the night on the power play at 11:23, and suddenly the Stars had turned a 2–2 game into a 5–2 advantage.

Jay Arena scored with 40 seconds remaining, but by then the damage had been done.

The Stars walked away with a 5–3 victory, ending their two-game losing streak and moving to 6–7.

The Red Wings?

Three straight losses.

At 4–8–1, they're now sitting in fifth place despite having scored 62 goals — the most in the league.

Unfortunately, they've also allowed 66 — also the most in the league.

That's one way to make sure everybody gets their money's worth.

But perhaps the most intriguing part of the Stars' victory wasn't Costa's two third-period goals or Staveley's two-goal night.

It was the guy standing in the Stars' crease.

Scott Anderson?

No.

Dave Gibbard.

Gibby stopped 27 of 30 shots for a .900 save percentage, and the Stars' two-game losing streak immediately came to an end.

Coincidence?

We'll allow the ATL50 investigative journalists to handle that one.

But you have to admit...

Interesting.



TechniPower remains on top at 8–5 with 16 points, but after losing three of four, the door has opened.

The Flames are lurking just one point back at 7–4–1 with 15 points and have played one fewer game.

The Stars improved to 6–7 with 13 points, while the suddenly surging Knights are right behind them at 5–6–2 with 12.

And then there are the Red Wings at 4–8–1 with 9 points, trying to figure out how a team that leads the entire league with 62 goals has managed to lose three straight.

Rick Fossier continues to lead the league with 29 points in 12 games, followed by Tim Conti with 26.

Mike Lozano's two goals against the Knights moved him to 23 points, tied with Robbie Moore, who picked up another goal against the Stars.

The league's 12-goal club now includes Tim Conti, Brad Graf and Mike Zowine, with Fossier and Jeff Moonshower sitting right behind them at 11.

And Moore continues his pursuit of a different statistical championship.

23 points. 16 penalty minutes.

Still producing at both ends of the scoresheet.

ATL50 FAN CALL-IN SHOW

HOST: Welcome back to Between the Benches, where the opinions are strong, the evidence is optional, and every caller is absolutely certain he could run your hockey team better than you.

Let's go to the phones.

HOST: Tony from Alpharetta, you're up.

TONY: I wanna talk about TechniPower. Three losses in four games. Everybody's been talking about these guys like they're planning the championship parade. Are we sure they're actually that good?

HOST: They're 8–5 and still in first place.

TONY: Yeah, and I'm still married. Doesn't mean everything's going well.

HOST: Fair point. Next caller.

HOST: Mike from Roswell.

MIKE: Knights. I'm telling you right now. Nobody wants to play these guys.

HOST: Four straight without a loss.

MIKE: Exactly! They were down 2–0 against the first-place team and didn't panic. Five straight goals. Gwyn gives up two and then basically says, "That's enough of that."

HOST: .953 save percentage.

MIKE: That's not goaltending. That's theft.

HOST: Gary from Sandy Springs, what have you got?

GARY: Can somebody explain the Red Wings to me?

HOST: How much time do you have?

GARY: They lead the league in goals!

HOST: Correct.

GARY: And they're in last place!

HOST: Also correct.

GARY: HOW?

HOST: They've allowed 66.

GARY: Oh.

HOST: Anything else, Gary?

GARY: Nope. That pretty much explains it.

HOST: Next up, Frank from Milton.

FRANK: I just have one question.

HOST: Go ahead.

FRANK: Stars lose two straight. Who was playing goal?

HOST: Scott Anderson.

FRANK: Then they win.

HOST: Correct.

FRANK: Who played goal?

HOST: Dave Gibbard.

FRANK: Gibby?

HOST: Gibby.

FRANK: .900?

HOST: Twenty-seven saves.

FRANK: Hmm.

HOST: What are you implying, Frank?

FRANK: I'm not implying anything.

HOST: It certainly sounds like you're implying something.

FRANK: I'm just asking questions.

HOST: Such as?

FRANK: Stars lose two straight...

HOST: Yes.

FRANK: Gibby shows up...

HOST: Yes.

FRANK: Stars win.

HOST: Yes.

FRANK: Interesting.

HOST: Very interesting.

HOST: Last caller. Sal from Johns Creek.

SAL: I want to know when the Flames became the quietest 7–4–1 team in hockey.

HOST: Nobody played them this week.

SAL: Exactly! They sat home, watched TechniPower lose, and suddenly they're one point out of first with a game in hand.

HOST: That's a productive night off.

SAL: Best game they played all week.

HOST: And that's going to do it for Week 16.

TechniPower is still first — but wobbling.

The Flames are sitting quietly one point back.

The Stars changed goalies and changed their result.

The Knights apparently forgot they're supposed to lose.

And the Red Wings lead the league in scoring while occupying last place.

Perfectly normal.

We'll see you next week on Between the Benches

Week 15 featured two games that looked competitive for a while — and then suddenly weren't.

In Game 1, the Red Wings and Flames were separated by just one goal with less than five minutes remaining in the second period. Then the Flames apparently remembered they were allowed to score more than three. They erupted for four goals in the final 4:45 of the second period and added two more in the third, turning a close game into a 9-3 blowout. Brad Graf led the assault with four goals, while Tim Conti added two as the Flames peppered the Red Wings net with 40 shots.

Game 2 was considerably more civilized. The Stars jumped out to a 2-0 lead, the Knights battled back to tie it before the end of the first, and Jason Bastow's second goal gave the Stars a 3-2 lead heading into the third. Then the Knights took over. Jerome Feuiltault scored twice in the third period, Gary Wiseman buried the game-winner, and the Knights scored three unanswered to come away with a 5-3 victory.

The common theme of Week 15: having the lead early is apparently optional. Having it after 66 minutes remains highly recommended.



For about 39 minutes, this was a hockey game.

The Flames grabbed an early lead behind Brad Graf, who scored twice in the opening period, with Aaron Wood adding another. Jay Arena answered for the Red Wings, and the Flames carried a 3-1 lead into the second.

The Red Wings then made things interesting. Larry Manning scored at 11:18 and Mitch Malin followed at 8:55, cutting the Flames' lead to 3-3.

Unfortunately for the Red Wings, there were still 8:55 remaining in the period.

At 4:45, Paul Harrer scored what would become the game-winning goal, and that opened the floodgates. Tim Conti scored 50 seconds later, Graf completed his hat trick 51 seconds after that, and Tyler Edgarton added another with just 18 seconds remaining.

In a span of 4 minutes and 27 seconds, a 3-3 game became 7-3.

Graf wasn't finished. He added a power-play goal in the third for his fourth goal of the night, and Conti scored his second with 25 seconds remaining to complete the 9-3 victory.

The Flames finished with 40 shots while the Red Wings generated 36 of their own. The difference was simple: once the Flames started scoring, they apparently saw no compelling reason to stop.

Brad Graf, Flames — four goals:

"I was going to pass more tonight, but after the first couple went in, that seemed unnecessarily generous."

Paul Harrer, Flames — game-winning goal:

"I scored the winner in a 9-3 game. That's like being credited with the winning run in a 17-4 baseball game. I'll take it."

Tim Conti, Flames — two goals:

"Brad already had four. I figured somebody else should get mentioned in the recap."

Mitch Malin, Red Wings:

"We tied it 3-3 and everything was going according to plan. I haven't figured out what the plan was after that."

Larry Manning, Red Wings:

"At 3-3, I liked our chances. Four minutes later, I had developed some concerns."

Game 1: Red Wings 3 vs Flames 9

First Period

• 13:31 Flames - Brad Graf
• 5:10 Flames - Aaron Wood
• 1:42 Red Wings - Jay Arena
• 0:45 Flames - Brad Graf

Second Period

• 11:18 Red Wings - Larry Manning
• 8:55 Red Wings - Mitch Malin
• 4:45 Flames - Paul Harrer (GW)
• 3:55 Flames - Tim Conti
• 3:04 Flames - Brad Graf
• 0:18 Flames - Tyler Edgarton

Third Period

• 9:45 Flames - Brad Graf (PP)
• 0:25 Flames - Tim Conti

Shots on Goal

• Red Wings - 36 (Dave Gibbard .917 save percentage)
• Flames - 40 (Bill Yox .775 save percentage)

The Stars couldn't have asked for a much better start.

Jason Bastow opened the scoring just 2:37 into the game, and Robin Staveley followed to give the Stars a quick 2-0 lead.

The Knights didn't panic. Mike Zowine scored on the power play at 10:23, and Stephen Fisher tied the game at 3:34, sending the teams into the first intermission tied 2-2.

The second period belonged largely to the goaltenders until Bastow struck again at 4:50, giving the Stars a 3-2 lead heading into the third.

That's when the Knights flipped the game.

Jerome Feuiltault tied it at 11:58, and just 1:29 later Gary Wiseman scored the game-winner, giving the Knights their first lead of the night at 4-3.

The Stars pushed for the equalizer, but the Knights held them off before Feuiltault deposited an empty-netter with 17 seconds remaining for his second goal of the period and the final 5-3 margin.

The Knights outshot the Stars 43-36, with Scott Anderson turning aside 38 of 42 shots. Paul Gwyn stopped 33 of 36 at the other end.

After trailing 2-0 early and 3-2 entering the third, the Knights scored the game's final three goals and demonstrated an important ATL50 principle: why waste energy leading for 60 minutes when you can just lead for the last 10?



Jerome Feuiltault, Knights — two third-period goals:

"I scored the tying goal and the empty-netter. One required skill. The other required identifying a completely unattended six-foot-wide target."

Gary Wiseman, Knights — game-winning goal:

"Apparently scoring when the game is tied is considered important. I may try that again."

Mike Zowine, Knights:

"Going down 2-0 was all part of the strategy. We wanted to make sure everyone stayed interested."

Jason Bastow, Stars — two goals:

"Two goals, a 3-2 lead going into the third, and somehow I'm answering questions about a loss. Excellent."

Robin Staveley, Stars:

"We were up 2-0. Then we were up 3-2. I'm starting to think we should stop taking leads."

Game 2: Stars 3 vs Knights 5

First Period

• 19:23 Stars - Jason Bastow
• 14:10 Stars - Robin Staveley
• 10:23 Knights - Mike Zowine (PP)
• 3:34 Knights - Stephen Fisher

Second Period

• 4:50 Stars - Jason Bastow

Third Period

• 11:58 Knights - Jerome Feuiltault
• 10:29 Knights - Gary Wiseman (GW)
• 0:17 Knights - Jerome Feuiltault (EN)

Shots on Goal

• Stars - 36 (Paul Gwyn .917 save percentage)
• Knights - 43 (Scott Anderson .907 save percentage)

Week 15 tightened things up at the top.

TechniPower remains in first place at 8-4 with 16 points and a league-best +17 goal differential, but the Flames are now breathing down their necks. After dismantling the Red Wings 9-3, the Flames improved to 7-4-1 with 15 points — just one point out of first place.

The Stars remain in third with 11 points despite their loss to the Knights. The Knights' comeback victory moves them to 10 points and within one point of the Stars.

And then there are the Red Wings.

After surrendering nine to the Flames, the Wings drop to the bottom of the standings with nine points. Oddly enough, they have scored 59 goals — tied with first-place TechniPower and only one behind the league-leading Flames. They've also allowed a league-high 61.

Apparently the Red Wings have adopted the philosophy that defense is simply offense waiting for its turn.

The race at the top: TechniPower's +17 differential continues to separate them from the rest of the league, but the standings don't offer much breathing room. The Flames are only one point back and now own the league's highest-scoring offense with 60 goals.

The race in the middle: Only two points separate the Stars, Knights and Red Wings. One good week can completely rearrange third through fifth.

So after 12 games for each team, the ATL50 standings have divided themselves nicely into two groups:

TechniPower and Flames: fighting for first place.

Stars, Knights and Red Wings: three teams fighting over two playoff spots and trying not to be the one holding the toilet paper when the music stops and the dreaded "Toilet Bowl".

The race for the ATL50 scoring title is tightening up, with TechniPower's Rick Fossier still sitting on top with 28 points in 11 games. Fossier has been the league's most consistent setup man with a league-leading 18 assists and is averaging 2.55 points per game.

But Tim Conti is coming.

Conti's two-goal performance in the Flames' 9-3 win pushed him to 26 points, just two behind Fossier. Conti also has 12 goals, putting him among the league leaders in that category.

Robbie Moore remains in third with 22 points despite the Red Wings' difficult Week 15, while TechniPower teammates Jeff Moonshower and Mike Lozano are tied at 21 points.

The night's biggest mover was Brad Graf. His four-goal explosion against the Red Wings gives him a league-leading 13 goals and 19 points in only 10 games. Apparently passing remains available to Graf, but after Week 15 he's treating it more as a suggestion.

Scott Pearson's 4.67 points-per-game average is technically ridiculous, but with only three games as a substitute, we'll refrain from engraving the Art Ross Trophy just yet.

By the Numbers

28 — Rick Fossier: Still the man everyone is chasing.

18 — Fossier assists: Apparently he's one of the few ATL50 players who remembers teammates are allowed to score too.

13 — Brad Graf goals: The new league leader after dropping four on the Red Wings.

17 — John Knudsen PIM: Leads the players shown in penalty minutes. At least he's leading something.

14 — Robbie Moore PIM: Third in scoring and apparently still committed to competing in multiple statistical categories.

4.67 — Scott Pearson points per game: Eight goals and 14 points in three games. Completely sustainable. Nothing unusual here whatsoever.

And perhaps the most ominous number for the rest of the league:

Three of the top five scorers are from TechniPower — Fossier, Moonshower and Lozano.

That's one reason TechniPower continues to be such a problem: shutting down their leading scorer just means you get introduced to the other two.

While ATL50 skaters continue doing everything possible to make life miserable for the Goaltenders Union, Scott Anderson continues to lead the league with a .908 save percentage.

Anderson has faced a league-high 489 shots in 12 games, stopping 444 of them. He's currently the only regular ATL50 goalie above the .900 mark.

David Gibbard sits second with a .896 save percentage while owning the best GAA among the regular goalies at 3.63. He's allowed 29 goals in eight appearances.

Then things get considerably more dangerous.

Paul Gwyn has faced 439 shots and carries a .875 save percentage, while Sean Wheale sits at .874 after facing 437 shots.

Martin Cizek has posted an .868 save percentage in two games as a substitute.

Bill Yox has faced 448 shots in 13 games and currently sits at .855.

TechniPower continues to separate itself from the rest of the ATL50 pack, while the battle behind them remains wide open.

TechniPower took care of the Stars 5-2 to improve to 8-4 with a league-leading 16 points. Even more impressive is the league-best +17 goal differential, with 59 goals scored and only 42 allowed. They aren't just sitting in first place — right now they're the most complete team in the league.

The second game was a different story. The Flames built a 3-0 lead, watched the Knights erase it, went back ahead 4-2, and then watched the Knights erase that lead too. When the dust settled, the teams skated away with a 4-4 tie and probably very different opinions about whether they earned a point or gave one away.

With TechniPower on top, only five points separate second-place Flames from fifth-place Knights, so there is still plenty to be decided.

TechniPower showed why they are sitting in first place.

Rick Fossier and Jeff Moonshower struck just 1:22 apart in the first period to put TechniPower ahead 2-0. Owen Korkie got the Stars back into the game late in the second, cutting the lead to 2-1 and setting up what looked like it could be a tight third period.

Mike Lozano had other ideas.

Lozano scored at 17:20 of the third for the eventual game-winner and a 3-1 TechniPower lead. Jason Bastow answered for the Stars just over two minutes later to make it 3-2, but TechniPower slammed the door from there. Tom Dolan restored the two-goal advantage before Fossier scored his second of the night to finish off the 5-2 victory.

Fossier's two-goal night continued an outstanding season and moved him to 10 goals, 18 assists and a league-leading 28 points. Moonshower added his 11th goal of the season, while Lozano picked up his eighth.

TechniPower also controlled the shot clock, outshooting the Stars 43-25. Sean Wheale stopped 23 of 25 for a .920 save percentage, while Scott Anderson faced a 43-shot barrage at the other end.

Rick Fossier, TechniPower:

"First place, plus-17, leading the league in points…I'm not saying everything is going through me, but I am saying the statistics are publicly available."

Mike Lozano, TechniPower:

"We let them get within one twice. That seemed unnecessarily stressful, so we decided to score a couple more."

Scott Anderson, Stars:

"Forty-three shots. I'd like to thank my team for making sure I stayed involved in the game."



Game 1: Stars 2 vs TechniPower 5

First Period

17:32 TechniPower - Rick Fossier

16:10 TechniPower - Jeff Moonshower

Second Period

2:05 Stars - Owen Korkie

Third Period

17:20 TechniPower - Mike Lozano (GW)

15:05 Stars - Jason Bastow

8:23 TechniPower - Tom Dolan

2:01 TechniPower - Rick Fossier

Shots on Goal

Stars: 25 (Sean Wheale .920 save percentage)

TechniPower: 43 (Scott Anderson .884 save percentage)

For the first 25 minutes, this looked like it was going to be a comfortable Flames victory. Then somebody apparently informed the Knights that the game had started.

Brad Graf opened the scoring in the first period before Tim Conti and John Knudsen scored 1:19 apart early in the second to give the Flames a commanding 3-0 lead.

The Knights responded with Erik Hendricks and Drew Bradich scoring in the second to cut the deficit to 3-2.

Knudsen's second goal of the night early in the third restored the Flames' two-goal advantage at 4-2, but once again the Knights refused to go away. Mike Zowine made it 4-3 before Paul Asman tied the game just 58 seconds later.

Neither team could find the winner, leaving the Flames and Knights with a 4-4 tie.

The Knights held a 40-31 advantage in shots, but Bill Yox stopped 36 of 40 for a .900 save percentageto help the Flames escape with the point. Paul Gwyn stopped 27 of 31 at the other end.

The tie keeps the Flames alone in second place with 13 points, while the Knights picked up another point but remain at the bottom of a very compressed standings table.

John Knudsen, Flames:

"Two goals, a 3-0 lead, then a 4-2 lead. Usually that's enough. Apparently the Knights didn't get that memo."

Mike Zowine, Knights:

"Down 3-0 and 4-2 and we still got a point. We'd prefer to stop spotting teams three-goal leads, but apparently that's part of our strategy now."

Bill Yox, Flames:

"Forty shots and a tie. I don't know if that's a good night or a cry for defensive help. When is Gibby coming back?"



Game 2: Flames 4 vs Knights 4

First Period

20:40 Flames - Brad Graf

Second Period

19:02 Flames - Tim Conti

17:43 Flames - John Knudsen

14:18 Knights - Erik Hendricks

7:50 Knights - Drew Bradich

Third Period

20:22 Flames - John Knudsen

11:23 Knights - Mike Zowine

10:25 Knights - Paul Asman

Shots on Goal

Flames - 31 (Paul Gwyn .871 save percentage)

Knights - 40 (Bill Yox .900 save percentage)

TechniPower has opened a three-point lead over the Flames and owns by far the best goal differential in ATL50 at +17. The next-best differential belongs to the Red Wings at +4.

The standings also reveal something fairly simple: TechniPower scores a lot and doesn't give up much. Their 59 goals lead the league, and their 42 goals against are also the fewest.

That's generally considered a pretty good strategy.

Fossier has some breathing room. Rick Fossier's 28 points give him a six-point advantage over Tim Conti in the scoring race. His 18 assists also lead the league.

The 21-point traffic jam. Moonshower, Lozano, Robbie Moore and John Knudsen are all tied at 21 points, making the race behind Fossier and Conti considerably more crowded.

Moonshower leads the goal race. Jeff Moonshower's 11 goals are tops among regular ATL50 players, with Fossier, Conti, Zowine and Dru Trimble all sitting at 10.

TechniPower's depth is becoming a problem for everyone else. Four TechniPower players — Fossier, Moonshower, Lozano and Shostak — are among the league's top 10 scorers, with Dolan and Morton not far behind.

And then there's Scott Pearson, casually sitting at 14 points in three games as a substitute for an absurd 4.67 points per game.

Apparently "substitute" is now ATL50 terminology for ringer.

The playoff race tightened up this week as the Knights snapped their skid with a 5-4 victory over the Red Wings, surviving a frantic third-period rally, while the Flames continued their strong second half with a convincing 5-2 win over TechniPower.

The Knights looked like they would cruise after building a 5-1 lead, but the Red Wings nearly pulled off one of the biggest comebacks of the season, scoring three times in the final 19 minutes before running out of time. In the nightcap, the Flames used another dominant defensive effort and a four-goal unanswered streak to cool off the first-place TechniPower squad.

The Knights wasted no time taking control, scoring three times in the opening period. Mike Zowine opened the scoring before Sanj Joshi and Don Stubel quickly stretched the lead to 3-0. Mike Legros finally got the Red Wings on the board late in the period to cut the deficit to two.

The middle frame belonged to the Knights as well. Jarett Moralee restored the three-goal cushion before Gary Wiseman buried what proved to be the game-winner, giving the Knights a commanding 5-1 advantage.

Just when everyone thought the game was over, the Red Wings came alive. Brian Daley started the comeback early in the third before Brian Spratt scored twice, including one with just 1:37 remaining, making it a one-goal game. The Knights bent but didn't break, hanging on through the final frantic seconds to secure an important 5-4 victory.

Paul Gwyn turned aside 28 of 32 shots for the Knights, while Bill Yox faced 35 shots for the Red Wings in another busy night between the pipes.

Gary Wiseman (Knights):

"We built a great lead, then decided everyone deserved some late-game excitement. We'll work on shortening that part next week."

Brian Spratt (Red Wings):

"If the game had been about 45 seconds longer, we'd either have tied it... or given up an empty-netter trying."



The night's second game featured a matchup between two of the league's hottest teams, and after an early exchange of goals it was all Flames.

Travis Estabrooks opened the scoring just 2:20 into the game, but TechniPower answered quickly with goals from Mike Lozano and Jeff Moonshower to grab a 2-1 lead.

That would be the last offense TechniPower could generate.

Estabrooks struck again midway through the second period before Tim Conti gave the Flames their first lead of the night. In the third period Chad Porter and Aaron Wood added insurance goals as the Flames scored four unanswered to earn a convincing 5-2 victory.

Scott Anderson was outstanding in goal for the Flames, stopping 30 of 32 shots for a stellar .938 save percentage, while Sean Wheale was kept busy facing 42 shots in the TechniPower net.

Travis Estabrooks (Flames):

"When you score the first goal and the second goal, the math starts working in your favor."

Jeff Moonshower (TechniPower):

"We had a good first period. Unfortunately, hockey games stubbornly insist on having three of them."



Game 1: Red Wings 4 vs Knights 5

Period One

• 21:20 Knights Mike Zowine
• 18:51 Knights Sanj Joshi
• 14:37 Knights Don Stubel
• 12:39 Red Wings Mike Legros

Period Two

• 8:56 Knights Jarett Moralee
• 2:25 Knights Gary Wiseman (GW)

Period Three

• 19:01 Red Wings Brian Daley
• 5:50 Red Wings Brian Spratt
• 1:37 Red Wings Brian Spratt

Shots on Goal

• Red Wings 32 (Paul Gwyn .875 save %)
• Knights 35 (Bill Yox .857 save %)

Game 2: TechniPower 2 vs Flames 5

Period 1

• 19:40 Flames Travis Estabrooks
• 10:01 TechniPower Mike Lozano
• 8:32 TechniPower Jeff Moonshower

Period Two

• 14:04 Flames Travis Estabrooks
• 9:39 Flames Tim Conti (GW)

Period Three

• 12:12 Flames Chad Porter
• 10:10 Flames Aaron Wood

Shots on Goal

• TechniPower 32 (Scott Anderson .938 save %)
• Flames 42 (Sean Wheale .881 save %)

After a week of blowouts, parity returned to the ATL50. Both games featured dramatic momentum swings, late-game heroics, and enough nervous bench pacing to burn a few extra calories. The Stars survived an incredible Flames comeback to move ahead of Flames in the standings into second place, while the Red Wings answered every TechniPower rally to earn a hard-fought victory.

For nearly 58 minutes, it looked like the Stars had everything under control.

Peter March opened the scoring before Marc Manning struck twice, and Dan Costa added a pair of goals as the Stars built what appeared to be a comfortable 4-1 lead midway through the third period.

Then the Flames caught fire.

Goals by Wally Blase, Craig Robson and Tyler Edgarton in just over eight minutes erased the deficit and stunned the Stars, tying the game 4-4 with less than three minutes remaining.

Just when overtime seemed inevitable, Jason Bastow delivered the dagger. With 1:23 left, Bastow buried the game-winning power play goal before Costa sealed the victory into an empty net with 12 seconds remaining.

The Flames actually carried the play most of the night, outshooting the Stars 46-37, but Scott Anderson was outstanding between the pipes, stopping 42 shots and finishing with a stellar .913

Dan Costa (Stars):

"We played 57 really good minutes... unfortunately hockey games last 60. Luckily Jason reminded us before it was too late."

Scott Anderson (Stars):

"Forty-six shots? I was hoping the defense was just trying to keep me awake."

Craig Robson (Flames):

"Coming back from three goals down felt great. The last two minutes... not so much."



Game 1: Flames 4 vs Stars 6

First Period

• 18:18 Stars Peter March
• 13:30 Stars Marc Manning

Second Period

• 19:58 Stars Dan Costa
• 13:35 Stars Marc Manning
• 5:45 Flames Brian Sadlock

Third Period

• 10:50 Flames Wally Blase
• 4:24 Flames Craig Robson
• 2:49 Flames Tyler Edgarton
• 1:23 Stars Jason Bastow (PP) (GW)
• 0:12 Stars Dan Costa (EN)

Shots on Goal

• Stars 37
• Flames 46
• Stars - Scott Anderson 42 of 46 - .913 save percentage
• Flames - Paul Gwyn 31 of 36 - .861 save percentage

If Game 1 was about surviving a comeback, Game 2 was about refusing to stay down.

The Red Wings built a 3-1 lead behind two first-period goals from Dru Trimble and another from Brian Daley early in the second. TechniPower answered every challenge, pulling within a goal several times before an explosive third period turned into a track meet.

Mitch Malin scored twice in the opening two minutes of the third to stretch the Red Wings lead, but TechniPower stormed right back with three unanswered goals from Jeff McCoy, Jeff Moonshower and Drew Friedman, tying the game at five with just over six minutes remaining.

With momentum fully on TechniPower's side, Robbie Moore once again found himself in the middle of the action. Moore scored the game-winning goal with just two minutes left before Malin completed his hat trick with an empty-net goal to cap a thrilling 7-5 Red Wings victory.

The shots were nearly even, 36-34 in favor of the Red Wings, as both offenses kept the goaltenders under constant pressure.

Robbie Moore (Red Wings):

"People keep saying I'm getting older. I just prefer making my goals count more."

Mitch Malin (Red Wings):

"Hat tricks are nice. Winning after blowing a lead is a lot nicer."

Jeff McCoy (TechniPower):

"I finally score a goal and everyone wants to talk about Robbie. Tough crowd."

Sean Wheale (TechniPower):

"Next week I'd like to request a game where nobody shoots the puck."



Game 2: Red Wings 7 vs TechniPower 5

First Period

• 14:10 TechniPower Rick Fossier
• 11:02 Red Wings Dru Trimble (PP)
• 6:45 Red Wings Dru Trimble

Second Period

• 19:29 Red Wings Brian Daley
• 13:20 TechniPower Tom Dolan (PP)

Third Period

• 18:41 Red Wings Mitch Malin
• 17:10 Red Wings Mitch Malin
• 11:51 TechniPower Jeff McCoy
• 6:50 TechniPower Jeff Moonshower
• 6:20 TechniPower Drew Friedman
• 2:00 Red Wings Robbie Moore (GW)
• 0:45 Red Wings Mitch Malin (EN)

Shots on Goal

• Red Wings 36
• TechniPower 34
• Red Wings - Bill Yox 29 of 34 - .853 save percentage
• TechniPower - Sean Wheale 29 of 35 - .829 save percentage

The rich got richer this week as TechniPower and the Stars continued their strong seasons with convincing victories. TechniPower overwhelmed the Knights 7-2 behind another balanced offensive attack, while the Stars took advantage of timely scoring and stellar goaltending to defeat the Red Wings 5-2.

Sean Wheale and Scott Anderson were outstanding between the pipes, each posting save percentages above .920, while TechniPower's relentless forecheck and the Stars' opportunistic offense proved to be the difference.

Period 1

• 15:10 - TechniPower - Jeff Moonshower
• 10:11 - TechniPower - Gavin Morton
• 2:33 - TechniPower - Mike Lozano (GW)

Period 2

• 17:15 - TechniPower - Ron Shostak (PP)
• 11:23 - TechniPower - Ron Shostak
• 3:25 - TechniPower - Mike Lozano (SH)

Period 3

• 15:35 - TechniPower - Rick Fossier
• 6:01 - Knights - Barry Danckert
• 5:02 - Knights - Drew Bradach

Goaltender Saves

• TechniPower - Sean Wheale: 23 of 25 (.920)
• Knights - Paul Gwyn: 41 of 47 (.854)

TechniPower wasted little time taking control, scoring three unanswered first-period goals before putting the game completely out of reach in the second. Mike Lozano continued his MVP-caliber season with two goals, including the game winner and a shorthanded tally that sucked whatever life remained out of the Knights.

Ron Shostak also scored twice, one on the power play, while Jeff Moonshower, Gavin Morton and Rick Fossier each added goals in another offensive clinic by the league's hottest team.

The Knights finally solved Sean Wheale late in the third period with goals from Barry Danckert and Drew Bradach, but by then the outcome had long been decided. Wheale was rock solid once again, stopping 23 of 25 shots, while Paul Gwyn faced an onslaught all night and still managed to turn aside 41 shots despite the lopsided score.

Period 1

• 20:50 - Stars - Marc Manning
• 12:10 - Stars - Robin Staveley
• 10:41 - Red Wings - Larry Manning
• 1:40 - Stars - Peter March (GW)

Period 2

• 13:40 - Stars - Jason Bastow

Period 3

• 9:10 - Stars - Jamie Henkemeyer
• 6:25 - Red Wings - Andrew Feinberg

Goaltender Saves

• Stars - Scott Anderson: 40 of 42 (.952)
• Red Wings - Bill Yox: 30 of 35 (.857)

The Stars once again proved why they remain one of the league's toughest teams to beat. Despite being outshot 42-35, they made the most of their opportunities while Scott Anderson frustrated the Red Wings all night with a spectacular 40-save performance.

Marc Manning opened the scoring just ten seconds into the game before Robin Staveley doubled the lead. Larry Manning answered for the Red Wings, but Peter March restored the two-goal cushion late in the opening period with what proved to be the game-winning goal.

Jason Bastow extended the lead in the second before Jamie Henkemeyer added another in the third. Andrew Feinberg scored late for the Red Wings, but Anderson slammed the door the rest of the way to secure another Stars victory.

Mike Lozano, TechniPower

"Coach told us to keep it simple—score at even strength, score on the power play, score shorthanded... I was just trying to be a good listener."

Ron Shostak, TechniPower

"It's amazing how much easier hockey is when Mike keeps passing me the puck."

Sean Wheale, TechniPower Goaltender

"The guys kept the shots mostly to the outside. I was getting worried I'd have to pay full price for my workout tonight."

Paul Gwyn, Knights Goaltender

"Forty-seven shots? At this point I'm submitting my save percentage directly to Workman's Comp."

Peter March, Stars

"We don't always have the puck... we just seem to have it when it matters."

Scott Anderson, Stars Goaltender

"The defense deserves credit. They only let 42 shots get through."

Larry Manning, Red Wings

"We generated plenty of chances. Unfortunately Scott Anderson had apparently decided he wasn't allowing anything soft tonight."

Bill Yox, Red Wings Goaltender

"Five goals against looks bad until you realize half of them came after odd-man rushes. I'd like to file an official complaint with our backcheck."

TechniPower Captain Jeff McCoy (who somehow keeps winning)

"People keep asking what changed this season. I still don't know... but I'm definitely taking credit for it."

It was a rough night for competitive balance as one game turned into an offensive track meet while the other became a goaltending clinic. Scott Pearson put on a performance for the ages with 6 goals and 4 assists, powering the Red Wings to a 13-5 rout of the Flames. In the late game, the Stars smothered the Knights 4-0, handing the Knights their second consecutive shutout loss and extending their offensive drought.

If anyone blinked, Scott Pearson probably scored again.

After Brad Graf opened the scoring for the Flames, the Red Wings responded with five unanswered first-period goals and never looked back. Pearson tied the game and ignited an offensive avalanche that saw the Red Wings score at will. Dru Trimble added two goals, Mitch Malin scored twice, and Larry Manning, Brian Spratt, and Andrew Feinberg all joined the party.

Pearson wasn't done after the first period. He buried four more goals over the final two periods, including the game-winner and a power-play marker, finishing with an astonishing 6 goals and 4 assists, directly contributing to 10 of the Red Wings' 13 goals.

Brad Graf scored twice for the Flames, while Chad Porter, Aaron Wood, and John Knudsen each added a goal, but the Flames could never slow down the relentless Red Wings attack.

The Red Wings fired 40 shots, while Bill Yox picked up the win despite facing several quality chances. Sean Wheale had little chance against the constant barrage, stopping 27 of 40 shots.

Game 1: Red Wings 13 vs Flames 5 

First Period 

• 15:55 - Flames Brad Graf
• 14:34 - Red Wings Scott Pearson
• 12:42 - Red Wings Dru Trimble
• 10:05 - Red Wings Larry Manning
• 7:07 - Red Wings Mitch Malin
• 4:40 - Red Wings Scott Pearson

Second Period 

• 21:32 - Red Wings Scott Pearson (GW)
• 15:42 - Red Wings Dru Trimble
• 10:58 - Red Wings Scott Pearson (PP)
• 8:03 - Flames Brad Graf
• 5:16 - Red Wings Scott Pearson

Third Period 

• 20:35 - Red Wings Brian Spratt
• 19:11 - Red Wings Andrew Feinberg
• 15:55 - Red Wings Scott Pearson
• 11:10 - Flames Chad Porter
• 4:33 - Flames Aaron Wood
• 1:50 - Red Wings Mitch Malin
• 0.25 - Flames John Knudsen

Shots on Goal 

• Red Wings - 40
• Flames - 26

Goalie Saves 

• Red Wings - Bill Yox 21 out of 26 shots (.808%)
• Flames - Sean Wheale 27 out of 40 shots (.675%)

Red Wings

Scott Pearson (6 goals, 4 assists):

"I was just trying to keep things simple—shoot the puck, get to the net, and apparently never leave the ice."

Bill Yox (Winning Goalie):

"Giving up five goals usually doesn't feel great, but when your team scores thirteen, you mostly stay hydrated and enjoy the show."

Dru Trimble:

"Every time I looked up, Pearson was celebrating another goal. I started congratulating him before the puck even crossed the line."

Flames

Brad Graf (2 goals):

"Scoring two should feel pretty good. It doesn't when the other team scores thirteen."

Sean Wheale (Goaltender):

"I'd like to thank my defense for making sure I got plenty of exercise tonight."

Marc Salatino wasted little time giving the Stars the lead midway through the opening period before Marc Manning doubled the advantage late in the first. Owen Korkie scored just 32 seconds into the second period, giving the Stars complete control.

From there, Scott Anderson slammed the door.

The Knights generated 31 shots, but Anderson was flawless, recording a perfect 31-save shutout. Scott McMeekin added an insurance goal midway through the third to complete the 4-0 victory.

Despite allowing four goals, Paul Gwyn was outstanding for the Knights, turning aside 38 of 42 shots. Without his efforts, the score could have been far more lopsided.

The loss marks the Knights' second straight shutout, leaving them searching for offense heading into next week.

Game 2: Stars 4 vs Knights 0 

First Period 

• 16:18 - Stars Marc Salatino (GW) 
• 2:33 - Stars Marc Manning 

Second Period 

• 0:32 - Stars Owen Korkie 

Third Period

• 10:23 - Stars Scott McMeekin 

Shots on Goal

• Knights - 31 
• Stars - 42 

Goaltender Saves

• Knights - Paul Gwyn 38 of 42 (.905%) 
• Stars - Scott Anderson 31 of 31 (1.000%)

Post Game Quotes

Stars

Scott Anderson (31-save shutout):

"The guys blocked lanes, cleared rebounds, and let me see the puck. That's about as fun as hockey gets for a goalie."

Marc Salatino (Game-winning goal):

"Getting the first one was important. After that, Scotty made sure one goal probably would have been enough."

Knights

Paul Gwyn (38 saves):

"Giving up four on forty-two shots isn't bad. The problem is we scored exactly zero."

Jerome Feuiltault Knights Captain:

"We've officially entered a scoring drought. If anyone sees our offense, please return it before next Wednesday." "Is it too early to be taking about the Toilet Bowl?"

First Period

• No Scoring

Second Period

• 12:28 Stars - Robin Staveley

Third Period

• 19:10 Stars - Robin Staveley
• 17:51 TechniPower - Rick Fossier
• 6:20 TechniPower - Tom Dolan
• 1:31 TechniPower - Tucker Kroll (GW)
• 0:41 TechniPower - Jeff Moonshower (EN)

Goalies:

Stars - Martin Cizek

TechniPower - Sean Wheale

First Period

• No Scoring

Second Period

• 14:16 Flames - Larry Manning (GW)
• 11:08 Flames - Tim Conti

Third Period

• 21:26 Flames - Brad Graf
• 17:01 Flames - Brad Graf
• 14:07 Flames - Larry Manning

Goalies:

Knights - Paul Gwyn

Flames - David Gibbard

One game featured playoff-style hockey. The other looked more like a shooting gallery.

The Red Wings and Knights skated to an entertaining 5-5 overtime draw in a game neither team deserved to lose. In the nightcap, TechniPower put on an offensive clinic, routing the Flames 13-3 to move into sole possession of first place.

If you like momentum swings, this was your game. The Red Wings and Knights traded goals all night long before overtime solved absolutely nothing.

The Knights were led by Mike Zowine, who finished with two goals and an assist. Eric Richards, Don Stubel, and Terry Drago each added a goal to round out the balanced attack.

The Red Wings answered with a big night from Jay Arena, who also recorded two goals and an assist. Mitch Malin matched Arena with two goals of his own, while Dru Trimble chipped in the other Red Wings marker.

Both goaltenders were outstanding despite the offensive fireworks. Bill Yox turned aside 29 of 34 shots for the Red Wings, while Scott Anderson stopped 30 of 35 shots for the Knights in an evenly played contest that saw the Red Wings hold a slight 35-34 edge in shots.

This one was over almost before it started.

TechniPower came out flying and never took its foot off the gas, piling up 13 goals in a dominant performance that vaulted them into first place.

Mike Lozano orchestrated the offensive explosion with a monster seven-point night, scoring two goals while adding five assists. Gavin Morton contributed six points with three goals and three assists, while Ron Shostak completed the hat trick parade with three goals and an assist.

Tucker Kroll scored twice, while Jeff Moonshower, Trevor Maurer, and Jay Orzech each found the back of the net.

The Flames managed goals from Chad Porter, John Knudsen, and Travis Estabrooks, but there was little they could do to slow the TechniPower attack. TechniPower also controlled play territorially, outshooting the Flames 48-36.

The goalies finally decided they'd had enough of being featured on missing person posters. All four netminders posted save percentages north of .900 in a week where quality goaltending actually outshined the offenses. Both games were much tighter than the final scores suggested, with a pair of empty-netters making the Flames' win look easier than it was and a couple of late TechniPower goals putting the finishing touches on another strong performance.

Mike Jones opened the scoring for the Flames midway through the first period, and that lone goal held up through 20 minutes.

Tim Conti doubled the Flames' lead five minutes into the second before Marc Salatino cut the deficit in half five minutes later for the Stars. Just when it looked like the Stars had gained some momentum, Conti struck again with less than a minute remaining in the period to restore the two-goal cushion heading into the third.

Steve Woods made things interesting midway through the final frame, bringing the Stars within one, but that's as close as they would get. With the Stars pressing late, Travis Estabrooks buried two empty-net goals to put the game away.

Injured captain Brad Graf proved you don't need skates to make an impact, pulling all the right strings behind the bench while watching comfortably from a safe distance where nobody could accidentally pass him the puck.

The Flames outshot the Stars 43-36, while both David Gibbard and Scott Anderson were outstanding between the pipes in a game that could have easily featured a lot more scoring.

Tim Conti (Flames):

"I scored two tonight, but let's be honest... Travis is going to tell everyone he had two goals too. Funny how empty nets never seem to fight back."

Travis Estabrooks (Flames):

"People keep saying they were empty-net goals. I prefer to think of them as goals scored against a goalie who was strategically invisible."

Scott Anderson (Stars):

"Forty-three shots. I'd like to thank my defense for making sure I stayed loose all night."

Brad Graf (Flames Coach):

"I'm undefeated as an injured coach. Management is already wondering if I should stay behind the bench."



TechniPower wasted little time getting on the board as Ron Shostak scored less than three minutes into the opening period. It looked like the floodgates might open, but Bill Yox settled in and shut the door the rest of the period to keep it a 1-0 game.

History repeated itself early in the second, except this time it was the Red Wings finding the net. Jay Arena scored less than three minutes into the period to even things up before Paul Gwyn slammed the door the rest of the way.

The turning point came at the 15:15 mark of the second when Rick Fossier buried what proved to be the game winner.

In the third, TechniPower added some breathing room as Fossier and Shostak each scored their second goals of the night.

Jeff McCoy once again demonstrated that the best coaching record in the league belongs to someone who has yet to put his equipment on.

Bill Yox finished with 36 saves on 40 shots, while Paul Gwyn was brilliant, stopping 34 of 35 shots.

Postgame Quotes

Ron Shostak (TechniPower):

"Rick and I each had two goals. We decided to split the scoring load evenly so nobody had to buy the postgame beverages."

Rick Fossier (TechniPower):

"Jeff McCoy's coaching strategy is simple: remind us he's still undefeated when he doesn't play."

Jeff McCoy (TechniPower Coach):

"The secret is knowing exactly when not to lace up the skates. I'm basically the Scotty Bowman of standing behind the bench."

Bill Yox (Red Wings):

"Forty shots again? I checked the schedule twice just to make sure I wasn't playing both games tonight."



Jeff McCoy, after improving TechniPower's record while once again coaching instead of playing:

"At this point I'm not saying the team is better without me... but the evidence is becoming uncomfortable."😂🏒

After reviewing the tape (and several complaints from the Knights front office), the league has issued the following correction to last week's Mike Zowine quote adding 'minus the penalty minutes':

Mike Zowine (Knights):

"The score sheet says 'unassisted.' It is almost like I was Robbie Moore out there, minus the penalty minutes."

League officials confirmed this amendment was necessary to preserve statistical accuracy and Robbie Moore's reputation.

It was a rough night for the goaltenders' union, as defense took the evening off and offense was on full display in two goal-filled contests. In the opener, TechniPower held a lead after one period and looked poised to continue its hot start, but the Knights had other plans. After spotting TechniPower an early advantage, the Knights erupted over the final two periods to cruise to an 8-3 victory.

The nightcap featured another dramatic turnaround. The Stars built a comfortable three-goal lead midway through the game and appeared to be in control, but the Red Wings mounted an impressive comeback, dominating the second half and scoring eight times to hand the Stars an 8-6 defeat. By night's end, goalies everywhere were asking if they could borrow some defense next week.

TechniPower jumped out to an early lead and after one period looked like they were headed for another easy night. Unfortunately for them, somebody forgot to tell the Knights the game was over. After starting the season 0-3 and hearing whispers that they might be competing for the TechniPower Toilet Bowl Trophy, the Knights have suddenly discovered offense. Lots of offense. Eight goals worth.

Mike Zowine and Drew Bradach each scored twice while Eric Richards, Gary Wiseman, Don Stubel, and Erik Hendricks joined the party. Meanwhile, Sean Wheale spent most of the evening auditioning for a role as a shooting gallery attendant, facing 43 shots. Paul Gwyn enjoyed a much quieter evening in the Knights net, occasionally checking to make sure the game was still being played at his end. Larry Manning scored twice for TechniPower, but by the third period the Knights were scoring often enough that the scorekeeper was considering overtime pay.

Mike Zowine (Knights, 2 goals):

"Starting 0-3 was all part of the plan. We wanted everyone to relax before unleashing our offensive juggernaut. You're welcome."

Drew Bradach (Knights, 2 goals):

"I finally found chemistry with Mike. Mostly because he kept shooting rebounds right into my stick."

Erik Hendricks (Knights):

"Forty-three shots. That's not hockey, that's workers' compensation paperwork for Sean Wheale."

Paul Gwyn (Knights goalie):

"Twenty shots? I almost had enough free time to finish my taxes between whistles."

Sean Wheale (TechniPower goalie):

"I'd like to thank my defense for allowing me to get my cardio in. My watch congratulated me on completing a marathon."

Larry Manning (TechniPower, 2 goals):

"Scoring two goals in an 8-3 loss is kind of like bringing chips to a house fire. You did something, but nobody remembers it."

Jeff Moonshower (TechniPower):

"At one point I looked up and thought, 'This scoreboard can't be right.' Turns out it was."

Jeff McCoy (TechniPower captain):

"Good news, we've identified the problem. Bad news, there were several of them."



The Stars built a comfortable three-goal lead midway through the game and appeared to be cruising toward another victory. Then Pete March and Owen Korkie, watching from afar, discovered just how valuable they really are.

The Red Wings suddenly transformed from their usual "wait until next week" selves into the Edmonton Oilers, storming back with eight goals. Dru Trimble recorded a hat trick, Shawn Dooley added two goals, and Rob Wagstaff, Andrew Feinberg, and Brian Daley all joined in on the scoring frenzy. The Stars tried to keep pace with two goals each from Steve Woods and Robin Staveley, while Dan Costa chipped in a goal and two assists, but the Stars' defense spent so much time looking for Pete March and Owen Korkie that they forgot to cover the Red Wings.

Scott Anderson faced 45 shots and likely left the rink with an Apple Watch congratulating him on completing a cardio workout. Bill Yox was busy enough himself, but unlike Anderson, his teammates apparently decided scoring eight goals was easier than asking their goalie to steal another one.

By night's end, offense had won, goaltenders everywhere had filed grievances with the league, and Pete March and Owen Korkie were preparing contract extension demands after witnessing what happens when they're not in the lineup.

Dru Trimble (Red Wings, hat trick):

"People keep asking if I was seeing the puck well. Honestly, I was mostly seeing empty space where Pete March and Owen Korkie usually stand."

Shawn Dooley (Red Wings, 2 goals):

"Halfway through the game we decided giving up three goals was enough generosity for one night."

Brian Daley (Red Wings captain):

"We've spent four seasons losing important games. Nice to finally win one that doesn't matter in June."

Rob Wagstaff (Red Wings):

"Eight goals? Usually we save that kind of offense for warmups."

Scott Anderson (Stars goalie):

"Forty-five shots. I thought I signed up for ATL50, not a tryout camp."

Steve Woods (Stars, 2 goals):

"Scoring two goals and losing by two is the hockey equivalent of mowing your lawn before a tornado."

Robin Staveley (Stars, 2 goals):

"We had a three-goal lead and somehow ended up starring in a Red Wings comeback documentary."

Dan Costa (Stars, goal and two assists):

"Three points and still no postgame interview from ESPN. Tough league."

Pete March (watching from Italy on Barndoor):

"Apparently I'm worth at least four goals defensively. I'd like that reflected in my next contract."

Owen Korkie (also absent):

"I missed one game and suddenly everybody becomes Bobby Orr. Coincidence? I think not."

Bill Yox (Red Wings goalie):

"The guys scored eight for me. That's nice because I was hoping not to have to stop all 34 shots."

Scott Anderson (after hearing the Stars surrendered 45 shots):

"Can somebody tell the defense we're wearing green jerseys this season?"

Anonymous Stars Player 

"Congratulations to Greg Duncan on his assist. First point in 2 seasons"



Jeff McCoy (TechniPower captain):

"We've gone from first place to asking Siri how long hockey seasons are. Fortunately, there are still 15 games left and plenty of time to disappoint everyone equally."



Game 1 was a close affair with the Flames edging out the Red Wings 4-3 in an evenly played game. Game 2 saw the Knights upset the Stars 7-3.

The Flames got out to an early lead when Tim Conti found the back of the net. Dru Trimble tied the game at one, ending the scoring for the first period. Trimble was heard saying "thanks Max". 

Andrew Feinberg, on a nice pass from Robbie Moore during a two-on-none rush, gave the Red Wings a brief 2-1 lead. A minute later, Conti struck again with his second goal of the game to tie the score at two.

Brian Sadlock's screened shot gave the Flames a 3-2 lead after two periods. In the third period, both teams traded goals. John Knudsen scored for the Flames, while Rob Wagstaff answered for the Red Wings.

Bill Yox in the Red Wings net and Dave Gibbard in the Flames net were both solid, each facing 32 shots in a tightly contested game.

Tim Conti, Flames forward:

"Two goals tonight. I'd like to thank the Red Wings defense for respecting my personal space and following all social distancing guidelines."

Brian Sadlock, Flames defenseman:

"I just threw the puck at the net. Sometimes advanced offensive strategy looks exactly like a blind shot from the blue line."

Robbie Moore, Red Wings forward:

"We had a two-on-none and somehow still made it interesting. That's veteran hockey right there."

Bill Yox, Red Wings goalie:

"Thirty-two shots against and still a loss. I feel like a relief pitcher on the White Sox."

Red Wings Captain Brian Daley:

"We're very close. Unfortunately, we're also very close to .500."



With both teams playing with a substitute goalie, the Stars jumped out to an early two-goal lead on goals from Owen Korkie and Scott Pearson, and it looked like the game might get out of hand quickly.

The Knights regrouped and put the clamps on Pearson and the rest of the Stars, reeling off four consecutive goals from Terry Drago, Stephen Fisher, Jerome Feuiltault, and Mike Zowine.

Marc Salatino attempted to spark a comeback in the third period, but it wasn't to be. Fisher added his second goal of the game, while Zowine scored two more to complete a hat trick and a four-point night.

Remarkably, none of Zowine's goals were assisted.

Sean Wheale was outstanding in the Knights net, stopping 27 of 30 shots and several breakaways. Martin Cizek faced 34 shots for the Stars.

Mike Zowine, Knights forward:

"Three unassisted goals. Apparently my teammates decided the best way to help was to stay out of the way."

Jerome Feuiltault, Knights captain:

"After spotting them two goals, we finally remembered the game started at 6:50 and not 7:15."

Stephen Fisher, Knights forward:

"I scored twice tonight. My wife asked if I was sure the scorekeeper wasn't confusing me with somebody else."

Sean Wheale, Knights goalie:

"The Stars had a lot of breakaways. Luckily, most of them looked surprised to have the puck."

Scott Pearson, Stars forward:

"We were up 2-0 and completely in control. Then somebody suggested we stop playing hockey and see what happens."

Martin Cizek, Stars goalie:

"When you give up seven goals, people assume you had a bad night. I'd invite them to watch the replay before making any rash judgments."



Mike Zowine after recording a hat trick with three unassisted goals:

"The score sheet says 'unassisted.' It is almost like I was Robbie Moore out there."



Third-period domination was the name of the game last night. Down 3-0 heading into the third period, TechniPower stormed back to defeat the previously undefeated Stars 4-3 in overtime, firing 19 third-period shots at Scott Anderson in the Stars net.

The Flames also entered the third period holding a 3-0 lead and then turned the heat up even more, peppering Knights goalie Paul Gwyn with 21 third-period shots and scoring five times en route to an 8-1 victory.

The Stars came out flying, scoring first-period goals from Dan Costa and Sam Ashton before Marc Manning added a power-play marker midway through the game to build what looked like an insurmountable 3-0 lead.

TechniPower finally woke up in the third period, scoring three unanswered goals. Rick Fossier struck twice while Ron Shostak tied the game with just 12 seconds remaining in regulation. Had TechniPower managed to hit a couple of wide-open nets earlier in the period, the comeback could have been completed before overtime.

Instead, the game went to overtime where Jeff Moonshower scored with just 17 seconds remaining in OT, wiring a snap shot from the left faceoff circle past Anderson for the 4-3 victory.

The win sends TechniPower into their bye week sitting in first place and feeling pretty good about themselves. TechniPower outshot the Stars 47-31, while Sean Wheale and Scott Anderson both turned in strong performances between the pipes.

Jeff Moonshower: "Coach told us we needed to play a full 60 minutes. We compromised and played about 20."

Rick Fossier: "Going down 3-0 was all part of the plan. We wanted to see if the Stars could handle success. Turns out they couldn't."

Ron Shostak: "I scored with 12 seconds left because I wanted everybody to stay for overtime. You're welcome."

Sean Wheale: "I wasn't worried at 3-0. I've seen our offense before. Three goals is never enough."

Steve Keener: "We owe a lot of credit to coach Jeff McCoy who has been working the bench beautifully as he recovers from his injury. We are a little worried what might happen when he comes back."

Scott Anderson: "Forty-seven shots against. I'd like to thank my defense for making sure I got my cardio in."

Marc Manning: "Apparently hockey games are three periods now. We were only prepared for two."

Dan Costa: "I checked the scoreboard after the second period and thought we won. Rookie mistake."



What was a competitive game through two periods quickly turned into a blowout as the Flames handed the Knights their third loss in their first three games of the season.

Paul Haarer opened the scoring early in the first period, giving the Flames a 1-0 lead after one. The Flames added second-period goals from John Knudsen and Tim Conti to take a comfortable 3-0 advantage into the final frame.

Then the Flames erupted for five third-period goals. Tim Conti completed his hat trick while Paul Haarer added his second of the game. Travis Estabrooks also found the scoresheet. Erik Hendricks spoiled the shutout bid with the Knights' lone goal.

David Gibbard was sharp in the Flames net, stopping 27 of 28 shots, while Paul Gwyn faced an onslaught at the other end, turning aside 36 of 44 shots.

Tim Conti: "I was just trying to keep up with Paul Haarer. Fortunately, the Knights defense gave me plenty of opportunities."

Paul Haarer: "The third period felt like an all-you-can-eat buffet. We just kept coming back for more."

David Gibbard: "My teammates scored eight goals. My biggest challenge was staying awake at the other end."

Brad Graf: "For two periods this looked like a hockey game. Then our offense remembered it had somewhere to be."

Paul Gwyn: "Forty-four shots. I'd like to formally request hazard pay."

Erik Hendricks: "At least we avoided the shutout. Small victories matter."

Jerome Feuiltault: "We're not worried. We've got them right where we want them... assuming where we want them is above us in the standings."

Eric Richards: "The good news is we only gave up eight. The bad news is there isn't any more good news."

Mike Zowine (unable to be at the game posted on X): "What was our captain on during the draft. This could be a long season."



TechniPower heads into their bye week sitting atop the standings and suddenly looking like a legitimate contender. The Stars learned that no lead is safe, the Flames reminded everyone they can score in bunches, and the Knights are still searching for answers.

One thing is certain: if games were only two periods long, the standings would look a lot different.

The Red Wings and Flames picked up their first wins of the season Wednesday night in two high-scoring affairs. The Red Wings rolled past the Knights 7-3 behind five-point nights from Mitch Malin and Mike Legros, while the Flames knocked off previously unbeaten TechniPower 6-3 thanks to a monster four-goal performance from captain Brad Graf.

The Knights struck first when Mike Zowine opened the scoring, but after that it was all Red Wings. Robbie Moore, Mike Legros, Mitch Malin, and Shawn Dooley scored four consecutive goals to put the Red Wings firmly in control.

Don Stubel pulled the Knights closer early in the second period, but the Red Wings quickly slammed the door shut with second goals from Moore, Dooley, and Malin. Erik Hendricks added a late goal for the Knights, but by then the damage had already been done.

Bill Yox was solid between the pipes for the Red Wings, stopping 30 of 33 shots. Paul Gwyn faced a heavy workload in the Knights net, seeing 38 shots on the night.

Mitch Malin (Red Wings):

"We finally figured out that scoring more than the other team is an effective strategy. Honestly, it’s groundbreaking stuff. Imagine if the Montreal Canadiens could figure that out"

Mike Legros (Red Wings):

"The bench was buzzing tonight. Either that or somebody left the beer cooler open again."

Robbie Moore (Red Wings):

"I kept my penalties under double digits, so I’d call that personal growth. Plus two goals, I call that a good night"

Paul Gwyn (Knights):

"Thirty-eight shots against. I’m basically paying for cardio at this point."

Jeff McCoy (TechniPower captain, somehow commenting on the first game):

"Good to see other teams finally embracing defense as optional entertainment."



The Flames handed previously unbeaten TechniPower their first loss of the season behind a dominant performance from captain Brad Graf, who piled up four goals and an assist.

TechniPower started strong when Rick Fossier scored midway through the first period, but Craig Robson and Graf answered to give the Flames the lead. Jeff Moonshower tied the game at two halfway through the contest before the night officially became The Brad Graf Show.

Graf scored three more times to complete the four-goal night, while John Knudsen added another for the Flames. Drew Friedman chipped in a goal for TechniPower.

Both goaltenders were under siege all night. Dave Gibbard turned aside 34 of 37 shots for the Flames, while Sean Wheale faced an exhausting 44-shot barrage, including 22 shots in the opening period alone.

Brad Graf (Flames):

"The boys kept feeding me the puck. At some point it felt rude not to score."

Dave Gibbard (Flames goalie):

"Somebody mentioned I had the glove working tonight. It is amazing what happens if you close your eyes"

Sean Wheale (TechniPower goalie):

"I checked the shot clock after the first period and briefly considered filing for workers’ compensation."

Jeff Moonshower (TechniPower):

"We may have spent too much energy reading our own headlines after starting 2-0."

Brad Graf on TechniPower’s undefeated start ending:

"They had a nice run. Historians will remember those two weeks fondly."



Two good games last night. The Stars defeated the Flames 5-2, while TechniPower defeated the Red Wings by the same score. The Stars and TechniPower remain undefeated after two weeks.

TechniPower captain Jeff McCoy was asked, “What do you attribute your team’s hot start this season?” McCoy responded, “I’m not really sure because I haven’t played in either game.” Question asked and answered.



The Flames got off to a strong start when Aaron Wood opened the scoring midway through the first period. Larry Manning answered with back-to-back goals to give the Stars a 2-1 lead heading into intermission.

With seven minutes remaining in the second period, Dan Costa extended the Stars lead to 3-1. Just over a minute later, Aaron Wood buried his second goal of the night to pull the Flames back within one. That was as close as they would get.

In the third period, Steve Woods took over, scoring twice — including an empty netter — to seal the Stars victory. Woods finished with a monster night: 2 goals and 3 assists, factoring into every single Stars goal. Aaron Wood was involved in both Flames goals as well.

Between Aaron Wood and Steve Woods, there was more wood on the scoresheet than at a Home Depot lumber sale. By the end of the night, both teams were exhausted from all the wood handling. Rumor has it the refs considered changing the game’s official sponsor to Viagra.

Scott Anderson in the Stars next turned away 37 of 39 shots he faced while Dave Gibbard saw 37 shots sent his way. 

The Red Wings opened the scoring halfway through the first period when Dru Trimble found the back of the net. TechniPower answered late in the period when Rick Fossier tied the game at one heading into the intermission.

The second period turned into a goalie clinic as Sean Wheale for TechniPower and Bill Yox for the Red Wings slammed the door shut. Both netminders made a series of key saves to keep the game deadlocked after two periods.

Then the third period happened… and so did the annual Red Wings collapse.

TechniPower erupted for four four-period goals, including two from Tom Dolan, while Mike Lozano and Ron Shostak added goals as TechniPower pulled away for the 5-2 victory. Shawn Dooley scored the lone third-period goal for the Red Wings, briefly giving them hope before TechniPower quickly escorted that hope directly into the parking lot.

TechniPower outshot the Red Wings 36-32 in a fast-paced game that was much closer than the final score indicated — at least until the Red Wings remembered they were the Red Wings.

Jeff McCoy – TechniPower Captain

“I think the key to our success is leadership from the bench. Specifically… me not being on the ice.”

Sean Wheale – TechniPower Goalie

“The defense was great tonight. Most of the Red Wings shots were from the outside, except for the breakaways, rebounds, and odd-man rushes.”

Tom Dolan – TechniPower

“Coach told us to keep things simple in the third period. So naturally I scored two goals.”

Bill Yox – Red Wings Goalie

“I felt good through two periods. Then suddenly I was starring in another episode of Red Wings Defensive Adventures.”

Shawn Dooley – Red Wings

“We actually played pretty well for about 50 minutes. Unfortunately hockey games last longer than that.”

Unnamed Red Wings Player

“At this point we should just skip the third period and head straight to the beer.”

Steve Woods – Stars

“Five points is nice, but honestly I was just trying to keep up with all the Wood jokes.”

Aaron Wood – Flames

“Every time someone yelled ‘Wood!’ tonight, both teams turned around.”

Dan Costa – Stars

“I thought we played a complete game. Also, I’d like the league to investigate performance-enhancing Cialis.”

Larry Manning – Stars

“I scored two goals and somehow that still wasn’t the weirdest thing that happened tonight.”

Flames Captain

“We were right in the game until the third period. Then Steve Woods started finishing harder than a late-night Cinemax movie.”

Welcome to Week 1 of Season 5 in the ATL50 Hockey League. Opening night featured preseason darling TechniPower — fresh off what analysts are already calling “The McCoy Miracle Draft” — taking on an undermanned Knights squad. TechniPower backed up the offseason hype with a convincing 4-1 victory.

The second game was a rematch of Season 4’s Championship Final between the Stars and Red Wings. Different season. Same franchises. Different rosters… same result. The Stars edged the Red Wings 5-4 in another classic.

TechniPower came out flying like a team determined to prove the Vegas odds makers right. Chip Humphrey opened the scoring just three minutes into the game, and then both defenses and goaltenders slammed the door shut. The score remained 1-0 through the remainder of the first period and all of the second.

Early in the third, Scott Pearson tied the game 1-1 for the Knights, briefly silencing the TechniPower faithful. But from that point forward TechniPower completely took over. Jeff Moonshower restored the lead before Steve Keener and Mike Lozano added insurance markers to put the game away.

Sean Wheale was outstanding in the TechniPower crease, stopping 23 of 24 shots, while Paul Gwyn faced heavy pressure all night, turning aside 31 of 35 shots for the Knights.

“People laughed when McCoy said this was the best draft in league history. Nobody’s laughing now.” — Chip Humphrey

“We played a full 60 minutes. That’s unusual for ATL50 hockey, so we’re pretty proud of ourselves.” — Sean Wheale

“I tied the game and then apparently our strategy became ‘let’s stop covering people.’” — Scott Pearson

“The locker room smells like victory… and Bengay.” — Jeff Moonshower

The Stars came out looking like they never left the championship celebration, scoring four consecutive goals from Steve Woods, Marc “Facebook” Manning, and two from Dan Costa to build a commanding lead.

Halfway through the second period, the undermanned Red Wings finally woke up. Jay Arena got them on the board before Robbie Moore scored with just 15 seconds left in the second to cut into the deficit.

The third period belonged almost entirely to the Red Wings, but Stars goaltender Scottie Anderson repeatedly shut the door with several key saves under pressure. Sam Ashton appeared to put the game out of reach late in the third with a huge insurance goal.

But the Red Wings weren’t finished. Robbie Moore scored his second of the night, and Josh Josephson added another with 1:16 remaining to pull within one. The late comeback fell just short as the Stars escaped with the victory.

Anderson stopped 41 of 45 shots in a stellar performance, while Bill Yox faced 29 shots for the Red Wings.

“We spotted them four goals just to make the game interesting for the fans.” — Robbie Moore

“I thought a four-goal lead was safe in ATL50. Rookie mistake.” — Dan Costa

“Forty-one saves and my defense still told me I should’ve had the other four.” — Scottie Anderson

“We may have lost, but morally we won the third period.” — Brian Daley

“The Stars are already peaking in Week 1. Historically that works out terribly.” — Marc “Facebook” Manning