And It Slips Away

Mar. 12, 2006

This is it. TriValley beat Oakland this afternoon leaving us no choice except a win to qualify for the playoffs.

We're in San Jose. Things feel edgy, but we're confident we can do this. We've beat this team before.

The puck drops. The game looks a little off. Our timing isn't quite right. The passing isn't as crisp as it can be. The pace is fast. And San Jose is doing no better. Neither team is dominating the play.

Kevin Kiaski is the first Cougar noted on the scoresheet. He takes our first penalty for hooking at 10:25 in the first period, but the "PK" lines do well and hold them off. Our two power play attempts later fail to convert, and the period ends with the score tied at 0-0.

SCORE Cougars 0 - Jr Sharks 0

We're back on the penalty kill very early in the second, as Jake Griswold cools his heels in the box. We hold them off again, but San Jose draws first blood immediately after the penalty clears with a goal at 12:10. We're motivated now, and things seem to slide into a higher gear. Stephen Paulazzo gets the puck to Alan Nguyen, and Alan finds the back of the net at 5:03. The score remains tied thru the end of the period.

SCORE Cougars 1 - Jr Sharks 1

The puck drops for the third, and we're looking for opportunities. Stephen-Paul Stichler gets the puck to Matt Hopper, Matt finds Mauricio Schmidt, and Mauricio finds a weak spot. It's in the net. We've pulled ahead.

SCORE Cougars 2 - Jr Sharks 1

The clock starts winding down. This is looking very promising. We'd like an insurance goal, but they slide into a higher gear right about when we appear to find the "defend the lead" mode. Not a good combination. The momentum shifts. Two San Jose goals 18 seconds apart with less than 3 and a half minutes on the clock, and we watch it slip away from us...

FINAL SCORE Cougars 2 - Jr Sharks 3

A heartbreaking finish, and not what we dreamed of. But boys, it's been a great season. It was a year full of camaraderie, fun times and a few disappointing moments. Take these life lessons with you. Goals have been set... met... and missed. But there are many awesome memories! 3 tournament Championships. Playing at the Ritchie Center - entering thru the tunnel, skating under the bright lights with the video feed on the jumbo-tron and the horn blasting for every goal. A taste of "pro" hockey. Remember these always.

Many of you are leaving us to pursue new adventures in life and at college. We'll miss you. Take the Cougar grroowwl  with you. We wish you the best!

For those who can return, we'll be here. There's always next year...

Scoring Summary
Team	Shots	Goals
Cougars Jr Sharks	15 [ 5:5:5 ] 16 [ 7:3:6 ]	2 [ 0:1:1 ] 3 [ 0:1:2 ]
Penalties Recorded
Team	Number	Minutes
Cougars Jr Sharks	08 [ 01:01:06 ] 07 [ 02:02:03 ]	49 [ 02:02:45 ] 22 [ 04:12:06 ]

Alan Nguyen, assisted by Stephen Paulazzo, at 5:03 in the second period.

Mauricio Schmidt, assisted by Matthew Hopper and Steven-Paul Stichler, at 13:33 in the third.

Goaltender Andrew Norris saved 12/15 shots.

Goaltender Caleb Murray saved 1/1 shots.