Venom Fans Riot After the Venom Beat the Venom

Thats right. The Venom came out and played a game full of rage. They forgot about the game of hockey and came out looking for an all out brawl. The Mad Dogs being the true gentleman that they are, which is obvious when you realize they are the least penalized team in B2, paid no attention to the out of control Venom and stuck to their game. While the Venom used their stick to take 2:00 minute minors all game the Dogs used theirs to score goals and direct the Venom players to the penalty box. 

It was a highly anticipated game by all AHA fans. The Mad Dogs came out strong in the first with Nick Mastro scoring the first goal of the game after a nice set up by line mates Gervais and Johnson. The Dogs slowed down a bit after that and the first period ended with the Dogs up by 1. First period penalty score Dogs 1 - Venom3. Shot: Mad Dogs 12-9

Second period was mostly controlled by the Venom and their strong physical game. The Mad Dogs shied away from the craziness and soon found themselves in a tie game after Venom star forward #77 Tony Cherne scored at 10:40 in the second. It didn't take long for the Dogs to respond. At 5:58 during another power play opportunity Mastro dropped a nice pass back to the blue line for Brian Loehr to fire towards the net for Rousey Johnson to tip into the net and the Mad Dogs regained the lead. It was only a couple minutes later when Tony Cherne from the Venom scored again to tie the game late in the second.  Second period ends 2-2. Penalties: Dogs 2 - Venom 3. Shots: Mad Dogs 10-5

The second period was not the best for the Dogs. They were getting sloppy and not winning the battles. Third period was an entirely different game. They Venom lost their minds and went penalty crazy and the Dogs stayed out of the box and started putting the puck in the net. Tim Moeller started the scoring off after a nice set up from Nielsen and Dirk Hanson. 

Not even 2 minutes later Johnson scored on a nice set up from defenseman Jeff Snyder. Then at 8:02 during a penalty kill Nielen intercepted another pass and fed defenseman Dirk Hanson who took off down the ice only to be dragged down on the side of the Venom goal. Somehow while being dragged down he managed to get the puck on net and it slid behind the Venom goalie that had no idea what had just happened. Then to finish the Venom off Nielson let a rocket go in the slot after a feed from Paul Swenson scoring with :42 seconds left in the game. Third period goal: Dogs 4-0  Shots: Dogs 14-6  Penalties: Dogs 2 Venom 5.

The Mad Dogs outscored the Venom 4-0 in the third period alone giving them a decisive 6-2 victory. Venom player and B2 administrator admitted in the post game press conference that the Venom beat themselves, especially in the 3rd when they took 5 penalties for a game total of 11 penalties (22 minutes). He said no team will ever beat the Mad Dogs if they skate over a third of the game short handed. The Venom had a very strong penalty kill giving up only 2 shorted goals out of 11 penalties but it wasn't enough. If the Mad Dogs can pull their power play unit together they could be looking at a some really high scoring games. 

Venom fans were furious that their teams penalty game strategy was no longer a strategy that can win games and took to the streets to riot. One drunk fan standing shirtless on a burned out car was screaming "PENALTIES SUCK!!!" Others were chanting "Get your mind out of the box!" One cute fan said she is disappointed with the Venom because "they are to eager to get in the box." 

It was an exciting night at the Wakota Civic Arena in St. Paul. There is a good chance the two teams will meet up in the playoffs for one final battle. 

1/18/09 Another Impressive Win for the Dogs

Well the Mad Dogs pulled off another impressive victory of the Mudflaps thanks to the goaltending of Larry Amundson. Shot count was 40-28 for the Mad Dogs and Amundson made a number of amazing saves to post his second shut out of the season. The Mad Dogs are dangerous when they shoot. We have see 93 shots and 18 goals from the Mad Dogs in the last two games. That's what they are going to have to do during the backstretch of the season to remain in a playoff position.

Scoring started early by defenseman Jeff Warren after a nice assist from Paul Good. It was a solid game all the way around by the Mad Dogs. A lot of accurate passes and a lot of good defensive play. The Dogs did an excellent job on reading the Mudflaps passes and picking them off. 

The only thing the Mudflaps managed to do well was get penalized. They tallied up 7 penalties in which the Dogs Nielsen and Mastro each had a power play goal. Rousey Johnson received the only penalty of the game after he donkey punched a Mudflap slashing Amundson after he had a pick covered. Next up... The Venom looking for a little revenge after the Mad Dog junior team handed them a wooping at the Xcel earlier in the month. 

1/11/09 Mad Dogs Sweep Bulldogs in Second Dog Fight of the Season

After a strong close in the previous game against the Farmers the Mad Dogs come out looking to sweep the Bulldogs in their second match up of the season. And they did so in style out shooting the Bulldogs 52 -37. The highlight of the game came late in the third period when defenseman Jeff Snyder was moved up to forward to score his first goal in many years. On his way back to the bench after scoring he did some sort of slalom skiing celebration dance and was immediately placed back on defense. 

It was one of the cleanest games of the season with the two least penalized teams going up against one another and the Mad Dogs Dirk Hanson managed to score on their only power play of the game. Final score 13-6. 

It was a very impressive win after a 3 game losing streak that put the Dogs back in first. Any critics that thought the dogs reign at top was over for the season better watch out. Their fighting their way back to the top with great passing, lots of goal scoring, minimal penalties and excellent goaltending from Larry Amundson.

1/4/09 Mad Dogs get Hoed in OT by the Farmers

Down 3-0 in the third period of the game the Mad Dogs decided it was time to put an end to their 2 game losing streak before it became 3 games. Mastro and Nielson got the scoring started. Then with 4:53 left in the third a Farmers forward took his second run at goaltender Larry Amundson and Gervais led the charge followed by Loehr and others to clear the net and protect Larry so he didn't have to. 

After they got the penalties sorted out the Mad Dogs were all fired up and desiring a win. Loehr came out shortly after the penalty and scored with 1:17 left to bring the Dogs within 1. Seeing the opportunity to complete the comeback the Dogs went right back down crashing the Farmers net and Nielsen picked up a puck that bounced of the boards behind the net and buried it to tie the game 4-4 with only :35 seconds remaining. 

The crowd went crazy and so did the Mad Dog bench. Ending the third period with a tie the Mad Dogs were guaranteed 1 point for the game, officially ending their losing streak, or should I say pointless streak. There was enough ice time remaining for a 1 minute run time OT. The Dogs came out hoping to score quick but the Farmers picked up the puck at the far blue line and came down 3 on 1 and scored with a nice shot to win the game with only 15 seconds remaining in the OT.

Dogs were out shot were 33-36. A few more shots and it may have been a different game. The Mad Dogs were back though. They managed to pick up a point, finished strong and remembered how much fun it is when they play well. They left the locker room stoked for their upcoming match up against the Bull Dogs.

12/26/08 Dogs get chopped down by the Lumberjax

Another tough game for the injury and broken skate plagued Mad Dogs. Not looking very good at all the Mad Dogs entered their first losing streak of the season losing to the Lumberjax 8-5. Lumberjax outshot the Dogs 38-26. 

The Lumberjax had a total of 9 penalties compared to the Mad Dogs zero penalty minutes. Despite the 9 penalties the Dogs captain Brian Loehr scored the only power play goal. Unfortunately that was offset by a short handed goal later in the game by the Lumberjax. Nielsen Managed to pick up a hat trick and Tim Moeller picked up the 5th goal of the game late in the third. 

Looks like the Mad Dogs need more fire in their game if they want to get out of this losing streak.

The Writer Strike is Over!

The adult hockey writers union and the league have come to an agreement ending the one month stand still of the writers strike. Inspired by the recent inauguration of Obama both sides agreed it was time for change and tossed in the towel over the labor dispute. They writers agreed to offer a brief summary of the previous games and will get back to full game summary's after tonight's crucial game against the Venom at the Wakota Civic Arena in St. Paul starting at 9:20pm. For information to the arena please click here.