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Kreiser's
Korner Kreiser’s Korner – April 15,
2004 The V&A Gourmet Deli Penguins showed why they won the FPSA’s Junior Division championship by rallying to capture the playoff title, coming from behind to beat the Allstate Insurance Sharks in a best-of-three championship series that went to the limit. The Sharks, who handed the Penguins four of their five regular-season losses, got the jump with a 4-2 victory in the series opener. After Kevin White put the Penguins ahead midway through the first period, Mike Sweeney sparked the Sharks with two goals and an assist as they scored four goals in a span of less than 10 minutes. Goaltender Thomas Fangmann did the rest, allowing only a goal by Mike Creighton early in the third period as he finished with 42 saves. The Penguins rallied to stave off elimination in Game 2 with a 3-0 victory. A smothering defensive effort limited the Sharks to just 11 shots, making life easy for goaltender Steve Maturo. Keith Dunbar scored twice, both on setups from Joe Penteck, sandwiched around a tally by White. The deciding game took place
over a seven-day span, as inclement weather forced a postponement with 1:00
remaining in the opening period on March 24. The Penguins wasted little time
getting on the board when the game resumed on March 30, as Mike Kelleher
connected 47 seconds into the middle period, and Ben Ruggiero made it 2-0 less
than six minutes later off a setup from Mike Weiss and Kevin Kreiser. Penteck
scored what proved to be the back-breaker when he took Kelleher’s long lead pass
and fired a 20-footer past Fangmann with just 2 seconds remaining in the period.
John Lucatorto’s goal 2:22 into the final period gave the Sharks a brief spark,
but White’s power-play tally with 12:49 remaining restored the Pens’ three-goal
margin. The Penguins again played smothering defense, limiting the Sharks to
only 14 shots while getting 36 at Fangman. As the Penguins did in the Juniors, the Floral Park Motor Lodge Panthers followed up their regular-season championship by capturing the playoff title. Alfred Vitsentzos, who powered the Panthers through the semifinal round with his scoring, stepped back into the nets in place of Matt Kreiser and made 39 saves in the opener as Cats rallied for a 5-3 victory over the Associated Foods Penguins. Goals by Frank Kossefis and Max Devane gave the Panthers an early 2-0 lead, but Matt Watts rallied the Panthers by setting up Matt Brzoza’s goal and scoring twice himself for a 3-2 lead. But Kossefis’ second of the game midway through the second period pulled the Panthers even, and Henry Hughes put the Panthers ahead to stay early in the third period. Vinny Prizzi’s goal with 12:55 remaining provided some insurance and Vitsentzos did the rest, stopping all 16 shots he faced in the third period. Penguins goaltender Desmond Zantua was even busier, stopping 41 of the 46 shots he faced. The Panthers had too much firepower in Game 2, wrapping up the championship with an 8-4 victory. After the Panthers’ Kevin McCarthy and the Penguins’ Joe Manahan exchanged first-period goals, the Panthers took command by outscoring their rivals 5-3 in a wide-open second period, with Kossefis scoring three of the five goals. Prizzi and McCarthy added third-period goals and Vitsentzos again was flawless in the third period, stopping 13 shots. Peewee Division The most exciting finish took place in the Pee Wee Division, which saw its championship series decided in the final half-minute of the third and deciding contest. Kevin D’Amico’s goal with 26 seconds left in regulation time gave The Equipment Room Sharks a come-from-behind 5-4 victory over the Floral Park PBA Penguins. The Sharks trailed 2-0, 3-1, and 4-3 before pulling even with 3:33 left in regulation when Timothy Lazaroff scored on the only penalty shot awarded in the FPSA this season. D’Amico, who didn’t score a goal during the regular season, then gave the Sharks the championship when he took a pass from Nicholas Benitez and beat goaltender Anthony Santiago. Joe Kiss had the first three goals for the Sharks, while Garrett Conti scored the first two for the Penguins and set up a third by Timothy Conway. Patrick Lynn’s goal with 14:06 remaining in regulation had given the Penguins a 4-3 lead before Lazaroff’s tying goal. The Sharks won the opener 2-1 when Mike Tangredi scored with 1:48 left in the second period and goaltender Andrew Setaro made the lead stand up in the third period, stopping all seven shots he faced. But the Penguins refused to go quietly, blowing open a 2-2 tie with four unanswered goals for a 6-2 victory. Conti broke the tie with 6:01 remaining in the second period, and Conway and Conti scored in the final 1:33 of the period for a three-goal lead. Conti capped a four-goal performance with the only goal of the third period. Squirt Division In the Squirt Division, where playoffs were not held, the Ray Block Panthers ended the season in first place with a 7-2-1 record, ending the season with 3-2 and 7-2 victories over the Floral Park Rec Center Penguins. Scott Naab had all three goals in the first victory, while the Penguins got tallies from Chris St. Clair and Mike Meegan. Naab had four goals in the second game and Jocelyn Penteck added a goal and four assists, while St. Clair and Patrick Schmid connected for the Penguins. The Penguins also broke even in three late-season contests against the North Fork Bank Sharks. In the first game, two goals by Matt Szala helped the Sharks hold on for a 3-2 victory, overcoming two goals by St. Clair. Tim Lazaroff’s goal with:1:02 remaining in regulation gave the Penguins a 3-3 tie in the middle game after Szala’s goal with 9:17 left had given the Sharks the lead. And in the third contest, Danny Bostrom’s goal with 20 seconds left in regulation gave the Penguins a 4-3 victory. The Sharks closed their season with a 2-1 victory over the TNT Liquidators Blues on goals by Ryan Glynn. James Lowe had the only tally for the Blues. Penteck of the Panthers led the Squirts with 19 assists and 31 points in the 10-game season, while teammate Naab and the Blues’ Tim Conway tied for the goal-scoring lead with 18. The Penguins’ Timmy Connors posted the only complete-game shutout.
The V&A Gourmet Deli Penguins and Allstate Insurance Sharks are headed for the FPSA’s Junior Division finals after sweeping their semifinal series.
The Penguins, who rode the division’s top defensive effort to the regular-season championship, continued their regular-season dominance of the Green Gardens Flyers in their playoff opener with a 4-0 victory, then breezed to a 6-1 victory to wrap up the best-of-three series in two games. In the opener, Ben Ruggiero scored twice while goaltender Steve Maturo blanked the Flyers for the fourth time this season. The Pens used a balanced attack to close out the series, with Mike Weiss scoring twice and four other players connecting once each, while Maturo stopped 23 shots. Andrew Gateson had the lone goal for the Flyers.
The second semifinal series was much tighter, with the Sharks claiming a pair of one-goal victories over the Commerce Bank Panthers in games that went down to the wire. In the opener, the Panthers overcame a 4-1 deficit to tie the score, only to see the Sharks capture a 5-4 victory when Henry Hughes scored his third goal of the game with 4:18 remaining. The Panthers had rallied on goals by Ish Chada, Dan Russo, and Matt Brzoza to tie the game before Hughes notched the game-winner.
Game 2 was a back-and-forth contest, with the Sharks coming away with 3-2 victory on Matt Vota’s power-play goal with 1:01 remaining in regulation. The Panthers tied the score midway through the final period on a spectacular shorthanded breakaway goal by Brzoza. Hughes had a pair of goals for the Sharks, while Tyler Perge also connected for the Panthers.
The Penguins rallied to finish first in the regular season on the strength of their league-leading defense—their 37 goals were 18 less than the runner-up Panthers—and a balanced attack that saw six players finish with at least 15 points. The Flyers’ Bryan Collins won the scoring title with 27 points, one more than the Pens’ Joe Penteck. Collins also led all goal-scorers with 18, edging the Penguins’ Mike Kelleher by one.
The Penguins finished three points ahead of the second-place Sharks, but the runner-ups dominated the season series, winning four of the five regular-season meetings.
Kreiser’s Korner (Through Games of March 14) The V&A Gourmet Deli Penguins and Allstate Insurance Sharks are one victory away from meeting for the Junior Division playoff championship. The Penguins, who rode the division’s top defensive mark to the regular-season championship, continued their regular-season dominance of the Green Gardens Flyers in their playoff opener with a 4-0 victory. Ben Ruggiero scored twice while goaltender Steve Maturo blanked the Flyers for the fourth time this season. The second semifinal opener went down to the wire, with the Commerce Bank Panthers rallying from a 4-1 deficit to tie the score, only to see the Sharks capture a 5-4 victory when Henry Hughes scored with 4:18 remaining to complete a three-goal effort. The Panthers had rallied on goals by Ish Chada, Dan Russo, and Matt Brzoza to tie the game before Hughes notched the game-winner. The Penguins rallied to finish first in the regular season on the strength of their league-leading defense—their 37 goals were 18 less than the runner-up Panthers—and a balanced attack that saw six players finish with at least 15 points. The Flyers’ Bryan Collins won the scoring title with 27 points, one more than the Pens’ Joe Penteck. Collins also led all goal-scorers with 18, edging the Penguins’ Mike Kelleher by one. The Bantam Division is still finishing the regular season, and the race will go down to the final night with nothing decided, as all four teams are within three points. The Floral Park Motor Lodge Panthers won a pair of games over the weekend to vault the field and move into first place. The Panthers downed the TNT Liquidators Blues 5-2 on March 13, then outlasted the Associated Foods Penguins 8-6 a day later to climb into the top spot, one point ahead of the Gotham Fitness Flyers, two ahead of the Penguins and three in front of the Blues. All four teams are scheduled to finish their season on March 18, with the playoffs starting the next night. The Panthers switched lineups over the weekend, with their regular goaltender, Alfred Vitsentzos, taking a turn up front while defenseman Matt Kreiser put on the pads. The move worked, as Vitsentzos scored in both games, getting the go-ahead goal with 4:33 remaining against the Penguins, while Kreiser made 13 stops in the victory over the Blues to support Vinny Prizzi’s three goals, and 16 more against the Penguins. Keith Conti and Matt Brzoza each had a pair of tallies for the Penguins in the loss to the Panthers. Pens’ goaltender Desmond Zantua kept his club in the game with a succession of spectacular stops as the Panthers put 50 shots on goal. The Flyers moved into second place on Sunday by holding off the Blues 6-5. Keith Dunbar and Chris Kryda each scored twice for the Flyers, who built a 6-3 lead in the third period and then hung on as the Blues got late goals from Michael Carleo and Joe Penteck, his third of the game, before running out of time. The Panthers’ weekend victories gave them three in a row; on March 4, they topped the Flyers 4-1 as Frank Kossefis scored twice and Vitsentzos made 15 saves. The Penguins came into their meeting with the Panthers off back-to-back victories, a 9-7 victory over the Blues and a 10-1 triumph over the Flyers in which Brzoza scored five goals and added a pair of assists. In the Pee Wee Division, the Floral Park PBA Penguins clinched first place on Sunday with a 10-0 victory over the DePhillips Sports Blues as division scoring leader Garrett Conti had seven goals. A day earlier, Conti had five goals as the Penguins took the division lead with a 6-4 victory over The Equipment Room Sharks. Joseph Kiss scored three straight goals in the third period to rally the Sharks from a 4-1 deficit, but Conti broke the tie with 4:45 remaining and added an insurance goal with 3:06 to play. The Sharks rebounded from the loss to the Penguins by holding off The Equipment Room Panthers 4-1. Kevin Lavalle had a pair of goals for the Sharks, while Jake Seide scored for the Panthers. The Sharks will finish second due to their inability to beat the two teams below them in the standings. On March 7, they dropped a 7-3 decision to the Blues as Steven Prizzi notched four goals, and a week earlier, A.J. Chilelli’s 20-save effort gave the Panthers a 2-0 victory. In the Squirt Division the Ray Block Panthers have taken the division lead with a 5-2-1 record. However, they were nipped on March 13 by the North Fork Bank Sharks, who earned a 2-1 victory when Logan Pietroforte scored with 10 seconds left in regulation time. Pietroforte also had the Sharks' other goal, while Robert Wagner connected for the Panthers. Two days earlier, the Panthers rallied from a 2-0 deficit, then held off the TNT Liquidators Blues 4-3. Jocelyn Penteck had the Panthers' first goal and set up all three by Scott Naab to power the Panthers' comeback. Timothy Conway had two goals for the Blues. That game was a rematch of a March 7 contest in which the teams tied at 3-3, as Penteck had two goals for the Panthers, including the tying tally with 2:57 remaining. Conway had two goals and James Lowe added one for the Blues. The Floral Park Rec Center Penguins got their second victory of the season on March 4 with a 6-4 triumph over the Blues. Chris St. Clair had four goals for the Penguins and set up the go-ahead tally by Timothy Lazaroff with 1:04 remaining in regulation time. Conway and Conall Ryan each scored twice for the Blues.
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