FALCONS DEFEAT NORDIQUES TO CAPTURE VERDI CUP!!
Falcons def Nordiques 8-6
The Finals on Friday saw the Nordiques and the Falcons face off as each team was determined to give it all they had to win the Verdi Cup. The game started with a bang with the Nordiques scoring the first goal of the game within minutes of faceoff. Assisted by Umar Mohammed and scored by Sadik Patel, this goal made it seem that the Nordiques had a promising game ahead of them. But with Yusuf Ingar from the Falcons scoring two goals with a goal from Ricky Saili in between, the Nordiques' boat began sinking fast. The Falcons picked up momentum with three consecutive goals before the first period was done. When the buzzer finally sounded, the teams stood at a standstill with the score at 3-1 for the Falcons. After some much needed pep-talk and increased motivation, the Nordiques seemed to get their gear back on as they started the period off once again with a goal by Umar Mohammed assisted by Shoaib Khan. But the Falcons were able to come back as quick as they did in the first period with this time, four consecutive goals including again, goals by Yusuf Ingar and Ricky Saili, in addition to one goal scored by Zakaria Manjra. For the Nordiques however, all hope was not lost. They came back strong with a goal by Sadik Patel, and two goals by Shoaib Khan. The Falcons managed to squeeze in a goal by Yusuf Ingar between the last few minutes of the game. As hard as the Nordiques tried, they could only manage to trail by 2 goals when the last buzzer of the game ringed, ending the finals with a score of 8-6 for the Falcons as they were crowned the Spring 2012 Verdi Cup Champions. Nevertheless, the fact that the Nordiques made it to the finals was a big achievement for the team since they had lost 9 games in a row prior to the playoffs. Similarly, being in the Finals was an achievement for the Falcons as well since they were 7-1 in the last 8 games played before the finals. Ricky Saili from the Falcons was awarded MVP for the finals.
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PRESENTS
FRIDAY JUNE 29 @ 9:15pm - Malton CC
With the Finals quickly approaching to conclude the inaugural MMGL season, nothing but the unexpected has occurred. Two teams with no expectations from when the season started, pull off the only trade, changing the look of their entire team, are now preparing to face-off in the 2012 Verdi Cup Finals. To start off, the Falcons regular season started off on a rough note. Besides the first night of the season, the Falcons team was playing without a GM and a Captain. Their season started off with 5 straight losses and looked to be doomed for the year. On the other side, The Nordiques started off 3-0 and looked to be a dominant team destined for a championship, until their goalie Ahmed Mobin left on absence. Right off the bat, these two teams turned into a ‘write-off’, with no one expecting them to have a chance at hoisting the cup. Then one day, the trade of the year between these two teams, clearly changed their own fates for the better. With Shoaib Rangrez joining the Falcons club, their head office took a major change-up seeing Zakaria Manjra becoming GM and naming Shoaib Rangrez as Captain. The presence of veteran Captain Ranger, the team had a sudden boost of condifence, and Ml.Huzaifa Patel benefited the most, dominating every game onwards. With that, the team finished the remaining season with a 5-1 record. In the playoffs, return of star forward Yusuf Ingar further elevated the teams play, and were able to sweep past the Hawks, and are now on route to play in the Finals. For the Nordiques, the trade saw power forward Suhaib Shaikh come over, and was heavily looked upon to play with Shoaib Khan and produce offensively. The regular season was a struggle for both these players but Shahir Shaikh held them in there. With the struggles, the team did go through some internal problems as well and the team looked to have fallen apart. It wasn’t till the playoffs started that the team regained its balance and focus on the games. Despite losing the first game by a mere goal, the Nordiques bounced back from their 9-Game losing streak with the help of Suhaib Shaikh, Shoaib Khan, and Sadiq Patel all pitching in offensively. They came out of the Semi-Finals winning the last 2 games against the Sharks and booked their ticket in the Finals. With Ahmed Mobin back in goal, look for the Nordiques to continue their unbelievable, LA Kings like, run. As for the Falcons, they will have Yusuf Ingar in the line-up and will have to wait and see if Abbas Shaikh will be back in net to cap off their unexpected turn-around season. All that is left is to wait for one more Friday, play one more game, witness at least one more goal, hear one more buzzer, and crown the first ever winner of the Verdi Cup, because their can only be one champion.
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Semi Finals
Falcons def Hawks 5-1
Falcons Win Series 2-0
Game 1 : Falcons Def Hawks 7-2
Game 2: Falcons Def Hawks 5-1
The first playoff series in the history of the Verdi Cup was determined by the last regular season game of the inaugural year. Two weeks ago, the last game that featured the Sharks vs. the Hawks was a battle for first place, the winner taking first place, without OT occurring. The game was a thriller with the Hawks being down 3-1 in the second half and rallied back to take a 4-3 lead. Sharks managed to tie it in the last minute and won in OT. The two teams were tied for first in points but in head-to-head match-ups, the Sharks had the advantage and took first place. That set the stage for what was suppose to be a tight series. In Game 1 however, the Hawks fell to an early deficit of 4-0, but managed two goals by the likes of Fahad Panchbhaya and Mohammed Kazi. With a power play, the Hawks could cut the lead to one, but gave up a shorty to Yusuf Ingar, which deflated the hopes for the Adil-less Hawks. For the Falcons, dominant play was shown by all players, with goals coming from Shoaib Rangrez, Ml.Huzaifa Patel, Ricky Saili, Haran Karunakaran, and 3 from Yusuf Ingar to win by a score of 7-2 to take Game 1. A week later, Game 2 was the Hawks’ last chance to remain in the playoffs and must have a bounce back game to stay in the hunt. With all eyes set on Adil Patel, no one predicted what lied ahead. A minute into the game, Zakaria Manjra through a weak backhander on net, and goalie Ridwan Khanji had trouble with it, knocking it into his own net. The hawks were off to their worst start yet, and the Falcons took full advantage of that. The weak goal clearly looked like it got to Khanji’s head, which led to two more questionable goals, giving the Falcons a demanding 3-0 lead. With a few seconds left in the first half, Adil Patel managed to tip his first of the playoffs past Deepinder Brar. Down 3-1 in the second, all hopes seemed to fade for the high-flying regular season Hawks. Falcons’ goalie Deepinder Brar was on his game, denying the Hawks every chance they had, and you know what they say, a good goalie always has luck on his side, as Sufyaan Shaikh ringed one off the cross bar early that would’ve cut the lead to one. With countless efforts on net, the Hawks could not manage anymore and gave up one more goal that sealed the deal, followed by an empty-netter that grounded the Hawks’ season for good. The Falcons, led by Shoaib Rangrez, playing without Yusuf Ingar and Ml.Huzaifa Patel, effectively shut down the offensive core of the Hawks, utilizing their bodies to their advantage, and got to goalie Ridwan Khanji early, not letting him regain his confidence in net. Amazing performances also shown by Haran Karunakaran, Zubair Patel, and Ricky Saili. Notable mentions to Atif Bokhari and Deepak Bhangu for their efforts on defense as well. With the win, the Falcons won the series 2-0 and are moving onto the 2012 Verdi Cup Finals.
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Nordiques def Sharks 5-4
Nordiques win series 2-1
Game 1 : Sharks def Nordiques 6-5
Game 2 : Nordiques def Sharks 2-1 OT
Game 3: Nordiques def Sharks 5-4
The Nordiques, going into the playoffs have lost their last 8 games after starting the season 3-0. The trade that saw Shoaib Rangrez go to the Falcons in exchange for Suhaib Shaikh seemed extremely costly for Shoaib Khan’s team. However, no one knew that Suhaib Shaikh would turn out to be the perfect playoff performer. Everyone’s assumption for the series was quite obvious, but two weeks ago, it was clear that this series was in for some serious surprises. In Game 1, for the first time, the clash of two spectacular titans took the stage, with both Rizwan Hassan and Shoaib Khan bringing their A-game. The Sharks took a 2-0 lead early, from Shakir Shaikh and Zahid Panchbhaya. The Nordiques seemed to be on their heals, until Shoaib Khan potted his first, giving them a bit of momentum. Down 2-1 for a while, the Nordiques were hoping for someone else to show, and sure enough Suhaib Shaikh came through tying the game at two’s. With plenty of goals later from Fayaz Kazi, Rizwan Hassan, Suhaib Shaikh, and Shoaib Khan, the game was at a score of 6-5 for the Sharks. With less than a minute left, the Nordiques were all over the Sharks, but were unable to penetrate goalie Kaleem Mirza. In the dying seconds, the game was on Shahir Shaikh’s stick as he swatted at a bouncing ball to the left to the net and struck out. The Sharks snuck out a victory taking Game 1 6-5. Going into last week, much hype was expected as Nordiques’ goalie Ahmed Mobin was back. In Game 2, Rizwan Hassan was out and Sabir Shaikh was in for the Sharks. For the first time in MMGL history, this game was a goalie duel. Kaleem Mirza and Ahmed Mobin were stellar, each only letting 1 goal past them in regulation time, setting the stage for the first ever OT game in these Playoffs. Being a new week, a new hero was awaiting, and no one expected the Nordiques to come out of the game with a win. However, Sadiq Patel had no plans of going home just yet, as he found the back of the net and keeping their season alive for at least one more game. With the Hawks already eliminated, it was quite possible for another upset occurring, just to keep 2012
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Semi Finals Preview
9:50 pm- Falcons VS Hawks
Game 1 of 3 Semi Finals
Going into the night, the Falcons will be on the same boat as the Nordiques, waiting on their first opponent of the post-season as well. With the third game of the night though, they will hold some sort of advantage as they will be fresh and ready for their first game against a team who will have already played a game before. Focusing on the Falcons, this team has had a remarkable turn around to their season. Ever since the drastic change on the executive level, the team has played with a lot more energy and determination. Led by former Nordique, Shoaib Rangrez, GM Zakaria Manjra, and all-star power forward Yusuf Ingar, who by the way came off a monstrous performance last week, the team went on a 5-0 run after starting the season 0-5. With former captain Divesh Sharma out, the substitution of Ricky Saili sure has paid its dividends, and then some. Also, the star power seems to have rubbed out on to all the other teammates. The Patel Brothers for instance, Zubair Patel has come through providing a road block for teams to go through and Ml. Huzaifa Patel, along with his sniping skills, just adds a whole new dimension on their offensive line. Power forward Haran Karunakaran has also stepped his game up. Last but not least, goaltender Abbas Shaikh looks like he has found his groove in net and will be the backbone of this team going into the post-season. This season looked like it had two different Falcons teams, and the current team they have now is exactly what the doctor ordered if they were to contend for the Verdi Cup.
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10:40 pm- Nordiques vs Sharks
Game 1 of 3 Semi Finals
Not knowing the outcome of the first game on the night, the Nordiques will look on anxiously to await their opponent in their first round of the playoffs. One thing is for sure though; they will face a team who is fully capable of winning it all. Focusing on the Nordiques, the team has suffered through a tough stretch, starting from just the second week of the season. The team at first was once top in the league with a 3-0 record, and have since lost their remaining 8 games, putting them in dead last on the year. The team looks to have lost all its chemistry for one reason or another and was forced to make the only trade of the season, sending Shoaib Rangrez over to the Falcons and receiving Suhaib Shaikh in return. A lot of pressure has mounted on his head ever since and with the lack of support in offense from the likes of Shoaib Khan and Umar Mohammed, the team looks to have no chance at all. Solid effort had been put up by offensive defenseman Shahir Shaikh along with Sadiq Patel and Faiz Vaid. If they are to have any chance at all, their goaltending looks like will need to be able to bail them out every now and then. All that is left to say is whether or not Shoaib Khan and his Nordiques will be able to pull off a Cinderella story, one similar to the LA Kings recently, or else it will be lights off on their season quite fast.
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