Heroes of the NYTEX Bronze League

New Blog Address

2010-01-06T11:23:00.002-06:00

http://silverleague.blogspot.com/

We have added new contributors, and the blog should start heating up again with these new points of view. Everyone take notice of the blog address as this will be the last post on this blog. It will sit as an archive, but from here on out we will rock the new one.

http://silverleague.blogspot.com/

Big Blog Announcement...Idea

2010-01-04T16:48:00.001-06:00

Some people on here have been saying that the blog is boring, or it sucks or whatever. So with the new decade upon us, its time to take the blog up a notch. The original creator and key holder to this blog has moved on to another town, and doesn’t have the time to be constantly updating, posting, etc. New posters can only be added by the key holder aka Dickie Dunn. However the blog that was the heroes of the silver league, and now resides as goon town is managed by yours truly. So what I can do is give posting rights to a few people so that we can spice it up a bit. There are already three people who can post stuff over on the other blog, so why not add a few more. If you want to have access to posting right and general internet goonery shoot an email to me over at bronzeleague@gmail.com , and I will sent an invite to the first 6 or 7 that want to sign up. I will make a post over on the other blog with all the teams logos so you can save them to your hard drive and use them in your postings. If you are going to post just make sure and have an alter ego set up like Dickie Dunn, Killer Carlson, Ogie Oggelthorpe, etc. Post about local hockey, NHL, Equipment, whatever, lets spice it up eh.

North Texas Vintage Game Series

2010-01-04T10:22:00.002-06:00

Game recaps from the weekend are coming, along with a big announcement regarding the state of the blog and future of the blog.

This Friday is a big one here at the Nytex Sports Centre. The Allen Americans will roll into our building for the final game of the North Texas Vintage Game Series. This game will be special as the brahmas will be wearing Fort Worth Wings throwback jerseys, and the Americans will be wearing Dallas Blackhawk throwback jerseys. The Wings jerseys will be auctioned off immediately after the game. This game will also be the first time that Allen has entered the Nytex Sports Centre since the epic pre game melee that went down 12-9-09. Allen goons were out to avenge their star goaltender who was placed on the IR by Brahmas goon James Hiebert when he ran the goalie in a game in Allen. There has been no shortage of goonery between these teams so far, and expect more this Friday.

Expect more goonery especially after you click on the links below. Brahmas have acquired former NHL tough guy Nathan Perrott who has given up on his boxing career, and making a return to the ice. All signs are leading to this game being an explosive one. Tickets are on sale for $8 (terrace) and $14 (sides). Bring a crew out and watch some old school hockey here as the Wings take on the Blackhawks.

Contact Chad over at the Brahmas for tickets csiewert@brahmas.com 817-520-3327

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkfkpJoFeOc

http://www.faceoff.com/hockey/teams/toronto-maple-leafs/story.html?id=be8915e7-7139-42e8-ac73-a35290607c00

More of stuff like this at Brahmas games please

2009-12-23T13:06:00.000-06:00

2009 is all wrapped up

2009-12-21T14:01:00.006-06:00

Play for 2009 is all wrapped up, and its time to move forward into 2010. Over teh weekend we had some good games. The Jags beat the Tribe in a close battle. Stingers destroyed the Spider Monkeys. Bandits beat the Whalers in overtime. Whalers getr their first point of the season with the overtime loss. And the Sens edged out the Jets also in overtime.

After three games played in the Texan Division, the Jets are on top with 5 points, the Sens and Bandits both back with 4, and then the Whalers sit with one point.

Over in the Ranger division the Jags are on top with 6 points, Stingers sit with 4, Indians have three, and the Monkeys have two points.

Its still way early, so who knows how things will end up. Thanks to the quirky schedule this session the Jags and Monkeys have each played 4 games, while everyone else has only played 3. Next up we have some interdivision games the first part of 2010 before finishing the season with another swim of divisional play. For the teams over in the Ranger division they will finally get a chance to take a look at the expansion TD Ameritrade Whalers.

In other news looks like the Sens are no longer going to be called the Tomcast Senators as they have inked an agreement with API Home Inspections to be the title sponsor of their team, and supply nifty new jerseys and socks.

Want to by some gently used NHL equipment?

2009-12-19T22:31:00.002-06:00

The Minnesota Wild are taking orders right now.

http://wild.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=510434&navid=DLMINhome

Goon Town

2009-12-17T17:24:00.001-06:00

http://silverleague.blogspot.com/

Check out the Silver League blog, weve changed it up to something called Goon Town. There is some good stuff on there for sure.

Hockey to Return to OKC

2009-12-16T16:38:00.003-06:00

http://newsok.com/oklahoma-city-council-approves-agreement-with-hockey-group/article/3425171?custom_click=headlines_widget

Looks like the rumors were true, and Okalhoma City will have a pro hockey team again. The Edmonton Oilers are looking to land their AHL (AAA) team there this coming season.

The picture above is of the Stars famos #10 Brendan Morrow, OKC's most famous recent alumnide.

Party

Rules Talk

2009-12-15T23:09:00.002-06:00

What is in the past is in the past, nothing can be done about past rules violations unless someone here possesses a time machine and is willing to share. In regards to the Jags situation last weekend, the Spider Monkeys never cried fowl or accused the Jags of cheating. Nytex noticed an obvious violation of the rules, and took action. The past few seasons have been steadily getting better and better about teams following the rules, etc up at Nytex.

The Jags used an obvious gold leaguer, a high level one at that, and had to forfeit their game. Whether the guy scored four hundred goals or none at all it doesnt matter. His presence on the ice was taking ice time away from bronze leaguers, and a blatant violation of the rules.

All that being said, Nytex is apparently watching the league, and going over rosters and scoresheets with a fine toothed comb. It is the job of the coordinator to monitor who is playing for his or her team on any given night. With a crazy schedule this session teams might get low on players from time to time, but folks remember we cant cross pollenate and use players from other teams or leagues.

The Bronze League is arguably the funnest league in the metroplex, lets keep it that way and try to limit our bashing of #99, #66, anonomous comments, talking about Ivana in nothing but a sweater, calling people faggots, or putting bounties on peoples heads. Lets make this session the best on record. I know the Nytex boys are working hard on some fun things for this league coming up, so lets keep it classy san diego!

The Bronze League Transaction Report

2009-12-15T23:04:00.002-06:00

The API/Lackey Hershman Senators traded veteran forward Jared Johnson to the Keller Indians this evening for future considerations, a box of crayons, and three old style beers.

The Senators have too many forwards this session, and had to move someone around so Jareds number was called. Can ayone guess which video belongs to the real Jared Johnson?

First Full Week is Done

2009-12-14T16:49:00.007-06:00

This week we had our first full game schedule of the season. All 8 teams played, and we had some really good games. The Stingers edged out the Indians in a shoot out. It was Yoon Kang to the rescue as he beat Indians Netminder Kacy “The Birdman” Bird.

The Jets beat the Whalers in another tight battle 4-3. Zach Gunther threw down the game winner in the third pushing the Jets to 2-0 on the season. The Killer is still waiting on the Hebrew Hammer Mike Alleman to make his presence known here in the Bronze this season. Word on the street is that he promised the Jets a 20 point season so that they didn’t trade him to the Bandits. Video of the game is above thanks to the TDA boys.

Speaking of the Bandits, damn, that team has turned around. They almost beat the Jets last week, and then stomped the crap out of the Senators 4-0. Sens defenceman Chad Siewert helped the Banditos out by having one of the Bandito goals go off his skate. Big story of the game was Bandits goon Jesus Campero. He was tossed from the game in the third period after getting his third penalty of the night. One checking penalty and two roughing calls, and Jesus had to leave. Bandits get the win in a hard fought physical game. Biggest story of the night though was Bryon Landis the Bandits goalie. Landis gets a shutout, his first ever against the Senators in the month of December at Nytex.

The late game featured the Jaguars dominating the Spider Monkeys 167-3. Not much of a game here as the Monkeys were only able to muster 6 shots on net. Senators goalie Andrew Busboom filled in for the Jags, and threw down the shutout. Rumor has it that the Jags had to forfit the game due to use of a one of the top players in the gold league.

Video

2009-12-10T17:13:00.001-06:00

http://chltv.insinc.com/admin/video/video_viewer.php?type=clip&&id=767

Video of CHL Goonery last night at Nytex

Last Nights Epic CHL Goonery

2009-12-10T12:30:00.003-06:00

Last Nights Epic CHL Goonery
http://www.texasbrahmasinsider.net/2009/12/when-goons-attack.html

http://www.flickr.com/photos/robertjkeith/sets/72157622973268956/

Friend of the blog Robert Keith and the Texas Brahmas Insider caught the action at the Nytex Sports Centre as there was an epic brawl during pre game warm ups between the Texas Brahmas and the Allen Americans of the Central Hockey League.

Allen was exacting revenge on Brahmas goon James Hiebert who hit the Allen Star netminder and placed him on the 14 day IR last time the two teams battled. Words were exchanged, one thing led to another, and the end result was four guys getting game misconduct penalties before the teams had had a chance to stretch. The refs were not even dressed yet, no one was on the ice but the players. Brahmas went on to stomp Allen 5-2. This rivalry is shaping up to be as epic as the old texans/wings vs dallas blackhawks games of the 1970s. In fact next time these two square off at Nytex they will be wearing vintage Blackhakws and Wings jerseys as part of a special throwback series.

Special thanks to Robert Keith for having his camera ready. He was taking pictures within ten seconds of being in the doors of the bulding.

Opening Day Results

2009-12-07T14:57:00.002-06:00

The Ranger Division got up and running over the weekend. Senators dismantled the Whalers in their Nytex Debut. Whalers look like a solid true Bronze League team. A pair of hat tricks in this one as Andrew Palmer got his first career hat trick for the Sens en route to a 4 point night. And Paul Thurston made his Nytex debut with the Whalers by getting 4 goals, the Whalers only four goals.

The late game featured the debut of the Jets vs the Ft. Worth Bandits. Tight game here, with the Jets edging out the Bandits 6-5.

Two additions you will notice in league lineup is that we will now keep track of power play goals as well as short handed goals. Palmer had a shorthanded goal for the Sens and Thurston had one of his four during a power play. This week the Spider Monkeys take on the Jaguars Thursday Night. This seasons crazy schedule has the bronze league running more like a real pro hockey league rather than the saturday night only seasons of the past.

The Winter Season is Here

2009-12-05T14:16:00.002-06:00

Two games on tap tonight following the big Brahmas vs. Sleezeport game at Nytex. The first game for the Bronze League this winter will be featuring the expansion Whalers versus the Senators. The Whalers are at first glance a pretty organized bunch. They have two sets of fancy uniforms, and a videographer that videos their games and creates you tube highlights. The Senators are entering their fourth season in the league. This season they will have several new skaters on their squad. The Sens made the frozen four the past two seasons, but have never advanced further than that. The Sens are a team in transition as most of the original Senators have moved up to the Blazers of the Silver League. There are only four guys on the squad that played in the innaugural Senators game way back when the west rink was frozen with ice and soccer took over.

The late game tonight features the other two teams in the newly formed Texan Division with the Fort Worth Bandits taking on the former Silver Bullets who now go by the Jets. Jets look strong, and are the favorites to come out of the division and play for the Keg. Jets will be led no doubt by Bronze League Bad Boy Zach Gunter and the three amigos of Harrison-Alleman-Krajewski. Bandits are looking to build on their one win last season. Word on the street is that the Bandits are stockpiling goalies with three on their roster. Granted, two of them are skating as forwards this session including the return of the Swamp King---Bruno! Bruno will be skating forward this session as a member of the Bandits, so welcome back Bruno weve missed ya pal.

2009-12-03T10:24:00.001-06:00

Now that league meetings and the first wave of practices have wrapped up it is time to move forward with the winter season. From the looks of it most teams are full this session, and with the two division break down we are set to have an awesome season.

The Stanley Keg will get a makeover before the playoffs this session, new name plates, painting it bronze, etc. The Kings are no more they have been assimilated by the Jets and Whalers. Also Fred Walters former Senators Captain is now a Spider Monkey. He was traded to the monkeys for a landmark deal that includes future considerations, a bag of funyuns, 1 box of girl scout cookies, a hair cut coupon from sport clips, and a breakfast item from Chic Fil A. This is the biggest financial deal in Bronze League History surpassing the famous two puck Greg Perry trade.

Also Chad has a Bronze Leaguer ticket package for you, one plaza ticket, one beer, and one hot dog for $16 csiewert@brahmas.com 817-520-3327 for the details.

Think a Good Thought for Our Fellow Bronze Leaguer...

2009-11-23T11:51:00.002-06:00

Ethan Turner was in a car accident last Friday. Details are sketchy at this point, but word is he was hit, his car totalled and he is either still in the hospital or just got out.

The Texan Division

2009-11-19T12:03:00.005-06:00

The Ranger Division

2009-11-19T12:02:00.004-06:00

Next Session Preview

2009-11-19T11:28:00.002-06:00

So next season we are going to try something new, and split the league into two divisions, the Ranger Division and The Texan Division.

Teams will play their division mates twice a piece, and then the other teams in the league once each. There will be a seperate title for division winners, and the playoffs will be seeded by divisions, meaning the Texan division will be seeded 1-4 and the Ranger division the same. Then the two teams that win their bracket will square off in the finals. Expect another Brahmas related championship weekend, last one seemed to go over well.

Division Previews coming up.......

The Greatness of Robert Keith

2009-11-17T11:10:00.008-06:00

Special thanks go out to friend of the blog Robert Keith who runs the Texas Brahmas Insider. He was on the ice for the big Bronze League Shootout, and took the awesome photos you see on this post. I am sure he wont mind me posting them on here (right Robert)? Check out the Texas Brahmas Insider, he has great player info, interviews, previews, recaps, and most importantly lots of awesome pics. He was cool enough to hang out on the ice with the bronze leaguers during the shootout instead of taking a break during the first intermission at the big Brahmas game this past weekend. You should stop down and check out his page. Good stuff.
http://www.texasbrahmasinsider.net/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/robertjkeith/sets/72157622814338774/

Stanley Keg Champion Ice Kings

2009-11-16T09:26:00.001-06:00

What a way to end the season! The Kings and Stingers played for Lord Stanley’s Keg in front of a fantastic crowd at the Nytex Sports Centre in North Richland Hills this past Saturday. Before the two teams did battle a special shoot out was held during the first intermission of the Texas Brahmas and Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees game. Taking part in the shoot out were
Yoon Kang
Roland Widmann
Brandon Rosser
Robin Burkart
Steve Meek
G-Dana Fenili
From the stingers and
Kent Gordon
Dave Opelecky
Chris Mosely
Bryan Daring
Rick Gregory
G-James Ayala
From the Kings. The shootout was a tie, and due to time constraints a coin (puck) was flipped where the Kings won. A closely fought battle ensued later that night with the Kings edging out the Stinger 4-2 to take their first ever Stanley Keg. The Kings were the Arc Angels before changing names this past season, and the Angels have won the keg before. So now in the modern era of the Stanley Keg at the Nytex Sports Centre the list of winners reads as follows:

Stingers
Arc Angels
Stingers
Indians
Stingers
Indians
Kings

Next season will begin with the first game December 5th, who will take the keg next season.

FINALS ARE SET

2009-11-14T09:44:00.004-06:00

Finals are set,as form holds true and #1 will face #2. Bees and Kings will faceokff tonight at the Nytex Sports Centre at 10 p.m. for the right to hoise the Stanley Keg. This would be the Bees 4th Keg, and the Kings first.

Last night the Stingers beat the Sens six thousand to one, and the Kings squeeked past the Keller Tribe 2-0. The Senators were in their own zone most of the game as the Stingers offensive attack was unrelenting. Goalie Andrew Busboom faced 1,352 shots, but did manage to save close to a thousand of them. Dana Fenili Goaltender of the Bees remained unBEEten for the season with the win. This is win #12 in a row for the Stingers, and tonight they will face off against a mighty foe in the Kings.

The Kings find their way to the final game by beating the defending champ Keller Indians 2-0. Keller was hampered by a short bench, and inability to penitrate the Kings defense.

Tonight someone will skate the keg, will it be the Stingers or Kings?

Also during the first intermission of the Brahmas and Rio Grande Valley Game there will be a shootout between the stingers and kings for the rights to use the brahmas bench for the game.

The Frozen Four at Nytex

2009-11-11T13:14:00.006-06:00

Each season Nytex will try to kick it up a notch when it comes to the Bronze League playoffs, now they have announced something special.

Between the 1st and 2nd period of Saturdays Brahmas game there will be a shootout on the ice between the two teams who are playing in the finals. The winner of the shootout will receive the right to use the Brahmas home bench for the big game later that night.

And to help bring some folks out to watch this event they are offering HALF PRICED BRAHMAS TICKETS. To take advantage contact Chad up with the Brahmas @:
817-520-3327
csiewert@brahmas.com

Terrace tickets for $6 Plazas for $9 Club seats @ $11, you cant beat it!

The Final Four

2009-11-09T11:21:00.005-06:00

More details on the big final four weekend as the week goes by. But for now the final four has been established Sens vs Stingers and Kings vs Indians.

Semi Finals are Friday Night with the Stingers and Senators playing at 10:00, and then the Kings and Indians going on at 11:30. Finals will be Saturday immediately following the Brahmas game.

Two teams have punched their ticket to the Final Four

2009-11-06T11:37:00.005-06:00

Two teams have punched their ticket to the big final four weekend (November 13-14). The Sens beat the Silver Bullets on Tuesday, and last night the Keller Indians advanced past the Jaguars. Indians beat the Jags 4-3 in overtime. Drew Hart had a hat trick for the Jags, but it was not enough. Indians scored a shorthanded goal in overtime to move on to the final four.

Two more quarterfinal games this Saturday, who will make it to the final four? Stingers and Bandits square off at 10. Word on the street is that the Stingers are light on the roster tonight.

The late game will feature the Kings and Monkeys. Monkeys have been looking strong as the season ended, but the Kings should have a full squad.

Prediction
Bandits beat the Stingers in the shocker of the season, Kings beat the Monkeys in overtime.

Stanley Keg Quarter Finals Game One

2009-11-04T08:36:00.003-06:00

Last night the Stanley Keg Playoffs got up and running with the Senators and Silver Bullets taking the ice at the Nytex Sports Centre. The Bullets got the scoring started, Will Evans threw one right through the five hole of Sens goalie Andrew Busboom early in the first period. The Sens answered back with two goals of their own in the first period. Each team scored one in the second making the game 3-2 in favor of the Sens heading into the final frame. The Senators who had a full bench outlasted the Bullets who were working with 8 skaters, and got three goals in the third. 6-2 was the final score, and the Senators will now face the winner between the Stingers and Bandits who play Saturday November 7th at 10:00.

Up next the Keller Indians will be taking on the Jaguars on Thursday night at the Nytex Sports Centre.

Sunday Afternoon Championship Ring Ceremony with the Brahmas

2009-11-03T12:01:00.003-06:00

Folks Sunday afternoon the Brahmas take on their bitter rival the Shreveport Mudbugs at the Nytex Sports Centre starting at 4:05. Pre game the Brahmas (that are still with the team and/or here in town) will be getting their championship rings presented to them.

As usual tickets will be discounted for all bronze leaguers that want to come out. Contact Chad to get the details and/or order tickets. csiewert@brahmas.com
817-520-3327

Regular Season is Compete

2009-11-02T11:56:00.002-06:00

Regular Season ended, the Stingers crushed the Sens, and finished undefeated for the regular season, and STRONG contenders to retake the keg.

New team TD Ameritrade Whalers played a scab group of silver bullets, bandits, indians, and moneys and lost. Greg Perry was in net for the Whalers making his I League record 0-2 as a goalie.

Playoffs begin tomorrow with the Sens and Silver Bullets taking the ice in the first match up. This game could go either way. Lots of folks are unhappy about the tuesday thursday quarterfinal slots, but there just simply isnt enough ice time on the weekends to accomondate. Best do the best you can, and not dwell on the negatives.

New Blog New Posters

2009-10-30T15:22:00.001-05:00

http://silverleague.blogspot.com/

Check out the handy work over on the newly formed silver league blog from my boy Upton. Good stuff. The mustache piece is classic.

Playoffs are all set, Kings Beat Jags

2009-10-30T14:01:00.002-05:00

1 Stingers
Saturday November 7th 10:00 pm

8 Bandits

4 Silver Bullets
Tuesday November 3rd 10:15 pm

5 Senators

3 Keller Indians
Thursday November 5th 10:15 pm

6 Jaguars

7 Spider Monkeys
Saturday November 7th 11:30 pm

2 Ice Kings

Last night the Kings beat the Jags 4-1.

Playoff Picture

2009-10-29T16:14:00.002-05:00

The Playoff Picture is pretty much set. There are only two spots left to be determined, and that is the #5 and #6 seeds. The Jags will get the #5 seed if they win over the Kings. The Sens will get the #5 seed if either the Jags lose, or the Sens win. Tonight the Kings take on the Jags, so if the Kings win tonight the playoff seeds will be set. Kings are without the two Kincaid brothers due to suspension, so who knows what will happen. Plus the weekday games always tend to hurt teams attendance.

The two playoff games that we know of for sure right now will feature the Bees and Bandits and then the Kings and Monkeys. Both of those games will be on November 7th following the Brahmas and Tulsa. Obviously the Kings and Bees are heavy favorites to move on to the semis. Last year we saw the Bees fall to a benchless Gators squad in what was a game for the ages. We shall see what happens. One thing we know for sure is that without Ryan Kelly in net, the Indians look to be beatable. So without their star goalie, they are probably not the front runner to win the Keg.

1 Stingers
Saturday November 7th 10:00 pm

8 Bandits

4 Silver Bullets
Tuesday November 3rd 10:15 pm

5 TBA

3 Keller Indians
Thursday November 5th 10:15 pm

6 TBA

7 Spider Monkeys
Saturday November 7th 11:30 pm

2 Ice Kings

First Look at the Whalers

2009-10-28T14:47:00.003-05:00

Saturday Night at 11:30 the Whalers and Silver Bullets will be squaring off in an exhibition. Bullets season is already over due to a forfeit from the Monkeys who are tied up with costume parties, candy, and grave robbing duties. So Nytex has extended an offer over to the Whalers to get them use to our rink.

Come check it out if you are not doing anything that late. Should be a good test for the Whalers, and great Uniform Battle.

Bronze League Records/Hall of Fame

2009-10-28T13:31:00.002-05:00

I took a few minutes to comb over the record books today at lunch. League Lineup may not be the best website for a hockey league, and we all know that refs are famous for missing assists and what not. However, based on the past four seasons which are archived in league lineup I have compiled a list of all time records along with a little where are they now as to the record holders:

Most goals in a single season:
Mac Donovan (Senators)-25-Spring 09

Career goals:
Mac Donovan (Senators)-43

Career Assist:
Steve Meek (Stingers)-21

Most assists in a single season:
Kyle Saylor (Hurricanes)-13-Spring 09

Most points in a single season:
Mac Donovan (Senators)-37-Spring 09

Penalty Minutes in a single season:
Michael Hvidston (Arc Angels)-32-Spring 09

Goals Against Average:
Ryan Kelly (Hurricanes)-1.36-Spring 09

More Goalie records will be coming down the pipe shortly. Currently records for goalies are being shattered by Dana Felini of the Stingers who is on pace to set a single season save % record (.936 right now).

Mac Donovan is now playing with the Blazers in the Silver League. Hvidston is with the Kings in the Silver League and Bronze League, and next season will be only in the Silver League. Ryan Kelly is on the IR, Kyle Saylor is skating up with the Silver League Kings, and Steve Meek is with the Stingers and subbing in with the Blazers in the Silver League.

This is all just in case you ever wanted to know.

Most championships belongs to the Stingers with 3 or is it 4 someone correct me on that.

Week 9 Winners, Week 10 Winner (already), and Graduation Talk

2009-10-26T13:43:00.006-05:00

The Indians fell to the Stingers who continue to remain undefeated this season. The Stingers in fact, dominated the Indians. Bronze League all star goalie Ryan Kelly is out the rest of the season due to a recent shoulder surgery (Get well Ryan!), and the Birdman, Kacy Bird, is stepping in for the time being. Looks like the bees were too much for the birdman to handle.

The Senators took the Bandits, however the Bandits did manage to beat their goal total for the entire season in this one game. Close battle 6-5 Sens.

The Jags handled business against the Silver Bullets, 6-2.

The Kings dismantled the Monkeys 7-1. And in other Monkeys news, the Monkeys have already declared their final regular season tilt a forfeit due to Halloween related activities. So the Monkeys and Bullets regular seasons are all wrapped up.

The Monkeys secured the #7 seed in the playoffs, and will be awaiting either the Kings or Indians in the first round. The Indians beat the Kings 1-0 in their only head to head match up, so in the event both teams win or both teams lose this weekend, the Indians will get the tie breaker.

The #3,4,5, and 6 seeds are still up in the air. The #3 seed with either be the Indians or Kings no matter how it shakes up. The Bullets are finished with a 5-5 record and ten points. The Sens play the bees, so if form holds true, the Sens will finish 4-6 with 8 points. The Jags face the Kings, and its anyones game. Kings will want to win, and the Jags are looking strong.

Who knows how things will end.

Now on to graduation talk. Several Bronze Leaguers have made the jump up to the Silver League which is a great sign that the Bronze League is actually developing players. Who else will make the jump up once the season is over?

New Teams in Bronze League Make the Uniform Czar so Happy

2009-10-20T09:27:00.002-05:00

This pic just came from teh desk of the uniform czar. Holy Geez those TD Ameritrade Whalers look good. The Green uniforms will look nice out on the ice. So now most teams have uniforms in the league. The Sens are currently shopping for new jerseys. And those Jags have some fancy new yellow sweaters as well.

All in all the league is looking better.

Week 8 Winners.......Playoff Picture

2009-10-19T09:51:00.005-05:00

Stingers handled the Bandits over the weekend. Bandits did manage to score though, so that is good.

The tribe took down their big rival the Sens handily 5-1.

Jags beat the Spider Monkeys, but are having to forfeit over some untidy roster business.

And the Ice Kings rolled up the Silver Bullets in a game that was loaded with penalty minutes. Two Kings players with over a dozen PIMs each! What the hell happened there?

As we push on to the playoffs looks like the Stingers will have the number one seed, and the bandits will take the bottom seed. So if everything stays just like it is we will have the Bandits vs the Stingers facing off in the quarter finals.

The Indians are holding strong on that #2 seed. They have won 6 in a row, and are rolling right now. They look to be a lock for the #2 seed.

There's a small battle for the #3 spot between the Kings and Bullets. Kings will more than likely have some players suspended from last weeks action, so these two teams will be very interesting to watch as the season closes out.

Then there are the Jags, Spider Monkeys, and Sens. Sens have been up and down all season, more down than up. The Spider Monkeys have really turned things around, and have more wins this season than the last couple combined. Jags are sneaky, they have a good solid team, but have been plagued (again) by some roster issues that have forced them to forfeit a few games. Their record right now is 3-5, but if they had their roster all under control it would be more like 5-3 and they would be battling for the 3rd seed with the Bullets and Kings.

New Blog for Silver League

2009-10-15T14:43:00.003-05:00

http://silverleague.blogspot.com/

Check it out, its new, but hopefully the same ammount of trash talking, name calling, and general bafoonery will go down on there as it does here. We have three capable posters.

Also there is another new team in the I League.......The Spiders.

Not necessarily the San Fransisco Spiders as the logo would indicate. But there is a new team coming called the Spiders. More details to follow, not sure where they are from.

New Team for Next Season

2009-10-15T12:28:00.001-05:00

Next season we will be joined by the TD Ameritrade Whalers who are coming our way from Euless. The Whalers will make team #8 in the league as the Bandits dont look to be back. The Bandits may be back as Mid Air Collision or as the Bandits. A few of the guys from that team are either taking time off or going to Grapevine. Stay tuned for updates.

Week 7 Results

2009-10-12T10:39:00.006-05:00

This week we had two games on Friday and two on Saturday. In the Friday games, the Indians blanked the Bandits 3-0. The Bandits have now been shutout 5 times in 7 games. Word on the street is that help is on the way for the Bandits. The bees beat the Kings 3-2. Was that a potential finals preview?

Saturday the Jags rolled the Bullets 3-1. And we had the debut of the I League's newest goalie, Greg Perry. He filled in for the Senators Andrew Busboom who was at home a victim of the swine flu. Perry stopped 20 of 27 shots that the Monkeys through at him in a losing effort. The Monkeys topped the Sens 7-5 for the Monkeys 2nd win of the season.

3 games left in the regular season, looks like the Stingers are the favorite for the 1st seed heading into the playoffs. Dragging up the rear it looks like the Bandits, but the Sens have been anything but consistant this year, and the Spider Monkeys have only two wins, one against the sens, and one against the Bandits.

Thoughts.

Bronze League Discounted Tickets for Opening Night w/the Brahmas

2009-10-05T16:37:00.002-05:00

Opening Night is fast approaching, and the Brahmas are offering a discounted ticket price to Bronze Leaguers and their family and friends. This years Brahmas team looks to be every bit as good as last years. Come on out to Opening Night, and watch the boys kick off their 2009-2010 campaign.

Tickets in the terrace will be $8 and $14 for the plaza sections.

The game is going to sell out, so the sooner you order tickets the better.

For tickets contact:

Chad Siewert
Texas Brahmas Hockey Club
817-520-3327
csiewert@brahmas.com

Week Six Winners

2009-10-05T08:41:00.006-05:00

This past weekend we saw the Bees remain unBEEten with a shut out of the Bandits. This marks the 4th time this season that the Bandits have failed to score.

The Tribe took down the Ice Kings in a shootout. Kings still earn a point for the overtime loss, while the Tribe continues to roll with their fourth consecutive win.

The Silver Bullets got a gimmie from the Spider Monkeys as the Monkeys forfeited the game.

The Jags rolled the Sens 4-2 in a tribute to the Ice Gators. It was a tribute to the Gators because they had only one person on the bench.

Thats my take, whats yours?

Sunday Night Hockey Clinic with Jason Deitsch

2009-09-30T22:13:00.002-05:00

THis SUnday night at 10:30 Nytex will host a Hockey Boot Camp with Jason Deitsch. THe cost will be $20, and the class will last one hour. THis will be similar to the sniper clinic except there will be more of a focus on skating. I highly recommend this class. Jason is a stellar teacher who honestly wants the quality of the adult leagues to improve. He will answer any questions you might have, and help break things down so you can understand but not feel like a child.

THis class will move to Monday nights starting later in October, but for this week it will be Sunday at 10:30. Contact our boy Chad at Nytex to put yourself on the list. csiewert@brahmas.com

Here is Jason with a sweet goal in Germany. Dont those German games look fun, we need more flags over here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FSQ-o-oWRY

New Refs for the Bronze League

2009-09-30T22:02:00.002-05:00

This season we have had CHL players Matt Burto (Texas) and Aaron Davis (Tulsa) reffing most of the games at the Nytex Sports Centre. Well now with fall upon us, and training camps up and running those players will be more scarce when it comes to wearing the zebra suit. Davis left for camp last Sunday, so the next time you will see him is when he battles the Brahmas here on November 7th at 7 pm.

This weekend and hopefully most of the rest of this season and next we will have veteran ref Scott Plourde running our games. Plourde went to UMASS just like Matt Burto (they even use to drink in the same bar). He is a Massachusetts native, and long time referee. Scott works as the Director of Sales for the Texas Brahmas during the day, and resides in Grapevine. He is the most decorated of all the refs we have had in the Bronze League, and will finally bring some credibility to the Zebra Stripes. Scott will call games tight, and not let anything get out of hand. I dont want to predict the future, but alot of this goonish BS that has been going on the past couple seasons will slow to a halt with Scott holding the whistle.

He will be reffing all four games this Saturday, so make sure and say hello and welcome him to our fraternity.

Results from Brahmas Making the Cut

2009-09-30T21:52:00.004-05:00

Our local boy Seth Longbottom did not make the cut this year. However, the fact that he lives locally, and keeps himself in shape will work in his advantage. Should the Brahmas run into injury troubles later this season, Seth could get a call. Last season Danny Force from Southlake was called up to play D for a few games while the Brahmas recovered from injuries and returned from AHL call ups.

The two that were chosen were Angelo Serse a 24 year old forward from Stoney Brook University in New York. Serse is a decorated forward with a strong work ethic and big time sniper abilities. He had over 50 points in his last season at Stoney Brook, and will no doubt be a great addition to the Brahmas roster should he make it through training camp.

The Second Guy taken was Kevin Huck a 25 year old forward who recently played for the University of Minnesota. Huck is a very similar player to Serse. These two guys showed the Brahmas coaching staff that they have what it takes to hang with the pros.

Neither of these guys is guaranteed a spot on the Brahmas team this season, but at least they now have their feet in the door.

Game of the Week

2009-09-30T09:35:00.002-05:00

Keller Indians vs. the Ice Kings will be the featured game of the week. Kings coming off their first loss of the season will have their hands full against a Keller team who is riding a three game win streak.

If the Kings have their young guys back this will be a tough skate for the Keller crew. The Kelly boys that guard the blue line will be working hard no doubt. Keller will have to rely on their ability to move the puck around the zone. With the best goalie in the league in Ryan Kelly, and arguably the best defense in the league, the Tribe should be able to keep the score down low. There are a number of quality players on the reservation that can score goals, its just a question of who will step up.

The Kings are coming off of not only their first loss of the season, but also two streaight weeks of only being able to score three goals. The Kings will no doubt be looking to light the lamp, and light it often. Rick Gregory has been having a good season this year, and has found himself close to the top of the point leaders. A big game will be needed out of him to get this Kings team running. The Tribe can eat you up on a power play, so staying out of the box will be the theme of the night for the Kings.

Is this game going to be a finals preview?

Killer prediction Tribe 3, Kings 2

Week Five Winners-Mid Way Through the Season Report

2009-09-28T12:03:00.004-05:00

This is the super short recap. I figure there will be 100-150 responses, so why bore you with all the tedious details from one guys point of view.

Basically the weekend went like this. The Silver Bullets shut out the Bandits 3-0. The Birdman was flying high, and Mcnamara's lessons with Matt Burto have been paying off. See people lessons can help!

The Stingers remain unbeaten through 5 contests. Big ups go out to Josh Briscoe. 4 goals and an assist. That is sick playing. Very impressive.

The Indians have turned their team around. After losing the first two games, they have won their last three, and now sit at 3-2.

And the Senators beat the Ice Kings. Yes that is right the sens beat the Ice Kings 6-3. Kings were suffering from a light bench.

So midway through the season Meeks and Widmann are your scoring leaders, the Stingers are 5-0, and the Bandits are 0-5. So the Killer has just a few questions to be answered in these final 5 games:

1) Will the Bees stay unbeaten?

2) Will Keller finish out the season 8-2, and take the #2 seed?

3) Will the Bandits win one game?

4) Will Keller defend their Keg?

5) Will Hvidston ever man up, observe the retirement of the #99, and switch to a new number?

Off Topic - Texas Tech Sucked Saturday

2009-09-28T08:56:00.003-05:00

I got a string of text messages from Bronze Leaguers late Saturday while I was out at the ranch - they all simply said "Tech Sucks"

I agree with you all, Tech sucked Saturday and even though it wasn't the best message, glad to hear from all of you. Living in West Bumfock I miss hockey, and I miss my friends!

Not sure if this will be taken as a threat or a promise, but I'm going to try to play in at least 2 games before the end of the season...

And BTW, Carter, Briscoe and Martin... There's still hope for a Hully and Mo's trip, although even through my red-and-black colored glasses, it doesn't look good...

Bob Knight Fieldhouse to fill the ' ville

2009-09-24T08:27:00.000-05:00

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/092409dnmetduncstars.3d10365.html

Duncanville StarsCenter is history.

Deitsch Led Adult Hockey Class

2009-09-23T16:22:00.002-05:00

Folks I know its late but there are still a couple spaces open in a special early morning adult hockey class at Nytex tomorrow. The Class is from 7-8 in the morning, and the cost is $20. As late in the day as it is, if you are interested in going show up with a $20 bill, and get ready to get a work out.

Week Five Game of the Week

2009-09-23T11:38:00.003-05:00

Stinger and Jaguars are the game of the week this week. Stingers are undefeated, and the Jags have lost only once to the Ice Kings. At least this is how I think the two teams stand. There seems to be some issue with League Lineup right now, so I am going off of memory.

All the Stinger Bashing aside, this game should shape up to be a good one. If you have been following the blog we all know what the Stingers bring to the table. They are a solid team, veterans of the league, and very capable of lighting up the scoreboard. The Stingers have not won the Keg in quite sometime, but are always one of the front runners to win. To put the Stingers in football terms, they are like the Patriots. Have several championships, but it has been a while. Still a good team, they look to remain perfect this season with a win over the Jags.

The Jags on the other hand are the great unknown. The comeback kids who had to forfeit half their season last session due to not enough players, they have turned things around 180 degrees. Led by former Texas Brahma Intern Cory Armstrong, the Jags are a young team with something to prove. Goaltender Rocky Diaca-Icant spellhislastnamewithoutlookingatleaguelineup plays with a falmbouant (<- Mispelled) style. Often screaming at the opposing team, Rocky's solid play keeps this team in games when their offense lags. With the breakup of the Ice Gators coordinator Ivana Galan was able to recruit I League All Star Zach Gaydos to play D for her full time. Zach is an offensive D man with blazing speed. Not much else is known about these Jags. Talk of a new logo and uniforms has apparently stalled. The Yellow and Black Attack is however in full force as this team is one to look out for.

Killer Prediction:
Shootout win for the Stingers. Meeks, Widmann, and Carter all score for the Stingers. Armstrong and Gaydos only two to score for the Jags in the shootout. And Ivana will fall down at some point in the game and yell at the Stingers.

Week Four Winners, and new blog feature, Story of the Week

2009-09-21T10:26:00.005-05:00

Keller beat the Sens 1-0 in a defensive goalie battle. Sens Goalie Andrew Busboom let a shot from the Tribe's Les Kelly go in late in the third. Sens never rebounded, and now the Tribe brings a 500 record back to the reservation.

Stingers beat the Silver Bullets 4-1. The Birdman had his wings clipped, and could only tally one goal. It was a group efforts from the Bees, Meeks, Carter, Edwards, and Widmann all lit the lamp. Those Bees sure do play well as a team.

Spider Monkeys found the win column as they blanked the Bandits 4-0. Bandits now sit at 0-4 on the season, however those jerseys are way cool.

And now for the story of the week. SOMEONE ACTUALLY SCORED ON THE ICE KINGS!!!
Congrats go out to Todd Gavin of the Jags who is the first and only person to score on Kings this season. Todd, you are amazing, you have done what no one else has been able to do. Now that the trail has been blazed, perhaps others will follow suit.

Ice Kings did go on to take down the Jags 3-1. Kings coordinator Kent "Flash" Gordon found the back of the net twice, and Brian "Doesn't a Kincaid's hamburger sound good now" Kincaid counted for the other goal. So if you are keeping track of things that is a total now of 25 goals for the Kings and ONE goal against.

Flash Gordon is the new official nickname for Kent, and my personal favorite nickname for any player in any sport of all time. Genius!

Thoughts...

A Blog Record

2009-09-18T10:28:00.002-05:00

over 100 posts from one string, good job bloggers. Now lets see if we can channel our energy in a more positive way.

Lets talk about this upcoming NHL season. Who is going to take the Cup? Chicago? Detroit? Pitt? Wash?

Something tells me with Hossa in Chicago now, that team is loaded and ready for a long run. Stars probably need another year or two before they will be competitive again. Washington was pretty solid last year, and so was D town. What do you think.

Brahmas Making the Cut-Players to Watch

2009-09-17T08:54:00.003-05:00

Next weekend the Brahmas will officially kick off the pre season with the third annual Making the Cut. This is an open tryout where at the end of the weekend two training camp roster spots will be awarded. Doesnt guarantee a spot on the team, but at least they will have the chance to make the team. Last season Ross Rouleau went through making the cut, was awarded a spot on the training camp roster, but then cut at the start of the season. Ross was called back up the second half of the season as the injury bug hit the Brahmas, and Ross went on to help the team win the cup. So who will be this year's Ross Rouleau?

Today we take a look at Seth Longbottom. Seth has ties to the bronze league as he is part of the Senators coaching staff. Seth has been helping Chad and Fred from the Sens defense over the past couple seasons as those guys transition to the Silver League. Seth also plays in the Gold League for the Whistlers with Brahmas captain Craig Minard, CHL All Star Justin Kinnunen, CHL MVP Jason Deitsch, and Senators coaches Steve Hall and Julian Waters.

Seth is a defenseman who most recently played in the Western States Hockey League for the Colorado Outlaws. He played Midget Major AA hockey for the Alliance Bulldogs a few years back, and is now throwing his hat in the ring for Making the Cut. If you come out to watch some of Making the Cut keep your eyes on Seth, he's a local boy with a good head on his shoulders and skills to boot.

CHL MVP Jason Deitsch Wants to Make You Better

2009-09-16T08:55:00.003-05:00

Just got word that Jason Deitsch is looking to improve the talent level of the Bronze League. No he is not going to be subbing in on any team, but what he is going to do is start up a totally new adult hockey class at the Nytex Centre.

For those of you who dont know who Jason Deitsch is let me fill you in here. He played in the NAHL (Jr. A) for the Texas Tornado from 1999-2001. The Tornado back then played right here at the home of the Bronze League, the Nytex Sports Centre, which back then was called the Blue Line Ice Complex. Deitsch helped the Tornado capture an NAHL championship before going to the next stop in his career which was college. Four years at St. Norbert College where he picked up close to 200 points.

After college he played two seasons for the Kalamazoo Wings helping them to a championship. His second year at Kalamazoo he had 87 points in 72 games. After his stint with the wings he moved up to the ECHL where he played for the Cincinatti Cyclones. His talent was noticed in his first year with the Cyclones as he was called up to the AHL with the Wilkes Barre Scranton Penguins. After a short call up to the AHL he returned to the Cyclones where he helped them to a championship before an opportunity to play in Munich Germany came up. 31 points in 29 games with Munich, and then he returned to the states where he was signed by your Texas Brahmas.

He played one game with the Brahmas last season before getting called up again to the AHL, this time it was the Minnesota Wild's farm team the Houston Aeroes. The Aeroes used Deitsch for 28 games where he tallied 26 points. In 36 games with the Brahmas he logged 44 points, oh not to mention helping the Brahmas to their first Ray Miron Presidents Cup and winning the CHL's MVP award. Basically long story short, Deitsch is a career point a game guy who knows his stuff, and now he wants to help you the Nytex Bronze Leaguer to get better.

Jason Deitsch says that he enjoys working with adults becuase they listen, work hard, and want to get better. Now that Stick and Puck has ended, Deitsch wants to start up a new adult hockey class at Nytex. Right now there are no dates or times assigned. This will all be based on the intrest level from you the bronze league faithful. Deitsch did say that he can do a morning and an evening session. Cost would be $20 a person per session, and classes would be small, no kids, only those that want to get better and want to learn from the best Nytex has to offer.

If you are interested get with Chad at Nytex csiewert@brahmas.com. He will build a list, and work with Deitsch to get this thing up and running. And Goalies you can come to, not only will you get a great work out, but Bill Ivey will be available to work with you. For those that think Ivey doesnt know what he is talking about his Ice Kings have not been scored this season in three games. Just sayin.

Week Four Featured Match Up

2009-09-15T16:09:00.002-05:00

The game of the week is the Indians and Senators. The Indians are the defending champs who have only one win this season. This will be the first time these two teams have met since the Semi Finals of last seasons Stanley Keg Playoffs. The Senators had the champs down by one goal with 40 seconds left on the clock when Kyle Kelly tapped in a lose puck in front of the Sens net forcing overtime in that game. The Tribe delivered the death blow to the Sens in the first few moments of overtime, and then advanced past the iron man Gators to win the Keg.

This season the Sens have a new look with new goalie Andrew Busboom, and players like Chuck King, Scott Miley, Tony Rice, and Andrew Palmer. The Sens also acquired Zach Gunter and Roger Bishop from the ashes of the Gators, however Bishop may not be in action much this season due to a hectic work schedule.
The Senators have also moved up Matt Davis and Mac Donovan to the Silver League along with netminder Rush “Mexico” Rector.

For this game the Indians will be relying on their solid goal tender Ryan Kelly to do his job while the rest of the crew follows suit. The key to the Indians success has been their defense. Father and son duo Les and Kyle Kelly make it very difficult for opposing teams to score. If the defense for the Indians plays as well as they can, and Kelly has a solid night in net it could be another frustrating loss for the Sens.

The Senators are going to have to follow the system coach Julian Waters has in place, and work together as a team to take down the reigning Keg holders. Busboom will need to be focused in net as the Indians can not only generate a lot of shots, but generate a lot of shots from different spots. If the Sens stay within themselves, and play disciplined hockey this should be a good game.

Killer’s take---Indians 4-Senators 2.

Week Three Winners

2009-09-14T10:02:00.005-05:00

The recap will have to be brief this week. The Ice Kings pitched another shut out (their third straight). The Indians finally found the win column. The Stingers beat the Senators in a heated battle. The Jaguars took down the Bandits. Why dont you the readers of the blog fill us in on what all happened this weekend. Load up the comments with the side stories to the action that was week three.

Duncanville article

2009-09-10T13:28:00.001-05:00

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/091109dnmetduncanville.167bd0140.html

Article on the DMN website about the rink situation down Southeast.

Week Three Game of the Week

2009-09-08T11:14:00.003-05:00

This weeks featured match up is the Jaguars vs Bandits. The Bandits are looking to avoid starting the season 0-3. While on the flipside of the coin, the Jags are looking for a 3-0 start. This could be the debut of the new uniforms from the Jags which will no doubt breath life into a franchise that at this time last season was on life support just waiting for someone to pull the plug.

The Bandits have had troubles getting up and running this season, and are looking to turn things around this week. The Bandits merged with Mid Air, and will no doubt eventually gel and go on a tear.

This game will be the first time two former Ice Gator team mates, Mike Sosnowski and Zach Gaydos, face each other. Gaydos now a full time member of the Jags will be looking to light the lamp, while Sosnowski will be looking to do the same. Should be a good game.

I predict a 4-3 Jaguars win in a shootout.

Bronze Off Week-Brahmas Preview

2009-09-02T11:56:00.006-05:00

With the upcoming Labor Day holiday coming up there is not too much Bronze League activity to talk about, so I think it’s a good time to start the Texas Brahmas 09-10 previews.

The Brahmas title defense begins on October 16th in Colorado with a rematch of last years CHL Finals against the Colorado Eagles. The Brahmas will play two games in two days against the dirty birds in their barn just outside of Ft. Collins. During the finals last season the Brahmas split the Eagles 1-1 in the two games played their. The loss was a heartbreaking one in overtime. Justin Kinnunen got called for slashing giving the Eagles the power play which ultimately took the Brahmas down in that game. We know what happened when the Brahmas returned to our home, the Nytex Sports Centre, we kicked their asses in three straight games which ended the Eagles run, and left the Brahmas champions of the Central Hockey League.

Several of the key players to last years success are back on board this season including CHL MVP Jason Deitsch. Deitsch spent a good portion of last season playing in the American League with the Houston Aeros. Deitsch is a proven winner having won championships in the NAHL, UHL, ECHL, and now CHL. Call him a good luck charm, or just a great player. He will no doubt bring his veteran leadership back to the Brahmas as they defend their title this season.

Returning again this season to join Deitsch in the goal scoring department is Jordan Cameron. Cameron is one of the best stick handlers in the league hands down. He stands 6’4”, and can bring the heat both in scoring and hitting. Cameron will no doubt be challenging Deitsch for CHL MVP this season.

Also back is the lone representative from the Brahmas to the CHL All Star game last season, Justin Kinnunen. The man who goes by Juice is the fastest skater in the CHL, and also spent time in the American League last season. He played nearly a dozen games with the San Antonio Rampage before coming back to guard the blue line for the Brahmas. Juice is a converted forward whose speed and stick handling abilities make him nearly impossible to defend or get past.

Joining Juice on the blue line will be captain Craig Minard who put up ridiculous plus minus numbers last season proving that discipline is his strong suit. His veteran leadership and great hockey sense are a valuable asset to the organization. Hockey is in Minard’s blood as cousin Chris Minard’s name was etched on the Stanley Cup last year for his work with the Penguins. Chris recently signed a deal with the Edmonton Oilers for next season. Also back on the blue line is Kevin “Marv” McLeod. McLeod who hails from Calgary is one of the best offensive defensemen in the league. He is a sniper in the purest sense of the word. He can score from just about anywhere. His offensive spark kept other teams on their toes all season. Marv will no doubt anchor this very impressive defensive core.

New to the Brahmas this season is Derek Merlini who is 6’6” 245 lbs, no doubt an ominous looking creature that will put fear in the eyes of the other teams this season. Kyle Deck and Casey Russell who both stand 6’1” and 200 lbs will be joining Merlini as Brahma rooks this season. Both have had impressive careers and should fit in fine with this crew. Russell should really fit in with the crew as he is the step brother of Stick and Puck Class instructor Matt Burto.

Goaltending should not be a problem this year as Brett Jaeger is back between the pipes for a third season in purple and black. Jaeger was hands down the best goalie in the CHL last season. He is solid as a rock, and will no doubt frustrate opponents throughout the CHL this year.

The rest of the Brahmas that have signed so far this off season can be found here: http://www.brahmas.com/thebrahmas/roster/

Saturday Practice Times

2009-09-01T10:22:00.002-05:00

There are still some times available for practicing this Saturday. If you do not see your team on the list below, have your coordinator respond in the comments section with what time they want, and Nytex will get you locked in.

5:00
Senators and Indians

6:30
Bandits and Ice Kings

8:00
Silver Bullets and Stingers (Cancelled) OPEN

9:30
Spider Monkeys and OPEN

Week Two Winners

2009-08-31T15:56:00.005-05:00

The Ice Kings continued their domination of the Bronze League with another shut out, this time 7-0 over their biggest rival the Silver Bullets. The big did feature the first tussle of the season when Scott Stevens of the Bullets and Mike Hvidston of the Kings went at it.

The Senators beat the Bandits 4-1. A team effort from the Sens as four different people scored.

The Indians lost to the Jaguars. The Birdman aka Casey Bird was in net for the Indians, and did a respectable job of only allowing 2 goals. Unfortunately the Indians could only muster one goal.

The Stingers rolled the Spider Monkeys who were playing with a massively short bench and substitute goalie.

So after week two we have three undefeated teams, the Stingers (no suprises), the Jaguars (what?), and the Ice Kings (who?). The Keller Indians have yet to find the win column along with the Spider Monkeys and Bullets.

The Uniform Czar?

2009-08-31T09:37:00.002-05:00

The Uniform Czar has been in Slovenia in a search form some new water resistant thread that can heal the sick, and cure the world wide aids epidemic. While he has been gone his trusty assistant Ivan has been keeping tabs on the Bronze League.

Initial reports from Ivan are that the Bandits have a very snazzy new sweater/sock thing going on. Very professional looking, the uniform czar will no doubt be very pleased when he sees the pics.

The Stingers and Indians roll out their usual look. Consider these two the Dodgers and Yankees of the league, solid, steady, dependable uniforms.

The Senators are starting to look a little ragged. The equipment manager apparently ran out of the red jerseys, and some of the new guys are sporting just solid red jerseys this season.

Silver Bullets still look good in those silver jerseys with the little bullet man on them.

No word yet on how the Ice Kings look. Word on the street is that they are or will be a LA Kings white sweater.

Spider Monkeys are solid as they always have been.

Jaguars, the league is waiting to see those fancy new unis with the new logo!

Golf with the Brahmas

2009-08-28T12:05:00.002-05:00

The Brahmas annual golf tournament is approaching. To sign up you can go to the Brahmas website at www.brahmas.com, or just call Nytex and ask one of those folks up there 817-336-4423. If you havent played before it is a good time. Coors provides free beer, so you can if nothing else get loaded. Lots of prizes, tons of drunken Canadians, and of course golf. This year Hooters is sponsoring a hole, and will have Hooters girls and wings out there. Good times for sure with the golf tournament, so lets go, Eh.

A Quick Notice About Parking on Saturday

2009-08-27T11:04:00.003-05:00

The Dallas Derby Devils will be having their final bout of the season this Saturday at the Nytex Sports Centre. This is their championship bout, so expect a full house over in the Tejas Volleyball Arena. Just FYI

Week Two Featured Match Up...Silver Bullets vs. Ice Kings

2009-08-27T10:06:00.002-05:00

The marquee match up this week is going to be the Silver Bullets vs. the Ice Kings. This will be the first time that #99 Mike Hvidston will face off against his former team.

Both teams won their season opener, and both teams are full of hope for the new season. The Bullets have added Nytex front desk employee Ethan giving them a burst of speed. Ethan has already tallied one goal in his first game with the Bullets. And Brandon Suits and Casey "Birdman" Bird have proven that they can provide a spark for the SB's when needed. For the Kings perhaps shaking things up by eliminating the old Arch Angels name will provide a breath of fresh air for the squad. Big forwards Rick Gregory and Chris Moseley have already notched 5 goals between the two of them in the first week. Perhaps the new franchise name has helped Captain (#99) Mike Hvidston change his goonish ways. In week one he did not have a single penalty which is odd considering in 14 games last season he had 32 PIMs.

Who will win this battle folks? Killer predicts a Bullets win 5-3

Where Did Dickie Dunn Go???????

2009-08-26T14:21:00.002-05:00

Folks looks like our own Dickie Dunn has finally signed a contract overseas, and will be hitting the ice this fall as a member of the Unison Ligers of the Manchester I League in Manchester England. Dickie will be donning the #7 for the Ligers this season in an homage to his childhood hero, Chris Chelios. Dickie was unavailable for comment at press time do to food poisoning from vegetable curry. Hopefully more details will be released soon, as should a press release from the Ligers. Sad loss for the Nytex Bronze League, but we wish Dickie well.

Private Lessons

2009-08-26T11:13:00.002-05:00

Brahma Forward Matt Burto is spending his summer in Texas. Instead of going back to the North East where he hails from, he is spending his time down here at the Nytex Sports Centre teaching lessons, and working out in preperation for another season of CHL hockey. Matt asked the Killer to throw it out there to the Bronze League that he is available for lessons (group or private), and now that the kiddos are back in school, the ice is less crowded during open hockey sessions. But Matt can work with you before work or after work is that is what you need. To get more info on all this hit up Jared or Chad over in the Brahmas Sales office jjohnson@brahmas.com or csiewert@brahmas.com

Duncanville Star Center

2009-08-24T13:34:00.001-05:00

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/yahoolatestnews/stories/082509dnmetduncanville.110c2527a.html

From the Dallas Morning News.

Week One

2009-08-24T11:24:00.001-05:00

Week One is in the books, and there is still no word on the two new teams. This probably means our little league will stay 8 teams this season, which is fine and dandy with me.

Week One saw some blow outs. The Ice Kings smoked the Bandits in the new franchise battle. 8-0 was the score, Handits seemed to be hampered by a lack of defense. Kings look strong. The Silver Bullets beat the Senators 6-4. Senators seem to have lost all their D men from last season, and are adjusting to a new lineup. The Jaguars made a statement with a 7-1 whopping of the Spider Monkeys. And the Stingers took down the Indians 4-3 on the heels of Steve Meeks hat trick.

It is way to early to speculate, but looks like this season has a different feel from last season.

BREAKING NEWS-EXPANSION TALK

2009-08-20T13:31:00.002-05:00

Just got word from the big boss man that due to some shannanigans over at Euless, our Bronze League might be absorbing two teams to expand our league back to ten teams.

This weeks schedule will not be affected, if the two teams come on board they can just play each other either in the late slot Saturday or during the week sometime. This means that every teams schedule would be reworked to get in the two new teams. It would also mean that everyone plays each team one time during the regular season. Stay tuned to here for all the details. I will keep everyone up to speed on the progress of the league expansion.

The Great 8

2009-08-20T09:58:00.008-05:00

Tarrant County's Championship Hockey Teams

2009-08-20T09:12:00.003-05:00

The Texans were an affiliate of the NY Islanders back in the 70's. They won the CHL's Adams Cup in 1978 over arch rival the Dallas Blackhawks.
http://www.islesinfo.com/FortWorthTexans.html

The Fire were Fort Worth's main hockey team in the early to mid 90's. They won the cup that currently resides inside Nytex back in 96/97/. In fact, their championship banner hangs over the south end of the arena today.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Worth_Fire

And then the Brahmas last season took the Presidents Cup as CHL champions. So that makes three championships for Tarrant County, unless someone can do more thourough research (Killer spent all of three minutes on this post, top quality journalism folks)!

Schedule is up and official

2009-08-18T09:34:00.002-05:00

http://www.leaguelineup.com/schedules.asp?url=nytex_i_league&sid=314991504&divisionid=416613

Its up folks, so check it out. First game is this Saturday. All teams are tied, and the Keg is now back up for grabs.

New Season Ch Ch Changes

2009-08-17T13:11:00.001-05:00

With the dust barely settled on last season, we forge ahead with a new one. The league appears to have been extremely busy during the off season. Things are going to be interesting this season in the Bronze League. Lets take a look at some of the changes happening for this new season.

For Starters we have four teams that are no more (more or less). The Hurricanes washed their squad of all the ringers, and have reformed under the moniker of BANDITS. They have some sweet new jerseys, and a full roster. They also merged with the remaining boys from Mid Air to form a super team of sorts. Expect big things from these guys throughout the season.

So Mid Air and the Hurricanes are the first two teams we will not see in the standings, now for the next one, the Arch Angels. The Angels are gone, and reformed under the name, Ice Kings. The Ice Kings now have a Silver League and a Bronze League squad, which the Killer thinks is great. I think every team in the Bronze League should be affiliated with a Silver League team. This gives guys a spot to move into if they feel they are ready to take their game up a level. Or vice versa if they feel the Silver is too much.

The fourth team you wont see this season is the Ice Gators. A team that fought hard all the way to the finals with no subs. The Gators have split up. Mike Wolf has moved to Montana, Andrew Busboom (Goalie) has signed with the Senators as has the duo of Zach Gunter and Roger Bishop (Much to the chagrin, <- misspelled?, of the Stingers). No word on where the other Gators have ended up. One report has them in the swamps of Louisiana fighting alligators with their bare hands.

So we now have 8 teams, all with solid rosters. The teams this season are:

Keller Indians
Stingers
Senators
Jaguars
Bandits
Ice Kings
Spider Monkeys
Silver Bullets

All are reporting strong rosters, and this season looks to be the greatest ever in the Bronze League. Congrats to last season’s champs, the Keller Indians.

Right now it looks like there has been lots of roster juggling going on in the off season. We have several new players joining the league. Some teams have moved up their better players and made room for rookies which is the spirit of the Bronze league. Some teams have remained the same (why fix what isn’t broken).

There was talk of moving to point streak, in an effort to avoid any BS, we will be rolling out with schedules and stats on league lineup same as always again until further notice. No sense in losing three or four weeks of stats cause Point Streak wasn’t set up right? The schedule is up on league lineup now, however it is not final. There are going to be some changes to it tonight, so until we make a blog announcement here stating that the schedule is final, consider it only tentative.

Schedule will be finalized hopefully tonight.

Gator-Gate

2009-08-13T16:02:00.002-05:00

Stay tuned, your old pal Dickie is working on a story that's gonna bust wide open the shady recruiting shenanigans by some of the coordinators....

Think a Good Thought

2009-08-11T10:06:00.003-05:00

For Nytex employee, and Bronze League coach Jim Anderson who was taken to the hospital last night after cutting either his hand or arm in a zamboni accident. Details are still sketchy, no one knows exactly what happened, but he was taken to the hospital for a pretty severe cut to the arm and/or hand from the zamboni blade.

So think a good thought for Jim, he has been a fixture of the nytex I League for a long time.

Practice Times for the Next Season

2009-08-10T17:10:00.002-05:00

1st Practice Times have been announced, schedule to come out shortly.

This Saturday the 15th of August starting at 6:00 we have the Senators and Indians, 7:30 Bullets and Bandits, 9:00 Angels and Monkeys, 10:30 Jags and Stingers, 11:59 Mid Air.

There are 9 teams in the league now, and word on the street is that Nytex is looking to make the league only an 8 team league. This will help with the schedule once Brahmas season hits, but more importantly help cut down ont he number of late night games.

Keller Indians over Ice Gators for the Keg

2009-08-10T13:28:00.002-05:00

A couple of pictures real quick, more breakdown of the semifinals and finals to come...

Spider Monkeys???????

2009-08-10T11:37:00.001-05:00

The league asked me to send a quick note out to find out the status of the Monkeys. Any spider monkey players that are in the know need to send Chad at Nytex a quick email with contact info for who is coordinating the team this session. The schedule for next season is being made as we speak, and right now it is uncertain as to whter or not the monkeys are playing. Anyone have any intel?

2009-08-08T23:46:00.002-05:00

with 5 minutes left in the championship game, i just want to post this for posterity. the run the 6 gators made on tonights keg has been epic. absolutely phenomenal. if they win this game versus the indians 9or even if they dont they have put on the best 5 periods of hockey nytex has ever seen by six bronze leaguers.

Sniper Clinic 2.0

2009-08-07T10:34:00.004-05:00

This Sunday there will be another Snipers clinic up at Nytex. 9:45 at night this go round. If you or your teammates are interested have them show up, and register at the Front Desk. Brahma players Craig Minard, Jason Deitsch, Matt Burto, and Tyler Skworchinski will be on hand to show you how to pick corners and light the lamp.

The Masses Have Spoken (Championship Saturday Times)

2009-08-06T17:10:00.002-05:00

The Championship game is no longer at 11:45. Now the games have been moved back to the original time slots. Semi #1 between Senators and Indians will be at 6:00, Semi #2 will be at 7:30 featuring the Stingers and Gators. The All Star Game is at 9:00, and the Final Game will be at 10:30.

Make sure and spread the word, so there is no confusion. Looks like Nytex was watching, and saw that we all thought a 11:45 championship game was a load of turds. So folks see you on Saturday where one team will skate the keg as the first ever champions of the new era of the Bronze League.

PS-Thank goodness it is not going to be the Lady Stars. That was an experiment gone horribly wrong like the Philadelphia Experiment

Brahmas and the CHL's Schedule 2009-2010

2009-08-06T15:57:00.000-05:00

http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/teamschedule.html?teamid=3105&seasonid=4438

Finals Predictions

2009-08-06T14:15:00.002-05:00

Lets hear from you. Who are your picks to win the Keg? Stingers? Indians? Gators? Senators?

Stingers vs Gators

2009-08-06T14:14:00.002-05:00

The Stingers and Gators met only once this season, and that match took place on opening day. Bees beat the Bayou Boys 3-2 on the heels of Roland Widmann’s two goals. Now the status of Widmann is uncertain. Will he play? In the aftermath of last weeks violent hip check, he now has a partially separated shoulder, so he may not be in the lineup. Earlier this week Dave Mulvey was placed on waivers, but so far no one has picked him up. Other than those two the Stingers will be loaded with their usual roster and ready to go. Now that Bruno is back, the Gators seem to be back to close to full strength.

Looking back at the history between the two teams here, this is a great rivalry. Last season they met one time with the Bayou Bunch taking the tilt 3-1. Two seasons ago the Bees took the Gators 6-0. So if you add it all together, over the past three seasons the Bees have a 2-1 edge on the Bayou Boys with a total of 10 goals to the Gators 5. If I was an odds maker I would probably have to go with the Stingers on this one. One thing this will be is a goalie battle. If both Dana and Bruno are on their game, it will make scoring very difficult to say the least. The Gators will be looking to Gunter for some offense, and relying on the Wolf and Gaydos to hold down the blue line. Stingers will be counting on Briscoe, Kang, and Carter to provide a spark for them.

This game will no doubt be a good one, two of the best teams in the league going at it, I still say the Bees walk away with a birth in the finals. But I could be wrong, the Gators are tenacious, and hungry for a championship. Especially with them not coming back in the league next season. This game could be the end of an era for the Gators, but don’t expect them to go down without a fight.

I say Stingers 4 Gators 3 shootout.

Opinion/Editorial: This league’s “dirtiest” player.

2009-08-05T13:21:00.001-05:00

I’m sure most of you already know this, but if not, watch your back the next time you play Mid-Air, especially when #9 is on the ice! It seems when he gets frustrated by us I-leaguers, he goes into “full dirty checking” mode. Either that or he hates one of our players, cause he has “cheap shotted” him twice in 2 different games. The first time it was a cross check to the back, away from the play and more recently it was a blindside check from behind, that resulted in a partial shoulder
separation. Both times he was ejected, but both times were with less than 3 minutes left in the game. Rather “chicken s—t,” I would say.

There is no place for this type of B.S. in this league. He doesn’t even belong in this league! There is always going to be a little contact here or there, after all its hockey. But not full blown checks, much less “dirty” checks.

All I can say is that I’m bringing back the ”Hanson Brothers” for when we see him next…… We like to leave it on the ice!

Reggie Dunlop

Indians vs Senators

2009-08-05T13:02:00.003-05:00

For the first Semi Final game this Saturday we have the Keller Indians vs the Tomcast Senators.

These two teams met a total of two times this season, both times the Tribe walked away victorious. However, the first tilt was decided in overtime, so the Sens did snake a point off the reservation. The Indians are the favorites to win the Keg this year, so the Senators will have to be on their A game. Indians were the #1 seed in the tournament with the Sens coming in as the #5 seed.

Looking back at the first time these two met this season, the Senators offense was in full force with Center Matt Davis scoring 4 goals with one assist for a five point night. The other half of the Sens power offense, Mac Donovan, had one goal and three assists for a four point evening. Also joining in the scoring fun for the Senators was left handed winger Baron Oursler.

On the reservation Kyle Kelly had four goals, Malette had one, and Schnider also had one. For those conspiracy theorists out there, Kyle Kelly did not score the winning goal. In fact, after a long tight battle, the Tribe won when the Senators defense made a bone headed play allowing a quick breakaway and the game winning goal just seconds in to the overtime period.

The second time these two Giants of the Game met the Indians wore down the Sens 4-1. Malette scored, Quinn had one, and Kyle Kelly had a pair. For the Sens it was just Oursler who lit the lamp.

In the two contests Indians goalie Ryan Kelly stopped a total of 48 shots while allowing 7 goals. Mexico the Senators goalie stopped 60 shots, but allowed 10.

This game is going to come down to one thing, the Kelly family. If Ryan Kelly is solid in net, and Kyle Kelly keeps the pace of play flowing, the Senators are going to have their hands full. Father Les Kelly will hold court on the blue line, and do his part in preventing a Senators offensive rush. There are plenty of chiefs on the reservation that can score, so the Senators will have to focus on more than just the Kelly family. Dan Custred will more than likely suit up, and he is a guy who can move the puck around on you. The Senators will have to do a good job of fore and back checking these Indians if they want to steal their peace pipe and send smoke signals to the winner of the next Semi match up between the Bees and Gators.

The Senators will need solid play out of Matt Davis and Mac Donovan, as well as some discipline to stay out of the box. This Indians squad will take advantage of a power play, so the Sens need to stand strong and not allow such a thing to happen.

Hard to say who will win this one. The Senators did defeat Ryan Kelly last week when he was in net for the Canes, so perhaps they have his number. Killer is going to give the edge here to the Sens (I am a sucker for an underdog). These guys are hungry, and with several players moving up to the D league, they will be playing hard to finish the season on a high note. Word on the street is that plans are in motion for the team to have a new look next season. I also overheard a couple of the Sens talking this past weekend, and perhaps there is a new sponsor on the horizon for the Tomcast Senators.

I say 4-3 Sens in a shootout.

2009-08-03T15:50:00.003-05:00

Semi Final #1 Keller Indians vs. Tomcast Senators – 7:15

Semi Final #2 Stingers vs. Ice Gators - 8:45

ALL STAR CLASSIC -10:15

Stanley Keg Championship - 11:45

Looks like things got pushed back for whatever reason, but we are on for the big final weekend of this season. Previews of the two games coming later this week, but for now lets talk about the All Star Game:

Wearing light jerseys will be representatives from the Angels, Senators, Gators, Bullets, and Indians. This will be called Team Freeze. Coordinators of these teams please get with each other to make sure there is a goalie there. Last seasons all star game had two non goalies playing goalie.

In dark jerseys we will have Team Fire with representatives from the Stingers, Hurricanes, Mid Air, Jaguars, and Spider Monkeys. If your team makes the finals you cant send anyone to the All Star Game. In the event of two teams from the same all star team making the finals i.e. Gators and Indians, then four players from the other all star game will just go over and join the other team, you follow that?

We have finally made it to the final four. Who will win? The Indians solid team play together with the Kelly Brothers? The Stingers offensive attack? The Gators high scoring offense from early in the season? The Senators?

Quarter Final Recaps

2009-08-03T15:31:00.001-05:00

This weekend we had the first ever quarterfinal round of the first ever Stanley Keg Playoffs at the Nytex Centre. In the first game of the evening, the Keller Indians scalped the Silver Bullets despite the fact that the Birdman was flying high. Solid team play from the Indians combined with stellar goaltending from Ryan Kelly left the Silver Bullets looking ahead to next season.

The Stingers and Mid Air took the stage next, and form held true as the top seed closed the deal here. Another balanced game with the Stingers spreading the scoring around. Things got a little heated late in the game as Jeff Green decided to turn the game into a full contact affair. His 16 penalty minutes will no doubt have to be reviewed by the league to determine if further action against him is necessary. Dave Mulvey had an assist as it looks like his trade with the Finish I league has not yet been approved. Word on the street is coach Dan is trying to orchestrate a much larger deal to get rid of Mulvey. Mulvey was quoted after the game saying, “Get your popcorn ready, as long as they get me dat puck, I am gonna give you a show because I love me some me.” This flamboyant attitude does not jive in the Stingers locker-room, which is why Mulvey is on the block.

The Gators took care of the Angels 4-1 thanks to a hat trick by Zack “the hunter” Gunter. The other ZG brother Zack Gaydos threw one in himself to give the Gators the insurance they needed to move on to the semis. The real story of the game though was the return of Bruno, who dusted off the rust and stopped 11 of 12 shots from the Angels offense. The lone person to score was Brandon Decker who also happens to be the Angels leading scorer.

Finally we had the highly anticipated rematch with the Senators and Hurricanes. Close battle here with the Sens taking care of business 3-2. The Senators kept pressure on Hurricanes goalie Ryan Kelly all night long. But Kelly was a wall stopping 43 of an impressive 46 shots. Rush “Mexico” Rector stood strong in net for the Sens as well stopping 24 of 26. The big showdown of Kyle Saylor vs. Mac Donovan went to Donovan who had 2 goals and an assist to Saylor’s one goal. Coordinator Greg Perry got into the mix by showcasing his finely honed goon skills with 4 penalty minutes.

So sorry for the short recaps folks, feel free to elaborate in the comments section. But now its on to the Semis, as only four teams remain. The Senators will face the Tribe and the Bees will take on the Cajuns. Who will win the Keg, thoughts…….

The final two Quarter Previews

2009-07-30T11:34:00.000-05:00

The Arc Angels (6) and Ice Gators (3) will be squaring off this Saturday in what should be a good quarterfinal match up. These two teams faced each other only one time this season with the Gators losing 2-1 in a goalie battle. In net for this gators was Senators netminder Rush “Mexico” Rector who stopped 26 of 28 shots. The Angels rolled out James Ayala who stopped 34 of 35 in the winning effort. Mike “The Killer” Wolf (Killer Wolf is a classic song by Danzig) scored for the Bayou Bunch, and Kent “Super” Gordon and Dave Opalecky scored for the Angels.

Now the Gators have had a rocky season. After dropping a very close season opener to the Stingers, the Gators went on a tear, and absolute tear. Over the next four games they scored 29 goals, and only allowed 6! Now the rest of the season the team began to crumble a bit. Bruno disappeared (swallowed by gator? Promoting Movie?), and the team started having difficulties getting all together on game nights. But the Gators did pull it together, and after the loss to the Angels they won their last three passing over the Hurricanes, ending up in 3rd place for the season.

The Angels on the other hand have been a 500 hockey club pretty much all season long. Looking at the stats, they don’t have a guy who stands out with 14, 15, or 20 goals. The team is anchored by longtime Angel Kent Gordon, a veteran of the Bronze League. He has 4 goals and 4 assists this season, and has shown to be a rock on the Angels bench. Leading scorer Brandon Decker has found the back of the net 7 times, and is hoping to find it a few more times against the Gators. This team is coached by “Wild” Bill Ivey, and does have a Stanley Keg on their resume. All it will take for the Angels to win it all is a three game win streak, but that will all obviously start with getting through the Gators.

I predict a close battle on this one 3-2 Gators win in overtime.

Now for the last quarterfinal preview we have the Hurricanes and Senators. The one time these two teams met this season we had 44 penalty minutes, and a fight in the stands that spilled out into the parking lot. Tensions were running high for sure. The Canes took the game 9-6 thanks to former NHL draft pick #40 on the Canes who showed off some sweet skating moves in route to a five goal night. The main attraction here will be the Saylor/Donovan showdown. Donovan (Sens) leads the league with a record setting 34 points, while Saylor (Canes) is right on his heals with 33. A little bit of history for you, these two were teammates a few years back. I am expecting these two to be on each other like white on rice this game. Donovan is bigger, stronger, and probably has better hands, while Saylor is smaller, faster, and seemingly never tired.

The Hurricanes are a team that probably not many people are routing for in these playoffs. Last season we had a team come in (Lady Stars) and win the Keg, then bail on the league. The Lady Stars seemed to only have three or four people on their roster, and relied on an arsenal of ringer subs to win the league. So now enter the Hurricanes, a team that is in their first year, and what looks to be their last year. Next season the Canes are going by the way side, and a new team will enter the league…the Bandits. For this season it seems the consensus is that we would like to see one of our own teams that has been in the league a while win the Keg. The Canes have been accused from time to time of having ringers on their roster, and have been a team that has just seemed to be in chaos all season long. Relying on players from other teams, and outsiders, this Canes team finished the year with a deceptive 7 and 5 record. I say deceptive because three of their games were forfeits. The biggest thing about the Canes is that they don’t posses a full time goalie. Ryan Kelly has been in the pipes on most nights for these guys, and will no doubt be manning the net against the Sens. If the Canes are to win, who will they get as their goalie?

Finally we have the Senators, a team in their second season in the bronze league that at time has shown massive amounts of promise. Led by a pair of guys that are soon to plying their craft in the Silver League, Mac Donovan and Matt Davis, this Senators team can turn it on. The Sens had an up and down season. Mid way through they had a three game win streak where they were averaging 9 goals a game. However, this win streak was muted by a three game losing streak where the goals average dropped down to 6 a game. The Senators took on the Indians twice this season losing both games, but one of which was in overtime. They also faced the Gators twice splitting those two games. The Senators Achilles Heal has been penalties. 80 total penalty minutes for this team with two guys over 20. If this team is to beat the Canes, they are going to have to stay disciplined. Keeping guys out of the box and on the ice will prevent the Canes power play from taking over. Mid season the Sens made a coaching change with Steve Hall sliding down the bench to make room for new coach Julian Waters.

Next season the Senators will become affiliated with a new silver league team which as of yet does not have a name. New Senators are on the way, and several of the current squad is moving up to the Silver League. So once the new Silver League team is in place the Senators will have a silver league affiliate, and a gold league affiliate with their coach’s team, the Whistlers, in the event a player can take his game all the way to the top.

I say the Sens will take the Canes 6-4 in a high paced, high scoring affair.

The stage is set for the Quarter Finals

2009-07-29T11:02:00.006-05:00

Its all set folks. Last night the Silver Bullets handled their business against an uber small rostered Jags squad. One person on the bench was not enough to hold off the offensive attack from the Bullets. Now the Jags will play the Spider Monkeys in the final game of their seasons for the Bronze Cup this Saturday at 11:30. Moving on to the next round we have Mid Air, and of course the Silver Bullets. Both of these teams face an uphill battle as the Bullets have Bronze League powerhouse, the Keller Indians, and the Airport boys have to take on the mighty three time champ Stingers. Before I move on, I still haven’t seen the stats from the play in games, so I cant really comment on what all happened. I know Mid Air won a feisty battle against the Monkeys. CHL Journeyman Aaron Davis refereed the contest, and said it almost got ugly. I think the main story in the Jags Bullets game was the short bench. Having only one sub makes for a difficult and exhausting night.

So on to the Quarters. Indians and Bullets, and I have to go with the Indians here. They are just too deep, too strong, and play great as a team. Not too mention their netminder, Ryan Kelly, is a rock between the pipes. For the Bullets to have a chance in this one they are going to need to play together, and their defense is going to have to step it up. D is going to have to keep the puck in the zone, and prevent breakaways. If they can do that it will be up to the SB snipers such as the Birdman to find an empty spot in the back of the net. The Bullets have many capable scorers, the only problem is that the Indians are loaded with snipers as well. Kyle Kelly can easily light the lamp from the blue line at any given moment. I say 6-3 Indians in this one. Sorry Bullets, that Tribe is mighty strong.

Now the other play in winner Mid Air will face the Yellow and Black attack from the Stingers. Mid Air has shown some big signs of improvement, and is on a win streak. The only thing is that the Bees are looking for another Keg, and will be relentless. Roland and Meeks have been having fine seasons, and those are only two names on a list of about a half a dozen that can score at will. The big question is whether or not Dave Mulvey will be in uniform for the Stingers. The heart and soul of the team has been in talks with a Finnish I League team. Apparently coach Fenili is trying to trade Mulvey to the Gerstunkin Gefelterfish of the Finnish Premier I League. Last report talks were stalled out after Fenili rejected the first proposal of Mulvey for three pucks, a block of stick wax, and a fresh sheep’s head. My sources indicate Fenili is after no fewer than ten pucks which would make the Mulvey trade the biggest in Nytex Bronze League History. Stingers win this one 2-1 in overtime.

The Playoff Picture is Set

2009-07-26T14:44:00.002-05:00

This weekend wrapped up the regular season at Nytex for the Bronze League. We will dive into the playoffs here in a bit, but first lets recap this past weekends action.

The Stingers beat the Indians, however since it was an overtime win, the Tribe picks up a point, and the Bees end up one point back for the top seed heading into the playoffs. At the time I am writing this the stats have not been entered into league lineup yet, so I dont know who did what in this game. Now both these teams will wait to see who wins in this weeks play in games to find out who they will play in the quarters.

The Arc Angels made a strong statement by blanking the Spider Monkeys 6-0.

The Gators beat the bullets 3-1. This was significant because with the Canes going down, the Gators shot up the leaderboard to finish the season in third.

The suprise of the night came when Mid Air beat those Hurricanes 3-1.

Then in the last game of the night the Senators beat the Jaguars 5-4. The Jags were light on their roster, and had to call on the services of some of those Gators.

SO NOW ON TO THE PLAYOFFS:
Monday Night We will have #7 seed Mid Air Collision squaring off against the Spider Monkeys. I think Mid Air has the upper hand in this one. Fresh off a victory over the Hurricanes, this Mid Air team is riding high, and looking ahead to the quarter finals. Mid Air's offensive attack is led by Todd Dottalo. The Spider Monkeys will be "Voting For Pedro" to lead the charge as Pedro Montemoyer will try to team up with Russell Fletcher to pass these Airport boys.

Killer's prediction 5-2 Mid Air. Mid Air's offense will wear out the Monkeys and pull away with three strong goals in the third period.

Tuesday Nights showdown features the #8 seed, the Silver Bullets taking on the #9 Jags. Bullets will be calling on the Birdman, Casey Bird to light the lamp. He is in the double digit goal scored club, and planning on giving the Jags more than they can handle. The Birdman is not the only weapon these Bullets posses, Laz Lasson has proven to be able to score, and will be calling on his big slap shot to do some damage against these cats. Brandon Suits and Mike Hvidston could see some action in this battle, and dont discount Krajewski, he is due for a big game. On the flipside of the coin the Jags have had a rocky season, but are looking to Rocky Diacobbe to be solid between the pipes against the Silver Bullet Snipers. There is no telling who the Jags will roll out with for this one, they have had so mayn different people playing with them this season. The big question is whether or not they will have enough players to avoid a forfeit.

Killer's prediction 6-3 Bullets, provided of course the Jags can field a team. Either way I see the Bullets moving on and the Jags taking some time to build their team back up for a full season run next session. Hats off to Jags coordinator Ivana Galan who started this year with nothing, and like Rudy stuck with it until she picked her team up out of the ashes.

The other playoff matchups that we know about will feature the Angels taking on the Gators and the Senators taking on bitter rival the Hurricanes. I will write more on these matchups as the week progresses.

FYI About the Playoffs

2009-07-24T10:18:00.004-05:00

I just got done talking with the big man at Nytex about these here Stanley Keg Playoffs. There have been some people asking about playoff eligibility. What is the rule on who can play for who, etc, etc, etc. So here is the deal: Players can only play for ONE team in the playoffs. Players have to play for the team they signed up on. If a player plays with his/her own team, and then later plays with another team, that team will have to forfeit their game. Players must also have played six games with a team to be eligible for the playoffs. There are a couple exceptions to this rule. 1) if a player paid their entire league fee and for whatever reason did not play 6 games he/she is eligible. 2) if a player paid the 1/2 season sub fee he/she is eligible. Talk to your coordinators if you have any questions. They can ask Knute or Chad at the Centre for clarification. The rules have been in place for as long as the league has, but probably have not been enforced as much as they should be. It would not be fair if one team was beat by another team whose bench was filled with players from another team (if you can follow that confusing sentance).

This Thursday's Stick and Puck Class

2009-07-22T14:03:00.003-05:00

Will be taught by Central Hockey League Veteran, and former Ft. Worth Brahma player, Aaron Davis. Matt Burto had some family business to take care of back in New England, and wont be here this week. Aaron is no stranger to Nytex. He played a handful of games for the Brahmas at the beginning of last season, but was traded over to Rocky Mountain as part of a multi player deal. Aaron is big, fast, and knows how to put the puck in the net. His brother Adam also spent time in a Brahmas uniform. These two guys were line mates with former Stick and Puck teacher, Joey Bastien. Adam played one game with the Brahmas last season, making the Davis brothers the 2nd set of brothers to play for the Brahmas in one season. The othe rset being the Rouleau boys.

Dickie tours more rinks while on bizness...

2009-07-21T12:41:00.004-05:00

I was at my company's corporate office in San Angelo this past weekend, which is about 5 miles from nowhere, and 5 hours SW of DFW.

I happened upon an outdoor facility with full boards and a nice concrete slab... my only guess is that when the CHL's San Angelo Outlaws folded, the city didn't know what to do with the hockey infrastructure, and so they poured a slab at a city park.

Play In Round Dates and Times

2009-07-20T17:19:00.002-05:00

The first play in game will feature the #7 seed v the #10 seed at 9:30 Monday July 27th, 2009.

The second game will be Tuesday July 28th at 9:15 between the #8 and #9 seeds.

The Real Last Week Predictions

2009-07-20T16:35:00.002-05:00

OK, so it has been an active day here to say the least. Now in regards to this weekend here is what we have.

Stingers v Indians -
I predict an Indians win 6-5 in a shootout.

Spider Monkeys v Arc Angels
Spider Monkeys have only two wins this season, and are hungry for one more. Angels are looking to pass the Senators, and take the #5 seed heading into the playoffs. I predict a 8-7 Spider Monkeys OT victory.

Gators v Bullets
A Gators win and a Hurricanes loss puts the Gators tied for second in the standings. That is provided the Indians beat the Stingers. The Bullets can climb out of the Play In round if they win here, and the Arc Angels lose. I predict 6-5 Bullets win in a shootout.

Hurricanes v Mid Air
Depends on which Hurricanes team shows up, but I think that Saylor will be hard for the Airport boys to handle, and a 6-3 victory for the Canes. Now the Canes could leap frog the Stingers for the #2 spot if they win and the Stingers lose. The Airport boys could get out of the play in round if they win by two goals or more and the Angels lose. They would both end up with 11 points on the season and head to head Mid Air beat the Angels 5-4, so if they win and the Angels lose, we could see some fish out of water style flip floppery. I say Mid Air sees a light at the end of the tunnel and lights up the Canes for 6 goals to the Canes 4.

Jaguars v Senators
Jags are stuck in the Play In round no matter how you shake it. Senators are trying to keep pace with their rival, the Gators. Senators will probably come out ahead on this one, say 4-2.

And there you have it. Lets all be nice and have a day.

SCHEDULEGATE 2009 Schedule Corrections

2009-07-20T14:30:00.002-05:00

http://www.leaguelineup.com/welcome.asp?url=nytex_i_league

OK kids, the uproar that was caused by trying to shift schedules is over, water is on the fire, no one get crazy here. And no Krajewski, no one is smoking from a peace pipe. There was an error early in the season with the schedule being put into the Nytex computers, and it wasnt caught until now. The attempt to correct it by just changing league lineup to match was as successfull as the time I jumped in a bounce house with metal spiked golf shoes while really drunk at a charity golf event.

The below times are what we are going with for this final regular season weekend. Make sure everyone on your team knows, and there is no confusion. A little note, when you arrive to Nytex on Saturday, the TV's that show what locker room you have may not match the league lineup schedule. Get with your coordinators and make sure your whole team knows when and where to be. Basically you need to pretend todays posts never happened. League Lineup has been corrected, and we are back to normal.

Saturday, Jul 25
Spring 2009
Stingers @ Keller Indians
4:15pm

Spider Monkeys @ Arc Angels
5:45pm

Ice Gators @ Silver Bullets
7:15pm

Hurricanes @ Mid Air
8:45pm

Jaguars @ Tomcast Senators
10:15pm

Weekend Recap/Last Week Predictions

2009-07-20T12:54:00.002-05:00

What a weekend in the Bronze League. In the early game the Hurricanes man handled the Spider Monkeys 8-4 led by Kyle Saylor’s incredible 7 point performance. Saylor had five goals and two assists which now puts him in first place in points for the season.

The Silver Bullets squeaked out a win in overtime against the Arc Angels, 4-3. Kacey Bird led the charge for the Bullets with 2 goals and 2 assists. Jack Germaine had a fine night for the Angels with a pair of goals himself. This was a good evenly matched game that could have gone either way.

Next up we had the Stingers who took care of business against the Jaguars. Josh Briscoe and Roland Widmann each had three points for the Bees, while Steve Meek notted a hat trick and an assist for a four point night.

The Ice Gators took out the Airport boys from Mid Air 8-4. Leading the charge for the Gators was Zack Gunter who had 4 goals. Gators have been struggling to find their identity lately with Bruno going MIA. They picked up goalie Andrew Busboom from the Free Agent wire to fill in, and looks like things are starting to click. There are rumors swirling about the Gators fate next season. Will they play, will they all just move up to D league, or is Bruno on a secret recruiting trip to Russia in search of a pair of 6’7” 260 lb shut down defenders?

Finally we had the Senators squaring off against the Tribe. Despite getting off to an early start, the Senators could not crack Indians netminder Ryan Kelly. Kelly stopped 26 of 27 shots, and was on top of his game. Kyle Kelly had a pair of goals in the win.

Now the stage is set for the final week of action here in the Bronze League. The early game is the main event this week. With the Indians and Stingers battling it out for that #1 seed. In the event the Bees beat the Tribe then the head to head records will decide who gets the #1 spot. The Indians won 4-2 the first time these two tangoed this season, so the Bees would need to beat the Tribe by two goals or more to take that number one spot.

SCHEDULING SNAFU:
There was an error with the inputting of the season schedule into the League Lineup website, and as such some game times have changed. I just spoke to Nytex about this, and they assured me that the schedule they have is 100% accurate and correct, so this is the schedule we are going by. The Keller Indians and Stingers showdown was the only game on the schedule for this week that was not affected. Due to play after the showdown is the Hurricanes vs. Bullets. They will be followed by the Gators vs. Jags, then Monkeys vs. Mid Air, with the Senators and Angels rounding out the night. Make sure everyone on your teams know this is the schedule as Nytex tells us is 100% correct.

The Hurricanes play the Bullets following the big showdown, and there is actually a lot riding on this game. If the Canes win, and the Stingers lose to the Indians, then the Canes jump up to the number two spot in the playoff seeding and the Bees fall to three. Now if the Bullets win and the Senators beat the Arc Angels, then the Bullets will force the Angels down into the play in round. Interesting, interesting, interesting.

Gators and Jags are up next. If the Gators win and the Stinger and Hurricanes lose, they leap frog to the #2 spot. If Gators win and the Hurricanes and Stingers both also win, then nothing happens. A Gator win and Canes loss would mean the Gators jump up to #3, and the Canes would fall back to 4. The Jags are stuck in the play in round. Perhaps if their roster was solid from the start of the season they wouldn’t have to play in the play in round. The Jags have been solid since getting their roster fixed, so who knows this should be a good game.

Mid Air vs. Monkeys looks to be perhaps a preview of one of the play in games. The monkeys have struggled all season offensively, and Mid Air has been inconsistent as well. Who knows how this one will end up, should be a good game no matter how you look at it.

And finally Angels vs. Senators. The Senators have been up and down this season, as have the Angels. These two teams have met twice with the Senators taking the win both times. These two squads are very evenly matched this season. Both squads will be jockeying for that #5 seed. The one thing the Sens have going for them is the fact that they have scored 18 more goals this season than the Angels. Both teams have allowed about as many goals as they have scored, so who knows what will happen.