Every prizefighter will tell you that once you hit the canvas you never feel invincible again. For the high powered Penguins, their 7-6 overtime lose to the (1-6) Islanders certainly took them down a notch. With the JCC of Bayonne’s Sr. Division Floor Hockey “Championship Tournament” just a week away, the once rock solid Penguins ran into a Devils team on a mission. Right from the get go, the Devils ruled the show as Drew Radil and Jared Radil lifted the Devils out to a 2-0 lead with Colin Woods in full assist mode. Up 2-0, the Devils’ Josh Greenbaum returned to his 2012 undefeated form at net as he shutdown the Penguins’ league leading offense. With the Penguins on the ropes, the Devils poured it on as team captain Mackenzie Woods bulled a pass to Colin Woods who made it 3-0 with a wrist shot rocket. The mauling continued as the Devils’ Jared Radil made it 4-0 with a scoring blast from the point. While all was not well in “Mudville,” the Penguins couldn’t care less about the scoreboard. It was time to play like a team and as the “Stat-Cats” stopped looking for headlines, the Penguins returned to their winning ways as Malachi Smith gifted a centering gem to Jake Nowak who made it 4-1, Devils. The comeback march was on as Smith once again fought a pass to Nowak who made it 4-2 with a net jet. Like two boxes trading hands in a phone booth, no team was backing off as the Devils and Penguins went toe to toe. Down by 2 with the clock running down, the Penguins’ Malachi Smith nailed his 13th goal of the year to narrow the Devils’ lead to 4-3. With the Penguins back in the hunt, the Devils fell prey to defenseman Josh Verzosa’s “Bobby Orr” like bulls eye shooting as the Penguins tied the bout at 4-4. Going into their second overtime game in two straight games just before the “Championship Tournament” the questions sat heavily upon the Penguins’ minds. After 3:15 of overtime, the Penguins got back on track as Jake Nowak lifted the O.T. game winner into the net for a hard fought 5-4 O.T. Penguins win. A special mention must be given to the Penguins’ Matt Doyle Alisa Verzosa, and J. P. Egan for being rock solid while others turned to sand.
Week 6 Sr. Division
Offensive Player of the week – Gabriella Bonilla – Islanders
Defensive Player of the week – Josh Verzosa – Penguins
Teamwork/ Leadership Player of the week – James Bajor – Islanders