Go Boston Bruins!!

What an exciting and entertaining hockey game last night!

Up and down & back and forth with both teams having scoring chances.

Thankfully, the B's pulled it out with a 4-3 OT win and taking a 3-1 series lead.  Game 5 is back in Boston Friday night, can't wait!!

GO B's GO!!

Horton hears a WOO! Bruins win game 7 vs Canadians 4-3!



and move on to the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Bring on the Flyers!

You're Forbidden To Use The "B" Word!

Okay, it's been a couple days since the collapse and I'm ready to make a statement. Once made, however, we'll not speak of this for the foreseeable future.

The use of the "B" word is now forbidden to be spoken here at the ole homestead! It's much too early and the wounds are far from healed. It's gonna take a loooooooong time. 40+ years of being a Bruins fan without experiencing a championship and downtown Boston parade is frustrating at best.

Just so we're all on the same page, the "B" word refers to the Boston Bruins. Our New England NHL team that has been and is still VERY frustrating to watch and root for, especially after this past seasons inconsistent play during the regular season and the history making post-season collapse they allowed.

Note: I have made the decision that all of the Boston Bruins clothing I own will be going into storage indefinitely. NO hats, t-shirt, sweatshirts. etc. shall be worn by yours truly, including the coffee mug I use for my morning coffee - all put away for now, alas...

"Awnya" "Awnya"!!

So, I went to watch Stephanie's varsity ice hockey game Wednesday night. It was an exciting game. The Walpole Rebels carried the play for most of the game but unfortunately found they themselves trailing 2 - 1. With about a minute and a half remaining in the game Walpole pulled their goalie for an extra skater and with just 15 seconds left Walpole scored - the place went wild! They were fortunate enough to walk away with a tie 2 - 2.

NOTE: Stephanie got the assist on the game tying goal. She is also the Walpole Rebels girls ice hockey program's all-time leading scorer to date!!

On a side note - throughout the entire game, one of the dads was rooting and yelling words of encouragement to all the WHS girls. He was constantly yelling "Awnya" "Awnya". The name didn't sound familiar to me. I didn't know of any girl on Stephanie's team named Awnya. I checked the program they handed out at the door; went down the list and sure enough there was no Awnya. I was puzzled and thought to myself to ask Stephanie about this girl Awnya after the game.

All of a sudden it HIT me, daaaaaaah! He wasn't yelling Awnya, a players name, but rather "on yeah"! He was yelling to let the girls know that an opposing player was "on yeah" and to be careful with the puck.

It was a long day...

Tournament Run

The WHS girl’s varsity ice hockey team made it into the post season for the first time since the program began. This was quite an accomplishment that capped an exciting season! One reason for their success was that the girls tripled the number of goals they scored this year as compared to last.

Their first playoff tilt was at home and the girls came out on fire. They were all over their opponent and won the game decidedly 4-2. Note: Stephanie scored 2 of the goals and assisted on one. The team was riding an enormous high and couldn't wait to get back at it against their next opponent Winchester High. However, due to an unfortunate event their momentum came to an end.

The 49yo assistant coach for Winchester High suffered a heart attack and passed away. Due to these circumstances there was a 10 day layoff and for some reason a change of rinks (farther away).

When the game was played the Walpole girls lost and were ousted from the post season. Did the 10 day delay effect them, yes. Did the change of venue effect them, yes. However, no excuses were made; the bottom line is that they simply didn't play well enough to win but it was a great season none the less.

The game itself and who won was inconsequential; a blip on the radar. After all it was just a game; there will be others and other opportunities for these girls.

In a gesture of compassion, over and above sportmanship, each Walpole player presented each Winchester player with a single long-stemmed red rose during player introductions! It was extremely emotional and very moving - not a dry eye in the rink.

The reaction was remarkable, both before and after the game; players, coaches and fans all moved to tears. The Winchester coaches and high school representatives visited the Walpole coaches after the game to thank them for such an incredible gesture. They also told them they'll always hold a special memory for Walpole and what the girls did.

The Walpole girls may have lost of the game but they won the praise and admiration of a community.

Vezina Trophy Candidate

Here is a picture of the best 1995 Bantam goalie on the Boston Junior Eagles of the Eastern Hockey Federation and it just so happens to be my son!

Frye-alator Starts Cooking in Wins

It was snowing pretty good last Saturday night as I drove to my oldest daughter's varsity ice hockey game. The storm didn't drop too much snow but Stephanie sure did, as she brought her "A" game on this night. It was a very exciting game, fun to watch especially #9, the Frye-alator!

Walpole 3, Norwood 1

Sophomore center Stephanie Frye scored a pair of goals including the second period game-winner leading the Rebels past the host Mustangs on Saturday.

Midway through the second Frye and Cosby (2 assists) worked a 2-on-1 with Frye getting in alone on goal to give Walpole (5-9-1, 3-5-1) a 2-0 lead. “They played very well,” said Rebels coach of his top line of Frye, Cosby and Lennon.

First WIN of Season!!

This just in...

"Walpole center Stephanie Frye (aka, “The Frye-alator”) took a long pass from Duffy with just under five minutes remaining in the game and broke into the Norwood zone with only Walsh (goalie) standing between her and the net. When Walsh came out of the net to cut the angle off and play the puck, Frye juked left, slid the puck into an open net, and sealed Walpole’s first victory of the season."

What the article doesn't mention is that in the first period Stephanie collided with an opposing player as they were both charging for the puck. The end result was Stephanie slamming her head on the ice when they fell. Although she played the rest of the game she was hurting; she had a terrible headache, as well as very dizzy and lightheaded, both of which persisted after the game. A trip to the local hospital emergency room for a CAT scan, thankfully, showed NO signs of a concussion.

You can read the entire article here, Walpole girls hockey grab first win of season.