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Waterloo Takes Game One
Waterloo (4.2.03): Period 1: Waterloo gets on the board first, has the Black Hawks come in 3-on-1 after a turnover in the neutral zone; Derek Whitmore from Mike Radja and Matt Fornataro makes it 1-0 lead at the 5:34 point. Then late in the period the Bucs have to kill off a penalty, but the Black Hawks' Jon Saunders capitalize only nine seconds into the power play to take the 2-0 lead at 18:23 mark.
Period 2: The Black Hawks' Joe Pavelski scores early in the period with assists to Joel Hanson and Mike Dagenais to make it 3-0 Black Hawks. Bryce Anderson is able to come in on the goalie, and Marty Mjelleli puts in the rebound at 2:36 mark to cut the lead to 3-1. Both goaltenders, A.J. Bucchino for Des Moines and Jordan Parise for Waterloo keep the score the same till the end of the period. The Bucs do have to kill off 10 seconds of a penalty that will carry over to the next period.
Period 3: Mjelleli tries to center a pass that goes into the net at 2:26 to make it a 3-2 Black Hawk lead. About three-minutes later, Ross Carlson comes down the middle of the ice and re-gains the 2-goal lead, 4-2 Black Hawks. At 9:44 mark, Joel Hansen scores with an assist Reid Cashman to makes it 5-2, Black Hawks. A little over 30 seconds later, Jamie Hoffmann makes it a 2-goal lead with assists to Mike Erickson and Tomas Jasko at 10:16 mark. Bucs are unable to put another one in the net, and Ross Carlson adds an empty-netter at the 19:40 mark to make it 6-3 Black Hawks.Written by Kevin Kasel.
Bucs Dominate Waterloo - Tie Series
Urbandale. IA (4.4.03): I arrived at Metro Ice Arena shivering in the 32 degree weather, wondering what happened to the 86 degree days just last week. Like the Iowa weather, I wondered which Buccaneer team would show up tonight. When the Bucs are on their game, they beat the toughest foe - when they are not they lose badly. The crowd began arriving, collecting their free "Whiteout" T-shirts. Their were a few Waterloo fans in the mix, and as always is the case, their presence just makes the Buc fans cheer louder.
When the puck was dropped, it was clear that the Bucs were working hard. It took only 2:53 for the red light to come on for the good guys. Tomas Jasko had gotten the puck to Joe Campbell, who in turn passed quickly to Mike Erickson. Erickson muscled his way toward the goal and scored - much to the surprise of the D who was all over Erickson. One minute later Kyle Bushee made it 2-0, unassisted. Waterloo did not lie down and give up, but the few scoring chances they did have were gobbled up by A.J. Bucchino. The Bucs scored two more quick goals one minute apart at 16:15 and 17:04. Joe Campbell's goal came on a blast from the blue-line. Bryce Anderson's goal came on a scramble in front of the net. At the end of the first period the Bucs were leading 4-0.
Waterloo wasted no time scoring at the start of the second period, scoring just 43 seconds into the period. The Bucs seemed to go into a defensive shell, giving Waterloo a chance to get back into the game. Waterloo scored another goal at the13:57 mark. The next goal was crucial, and it was Tomas Jasko who got it. The goal was a result of pressure by Mike Erickson as Waterloo was trying to break out of their zone. The pressure caused a bad pass and the puck squirted out several feet in front of goal. From out of nowhere Jasko blew in slammed the puck into the net. The period ended with a 5-2 Buc lead. Waterloo had outshot the Bucs 15-10. In a side note, throughout the game 2 teenage girls in high-pitched voices kept yelling "Go Nellie" and "Go Carlson" annoying everyone around them. As if their "dream players" could actually hear them. They, and the rest of the Black Hawk fans had little to cheer about the rest of the night.
The third period was one where both teams traded scoring chances, Waterloo getting one more shot on net, but the Bucs getting 2 goals to Waterloo's 1 goal. Marty Mjellei and Evan Stoflet scored for the Bucs. Evan's goal came when he let loose a blast that was stopped by the goalie, but rebounded back. Evan skated quickly up to get the rebound and slammed the puck again, this time past the goaltender. As the clock wound down, Waterloo was resigned to the loss and the last 15 seconds they didn't even try to score. The series is now tied and moves to Waterloo. Written by Steve Bendy.
Waterloo Takes Lead in Series
Waterloo, IA (4.5.03): Period 1: The Black Hawks Joel Hanson (with an assist to Joe Pavelski), converts on a turn-over in the Bucs' own end at the 1:08 mark to take the early 1-0 lead. The period ends, Black Hawks leading 1-0.
Period 2: The Bucs come out and tie the game with a goal from Joel Kitchen with an assist to Marty Guerin at the 4:41 mark. Then at the 11:57 mark, the Black Hawks capitalize on another turnover in the Bucs' zone as Matt Fornataro makes it 2-1 Black Hawks with helpers to Ross Carlson and Andy Nelson. About two minutes later, Hanson adds his second of the night with assists to Pavelski and Mike Dagenais to make it 3-1 Black Hawks after two.
Period 3: At the 11:57 mark Hanson completes the hat trick with a power play goal with assists to Pavelski and Mike Radja. Nearly four minutes later Pat Borgestad takes a feed from Marty Guerin and splits the defense and makes it a 4-2 game at the 15:36 point. Pavelski adds an short-handed tally with an assist to Hanson at the 19:43 mark. Written by Kevin Kasel.
Double-Overtime Loss Ends Bucs Season
Des Moines, IA (4.8.03): The Buccaneers left everything on the ice Tuesday night, taking game 4 against a talented Waterloo team into double-overtime. Midway through the second overtime, Mike Fornataro got the puck past A.J. Bucchino to give Waterloo a 5-4 win and end the Bucs season. For the Bucs it was a bitter-sweet season as they ended up with a disappointing 27-27-6 record, but ended up third in their division, just 1 point behind second-place Cedar Rapids. They also made the Clark Cup playoffs for the 17th year in a row.
The Buccaneers scored first off the stick of captain and team leader Marty Guerin. Marty Guerin picked up an additional assist on the night. Tomas Jasko, the Buccaneers leading scorer scored the second goal and also picked up an additional assist later in the night. Canadian Joel Kitchen showed what he is capable of by scoring the last 2 Buccaneer goals - assisted by Marty Guerin and Tomas Jasko. Joel can return next year, as can Tomas Jasko. Netminder A.J. Bucchino faced 62 shots on the night and played an excellent game for the Bucs.
Well - Buc fans it has been another exciting season, and Evaluation camp is just around the corner - sometime in mid-June. Twelve Buccaneers are eligible to return, and their is always that mystery player who is ready to tear up the ice! See you there! Written by Steve Bendy.
Disclaimer
This is a game summary and commentary from a Buccaneer fan's point of view, and the viewpoints expressed in this column DO NOT necessarily reflect those of the Des Moines Buccaneer's organization.
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