Bittersweet Debut for Team REDRUM

 

GAME RECAP BULLDOGS All In Date/Time Rink 4 6 06/08/2004 The Edge Ice arena

 June 8th, 2004: BENSENVILLE, IL- With their roster resembling an injured M*A*S*H* unit and a suspension to Center Sean O’Connell, the Bulldogs brought up three studs from their farm team, "Team Redrum". The Bulldogs welcomed defensemen John Reeg, Ted Markos and offensive super-stud Ryne Gerstner. Unfortunately, they still ended up on the short end of the stick, losing to ‘All In’, 6-4. The loss dropped their record to a paltry 0-6.

The ‘Dogs’ were in good spirits before the game. The game drew more fans than they’ve had all season, thanks to the "Mike Mancuso Bobblehead Night" giveaway to the first 5 hot lesbians. Also in the stands to root them on, was former Bulldogs’ winger Frank Lionello who’d hoped to make the team next season.

The newcomers didn’t take long before showing off their skills. With the ‘Dogs’ trailing 1-0, Gerstner broke forward with a 2 on 1 breakaway, midway through the 1^st period to tie the game at one apiece. Solid defense kept the game even for the remainder of the first frame.

Less than two minutes into the second period, ‘All In’ scored twice to take a commanding 3-1 lead. The quick turnaround saw many Bulldogs players scratching their heads on how quickly the games momentum had changed. "We didn’t put our heads down. We knew we could beat this team so we just rolled up our sleeves and went to work" said Maher ‘The Hammer’ Karim. "The new guys brought a lot of energy and excitement with them and that kind of optimism is contagious".

It didn’t take them long to rebound, as Gerstner scored two more goals within 30 seconds of one another. He was assisted on both by Ted Markos to tie the game at three. Moments later however, "All In" scored to take the 4-3 lead.

The tail end of period number two saw both teams getting very chippy with one another. The referees missed many slashes, hooks and trips by both teams for the majority of the period, yet mysteriously found their whistles again. Within two minutes of one another the officials called two against "All In" and one against the Bulldogs. "Talk about your ticky-tack penalties!" said the Hammer who watched angrily from the "Sin Bin", but rejoiced as his teammates tied it up at four. Gerstner scored an unprecedented fourth goal (assisted by Reeg) to become the first Bulldog in their short history of ice hockey to score four in one game.

In their previous five games, the Bulldogs have been outscored 22-3 in the third period, mainly due to exhaustion. They were exhausted that night, but saw the realistic possibility of actually winning this game. Unfortunately, fatigue and several penalties ended the quest, as ‘All In’ scored twice and held their own defensively, shutting down the ‘Dogs’ to claim the victory.

"Wow!" said Alex Martinez. "Can you imagine how much better we’ll do in the upcoming games? With the three new guys here to stay, and a couple guys coming back we will be an explosive team. Despite missing two of our stars, we still played a great game on both sides of the ice tonight." The Bulldogs certainly have plenty to be excited about. They expect Sean O’Connell to return following a one game suspension and Dan Ayotte to be back in two weeks (He is in training to become a male stripper at Hunters). With a full roster, the ‘Dogs’ should be able to salvage the remainder of their season.