DEVILS SOUTH GET BACK TO WINNING WAYS WITH WIN OVER E/W

Gerry's Cup Match 24-03-2025 Lee Valley: Devils South 5 - Devils E/W 3

Devils South got back on track to seal a tight game with EW by scoring an empty net goal. More to follow...

Devils South: Scoring

Richard Veinot (G. Yufit)
Arlen Dancziger (A. Blais, T. Wong)
Timur Khalikov (C. Haddow)
Paul House (A. Dancziger, T. Wong)
Laurence Hora (G. Gleason, T. Wong) EN

Devils E/W: Scoring

Jeremy Robert (A. Cohen, M. Konsala)
Jeremy Robert (A. Cohen)
Jeremy Robert (A. Cohen, J. Foster)

Penalties: None

BAILEY LEADS E/W TO POT OF GOLD IN WIN OVER NORTH ON ST. PATRICK'S DAY

Gerry's Cup Match 17-03-2025 Lee Valley: Devils E/W 7 - Devils North 4

St Patrick’s Day can be taken in a multitude of ways. Green Beer? Corned Beef and Cabbage? A skinful of Guinness? For EW St. Patty’s Day came in the form of five third period goals as they pulled away from North en-route to a 7-4 win.

The Irish mafia of Bailey, McDiggens and O'Cohen led the EW charges with an impressive haul. Not only did Bailey provide pregame locker room tunes (questionable at best!) but ended the night with 6 pints [sic]. His hat trick included a preternatural eephus empty-netter leaving the EW bench out of their tree.

However, North wasn’t devoid of their own Irish shenanigans. Midway through the first period, Park Inn customer of the week Frank Walshe deftly batted down a EW crossing attempt. The culchie inclined captain lashed in solo only be initially denied by Sczorsz. His follow up attempt, however was fierce, as he banked in his rebound from the corner for a cheeky short-hander.

With the game tied 1-1 in the second, the dead brilliant Quinby Duble with help from the Guinness God himself Mike Lay and the bold as brass James Mulligan delivered a schklep to put South ahead 2-1. But Bailey, a pox all night long, evened the score 2-2 with help from the sound as a pound Andrew Thomas. But another cracking goal from Duble, as the second period ran down, had North up 3-2 heading into the third.

The third period started off with a savage EW goal as Diggens tied the game 3-3 leaving North feeling banjaxed. A series of quick strikes by Chebator, Cohen and Bailey soon had EW ahead 6-3 and turned the game into a Holy Show. A late goal mouth strike by the canny Walter Sheloff gave South a wee glint of hope before the clock ran down leaving both teams gubbed and EW feeling happy as pigs in muck with a 7-4 victory. -B. Chebator

Devils E/W: Scoring

Diggens- Bailey, Abban (PPG)
Bailey- Thomas
Diggens- Bailey, Cohen
Chebator- Abban, Reid
Cohen- Bailey
Bailey- Thomas
Bailey- Cohen (EN)

Penalties

Thomas- cross-checking

Devils North: Scoring

Walshe - Unassisted (SH)
Duble - Lay, Mulligan
Duble - Walshe, Sheloff
Sheloff - Duble, Walshe

Penalties

North Bench - Too Many Men
Mulligan - Hooking
Leizer - Holding
Leizer - Unsportsmanlike Conduct

MULLIGAN MAGIC DRIVES DRAMATIC NORTH COMEBACK WIN OVER SOUTH

Gerry's Cup Match 06-03-2025 Alexandra Palace: Devils North 7 - Devils South 5

A Thursday night at Ally Pally—usually reserved for beer league and beer—was graced with the presence of a Gerry’s Cup showdown. The inclusion of an unusual Thursday night slot was partially intended to support South's attendance. It made little difference.

North entered the game knowing this was a must-win. After losing their first match, they needed to take advantage of a South squad that was short on numbers but full of confidence after an 11-3 dismantling of E/W. South, despite coming in high on belief, arrived low on bodies, with just nine skaters to take on a deep North bench.

In the dressing room, the pre-game antics set the tone. Marc's playlist choices were widely lamented by anyone over the age of 40. Though Cotton Eye Joe had been mercifully retired, there were still whispers of longing for the Rolling Stones & AC/DC (mixed with team veterans yelling at the younger players to stay off their lawn). Meanwhile, James Laing disregarded all seating arrangements, deciding that the best way to get into Paul House’s head (and maybe heart) was to sit directly in his lap while getting changed.

First Period
South came out flying, catching North completely off guard. They won every battle, controlled possession, and forced turnover after turnover. The opening goal came quickly, and it was no surprise who buried it. Cody Haddow, already cementing his reputation as one of the most lethal scorers in the tournament, snapped home a snipe off a sharp feed from House.

Before North could recover, South doubled their lead in bizarre fashion. Laurence Hola, ever eager to impress his wife in the stands, let loose a slapshot from the top of the circle. It seemed like an easy stop for North goalie Matt Brown, but instead of nestling safely in his chest, the puck trickled through and sat helplessly in the crease. Nobody saw it - except Paul House - he pounced and poked it home.

Things went from bad to worse for North when South struck again off a faceoff. The puck was pulled back to the blue line and thrown toward the net, where Ian Williams got the first touch and Phil Holbrook got the second. A double deflection left Brown helpless, and just like that, it was 3-0.

North skated to the bench at the first intermission looking lost, having been outplayed in every department. Matt Brown, channeling his uncle (maybe?) Phil Brown, let the team know exactly what he thought of their performance.

Second Period
North knew they needed a quick one to get back in the game, and they found it early. A 2-on-0 developed—would Mulligan pass? No. Never. Fortunately for North, he didn’t need to. A slick deke later, and the deficit was cut to two.

The goal settled North, but just as they were starting to build some momentum, South struck again. Haddow found space on the rush and let fly a shot that clipped defender Holbrook's stick, changing direction just enough to fool Brown. It was a tough break for the North keeper, who had been expecting the puck high, only to watch it skip low past his outstretched pad. The three-goal lead was restored, and South seemed to have weathered the storm.

The game hit a strange patch of officiating, with icing calls that had players shaking their heads in confusion. No one was more perplexed than Phil Holbrook, who—thinking a whistle was coming—pulled up on a play, only to realize too late that the referee had no such plans. Incensed, he unleashed a tirade at Jurijs, who responded with the old ‘teapot’ stance rather than a misconduct. It did not wake up his game.

Then came the first bit of controversy. North’s Pep Malacarne chipped the puck past Hola and tried to chase it down, only for Hola, still performing for his wife, to step into his path and tie him up in what could only be described as subtle (blatant) interference. Pep, never one to back down, responded with a nudge of his own in the form of a well-placed elbow. The whistle blew immediately, but who was going to the box? Laurence? Pep? Both? North got the break — instigator Hola was the only one called.

On the ensuing power play, Mulligan fired a cross-ice pass to Richie Clark, who wound up and completely fanned on the shot. It wasn’t pretty, but it worked—the puck deflected off a South defender and trickled past their new, big-bodied keeper Kyle Rarick.

With under a minute to go, North continued to press, and their persistence paid off. Mulligan and Clark combined again on an odd-man rush—though the numbers on the attack were debated post-game, ranging anywhere from a 4-on-1 to a standard 2-on-1 (the author only saw the goalie and one defender, but numbers are subjective - editor's note: it was a 4 on 1). Mulligan carried the puck, and as expected, refused to pass. Fortunately for North, Kyle wasn’t aware of his tendencies and slightly cheated toward the pass, opening a gap on the short side. Mulligan buried it, and just like that, North had clawed back to 4-3.

Third Period
North hit the ice full of energy. South, dealing with 14 relentless opponents against their 9, looked to be feeling the strain.

A wild scramble in front of the South net led to confusion. Players hacked away, sticks flew, and bodies piled up. Was the puck covered? Was it loose? No one seemed to know—except for ref Jurijs, who confidently pointed to the back of the net. For a few seconds, nobody reacted, until Laing yelled, “It’s in!” Mulligan, now with a hat trick, had tied the game.

Moments later, Andre Blais tripped a North attacker while exiting the zone, putting North back on the power play. Off the first draw, Paul House decided to engage in some creative penalty killing by lifting his stick directly into Harry’s bollocks. The North centerman collapsed instantly, writhing in pain. For a brief moment, the concern was that he had injured his legs, but Harry had much greater concerns about his future ability to have children. Later, in the pub, House somehow found a way to spin it that this was all in fact Harry's fault.

North kept pressing, and eventually, they found the go-ahead goal. Corbiel took a pass from Clark, deked the South keeper out of position, and slipped the puck back into the crease. Mulligan battled through Arlen’s stick and managed to tap it over the line from about six inches out. For the first time in the game, North had the lead.

The joy was short-lived. It wasn’t the very next faceoff, but soon after, South responded. House won a draw to Haddow, who didn’t hesitate. His laser of a wrist shot found the top corner, securing his hat trick and tying the game again at 5-5.

Both teams had chances late, but with just a few minutes remaining, North struck again. A faceoff to the right of South’s goal wasn’t won cleanly by Lukasz, but the puck squirted back to Mulligan, who poked it to Laing at the point. Laing stepped into a shot and hammered it toward the net. It flew past Kyle before anyone could react. Was it tipped? Was it a high stick? Did it hit Mulligan’s head?

Nope — straight in.

North had their lead back, 6-5, and South was running out of time. They pressed with everything they had, even pulling their goalie for the extra attacker, but Matt Brown stood tall. Arlen nearly found himself in alone in the dying seconds, only to just miss the breakaway pass.

With time ticking down, the puck squirted free to Corbiel along the half-boards in his own zone. A few strong strides later, he found Mulligan at centre ice, who crossed the red line and buried the empty netter—his fifth goal of the night, but more importantly, securing the much-needed win for North.

Devils North: Scoring

James Mulligan (M. Corbiel
Richie Clark (J. Mulligan, M. Corbiel)
James Mulligan (R. Clark)
James Mulligan (L. Gryzbon)
James Mulligan (M. Corbiel, R. Clark)
James Laing (J. Mulligan, L. Gryzbon)
James Mulligan (M. Corbiel)

Devils North: Penalties

None

Devils South: Scoring

Cody Haddow (P. House, T. Wong)
Paul House (L. Hora)
Ian Williams (A. Dancziger, T. Khalikov)
Cody Haddow (P. House)
Cody Haddow (P. House)

Devils South: Penalties

L. Hora (interf)
A. Blais (trip)