World Cup of Hockey XXX - Everything Thread

by **Western Bjornaic** » Sun May 29, 2016 8:53 am

Here on Wallaby News, the results for our Lokomotiv, over to you, Brian!
Brian Keffley: Alright, it was a shocker as Western Bjornaic scored their first goal due to somebody throwing a BEACH BALL on the ice, distracting Marc MacDonald and netting Arhen Rohen with a goal.
Third period, 15 minutes left, 1 - 0.

by **Western Bjornaic** » Sun May 29, 2016 8:58 am

Logan Guthrie and AJ are squaring off! Expect a bunch of drama! :blink:

AND OW! AJ AND LOGAN KNOCKED EACH OTHER OFF IN WHAT SEEMS TO BE THE MOST ENTERTAINING EVENT AS OF LATE.
YOON... YOON... YOON! THE OUTSTANDING HAND OF GOD GOAL!
(Matthew: psst... he's Maradona on ice...)
3 minutes left in the third period, 1-1.

by **-Anthor-** » Sun May 29, 2016 9:19 am

Broken Promises, Broken Net
Already two games into the group stage and the Ducks are already looking at a repeat - despite promises otherwise

^{SHARE THIS:}

Gnaeus Tanicius Vopiscus (@Gnaeus Tanicius Vopiscus)(TH)
^{Gavrach 23, 599AE 12:04 PM | Vaumort, Anthor}

Goalie Guy Ryley gives up his second of three goals in the 3-2 loss against TorisakiaTH photo

Vaumort, Anthor(Herald) — Welcome back folks to international hockey, I'm sure you are all chomping at the bit after that resounding championship final a few weeks ago, and now we get to see our bright stars compete on the international scale. I had some high hopes this year, last year's performance sucked, to be blunt, and after Coach Horn got with the NPHA (National Professional Hockey Assocation), and got them to release the players he had selected a few weeks early so he could do a training camp so the players could learn to play as a team, a good improvement over last year's straight pull into the Cup, there was hope that the team learned how to be a team and could win some games.

However, we're on Match Day 3 and, surprise, we're winless. Horn had promised to make it at-least to the Round of 16, but we dropped our first game against our budding rivals in Gregoryisgodistan 2-0, but thankfully no injuries coming out for us this time around and it was a little bit cleaner of a game - still way physical, but a good game with dissapointing results, and then now our second match against Torisakia, we came o so close to winning us some redemption, a very good slapshot goal from Robertston early in the first period opened up scoring, and then the Torisakians were leading us 1-2 following the halftime break and Poindexter did what he did all season long; scored a wonderful goal after some awesome passing from Hunter and Roberston. But, it was for naught because the Torisakian's once again manipulated Ryley's fatal flaw and scored a goal off of a soaring puck, second time it happened in the night and they take home the W.

I will say this, Ducks were definitely playing more like a team, but Coach Horn is clearly under pressure, he has announced at a post-game press conference that Ryley is indefinitely pulled from the first lineup, and Aric Langely will be taking his spot; Aric had a waaaay better season, .56 better on his save percentage and he had way more shutout wins,in addition to more playing time. Ryley missed the first half of the season from a broken leg while Aric got to play the whole thing, including playoffs. Hopefully this change out as well as the buildup in chemistry between Robertson, Poindexter and Hunter will do the Ducks wonder's, we're taking on the national team for the Republic of Arkan; this is their first time in the World Cup, so maybe the sophmore Ducks can pull of a nice win and keep us afloat in the Group stage. I'd like to say we're not almost dead to last the next time I write this article

Gnaeus Tanicus Vopiscus contributed to this article.

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AustinJ · 1 hours ago
Horn better pick up his team's game or I fear this will be his last outing for him, another embarressment for us on the international stage will undoubtbly cost him his job. Pulling Rylyer was the right move.
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DucksFanSince567AE · 3 hours ago
C'mon we got this, just a small mis-step, Poindexter and Roberston are going to carry this team and we got Rounds this time; he's gonna be a brick wall on defense.
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Stephen · 4 hours ago
Langely did good, I'm just worried he's not used to high-pressure situations playing for at best a C level team in the NPHA; but Rylery was terrible and anything at this point is better
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by **Ficiscia** » Sun May 29, 2016 10:04 am

FNSN.fc Ice Hockey: Ficiscia preparing for top spot battle

After a 3-1 victory in the opening match against Western Bjorniac and a tight 1-0 over the Republic of Arkan, the national team now stands at the top of the group, together with the group favourite from Gregoryisgodistan. Tonight, both teams face each other, evoking memories of the 10th WJHC, when the teams battled each other not only in the group stage, but also in the match for bronze. Both games went to the Ficiscians, however it came at a cost twice. Manuel Aleixos probably remembers the first game very well, when a Gregoryisgodistani defender injured the winger's wrist with a hidden slash that the referees overlooked, but was clearly visible on the video. Thankfully, Aleixos returned for the quarterfinal against Banija, but never fully recovered during WJHC and played the tournament under the influence of painkillers and with a taped wrist. The fears of a revenge from the Ficiscian players or fans in the bronze medal game didn't get confirmed, but it pretty much cemented the reputation of battles against Gregoryisgodistan as the number one risk game for the team. The frequent protests of the Ficiscian Left against the Gregoryisgodistani government did not help the cause either, and the diplomatic skills of Lucia Nerata were needed multiple times to cool down the situation in Ficiscia.

The battle is, however, also a duel of two play styles. Ficiscian fans have often called the more defensive and physical Gregoryisgodistani game "boring", "a no-skill play" and "ancient". It will be, as always, interesting to see how well the so far unbeaten defense of the "Ice Slaves" will stand against Ficiscia's fast paced, skate-heavy game. Can the Enemy Crushers and their teammates stop Brica, Marcantor & co. or will they have to stand back behind the Ficiscian high speed hockey? Can our defenders outsmart the physically superior opponents or will they have to look as Porcius faces the shots of the enemy offense? As nominal number 2 Torisakia lost their opening match to the Republic of Arkan, tonight's game is even more important as a victory may give Ficiscia a major edge in the race for the KO round, leaving the team two points in front of anyone else, with only two games against direct concurrent Torisakia and pointless Anthor left. After the Ficiscians used the match against Arkan to rest goalkeeper Porcius and Andrini instead of Namuros, the team from the opening match will be fielded again against the world's number 4.

FICISCIA 1-0 Republic of Arkan (0-0, 1-0, 0-0)

SCORERS: 33' Hejman 1-0 (Berjaman, Thorvaldssenn).
PENALTIES: 4x 2 min Ficiscia, 5x 2 min Rep. of Arkan
SHOTS: Ficiscia 36 - 34 Rep. of Arkan

THREE STARS: *** FIC #1 Decimius AEDIFICOR (34 svs, 100%) - ** RAK #30 Transtiv OLOGOVET (35 svs, 97.2%) - * FIC #15 Baldur HEJMAN (1 G/0 A, 3 SoG)

by **Neu Engollon** » Sun May 29, 2016 11:46 am

"Good evening, Neu Engollon and to our loyal International viewers, we welcome you, as well. You're watching the NETV Sports 7 Update and I'm Magda Wertauer. Tonight we once again cover the 30th edition of the World Cup of Hockey, where the Ibex have returned to try to break their streak of mediocrity to break into at least the quarterfinals or better. The Coaching staff of Liu Qiang An and Geoffrey Siegler remains strong, but some of the players are already showing the signs of strain.

So far, though, the Ibex hold strong as they have let one goal through to 8 scored.
That one goal against is being credited to Alex Weissbaum, who had a catastrophic stumble that threw off the defense and let the Winger of the FrostFire FireIce through, with support, to attack the Ibex goal. Coach Liu disputes this erroneous thinking:"

Alex had a moment of losing control, that many players do, but blame can not fall on him that one goal was scored on the Ibex defense. We are a team always, and the defense should have been there to fill in the gaps and back up Weissbaum. They share equal blame in an otherwise faultless game. It was one goal and we still carried the game, handily. We will avenge that goal dozens of times over on our future opponents here in the Cup. I don't understand the motivation to place blame when we are doing so well overall. Fans, as well as the media, need to just get a grip and leave Alex alone. Leave us all alone to do our jobs.

"So, moving on...Many say that the Ibex faced their toughest opponent in Group A tonight when they took on the Maplish on the ice at Nyhavn. A resounding 3 to 0 victory shows that the Ibex are prepared to keep this moving forward and deal with all that stand in their way of that Cup. Coach Siegler reminded us that every opponent is a possible stumbling block to that goal and that no one should be taken lightly. It is not unheard of for unrankeds to come out of nowhere to dazzle and disrupt the accepted order of the International hierarchy of hockey powerhouses. The Ibex is suitably on guard for such a wild card to blaze in.

So far, the Ibex remain free of serious injury, and they hope to remain that way, but many are still recovering and going through physical therapy from the last World Cup when they faced the Ice Slaves. In the possibility that they may face them again, left winger Remy Velper had this to say:

We will be prepared to get past the Ice Slaves this time around. We have some tricks up our sleeve and we won't just lie down and take it when they put on the pressure, not that we ever have before. The Ibex will give as good as they get, that I can promise you.

Many are anticipating such a match up this Cup, assuming the Ibex and the Ice Slaves both do happen to be able to get to that stage and fight their way through to the final stages of the Cup. In the meantime, scores of Neu Engollians continue to flood into Norrehavn to cheer on the Ibex on their quest to finally obtain the ultimate prize of International hockey, the World Cup. Stay tuned as we cover other key group matches of the Cup, right after this sponsor break. Thanks for watching the NETV Sports 7 Update..."

by **Gregoryisgodistan** » Sun May 29, 2016 3:37 pm

From the Desk of Lord Almighty Gregory

To: Censorina Polus

Dear Ms. Polus,

Excuse me for the long delay in our discussion. I agree with your suggestion to send covert agents to Taxachusetts to find out where the Anti-Patriarch is, so we can track him down and kill him. My plan, if you will choose to follow it, is for a group of our covert agents to arrive in Gregoryisgodistan, claiming to be Taxahusettans kidnapped by our regime. In reality, they will assume the identity of some of the Taxachuttans who Warren Elizabeths sold into slavery in our country, so there is some truth to the matter. They will claim to have seen the light and accepted Iesus Christus as their Lord and Savior, and then will proceed to gather information while consulting with us. If you wish to send covert agents as well, I highly suggest it. We can work together to take down the Anti-Patriarch.

Once we capture the wicked Anti-Patriarch, we will announce his capture to the Multiverse and execute him via the Brownie Cutter of Death. The execution will be televised live in Gregoryisgodistan, and your nation if you wish. At that point, Saintland will officially be removed from the Enemy List and we will sign a historic peace treaty. We will also celebrate the death of the Anti-Patriarch, and there will be much rejoicing and parades.

Please let me know when you wish to begin this operation. I look forward to hearing from you. Let's go and do this!

Sincerely,

Lord Almighty Gregory

by **Elejamie** » Sun May 29, 2016 4:49 pm

"... And now we go over to John Daverson with the news about the World Cup of Hockey. John?"

That's right, Steve! Good morning, Elejamie! The Icy Elephants continued their run of good luck as they completely shut-out Kitsunia-Deesse 5-0. With the return of Paul Morton, fans were hoping for a repeat of the match against Ethane the previous night. And, with a hat-trick from Cerin Meloten, it seems like they got what they wished for. Here are the highlights:

The first period got off to a good start as, less than a minute after the start, Cerin Meloten scored his first of the night when, thanks to some clever deking and assistance from Lupe and captain Anatoly Kasputin, he managed to shoot the puck into the Kistunian net. This was then shortly followed by a fight between Francisco Solano and a Kitsunian defenceman, a fight easily won by Solano. Even when Elejamie were down to three men following Lupe's two minute minor for slashing, they still managed to hold the fort. Eventually, seven minutes later, Elejamie made it 2-0 when Paul Morton's backhander, assisted by Carlos Sierra and Bill Harrison, made its way into the net. Apart from Danilo Barajas receiving a two minute minor for interference, Not much happened after that and, at the end of the period, Elejamie were leading 2-0 and were still sitting comfortably.

The second period was more proof that the 6-1 thrashing of Ethane the day before wasn't a fluke. Anatoly Kasputin made his second half a minute after the start when Cerin Meloten won the face-off and passed it to Kasputin, who tipped it past the goalie. After that, the Icy Elephants unleashed a barrage of shots that got saved, hit the post or, at one point, knocked out of play. With six and a half minutes left to go, Ethan Swinburne had to sit out for two minutes due to charging; on the powerplay, Cerin Meloten managed to net the fourth goal. In comparison, the Elejamian defence was so tight during this period that the only Kitsunian shot on goal was easily knocked away by Cervantes around four minutes after the start. At the end of the period, Elejamie were 4-0 up and Kitsunia-Deesse were practically down and out.

Fortunately, the third period went much smoother for them. Cerin Meloten's snap shot was easily saved by their new goalie, who came on for the third period. Lucas Madgwick's shovel shot hit the post, with his rebound also being saved. James Han's slapshot hit the crossbar, with a Kitsunian defenceman accidentally knocking it into the stands. Eventually, a minute from the end, the Kitsunian goaltender was taken off the ice and replaced with an extra attacker, although it wasn't enough to prevent the Icy Elephants from scoring again; Cerin Meloten, assisted by Anatoly Kasputin and Antonio Cervantes, finished off his hat-trick with a shovel shot into the opposing team's net, resulting in a 5-0 victory for Elejamie that cemented their spot at the top of the table.

In a post-match interview, head coach Michael Madgwick said "Another great performance from the boys. Again, a bit of overkill there. But Cerin had a good run out there. So did Anatoly and Morty. Franny had a good fight as well. Toni was practically a brick wall there. And everyone else? They did a pretty good job out there as well. Overall, I hope that we can keep this up for our next game."

"How do you think you'll get on against Semarland?"

"Probably more of the same. I mean, as much as I hate to admit it, the numbers don't lie, like eleven goals and a +10 goal difference in two games. Plus the fans seem to be really enjoying the way things are going, so "

Meanwhile, in the other Group D games of the day, Ethane were unable to avenge their terrible loss as they went down 2-0 to Ontorisa; and Semarland made it two draws out of two as they went 2-2 against the Land of Dat Boi. Tonight, Ethane are hoping to move out of the bottom spot in their game against the Land of Dat Boi, Ontorisa will play Kitsunia-Deesse and, most importantly of all, Elejamie will take on third placed Semarland. Will they make it three wins out of three? Will Semarland make it three draws out of three? Or will an unexpected victory pop up? Find out tonight on Puck Drop!

Meanwhile in Group C, it was a multi-goal blow-out as Novaya Zemlya beat Ilyseum 7-5. The Novazemlyans, who made it to the quarter-finals of the last World Cup of Hockey where they lost their series against Valanora 2-1, got off to a good start...

Period			P1	P2	P3	FS
Elejamie		2	2	1	5
Kitsunia-Deesse		0	0	0	0

by **Norrehavn** » Sun May 29, 2016 9:53 pm

I feel like listening to this.

MD3 RESULTS

Group A
Norrehavn 3–3 Unified Sunrise Islands
FrostFire FireIce 1–4 Mapletish
Leperconia 1–3 Neu Engollon

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Neu Engollon               3    3   0   0    11    2   +9     6
2 Norrehavn                  3    0   3   0     7    7    0     3
3 Unified Sunrise Islands    3    1   1   1     8    6   +2     3
4 Mapletish                  3    1   1   1     6    6    0     3
5 FrostFire FireIce          3    1   0   2     5   11   −6     2
6 Leperconia                 3    0   1   2     3    8   −5     1

Group B
Valanora 2–2 Vilita and Turori
Aquitayne 3–0 St. Saratoga
West-East Timor 2–4 Kaboomlandia

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Kaboomlandia            3    3   0   0    15    8   +7     6
2 Valanora                3    2   1   0    14    5   +9     5
3 Aquitayne               3    2   0   1    10    6   +4     4
4 Vilita and Turori       3    1   1   1     7    7    0     3
5 West-East Timor         3    0   0   3     5   13   −8     0
6 St. Saratoga            3    0   0   3     4   16  −12     0

Group C
Zenic 2–2 Nordeana
Bonapartium 2–3 Ilyseum
Mercedini 0–5 Novaya Zemlya

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Novaya Zemlya           3    3   0   0    14    5   +9     6
2 Nordeana                3    2   1   0     8    4   +4     5
3 Ilyseum                 3    2   0   1    11   11    0     4
4 Zenic                   3    1   1   1     8    6   +2     3
5 Bonapartium             3    0   0   3     2    6   −4     0
6 Mercedini               3    0   0   3     3   14  −11     0

Group D
Elejamie 3–0 Semarland
Lane of Dat Boi 2–5 Ethane
Kitsunia-Deesse 0–1 Ontorisa

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Elejamie                3    3   0   0    14    1  +13     6
2 Ontorisa                3    3   0   0     6    0   +6     6
3 Semarland               3    0   2   1     6    9   −3     2
4 Ethane                  3    1   0   2     6   10   −4     2
5 Kitsunia-Deesse         3    0   1   2     4   10   −6     1
  Lane of Dat Boi         3    0   1   2     4   10   −6     1

Group E
Royal Kingdom of Quebec 5–2 Allamunnic States
Cheongji 2–2 Narsora
Silver Rainbow Fumes 0–3 Nephara

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Royal Kingdom of Quebec    3    3   0   0    15    3  +12     6
2 Nephara                    3    3   0   0     8    1   +7     6
3 Allamunnic States          3    2   0   1     9    9    0     4
4 Narsora                    3    0   1   2     4    8   −4     1
5 Cheongji                   3    0   1   2     4    9   −5     1
6 Silver Rainbow Fumes       3    0   0   3     2   12  −10     0

Group F
Gregoryisgodistan 2–2 Ficiscia
Republic of Arkan 3–5 Anthor
Western Bjorniac 3–1 Torisakia

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Gregoryisgodistan       3    2   1   0     8    2   +6     5
2 Ficiscia                3    2   1   0     6    3   +3     5
3 Anthor                  3    1   0   2     7    8   −1     2
4 Republic of Arkan       3    1   0   2     8   10   −2     2
5 Torisakia               3    1   0   2     8   10   −2     2
6 Western Bjorniac        3    1   0   2     4    8   −4     2

Group G
Esparmuran 3–2 United States of Devonta
Damukuni 4–3 Anglatia
Hollmannlandia 1–2 Abanhfleft

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Esparmuran                  3    3   0   0    10    4   +6     6
2 Abanhfleft                  3    3   0   0     9    4   +5     6
3 United States of Devonta    3    1   1   1     4    4    0     3
4 Damukuni                    3    1   1   1     5    7   −2     3
5 Anglatia                    3    0   0   3     7   10   −3     0
6 Hollmannlandia              3    0   0   3     2    8   −6     0

Group H
Ko-oren 1–0 Nassau-Hessen
Kirisaki 3–4 Iskandervale
New Dukaine 2–6 Cosumar

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Cosumar                 3    3   0   0    14    6   +8     6
2 Ko-oren                 3    3   0   0     6    0   +6     6
3 Nassau-Hessen           3    1   1   1     8    6   +2     3
4 Iskandervale            3    1   0   2     5    8   −3     2
5 Kirisaki                3    0   1   2     8   12   −4     1
6 New Dukaine             3    0   0   3     5   14   −9     0

by **Iskandervale** » Mon May 30, 2016 12:26 am

ISKANDERVALE NATIONAL ICE HOCKEY TEAM
Style Modifier: 0
Home Kit: Olive green jerseys, black pants, white trim
Away Kit: Dark red jerseys and pants, green trim
Nickname: The
Captain: Greer Harrell

Iskandervale is a tropical island that thrives off its prolific tourism industry and has a population of three-hundred-and-something thousand. It has an amateur league of six teams. It is about as bad at ice hockey as you would expect.

STAFF
Manager - Leontyne Stainthorpe - Age 54
Assistant Manager - Gudrun Kaiser - Age 62

GOALKEEPERS
G - 1 - Kenaniah Boehler (Escutcheon, NPH) - Age 28
G - 7 - Patrick Kuzniatsova (Umbershore) - Age 34
G - 13 - Elshan Abbas (Iskandabad Wanderers) - Age 25

DEFENDERS
First Pair
D - 2 - Raisa Kilgallon (Falconhead, NPH, vc) - Age 29
D - 3 - Lyudmila Dejagah (Umbershore) - Age 26

Second Pair
D - 8 - Galina Aghayev (Umbershore) - Age 34
D - 9 - Molly Hughes (Tachmur) - Age 32

Third Pair
D - 14 - Arif Gara (HC Iskandabad) - Age 31
D - 15 - Olga Ismayi (Lokomotiv Vakhqul) - Age 33

Defensive Enforcer
D - 22 - Gareth Pallister (Umber Coast) - Age 24

FORWARDS
First Line
C - 4 - Greer Harrell (Southfell, NPH, c) - Age 31
RW - 11 - Anar Wieland (Umbershore) - Age 28
LW - 18 - Mehrdad Mahini (Umbershore) - Age 28

Second Line
C - 10 - Davin Huxley (Tachmur) - Age 25
RW - 17 - Eliza Rufus (HC Iskandabad) - Age 26
LW - 6 - Anja Close (HC Diamondqueen, NPH) - Age 23

Third Line
C - 16 - Rustam Trueman (Sabrefell Teutons, NPH) - Age 21
RW - 5 - Rashad Erat (Lokomotiv Vakhqul) - Age 34
LW - 12 - Kylie Messner (HC Iskandabad) - Age 27

Fourth Line
C - 19 - Margarethe Daei (Umbershore) - Age 29
RW - 20 - Simon Teymourian (Tachmur) - Age 31
LW - 21 - Vouria Chenoweth (Iskandabad Wanderers) - Age 26

Attacking Enforcer
C - 23 - Arran Ghafouri (Umber Coast) - Age 34

I Give My Opponent Permission To:
=================================
Choose My Goalscorers:        Y
Godmod Goalscoring Events:    N
Injure Players:               Y
Godmod Injury Events:         N
Penalise Players:             Y
Eject Players:                Y
Godmod Other Events:          N
=================================

by **Kaboomlandia** » Mon May 30, 2016 7:39 am

Phoenix 4, West-East Timor 2

"Welcome to Vloslav in Norrehavn! Today, the Kaboomlandia Phoenix will look to go 3-0 as they play unranked West-East Timor! Dylan Brady will start again, presumably so the team can rest him for the game against Valanora on Tuesday night."

"The game is well underway, not much excitement yet but all four Kaboomlandian lines have been into the game. Leland Anderson down the left wing, flips the puck into the far corner in the Timorese end. Jerome Smith takes the puck, back to the blueline for Tyson Nash. Nash shoots, off the post! The puck goes out to Blacken, he shoots and missed. Anderson throws the puck on net...SCORES! A bad-angle shot by Leland Anderson gives the Phoenix the lead!"

"We're about eight minutes in, Phoenix still leading 1-0. Tyler Martin fights for the puck with CENTRE #18, wins the battle and goes back to Derek Strachan. Strachan at the point. He fakes a shot to draw out RIGHT WING #80, shoots, scores! Derek Strachan scores for Kaboomlandia to make it 2-0!"

"Three minutes left in the first, Phoenix controlling the play. The puck is played back to Clooney, shoots on goal, save by GOALIE #1. Zack Murray steals the puck, throws it wide of the net. Kennedy Linden with it now. Back to Scott Herndon at the point. Herndon shoots...SCORES! A hard point shot was tipped in by Bryson Martin, and the Phoenix have a dominating 3-0 lead!"

"It's the end of the first period, and a dominant 20 minutes for Kaboomlandia leaves them with a 3-0 lead after one period."

"West-East Timor getting a rare offensive shift in this second period as the Phoenix have been totally in control here. DEFENSEMAN #44 has the puck at the point, throws it in behind the net. CENTRE #20 takes the puck and tries to go out in front, but gets a hack on the hands. He loses the puck, but Casey Lindsay's going off for slashing."

"Timorese power play on now. Martin, Coderre, Strachan, and Herndon on for the defense. CENTRE #9 has the puck behind the net. Throws it off the boards for DEFENSEMAN #2, shot on goal went wide. CENTRE #9 chases it, tries a wraparound, save by Brady. Another try...blown dead but the Timorese are celebrating, no idea where the puck is. The referees are going to review this one."

"And it's pretty clear on this camera angle that the puck just crosses the line, but it was definitely a close call. Now for the call on the ice."

"After further review, the puck did cross the goal line, we have a good goal."

"So a power-play goal for West-East Timor to cut into the lead, still 3-1 Phoenix."

"A boring second period comes to a close. The Phoenix seemed to be playing back on their heels somewhat with a 3-0 lead, and it cost them as a power-play goal broke the shutout. They're still outshooting the Timorese 26-15 thanks to the dominant first period, but they were outshot 11-6 in the second period."

"Welcome to the third period. It's a 3-1 game for the Phoenix as we head into the final frame."

"Kaboomlandia's second line on now. Kennedy Linden takes the puck back behind his own net and comes out the other side, passes to Murray at his own blueline. Zack Murray flips the puck high up the middle, Linden grabs it. Kennedy Linden down the right wing, holding off the defenseman...SCORES! SCORES! Kennedy Linden was falling and slipped the puck between GOALIE #1's legs!"

"4-1 for the Phoenix halfway through the third frame. CENTRE #9, the goal-scorer, has the puck. He crosses the blueline to the top of the Phoenix circle, peels back and drops for DEFENSEMAN #4. DEFENSEMAN #4 fakes a shot, drops back to CENTRE #9, shoots, scores! CENTRE #9 cuts into the lead with a great screen shot."

"This game is going to come to a close with a 4-2 margin for the Phoenix. With Valanora's tie with Vilita and Turori, the Phoenix now lead their group with a 3-0 record going into the game against the Ice Cat Things."

by **Neu Engollon** » Mon May 30, 2016 10:52 am

"Hello, Neu Engollon and to our loyal International viewers! This is the NETV Sports 7 Update and I'm Karl Demais. The Ibex continue their climb through the group stage at the 30th World Cup of Hockey. Leperconia was the latest to fall victim to the Goat onslaught. Tonight's game had some tense moments for Ibex fans, but in the end, the Leperconians were predictably worn down.

Coaches Liu and Siegler were very vocal tonight, unusually so, as they 'motivated' the players to not fall into complacency. While seemingly an easy opponent, Leperconia had some challenges that they threw at the Ibex, especially as they rallied in the second period. It was then that the second goal of the tournament was scored against the Ibex, but no one could attempt to fault Weissbaum this turn around.

The Leperconians drove hard on the Ibex goal after a face off in the 21st minute, tearing through the Neu Engollon defense. Kemmelz was sent crashing into the boards and Reimsel was left alone to fend off the attack as the puck ricocheted down the home zone. The Leperconian center took the final flicked pass before whipping a quick corner shot in.
Bassati had no clear view of the puck, yet still was within centimeters of snatching it out of the air. Those centimeters made all the difference, though, as the sirens sounded. Tie game at about the half way mark.

The Leperconians kept the pressure on, but the Ibex recovered their momentum, fighting off successive attacks and answering with their own fierce blitzes. The balance shifted, never to be regained by the unranked challengers the rest of the match.

Now, the Ibex will be facing the Unified Sunrise Islands in one of two tough remaining games in the group. I have to say that when Magda reported earlier that Mapletish would be some of the toughest opponents Neu Engollon would have to face in Group A, she was obviously overlooking USI and the hosts, Norrehavn, both of whom are higher ranked than Mapletish. These two played each other tonight, resulting in a fortuitous tie, at least to Neu Engollian eyes.

What we see working in the Ibex favor is their unblemished record so far at the top of the group, while Unified Sunrise Islands now have one each of a win, draw and a loss; and the hosts have an unprecedented rack of ties...no pun intended, at their current standing. With this trend continuing, barring any disastrous unforeseen plunge, the Ibex stand a very good chance at keeping to the top of the group and moving on comfortably to the Round of 16.

In group B, we see the other Astyrians in the Cup, the Aquitaynians, in a very tight group with a heavy weight of talent against them: Kaboomlandia, Vilita & Turori and Valanora. Shockingly, they already pulled out a win against the 21st ranked Vilita & Turori's Ice Cat Things, despite the Aquitaynian National team having been on hiatus for the last five cups and not seeing International play. They lost to Kaboomlandia, and now many in Astyria hold their breath to see if they can squeak one out by beating world champ Vanorians in order to advance on. They have few opportunities left, but they're giving it all they've got and then some to pull this out. Whether the other top group teams will win their remaining games is completely beyond their control, but one can still have hope. It's been a long time since two Astyrian teams made it past the group qualifications in the same hockey World Cup.

Coming up next...
Magda will be back after this sponsor break with an interview with Ibex left winger Remy Velper. Stay tuned and thanks for keeping it to NETV Sports 7..."

by **Ficiscia** » Mon May 30, 2016 11:15 am

FNSN.fc Ice Hockey: Battle We Expected, Battle We Got

Lorenskog, Norrehavn - "Licking their wounds" is probably the best description of what the Ficiscians did after this long night in Lorenskog, when the siren ended their heroic fight against the Number 4 of the Multiverse with a 2-2 draw. It was a dramatic game, where the Ficiscian side started out well but had their problems with the defensive playing of the Gregoryisgodistani team and couldn't find an opening to get past Enemy Crusher Porky "Fatso The Third" McFattel in goal. The match was nevertheless largely dominated by our boys, yet once again they failed to convert like it had happened many times before. We present you the high- and lowlights of the game and the special situation surrounding it. Ficiscian security guards had been covering our fan's stands after the incidents at the last WCoH when the famous and dreaded Enemy Crushers were a threat to any opponents, but the team did their best to avoid any unnecessary provocation.

Minute 4 - Aleixos hits the post

3:47 into the game, Ficiscia came to its first major chance when Gregoryisgodistan could set itself up in the Ficiscian zone. However, their defender Police Officer PIODO mistimed a D-to-D pass and the fast Manuel Aleixos intercepted it, skating down his right wing and attempting to wrist the puck high to the near-side corner. But the shot deflected off the goaltender's shoulder, hit the post and was cleared by the defense, whose quick breakout was only stopped because Oestlann could deflect the final pass into the bench.

Minute 9 - Ficiscia almost scores on the PP

After eight minutes, the Ice Slaves found themselves on the PK already for the second time when Prison Guard AQIIUS cross-checked Neri in the slot. The puck circulated quickly but thanks to his enourmous size, Enemy Crusher Porky "Fatso The Third" McFattel never had to move much. He made a small mistake though when he had moved out of position to block a puck that Praesumptus could snatch from under his glove, but got checked as he made the shot and couldn't control it as desired, hitting only the goalie's pad before Marcantor failed to bring the rebound past the GK as well.

Minute 16 - Gregoryisgodistan takes the lead

After 15:39, when Ficiscia was leading the shot statistic with 11-5 despite their passing-heavy game, a quick breakout pass made captain Loyal Friend of Lord Almighty Gregory Harry Rupertson and Pervert Chaser JDJJ8138 get a two-on-one against Fulvius. But even the best Ficiscian defender wasn't enough to prevent them from scoring. Pervert Chaser JDJJ8138 shot the puck onto the goal and shot hard enough to force a rebound from Porcius, who was chanceless to prevent Rupertson from scoring. The goal was rather surprising, but resulted from a clear mistake of the Ficiscian offense, who didn't turn back to their own goal fast enough.

Minute 19 - Vero misses a penalty shot

The big chance to return into the game came just before the break when the Ice Slaves did a bad linechange, allowing Vero to get a breakaway, chased only by Pervert Chaser LL00PP19F. Despite not being a pervert, Vero was caught by the defender and tripped over his stick, falling into the Gregoryisgodistani goaltender. This resulted in a minor fight between Vero and the enemy defense and a penalty shot. The Ficiscian captain tried to deke past Enemy Crusher Porky "Fatso The Third" McFattel but couldn't draw the heavyweight out of position enough to score, causing the Lynx to go into the break down by one.

Minute 24 - Norrstrum gets lost in a fight

The Gregoryisgodistani could set themselves up and look for openings, and apparently Prison Guard QQQQPPPAL found one as he brought the puck to the net. In the scramble for the puck, a forward slashed Porcius and caused a mass fight in front of the goal, after which Thorvall Norrstrum laid on the ground bleeding. As the replay showed, he was hit in the face by Slave Beater NDNSHYQ19 and broke his nose. It is expected that Norrstrum takes a break in the next game and comes back in the final group match or for the KO series, possibly playing with a cage.

Minute 31 - Ficiscia equalizes

Like the team's best chance earlier, it came on a powerplay after a rather nasty foul. One of the pervert chasers seemed to have his stick confused with a private-cutting knife and swung it towards the lower body of Thorvaldssenn after the Norja winger deked past him. On the PP, the team managed to block the view of the goaltender and engage the defense in a scrum that allowed Lucius Minor to slap the puck home to the top-left corner after 30 minutes and 18 seconds.

Minute 33 - Crossbar shot by Hejman

Larins gained the puck in the neutral zone and carried into the zone on a two-on-two with Baldur Hejman, handed it over to the sniper and watched as Hejman's wrister to the far side of the goal flew past the goalie, but hit the crossbar. Larins could re-gain possession of the puck but lost it again as he was checked into the boards fair but hard, turning the puck over again.

Minute 38 - Gregoryisgodistani chance at the lead

A quick release of Weatherman 92UDH9111 almost caught Decimius Porcius by surprise, and he could only block the puck with his shoulder. Thankfully, Fulvius thought quickly and moved into the way of the approaching Gregoryisgodistani captain, barring him from scoring his second rebound goal of the night before Porcius could cover the puck.

Minute 45 - Goal for Ficiscia disallowed

Ficiscia attempted to score by increasing the pressure on the Ice Slaves's goal, causing multiple minor battles in the slot. One of those cost them the lead as an Aleixos one timer found the way past Enemy Crusher Porky "Fatso the Third" McFattel, but the goal was disallowed because Vaccarius and Police Officer PIODO had dislodged the net a little bit in their battle. The review confirmed the referee's decision and kept the game tied.

Minute 49 - Ficiscia takes the lead

For the first time in the game, Ficiscia could score a go-ahead goal. The puck found its way into the goal after a counter attack by Brica and Marcantor, a duo known for this kind of goal. Kyrillos Brica awaited the long pass by Minor at the opponent's blue line and skated down into the zone, faking a shot to the short side. Instead he shot a very sharp cross-crease pass to the far side post, where Marcantor only had to deflect the puck over the line and could celebrate his second goal of the tournament and eighth goal in the NT dress.

Minute 54 - Oestlann almost gives the lead up

Sigurr Oestlann caused another major shock five minutes after the leading goal when he turned the puck over as the last man in the neutral zone, allowing Slave Beater NDNSHYQ19 to go into a counter behind the Ficiscian's backs. But luckily for us, his linemates are slower Enemy Chaser, forcing him to go one-on-one with Oestlann who could push him off to the wing. Porcius could handle the shot from the wing easily, avoiding the equalizer.

Minute 59 - Gregoryisgodistan equalizes the game

With 74 seconds left on the clock, the Ficiscians had to face a penalty due to a missed poke check that resulted in a trip by Larins. The Carinha SSP center lacking and the Gregoryisgodistani goaltender leaving the net, Ficiscia had to defend its lead with four players against six - something that could not go well. Seconds before the end, a rebound ended up on the stick of Weatherman 92UDH9111 who pushed the puck over the line, crushing the hopes of Ficiscia to take the sole lead in the group.

Tomorrow, the Ficiscians face Torisakia in the most important game of the group stage against second-seeded team. Torisakia is currently three points behind the Lynx, and without a victory over the Ficiscian team, they would give up any chance at qualifying on their own results. The Ficiscians however can already secre qualification with a win themselves.

by **Novaya Zemlya** » Mon May 30, 2016 12:24 pm

"IT IS NOT HAPPENING"
Bobr addresses media and puts an end to Kalagin rumors

HERNING The Novozemlyans have put themselves in a good position in Group C after the 5-0 win over Mercedini on matchday 3. However, they have yet to face the two strongest opponents in the group, Nordeana and Zenic. A win in tonight's game against Nordeana could go a long way towards locking up a playoff spot.

Our photographer managed to get
a shot of Bobr's tactics board.
Crystal clear, eh?

It was a focused group of players that took the ice for a morning skate in Herning, Norrehavn today. Coach Bogdan Bobr had his tactics drawing board out and instructed players on whatever weaknesses or strengths he had noticed while video scouting the Nordeanians.

"I'm not going to tell you fools anything," Bobr grunted when asked about his tactics during the subsequent media availability. "But I may have an ace or two up my sleeve."

"We have played well for the most part so far. But the group is still wide open, there's no margin for error," captain Krasimir Yerokhin told the media. "All we've really achieved so far is winning the games we were supposed to win."

When asked, Yerokhin admitted that top seed Zenic's initial stumbles (losing 2-3 to Ilyseum in the first game, 2-2 tie against Nordeana) had given the Novozemlyans some breathing room, but added that the team has to focus on their own performance only.

"This isn't just about Zenic. It's basically four teams battling for two spots. The only thing we can do is focus on ourselves and keep winning," the captain said.

There had been some question marks surrounding team defense after the wild 7-5 win vs Ilyseum on matchday 2. The Novozemlyans were turning the puck over at an alarming rate, but managed to simply score their way out of trouble. Yerokhin commented that you can expect losing a lot more hockey games than you win if you give up 5 goals against.

"But I felt we did a good job tightening up defensively in this game," the captain added. "We didn't really allow the Mercedinians to get set up in our zone. They had a few chances on the rush, we had heard they have some really fast guys and it turned out to be true, but overall I thought we had it under control."

Iosif Bezukladnikov added another great game to his resume and recorded his 14th shutout in 45 WCoH starts, but coach Bobr seemed to think the living legend of Novozemlyan goaltending still has room to improve.

"I guess you shouldn't complain when your goalie gives you two shutouts in three games, but he had some less impressive moments in the Ilyseum game," Bobr said with a smirk. "That third goal was a real softie. My grandpa could have made that save. And he has been dead for 20 years. Iosif is aware of it, because I told him."

Bobr also took the opportunity to put an end to the rumours of wonderkid Valeri Kalagin joining the team in Norrehavn once the World Junior Hockey Championships are wrapped up over in Ethane. The 18 year old future star is enjoying an international breakthrough, having led the Novozemlyan U20 team to the WJHC semi-finals, and a vocal segment of fans back home wanted Bobr to fly him in for the WCoH.

"It is simply not happening. While he is an outstanding player, he would not be able to join us until we get to the elimination rounds, should we get there," Bobr said. "That's a bad situation to throw a young player into. Besides, why don't we let him play one game at the professional level before we anoint him the saviour of Novozemlyan hockey?"

by **Valanora** » Mon May 30, 2016 1:58 pm

Valanora Times
Vanorian Hockey Dominance

For all the faults of inconsistency in the national team program, no one can deny that Vanorian ice hockey is the best in the world, with the Elven Hockey League routinely racking up the best ratings and winning the Hockey Champions' League. In fact, it was not until this previous HCL that any club outside of Valanora managed to lift the trophy since its reinvention half a decade ago, with Raynor City Raptors having won multiple championships while a Vanorian club was in the Final this edition even though they failed to win the competition. This is not a new thing, for in the first iteration of the HCL, the EHL was the top league with Therathor being the best club winning three of the first four editions of the competition, this continuation in this third iteration of the competition is merely the continuing of a tradition of ice hockey dominance from we Vanorians.

What makes Vanorians so adept at the sport though, given the climate of Valanora and the sport not being the first choice for many Vanorian athletes, with association football being the first. Most of Valanora is made up of temperate glasslands and gentle hills, not exactly your typical locale for the development of the sport, though the Spine of Arrosia mountain chain does provide a small area of a colder climate that first allowed the game to pop up in the likes of Stormguard and Longview. Perhaps it is our unique elven physical attributes with our tall and lithe bodies that make us quite agile and quick, though that would not make sense give the tough nature of the game and the need for at least one line of forwards to be checkers to make sure the other team pays for cheap hits, perceived or real.

I personally think that it is because of the unique perspective that we elves have when it comes to life and the pursuits that one can take in order to have a sense of purpose and fulfillment. With such longevity, we are allowed to pursue our desires and goals for years and perfect ourselves and our technique. The obvious example of this attribute is of course the footballer Laborious Hawk whose exploits are well known across the world regardless of what sport or even profession you might engage in. However Hawk is the most perfect of this pursuit of perfection, of the striving towards being the absolute best version of yourself that you can be, while it is a trait that all Vanorians share, even those who are not Elven. For I have seen the same trait in the humans, dwarves, and even the rare drow who ventures beyond their undercities, it is something about our culture though no doubt evolved from the elven species in the first place.

It is a trait that will need to be on display as the the Calcuttas unfortunately did fall victim to the upset of the regional rivals, something that everyone was quite wary of when the group draw was announced. Rivalries are so tricky and it should have come as no surprise and yet the squad did indeed seemed surprised by how fierce Vilita & Turori were playing against them, having to come back from a goal down twice in the third period to rescue the tie and the single point. With Kaboomblandia flying high through the group, that makes the match between the two in the final match of the group quite important as it will most likely decide the group winning and may even need to be a victory for the Calcuttas if they are to advance. The pursuit of perfection has created a legacy of Vanorian dominance in this sport and if that legacy is to continue, the pursuit needs to be of the highest intensity in these last two matches for the twenty-two who have donned the crossed scimitars this tournament.

by **Aquitayne** » Mon May 30, 2016 4:44 pm

Aquitayne Clenches Two Wins to Stay in the Race

An Aquitaynian fan paints his face in support of the team.

NORREHAVEN - The Aquitaynian Men's National Hockey Team secured their second consecutive win against Saratoga today.

The Aquitaynian Men's National Hockey Team, which has been absent for the past five World Cups of Hockey due to domestic contractual problems that have prevented international play, have come back to the prestigious tournament in true Aquitaynian fashion. The team faced Kaboomlandia (16) in the first game of the series, narrowly missing the opportunity for a come-back win. Narrowing down the goal differential from 4 to 1 with 30 seconds to spare in the last period, it just wasn't meant to be, and Kaboomlandia took it home 5-4.

The second match, against Vilita and Turori (21) was a tense and difficult match, but the formerly 25th ranked Aquitaynian men's side came through and pulled out a 1-3 victory against the 21st ranked team. Captain Mark Hamill carried the squad with two goals in the first period, carried by an empty-netter scored by Daniel Ithrig, a member of the last Aquitaynian Men's National Hockey Team to attend WCoHXXV. The match against Vilita and Turori was one that many expected to follow suit in Kaboomlandia's performance, but in Aquitaynian style, the men's team picked up the W and told Group B that they were a solid contender.

Today, Aquitayne sealed their second consecutive victory against Saratoga in a 3-0 blowout. With Aquitayne's victory against Vilita and Turori the day prior, many expected Aquitayne to secure the win against Saratoga, who is ranked 80th in the WCoH world standings. Each goal was scored in an individual period, and all by different players: Oberst Volcha in the first period, Brian Oveki in the second, and Sigfrid Harraldsson in the third.

In a press conference discussing Aquitayne's recent success, Head Coach Neil Hynsen stated that "we are here to compete. Yes, we've been out of the running for longer than we'd like - but in all of our showings at the World Cup of Hockey we have made it to the Round of Sixteen. We intend to continue this tradition."

Indeed, Aquitayne has a steep battle ahead of them: they still have to play the third best team in the world, Valanora, which could put Aquitayne under the threshold for Round of 16 qualifiers. Aquitayne plays Valanora next and needs to secure a win to better place themselves in standing for the Round of 16. Their last opponent will be the unranked West-East Timor, whom Aquitayne is expected to beat.

Stay tuned with ANN for continuing coverage of the thirtieth World Cup of Hockey.

Duder Dudreich Ormius, Eurul
5 seconds ago
Let's go men! Get that trophy!
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self_aware_aq Cape Town, Cape Town
59 seconds ago
What luck in the group drawings...they'll be lucky if they make it out alive, let alone to the Ro16.
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by **-Anthor-** » Mon May 30, 2016 6:54 pm

One Dream Down, Bigger Horizon Ahead
The three frontmen of the Duck's first line combine for some magical gameplay - and get the Duck's first win. Ever.

^{SHARE THIS:}

Gnaeus Tanicius Vopiscus (@Gnaeus Tanicius Vopiscus)(TH)
^{Gavrach 24, 599AE 2:07 PM | Vaumort, Anthor}

Center Graham Robertson celebrates as he scores the game winning goalTH photo

Vaumort, Anthor(Herald) — Once again, we're welcoming you back to international hockey, following our coverage of the Anthor Ducks as they attempt to win it out in what's been labeled as the "Group of Death", and boy, the Ducks pulled themselves back from the brink last night after an absolutely amazing win over the Arkan national team, 3-2, with the game winning goal coming with just a minute to play from none other then the captain, Graham Robertson, himself.

Now, firstly, a writer such as myself with intimate sports knowledge could spend the majority of this article talking about how this should have been an easy-breeze win, we're ranked 65th and the Arkans are completely unranked, and not a pretty close, on the edge of your seat 3-2 win, but you know what, it is Lucius Horn's first international win with the Ducks and by darnit, the team's first and they've bloody well earned it. Last year's performance was absolutely dismal, they lost every game but one drawing on it in what was essentially shooting practice, but now, they can atleast say they won one, though I and millions more are hoping it's just first of many.

The game began in a pretty high pace fashion, the Ducks themselves are slightly more offensive oriented then most teams but the Arkans clearly showed up for a win and began it by playing some pretty possession, passing and shots; they had 85% of the puck before the final ten minutes of the first period, they took 8 shots and honestly, we're making an embarrassment slightly out of the Ducks defense. I'm assuming it was a Lucius Horn zinger of a get-it-together rant that put the Ducks back on track, and even though they conceded a goal just before the 2nd Period, Arkan's own Nicholas Silver just barely slipping one under Langely's right leg, Poindexter fires back with a slapshot pretty decent out that went right over Ologovet's right hand and into the top part of the Kans's net to tie things up and then Kans captain Silver fires back for his second, and their final, goal of the night and after that, the defenses turned on, which is kinda funny seeing how the goals were already scored for the most part. Deschamps was working harder to shut down the Arkan's frontmen, some very hard hits from the defender and one of those hard hits completely blindsided Adren Markov and allowed Pearson to scoop up the puck, shoot it off to Robertson, Robertson doing some wonderful duking around the Arkan defenders and whips to Hunter who puts it right into the net for an equalizer. The fun of the second period ended here, but the intensity continued; at one point, Deschamps is booked for 7 minutes for hooking and so is the Arkan's Ferro and a 4-on-4 is on the ice, something we have yet to see in a Duck's match and I was hoping for them to score it in here, but it wasn't possible and it wasn't until with just a minute under, they made you wait to get your money's worth I swear, Poindexter takes a pass off of the Kans's, it was intended for their captain but he got to it first, and it was poorly shot to begin with, which probably had something to do with Deschamps jabbing at it. He manages to take it down the ice, dumps it for Hunter to pick up who fires it back at Robertson whose right in front of the net and he just lays it right in there, and gosh, the place was absolutely electric.

Yeah sure, there is definitely some improvement to be done, but hey, the Ducks get their first win, and they're currently with 2 points and tied for 3rd in their group. They would need to win both of their games, the next of which is against Western Bjorniac, who is currently unranked and winless, and then against Fisicia, who is ranked 22nd in the world and would be a very tough nut to crack, they're currently tied with the Greg's for first place, so the Ducks got alot of hard work to do but Coach Horn has already had the skaters back at it at the practice facilities, and says the Ducks are working "an incredible amount of overtime, they want to win, they can feel it in them, heck I can feel it in here, they're intense and they're going to keep it that way."

Gnaeus Tanicus Vopiscus contributed to this article.

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^{FAVORITE THIS DISCUSSION}

FrankJr · 8 minutes ago
Woooooo WE GOT THIS DUCKS!!!! One win down, we just need two more, you can do this, take those two teams to task show them why we're the best
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DucksReignEternal · 3 hours ago
Deschamps is finally starting to play like the star he is, Rounds is on the bench and switching out, we got depth, we got the strikes,WE!GOT!THIS! #DucksWCOH30.
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Martin · 4 hours ago
Langely did good,two goals given up isn't the best sure, but you know for his international debut, I'd say not too shabby. And obviously the tip of the spear is being just that, freaking DEADLY AND ON POINT
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by **Elejamie** » Mon May 30, 2016 6:58 pm

"... For the news about day three of the World Cup of Hockey, we now go over to John Daverson. John?"

That's right, Steve! Good morning, Elejamie! The Icy Elephants have made it three out of three as they managed to defeat Semarland 3-0. With Antonio Cervantes and Peter Berg switching roles for this game, fans were expecting another victory for the world champions and, despite a dull third period, they got their wish. Here are the highlights:

The first period saw Elejamie go on the attack early, with Cerin Meloten very nearly scoring an early goal; a snap shot that just managed to hit the crossbar. Shortly afterwards, Meloten tried again with another wrist shot, only for it to be saved. Fortunately, Semarland were having difficulty scoring as well, as Berg saved every single shot on goal, like this snap shot that he just managed to get a glove to. Eight minutes from the end, Semarland were down one man when the team had to serve a bench minor due to having too many players on the ice; on the powerplay, Anatoly Kasputin netted the first goal of the game with a wrist shot and assistance from Cerin Meloten and Adam Keane. Apart from an Elejamian penalty with four minutes to go, where George Lincoln had to sit out for interference, not much happened in this period and Elejamie were leading 1-0 by the end.

The second period saw a bit more action as, three and a half minutes in, Lucas Madgwick's snap shot was deflected by the Semar goalie, only for Bill Harrison to net the second goal of the night on the rebound, with Greg Warren also receiving credit for the assist. Shortly afterwards, Semarland was down a player when a left-winger received a two minute minor for interference. Seven minutes from time, Aaron Andrews received a two minute minor for slashing; two and a half minute later, by which time he served his penalty and then returned to the bench, Pael Atenar scored Elejamie's third goal, with James Han and Carlos Sierra assisting. After one last penalty, thirty seconds from the end when a Semar defenceman received a two minute minor for tripping Paul Morton, the end of the period ended with the score being 3-0 in Elejamie's favour.

The third period, however, didn't really see much action. Elejamie very nearly got a fourth goal early on when the goal was accidentally moved. Semarland very nearly got one in the bag when this slap shot finally made its way past Berg, only for it to be disallowed for being offside. Both sides were down a player halfway through the period when Francisco Solano and the Semar centre he was fighting had to sit out for five minutes. Elejamie would lose another player shortly afterwards when Lupe received a two minute minor for high-sticking although, fortunately, the Icy Elephants still managed to keep their calm. Unfortunately, they were also unable to score, even when the Semar goalie was taken off the ice, and, at the end of the match, Elejamie were the 3-0 winners and still keeping calm at the top.

In a post-match interview, head coach Michael Madgwick said "Another good performance from the boys. Anatoly scored an amazing goal, as did Bill and Pael. Even though it didn't really last long, Franny had a good fight. Peter was pretty much a goal-stopping machine out there. Overall, a good night."

"How do you think you'll get on against the Land of Dat Boi?"

"Quite possibly an easy victory. I'm not sure how it'll be any different, even if I do tell them to ease up and concentrate on the big game against Ontorisa in a couple of days. But, whatever the sitch is, I think we've got this."

Meanwhile, in the other Group D games of the day, Ethane managed to finally get things working for them as they destroyed the Land of Dat Boi 5-2; whereas Ontorisa could only manage a 1-0 win against Kitsunia-Deesse. Tomorrow, the Falcons will take on Semarland, Ethane will see if they can carry on their run of fortune as they play Kitsunia-Deesse and Elejamie will play the Land of Dat Boi, who are currently in joint last with the Kitsunians. Will they secure a spot in the Round of 16? Or will the Land of Dat Boi pull off a shock win? Find out tomorrow on Puck Drop!

Over in Group B, there was a massive shock as Valanora drew 2-2 with Vilita and Turori. The Calcuttas, who were group leaders before the match, are now in second place with Kaboomlandia as the new group leaders...

Period			P1	P2	P3	FS
Elejamie		1	2	0	3
Semarland		0	0	0	0

by **Nordeana** » Mon May 30, 2016 8:07 pm

(OOC: I created this as a reference for my future RPs which will likely include on of the following entities.)

HANSEATIC MEDIA INCORPORATED
A Guide to Nordeanian Publications

The Navenhagen Journal is Hanseatic Media's premier publication and one of the most well-respected newspapers in Nordeana. Printed on a daily basis, the Journal is Nordeana's most widely circulated daily newspaper. Its presence is immense both online and in paper format. Headquartered in the capital city of Navenhagen, journalist who work for TNJ are considered to be the best in Nordeana. The Navenhagen Journal is most well-known for its reporting on domestic affairs, politics, and sports. Additionally, its opinion pages are among the most influential in the country. Its editorial board is selected directly by the Board of Directors of Hanseatic Media, and is selected in order to demonstrate a centrist viewpoint.

The Academic is a news magazine that caters to a highly educated audience and covers world affairs, domestic policy, economics, business, and culture. It is printed on a weekly basis and aims to publish news stories with an analysis intended to give the reader a broader understanding of the subjects that are being covered. Writers for The Academic consist of highly intelligent experts in the field of social sciences. The Academic often functions as a non-governmental agency advocating for freedom of the press and access to education; at times, The Academic can also be interpreted as a consulting firm of sorts through the partnerships it has with large Nordeanian corporations.

Enterprise is Nordeana's top publication for the coverage of business affairs. This periodical is printed on a monthly basis and includes insight on the Nordeanian economy, profiles on prominent figures in Nordeanian business, and research intended to assist the typical Nordeanian businessperson. Enterprise is most well-known for its rankings such as the "E-25" rankings of 25 business people who are aged 25 or younger, the "Enterprise Index", the list of the 100 largest companies in Nordeana, and the "Enterprisers List", the ranking of the richest people in Nordeana.

NORDSPORT is the primary Nordeanian source for sporting affairs. NORDSPORT is a television and internet-based outlet that closely reports on the day-to-day occurances in Nordeanian football, hockey, gridiron, lacrosse, athletics, and other sports in Nordeana. NORDSPORT also functions as an analytics and data-gathering organization on behalf of the major professional sport leagues throughout Nordeana. NORDSPORT's most popular section features high-level insight based around numerical analysis which is utilized in the website's fantasy sports service.

by **Torisakia** » Mon May 30, 2016 9:43 pm

May 30th, 2016
12:11 AM TST

TORISAKIA TO DO AWAY WITH NATIONAL HOCKEY PROGRAM; WCOH 30 MATCHDAY 5 TO BE LAST APPEARANCE

TOKAI, TORISAKIA - The Torisakia Department of Sports & Recreation announced today that it will end its sponsorship of the national ice hockey program, and that World Cup of Hockey 30, the current tournament, will be their last appearance. In the past year, the program has had several internal problems. Funding had been cut due to problems in other areas of the government and from boosters, leading to a shortage in player salaries. This caused national players to go on strike, demanding they be paid their contractual salaries or no play. Seeing no signs of an increase in funds anytime soon, the program turned to various ice hockey programs around churches in Torisakia for players, and scrapped together a very mediocre playerbase. As of the current matchday, it does not look like Torisakia will qualify for the playoffs this time around either. This combines with the fact that the national team has failed to make a playoff appearance in the last three editions of the tournament, and has delivered disappointing performances in every playoff appearance they have made since they started competing in World Cup of Hockey 15, never making it past the quarterfinals.

It's hard to say who to lay the blame on. On one hand, it would be given to the DSR due to them cutting a large amount of funds for the program, resulting in the professional players quitting. On the other, coach Mark Bilbo is to blame, given the latest team's terrible performance which indicates Bilbo's inability to coach and that the success the program did have was only because they had decent players. It is unclear which way this leans. And at the moment, it really doesn't matter. Since there won't be anything to show for it anymore. A team that was once a dominant powerhouse internationally has been made to be nothing but a pee-wee team. So the blames lies within the team itself, which then goes back to DSR and Bilbo. It just continues in a cycle. The dismissal of the program may also be contributed to the decreasing popularity of ice hockey in Torisakia. The sport was at it's peak during World Cup of Hockey 21 when Tommy's Blog, run by the late Murvin Alexander, posted daily stories and tales of his interactions and antics during the tournament with the team and his immediate friends which involved the late Cassidy McKenzie's breasts. Since then and the execution of Alexander and the death of McKenzie, ice hockey has dropped heavily in popularity within the country. Most sports channels and websites such as TSPN, TBC, and TCBS don't even broadcast or talk about many professional games anymore. It's even rare to find them on pay-per-view.

In the end, the ice hockey program was doomed to fail the second Murvin Alexander was tried and executed. Without the entertainment and publicity that Alexander carried, no one was interested in it. If Murvin had paid his taxes, he would still be alive today and Tommy's Blog would still be active and thriving like it was so many years ago. His friend Harrybo Williams was supposed to take over the site afterwards, but was arrested and given a life sentence for many account of murder. So, in gist, the hockey program was ruined by legal troubles, which is what can go in the newspapers tomorrow. In conclusion, the program just wasn't meant to be. It's a shame it has to happen, but now DSR will be able to focus on the national teams for other sports like association football, American football, and League of Legends. I wonder if Murvin would've covered the Torisakia LCS. Dontknowaboutthat.

by **The Royal Kingdom of Quebec** » Mon May 30, 2016 10:06 pm

End of an era : Celtics Captain Logan Guthrie retires from Celtics

Jeremiah Kim

Logan Guthrie, pictured during WCoH 28

ST. JOHN'S, NL - It's hard to say good bye to legends. Some, more than others.

The St. John's Celtics issued a press release last Thursday, saying that the a Saturday morning press conference had been scheduled where the centreman will provide a "final update on his hockey career."

Celtics general manager Zinetula Fakhrutdinov, head coach Tristan O'Brien and "special guests", with the likes of Celtics past and present legends and his family members, were also in attendance.

Logan Guthrie, 38, was drafted 1st overall by the Celtics in 2004. In 19 years with the Celtics, he has scored 625 goals and 649 assists in 1,353 career regular season and playoff games. His 1,179 career games, 625 goals and 1,353 career points, as well as 324 fights, 2,568 penalty minutes and 85 playoff games rank number one in the franchise.

The Celtics captain for last 12 years, he was hoping to originally serve as the team's top 6 left winger for at least this season, serving as a leader and mentor to this young team.

Guthrie was on final year of the two-year, £7 million contract he signed at the end of 2021-2022 season. Plagued by many injuries in his last years playing, however, Guthrie has not played since April 20, 2024, when he scored an assist in 3-5 loss to Gaspe Oilers in season finale. Since then he has attempted several comebacks but was unable to get himself into condition aside from few practices earlier in the season.

Back in last season-end, when the Celtics had their dressing room cleaned out, Guthrie maintained that his main goal was to become injury and hopefully pain-free before coming back to ice. Since then, other than few scrimmages and practices, he hadn't skated at all for last few months after being placed on IR the last October.

"I hope to be back on ice healthy," Guthrie said back then. "Conditions have improved since last time and I think over time it'll get better and better to the point where I'll be back on ice with no problem. I will be really looking forward to perform in my expected condition on ice and have fun most importantly."

Guthrie was a link to the longstanding success the Celtics have experienced in its history. Drafted as 1st overall, he delivered on his very first season with 25 goals and 61 point performances to place 2nd in team scoring and won the Michel Hyka Trophy as the QHL rookie of the Year. Since then he had played throughout his 20-year career as the league's prototypical power forward, who can not only deliver the checks and goals, but also contribute in almost any situation possible including one talent he's got to be infamous in international hockey circle with - delivering haymakers.

Often the blue collar forward of his line, crashing the crease and the smashing corners, he was an ethereal fixture on the Celtics forward corps when they were the contenders in Eastern Conference for a good part of 2010s. He had his own shares of playoff success not too late his career, when St.John's Celtics made it to 2 consecutive Prenneau Cup Finals in 2012 and 2013, winning the 2012 Prenneau Cup to land the franchise its first cup in history. After struggling for latter part of the century with transitioning squad and mismanagement, the team returned to the Cup Finals once more in 2022, with Guthrie scoring 12 goals and 10 assists in 24 games to win Pavel Han Trophy as Playoff MVP as the Celtics won in 7 games.

In national team level, he has played for the last 10 World Cups of Hockey, from the very debut in Kelssek back in its 20th edition to the final round that ended in 4th place finishing for the Ice Knights. During his time with the Ice Knights, he has played for 102 games, scoring 21 goals, 26 assists, 47 points and 24 fights as an Ice Knight. He has also registered over 252 penalty minutes, making him the most penalised man in WCoH history (barring Gregoryisgodistani players because they are just Gregoryisgodistanis). His time with the team was capped by captaining the Ice Knights for World Cups of Hockey 22 and 23, former which turned out very well and latter catastrophic.

Over the years, he's mostly played with Maxwell Belmont-Deschamps and Kendall Torres on the top-ladden line, and occasionally with the other forwards to the likes of Vladimir Tsoi, Mathieu Berglund and Cedric Philips. In national team he's played with many forwards and was able to deal with various situations and differently-styled linemates.

Guthrie, a native of Quebec City, will continue to live in North Point neighbourhood of St.John's, where he and his wife Joo Hyi Kim are raising a family of 4 children. He has experienced business success with his gym and hockey camps and will be looking to contribute in the fields of kinesiology and athletic training for hockey athletes.

by **Norrehavn** » Mon May 30, 2016 10:12 pm

MD4 RESULTS

Group A
Neu Engollon 8–2 Unified Sunrise Islands
Mapletish 1–1 Leperconia
Norrehavn 3–2 FrostFire FireIce

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Neu Engollon               4    4   0   0    19    4  +15     8
2 Norrehavn                  4    1   3   0    10    9   +1     5
3 Mapletish                  4    1   2   1     7    7    0     4
4 Unified Sunrise Islands    4    1   1   2    10   14   −4     3
5 Leperconia                 4    0   2   2     4    9   −5     2
6 FrostFire FireIce          4    1   0   3     7   14   −7     2

Group B
Kaboomlandia 2–1 Vilita and Turori
St. Saratoga 0–0 West-East Timor
Valanora 3–1 Aquitayne

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Kaboomlandia            4    4   0   0    17    9   +8     8
2 Valanora                4    3   1   0    17    6  +11     7
3 Aquitayne               4    2   0   2    11    9   +2     4
4 Vilita and Turori       4    1   1   2     8    9   −1     3
5 West-East Timor         4    0   1   3     5   13   −8     1
6 St. Saratoga            4    0   1   3     4   16  −12     1

Group C
Novaya Zemlya 4–3 Nordeana
Ilyseum 4–1 Mercedini
Zenic 1–0 Bonapartium

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Novaya Zemlya           4    4   0   0    18    8  +10     8
2 Ilyseum                 4    3   0   1    15   12   +3     6
3 Nordeana                4    2   1   1    11    8   +3     5
  Zenic                   4    2   1   1     9    6   +3     5
5 Bonapartium             4    0   0   4     2    7   −5     0
6 Mercedini               4    0   0   4     4   18  −14     0

Group D
Ontorisa 2–0 Semarland
Ethane 3–3 Kitsunia-Deesse
Elejamie 6–0 Lane of Dat Boi

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Elejamie                4    4   0   0    20    1  +19     8
2 Ontorisa                4    4   0   0     8    0   +8     8
3 Ethane                  4    1   1   2     9   13   −4     3
4 Semarland               4    0   2   2     6   11   −5     2
5 Kitsunia-Deesse         4    0   2   2     7   13   −6     2
6 Lane of Dat Boi         4    0   1   3     4   16  −12     1

Group E
Nephara 4–4 Allamunnic States
Narsora 2–1 Silver Rainbow Fumes
Royal Kingdom of Quebec 5–1 Cheongji

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Royal Kingdom of Quebec    4    4   0   0    20    4  +16     8
2 Nephara                    4    3   1   0    12    5   +7     7
3 Allamunnic States          4    2   1   1    13   13    0     5
4 Narsora                    4    1   1   2     6    9   −3     3
5 Cheongji                   4    0   1   3     5   14   −9     1
6 Silver Rainbow Fumes       4    0   0   4     3   14  −11     0

Group F
Torisakia 4–2 Ficiscia
Anthor 3–3 Western Bjorniac
Gregoryisgodistan 3–0 Republic of Arkan

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Gregoryisgodistan       4    3   1   0    11    2   +9     7
2 Ficiscia                4    2   1   1     8    7   +1     5
3 Torisakia               4    2   0   2    12   12    0     4
4 Anthor                  4    1   1   2    10   11   −1     3
5 Western Bjorniac        4    1   1   2     7   11   −4     3
6 Republic of Arkan       4    1   0   3     8   13   −5     2

Group G
Abanhfleft 3–3 United States of Devonta
Anglatia 2–2 Hollmannlandia
Esparmuran 5–0 Damukuni

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Esparmuran                  4    4   0   0    15    4  +11     8
2 Abanhfleft                  4    3   1   0    12    7   +5     7
3 United States of Devonta    4    1   2   1     7    7    0     4
4 Damukuni                    4    1   1   2     5   12   −7     3
5 Anglatia                    4    0   1   3     9   12   −3     1
6 Hollmannlandia              4    0   1   3     4   10   −6     1

Group H
Cosumar 2–2 Nassau-Hessen
Iskandervale 1–0 New Dukaine
Ko-oren 1–0 Kirisaki

Pld    W   D   L    GF   GA   GD   Pts 
1 Ko-oren                 4    4   0   0     7    0   +7     8
2 Cosumar                 4    3   1   0    16    8   +8     7
3 Nassau-Hessen           4    1   2   1    10    8   +2     4
4 Iskandervale            4    2   0   2     8    8    0     4
5 Kirisaki                4    0   1   3     8   13   −5     1
6 New Dukaine             4    0   0   4     5   17  −12     0

by **Esparmuran** » Mon May 30, 2016 10:42 pm

Espars continue winning ways without Captain

5.50 k.

National Herald/nationale Herolden - A Commonwealth of Crowns Herald Affiliate

Olaf Skovgaard

Praha, Norrehavn

Esparmuran grabbed another win in the 30th World Cup of Hockey today, against Devonta. Interestingly, Devonta has been in Esparmuran's group in the 28th and 29th WCoHs as well. Esparmuran is now 3-0-0 against them.

The Espars have been doing well without captain Orrell Beake, who was injured in the first game against Anglatia. Considering how dominant Beake has been in the past tournaments, it's a wonder anybody else on the team could score. With him out for the rest of the tournament, the rest of the squad will have to work extra hard to finally win a WCoH Championship.

The first period started off with a Devontan power-play, after Espar Asger Kaspersen collided with Devontan goaltender Daniel Kinked. This is Kaspersen's second WCoH game, after starting off with a win over Hollmannlandia in the last game. The Devontans could not grab a goal on this power-play, despite taking 5 shots on it.

The Espars got on the board first with a wrist-shot from Kay Falk. Capitalizing off a turnover from a Devontan defender, Falk made it top-shelf to give the Espars a 1-0 lead 14:43 into the first period.

Eleven minutes later, they'd make it 2-0 from a Darian Sidney slap-shot. This one went through a bunch of defenders before inevitably making it to the back of the net.

In the second period, Devonta would get on the board at 11:13. Sid Sewers went through Esparmuran's third line defense before planting the biscuit in goaltender Rickey White's net. Esparmuran would then respond with their own goal (from Paul Lauritsen) not long after.

In the third period, Paul Stark's luck against the Espars continued as he scored the second for his team. Stark, despite playing on the fourth line for Devonta, has scored once now in all three encounters with Esparmuran. Unfortunately, Devonta would not score another as Esparmuran would take game three in the 30th World Cup of Hockey, by a score of 3-2. Not much else can be said of this match. Bring on Damukuni!

by **Neu Engollon** » Tue May 31, 2016 12:07 am

LOCKER ROOM
NYHAVN

8 points to 2. The most points given up in a game so far, but also by far the most points put up on the board for the Ibex. The Unified Sunrise Islands had fallen and fallen hard, despite getting two shots in on the Neu Engollian net. When the Ibex had lit the fire, there’d been no going back. A storm had started, and they wanted to ride it all the way to the platform holding that Cup.

They sat, slouched, and leaned against walls in the locker room, hyperventilating, working so hard to bring that post game adrenaline down. A pleasant shock was still diffusing amongst them, waves of warmth and cool chills both flowed through their blood and over their exposed skin. Alex looked at Remy, who looked at Julien, who looked at Maurice, who looked at Pascal, all of them looking back to Coach Liu and Coach Siegler.

Coach Liu waved his hands, palms down, showing a universal sign of ‘keep it low’, or ‘calm it down’.
“This is just the first step, men. I want you to enjoy this moment, but let’s not carried away and jinx ourselves...Right? We clinched it. We’re going to the Round of 16, but we still have a climb ahead. We have so many ways that this could go south, and I don’t want you all to get too big of heads. Elejamie, Esparmun, Valanora, Quebec, Kaboomlandia, Novaya Zemlya...Gregoryisgodistan…”

That last one brought loud moans. Many had scars still from their last encounters. Bruises had taken a long time to heal. Some teeth had to be replaced.

“That's right. Remember that stumble down the ladder? Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, dear Ibex. We have plenty of work to do. And I’m looking for you to be diligent. We have the hosts to play tomorrow. Just because we have the group clinched, let’s not just sit on your laurels and fan yourselves like Roman caesars…”

Some more confused looks were exchanged. Something wasn’t translating well from Avatarrian was the consensus.

“Let’s dominate this last group game. I want to see you repeat tonight. I want to see so many attacks on the net that you’re climbing all over it. I want the Norrish to get the message that the Ibex are not to be trifled with. We will not lay down and blow off a game or treat it as any less important, just because we have a guaranteed ticket to the Round of Sixteen. I want to make sure that after this World Cup, Neu Engollians are never invited back to Norrehavn again.”

“You want us to act like the Ice Slaves?”

"Terrorists?"

“UUUUMmmmmnnn...No! But! I want you to beat the Norrish as badly psychologically as those Greggy clowns beat you all physically. Understand? Who’s with me?...I said WHO’S WITH ME?!!?”

“WE SHOULD BE!!”

“HE IS!”

“GOD!”

“Us guys?”

Coach Liu walked out shaking his head.
Coach Siegler walked into the spot he’d vacated.
“Alright, that’s good enough, you jackasses. Clean your smelly asses up and get a good night’s sleep for the pre-game drills tomorrow. Night.”

by **Novaya Zemlya** » Tue May 31, 2016 3:43 am

"WE STILL NEED THAT TITLE"
Metallurg's Golumbovsky looking for 'The Triple'

HERNING Novozemlyan winger Zakhar Golumbovsky came to Norrehavn and the World Cup of Hockey with hopes to add a third title to an already amazing year, after winning both the NZEL championship and the Hockey Champions League with Metallurg Matochkingrad in the past month. The 29 year old has had a career year and was recently named the NZEL's Most Valuable Player for season 26. Last night he potted two goals in the 4-3 win over Nordeana and helped Novaya Zemlya clinch first place in Group C.

A few years back, things were different. When Novaya Zemlya entered international hockey competition in WCoH 25, Zak was on the team, but not in a prominent role. At the time, he was thought of as a stopgap for the 4th line, being labeled as a one-dimensional winger who could not cut it on the international level. But head coach Bogdan Bobr apparently saw something in him, and made arrangements for Golumbovsky to go overseas and hone his skills.

Thus, Golumbovsky was part of the first wave of Novozemlyan players to go play abroad. Novaya Zemlya's lackluster performance in WCoH 25 led the Hockey Federation to launch a program to get Novozemlyan players into more competitive leagues around the world. Golumbovsky and defenseman Andrei Alenichev were parachuted onto Nuuk Dynamite of the Valhallan Hockey League in Polar Islandstates. The Dynamite were offered a generous sponsorship deal with the Novozemlyan Foreign Trade Corporation as part of the deal, thought to ensure that the Novozemlyan duo were given sufficient ice time. However, Golumbovsky and Alenichev became important players for Nuuk on their own merits. Even though the Dynamite was a below average club by VHL standards, Golumbovsky speaks highly of the organization.

"It was a great opportunity for me and Andrei," Golumbovsky said of his two years in the VHL. "I learned a lot, I became a more complete player and learned how to train and prepare myself like a professional. I think the whole idea of sending players abroad was instrumental for our future success as a hockey nation."

When his two-year contract with Nuuk ran out, Golumbovsky decided to return to Novaya Zemlya and the NZEL, while Andrei Alenichev stayed in the VHL, signing with contenders Franz Josef Force. Golumbovsky was coming off a good performance in WCoH 27, in which the Novozemlyans made it to the semi-finals despite being ranked 37th in the world, and had multiple offers on his table. In the end, he chose Metallurg, which caused some indignation among fans of his former team, Shakhter Ulyanovsk. Although not obvious at the time, the Golumbovsky signing was to become a vital part in changing the power balance of Novozemlyan hockey, disrupting the Partizan-Torpedo supremacy of the last few years.

In WCoH 28 in Valanora, Golumbovsky featured on Novaya Zemlya's first line with Krasimir Yerokhin and Dominik Shelagin. The Yerokhin-Shelagin duo was the face of Novozemlyan hockey and had played together on Partizan for years. There was no instant chemistry between the two of them and Golumbovsky, and the line took a considerable amount of blame for the team's mediocre offense during the tournament. Coach Bobr insisted on keeping them together, however, and in WCoH 29 things started to take off. In the ongoing WCoH 30, the line has been dominant and carried the team on its back.

"It took a while to adapt," Golumbovsky said. "I'm used to carry the puck a lot, and so is Krasimir. I had to change my game a bit, because he is obviously a better playmaker than I am. Now, I pretty much just try get open and keep my stick on the ice, and Krasimir will find me with a pass."

Noticeably, Golumbovsky's rise from scrub to award winning star coincides in time with Novaya Zemlya's rise from bottom-dweller to a global hockey power. Coincidence?

"I think so, yes," Golumbovsky responds, smiling. "It is amazing though, how far we have come during these years. Hockey in Novaya Zemlya has come a long way. Our league is up there with the best nowadays. I think the international influence has been key. We have players in different countries around the world, we have opened our own leagues for foreign players, coaches and teams. It makes us better. I hear the junior team has a shot at a medal in the WJHC. We still need that WCoH title though. Maybe this is the year?"

by **Kaboomlandia** » Tue May 31, 2016 7:43 am

Phoenix 2, ice Cat Things 1

"Welcome back to Vloslav, Norrehavn, where the 30th World Cup of Hockey is happening! Today we have the 3-0 Kaboomlandia Phoenix looking to make the playoffs and possibly clinch the group. If they win, they'll clinch a playoff spot. If the Phoenix win and Valanora loses to Aquitayne, the Phoenix will clinch Group B. Lyle Mace starting again for Kaboomlandia; Tommy Finn for Vilita and Turori."

"Linden streaking down the right wing, dumps the puck in at the blueline and goes after it. Kevin Diesel giving chase, gets the puck and head-mans it for Eastern Raciani on the right side. Raciani lugs the puck out of his own end and centres for Ocean Suzgar. Suzgar over the blueline and goes off into the corner, drawing Herndon to him. Suzgar back out to Raciani, shoots, great save by Mace and there's no rebound."

"Wade Blacken wins the faceoff, nearing the midway point of the first period. The puck is won back to the line, Casey Lindsay shoots and a solid save by Finn. The puck rebounded out to the corner, Leland Anderson on it. Anderson back to Lindsay, shoots again, glove save by Finn."

"Near the end of the first period, Ricky Fike goes down the wing, and...WHOA! Fike is rocked by Derek Strachan! That hit looked slightly late, and Strachan will be going off for two for interference as he protests."

"Ice Cat Things on the power play. Ocean Suzgar back to Kevin Diesel. Diesel shoots, tipped wide by Suzgar. Suzgar gives the puck back to Hluali Tiik, another shot, but Mace saw all of that and gobbled it up."

"As we hit the end of the first period, there's no score in what looks to be a defensive battle."

"Three minutes into the second period now, both teams at full strength. Bryson Martin over the blueline, snaps a shot that's blocked away by Tommy Finn. He chases it in, a lot of that this game. Martin back to Herndon at the point, shoots, kicked out by Finn. Murray gets the puck, another shot, great save by Finn with no rebound! This looks to be a goalie duel between Lyle Mace and Tommy Finn!"

"Nine minutes left in the second. Aaron Richards has the puck just outside the blueline, flips it into the zone for Matthias Gunther. Gunther back to Richards. Aaron Richards shoots, missed the net wide, Coderre picks the puck up and drops back to Derek Strachan. Strachan on the far side to Bore. Kevin Bore shoots, scores! It was tipped in by Aaron Richards, and Kaboomlandia has opened the scoring!"

"Late in the second period here, Phoenix still with a 1-0 lead. Kevin Diesel bounces the puck off the boards, Ocean Suzgar has the puck and he's away! He squeezes past Kevin Bore, on a breakaway! Bore dives and takes down Suzgar, but this will be a penalty shot for Vilita and Turori!"

"Suzgar with the puck at centre ice, going in on Mace. He fakes, shoots, stopped by the right pad of Lyle Mace!"

"The second period has seen the game's first goal, and it's 1-0 Phoenix after two periods of play."

"Four minutes into the third frame, Vilita and Turori buzzing here. Kevin Diesel shoots, blocked by Derek Strachan but Diesel gets it right back. Kevin Diesel winds, fires, scores! The score is tied! It's 1-1!"

"We're almost halfway through the third frame, 10:30 left. Adrian Philips has the puck with Martin and Rutherford with him, three-on-two rush. Over the blueline, Philips keeps the puck. Korus Korney chases him, line mismatch here. Philips keeps, throws it to the front of the net...SAVE BY TOMMY FINN! Tyler Martin tipped it, but somehow Finn got a pad on that! Rutherford tries to follow up, but the shot is blocked and Mike Ice will get the puck out of danger."

"Four minutes left in the game. Vilita and Turori looking for the winner here. The puck goes back to Mike Ice, who might have saved the game earlier. Ice shoots...off the post! Kevin Bore chases, flips this high, and Jerome Smith is going the other way! Smith goes in, shoots, blocker save by Tommy Finn! A great chance at both ends!"

"Time running out here, just twenty seconds remaining. Kennedy Linden's digging for the puck in the corner. He gets it back to Patrick Clooney, who doesn't have a lane, over to Herndon. Herndon down low for Bryson Martin, behind the net for Linden. Linden back to Clooney. Clooney shoots, save by Finn...SCORES! SCORES! SCORES! ZACK MURRAY BATS THE PUCK OUT OF THE AIR WITH SIX SECONDS LEFT! WHAT A FINISH!"

"The game is over! Phoenix win! Kaboomlandia is playoff-bound! Unfortunately they couldn't clinch the group because Valanora won, but the Phoenix are going to the Round of 16!"

World Cup of Hockey XXX - Everything Thread

Western Bjornaic vs Kingdom of Quebec

Western Bjornaic vs Kingdom of Quebec (continued)

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