GoRedSox96 wrote:

C'mon Dawn Mills do Something!

 
I wish Battlefield would do something, anything at all.

1991 Pacino Cup Playoffs

1991 Eastern Conference Finals
Mount Faith Eruption vs. Cayuga Saints
A rematch from the 1990 Eastern Conference Final which saw Cayuga Sweep the Eruption. In that series, Adam Ball carried Cayuga though but this year, it was a different story.

Titan Randall, who did not have a great year overall, had his coming out party in a big way. In Game 1 he would shut out Cayuga 2-0 and in Game 2 would hold them to a single goal while Boston Morrison would contribute with a hat-trick in a 7-1 win.

In Game 3, the Eruption had Cayuga on the ropes, up 4-0 in the 2nd when Cayuga rallied to tie it. With Adam Ball and Randall both pulled going into the third, both teams lit up the back up goalies and headed to overtime tied 7-7. Saints rookie Orlando Daniel would score the winner 5:42 into overtime to send the Cardinal Grounds into a frenzy.

In Game 4, the Saints would go up 2-0 in the first 3 minutes of the game and had the building shaking again. With the series tide in the balance, coach Benson Cowan called a time-out and and woke the Eruption up. The would storm back to take a 5-3 lead in the 2nd before burying the Eruption with 3 more goals in the third.

Back at the Phantom Grounds for Game 5, the Eruption would get the ultimate revenge from the year prior, blowing out the Saints 8-3 again and heading to the Pacino Cup Finals.



1991 Western Conference Finals
Fort Theory Generals vs. Anchor City Sharks
The Prime Minister’s Trophy winner Generals would host the Sharks to open the playoffs. Fort Theory blew a 3-1 lead in 1990 and was looking to get to the finals after a stellar year. The playoffs would not start ideally for the Generals, who would dorp game 1 to the Sharks 7-4 on the back of a 4 point performance from Toby King.

Game 2 would be a reversal of fortunes, as the Generals would storm out of the gate and not look back. Steven Doyle would shut the Sharks out as the Generals took it 2-0.

As the series shifted to the Gilded Centre in Anchor City, the playoff experience would shine through as the Sharks looked outclassed on home ice. Several bad penalties lead to Generals powerplays and they would convert. The Sharks broke Doyle’s shutout streak with 2 minutes to play, but the Generals went up 2-1 and were feeling confident.

Game 4 was another massacre on the coast line, as the Generals blew the Sharks out 6-0. Jaylin Bright in particular looked shaky in net and seemed to have lost all confidence. Going into Game 5, Sharks coach Gabriel Lyle wouldn’t commit to his goaltender and said it was a gametime decision to see who gets the nod.

Game 5 started like the past 3, with the Generals up 3 early and Bright looking bad. Lyle would pull him in favour of Solomon Rollins to start the 2nd and it seemed to be the spark the Sharks needed. After getting it to 3-2, the Generals would regain a 2 goal lead off a rocket from the point by Maxim Shannon. With their season on the line, the Sharks came out flying in the third and would cut the lead to 1. A too many men on the ice penalty gave the Sharks a powerplay half-way through the third and they would tie it on a Lorenzo Franks rebound goal. The BCG was sounding nervous as they could feel the game slipping away, and it would when Connor Jackson tipped home the winner with 4:04 to play to make the series interesting.

Up 3-2, the Generals felt the pressure to close things out on the road or else face the possibility of blowing another 3-1 lead. Solomon Rollins would get the nod and would carry the Sharks to a 7-3 blowout win. With the Generals on the brink of another collapse, Maxim Shannon would guarantee a win at the post-game press conference and promised Generals fans that they would be headed to the finals.

Game 7 had an electric atmosphere from puck drop and Shannon would put his money where his mouth is, opening the scoring just 1:35 in with a rocket from the point blocker side on Rollins. The teams would trade goals back and forth and head to the 2nd tied 3-3. In the second, the Sharks would take a 4-3 lead on a lucky bounce off a Generals skate. The crowd was silent as they felt the choke coming, but the Generals rallied and tied it early in the third. That seemed to break the Sharks hearts, as they would give up 2 more before allowing a meaningless empty netter with 3:21 left in the game. The Generals overcome their potential disaster and will host the Eruption in the finals.



Up next.. the 1991 Pacino Cup Finals: Fort Theory Generals vs. Mouth Faith Eruption!

1991 Off-Season and Draft

Let the movement begin! With the league now entering it’s third season, owners were looking for clear direction and putting pressure on their coaches to improve their teams. This led to a flurry of activity with signings and trades. Let’s start in the basement:

Lake Hope owner Sullivan Roth put a clear direction forward to his head coach David Felix - Improve or be gone. The rumour mill started to swirl that he was strongly considering moving his stud rookie goalie in Yael Trujillo but he shocked the league by trading back up goalie Westin Barker to the Kelly City Lakers for a 1st AND 2nd round pick. The feeling among the league was that the Lakers way overpaid, but Caleb Ewart was confident that they had found their goalie for the future and was ready to pay the price now. With 2 extra picks, Felix bought himself some more time. The question now remains can he cash in on the draft and improve the team?

Speaking of Kelly City, with their goaltending shored up, they went out and signed former Dawn Mills Devil Ray forward Reece Mason. While not a superstar player by any stretch of the imagination, Mason should bring a degree of toughness that the Lakers have missed. With no top round picks this season, Ewart is gambling heavily that his team is good enough with minor additions to push forward.

Out in Battlefield, head coach Phoenix Warner brought his squad together for an off-season training program. It was noted that some players seemed to have made significant improvements in the off-season. With goalie Stephen Rogers failing to live up to expectation, it was expected that Ravel Grönblom was getting the nod in net this season. The 21 year old had impressed scouts last year and had teams calling, but the Braves held on. If the Braves can draft well and Ravel is the real deal, it could be enough to make a move in the East.

In Cayuga, owner Noah Norris was comfortable bringing forth the team he had a year prior. With Adam Ball still in his prime and the team making the playoffs in the back to back seasons, there was no worry on head coach Xander Marshall. Can the Saints make it back to the big dance in 1992?

Finally, the Eastern Conference Champion Eruption. After falling short a year ago in the finals, they decided to walk away from both goalies and enter the off-season with a clear mission to find their replacement. They thought they had a deal with Lake Hope for Yael Trujillo but that fell apart with the Westin Barker deal. They went out and picked up Liam Williams on free agency from Dawn Mills, but he isn’t seen as a major improvement. Are the Eruption the real deal in the East again?

In the West, the Bentley Stars will look to go from last to playoffs. After winning the 1990 Pacino Cup, the Stars had an awful year in 91. Claiming Championship hangover, the team was kept together to prove 90 wasn’t a fluke. It is a bold move from management.

In Dawn Mills, the Devil Rays needed to do something to improve and they feel they have by going out and signing Edward Oak and Antonio Griffiths from the Sharks and Lakers. While neither are going to carry a team themselves, they are quality pieces to bring a team to the next level. If the Rays can’t figure it out, there is a strong possibility that head coach Bradley Wright could be getting the axe, and rightfully so.

Brooklynn continues to be a mediocre team, not quite awful but not good. The trade for Mack Simmons didn’t do much to change their fortunes and it’s clear that management isn’t sure what they have and don’t have. It could be a rebuild year and the Hawks could be looking to move pieces come years end.

Anchor City comes in after almost upsetting Fort Theory and that’s enough for management to stick to what they have. While adding through the draft, the Sharks feel that should be enough to put them over the hump. The question becomes can they draft well enough?

FInally, the defending champion Generals will look to go back to the big dance. After blowing a 3-1 conference final lead in 1990, they managed to survive in 1991 and win it all. Now that the players have the playoff pedigree, they are poised to be a force to reckon with for years to come. The Generals will stick to what brought them a title with hopes that the draft will only make them even better. The Generals are the favourites to repeat in 1992.

The first round of the draft went as follows:



Up next, the 1992 Regular Season!

Cya Felix, though I surmise that he didn't have much to work with. Lake Hope's owner seems to have a short leash.

1992 Pacino Cup Finals
Mount Faith Eruption vs. Bentley Stars

The 1990 Champion Stars look for their second Cup against the 1991 finalist Mount Faith. Game 1 was all Bentley from the hop as the Stars dominated the Eruption 6-1. Game 2 was ultimately closer, but still a Stars victory 5-3 after Mount Faith scored in the final 2 minutes to make it interesting.

Game 3 was much closer affair. Tied 2-2 after the second period with the Eruption  would start the third period on the powerplay. Mount Faith came out flying in the third, scoring on the powerplay and then again minutes later to take a 4-2 lead. The Stars would cut the lead to 1 with 4 minutes left before tying the game on a controversial point shot with 20 seconds left. Stars d-man Louis Hunter appeared to not keep the puck in at the line but the referee disagreed and allowed the play to continue. Hunter put a wrister on net through a crowd and in. The Eruption faithful lost it, pelting the ice with drinks and food. They were right, as the replay showed the puck clearly out of the zone. With the game tied, we headed to triple overtime! The Eruption thought they had a game winning 2 on 1, but the same referee called the play offside (it was.) Minutes later, Bentley would go in 3 on 1 and bury it to take a 3-0 lead. The Eruption fans pelted the ice again resulting in the officials getting a security escort out of the building. Newspaper headlines in Mount Faith had a shot of the puck out of the zone and the headline "OFFSIDE!"

After a wild Game 3, the Eruption came out in Game 4 and put a beating on the Stars with hit after hit after hit. The hometown faithful loved it as the Eruption took game four 7-5.

Back at the EAC, the Stars looked for another title and could taste it, up 4-3 in the third. The Eruption would tie the game with 5 minutes left and it looked like overtime, until Archie Stone beat the D and went in on a breakaway, scoring with 1:44 left to take a 5-4 lead. The Eruption pulled their goalie, but the Stars would score in the empty net with 10 seconds left to secure the 1992 Pacino Cup with a 6-4 win.



Following the season, the league announced it's annual award winners:
League MVP - Efrain Little, Dawn Mills Devil Rays
Forward of the Year - Efrain Little, Dawn Mills Devil Rays
Defenseman of the Year - Jakub Byrne, Dawn Mills Devil Rays
Goalie of the Year - Toby Barker, Bentley Stars
Scoring Champion - Efrain Little, Dawn Mills Devil Rays
Playoff MVP - Ralph Burke, Bentley Stars
Prime Minister's Trophy Winner - Bentley Stars
Pacino Cup Champions - Bentley Stars




Up next, the 1992-1993 off-season and entry draft!