Let’s go Bucks, Let’s Go! (Which I submit as a fan chant)

1984 THL PLAYOFFS

WILDCARD ROUND


7 Portarra Pioneers vs 10 Abrieden Bucks
The Bucks saw Suvak return but he was tentative on the ice and it caused their tight chemistry to lapse as the Pioneers took games three and four in OT behind solid play from Nelissen and Walker. [PTP wins 3-1]

8 Quebel Crusaders vs 9 Kurohara Killers
The Crusaders made a statement in Game 1 but they couldn't follow up as the Killers blitzed the next three games to take the series. [KUR wins 3-1]


QUARTERFINALS


1 Kavalos Electrics vs 9 Kurohara Killers
The series was a barnburner as the young Killers had no fear and traded goals like candy with the Kavs. A 2-OT thriller in Game 5 got Kavalos back into the series which they extended to 7 games, but a brilliant goal by Alex Kirkland in OT stunned the heavily favored Electrics and sent the Killers on to the semi-finals. [KUR wins 4-3]

2 Portarra Whales vs 7 Portarra Pioneers
In the first-ever matchup of Portarra, the Whales and Pioneers battled it out in an exciting series. The Pioneers went up 3-0 only to see the Whales roar back with three games of their own. Game 7 went into overtime tied at 1-1 where Jonathan Walker found a home for the walkoff goal. [PTP wins 4-3]

3 Vensessor Swans vs 6 Prestonburg Blazers
The series started off with a bang as Game 1 went two OT's before F Isak Forsberg won it. A citywide riot between fans delayed Game 6 in Prestonburg forcing it to be played the next day. The Swans saw Kabbani post a shutout to give them the series, prompting more citywide violence reminiscent of the early Falcons-Glaciers days. [VEN wins 4-2]

4 Chasonne Heralds vs 5 Bancana Kings
The Heralds looked overmatched through the series, especially in the last two games where Pete Lentini and the Kings outscored Chasonne 9-0 to easily win it. [BAN wins 4-1]


SEMI-FINALS


3 Vensessor Swans vs 9 Kurohara Killers
The Swans played well but Andre Kabbani had a tough task in keeping the relentless offensive attack of the Killers at bay. Kurohara forced Vensessor into a fast-paced game they didn't want to play and Alex Kirkland took over. A Game 5 shutout from rookie goalie Austin Ellis was the writing on the wall as the Swans couldn't extend the series to send the Kurohara Killers to their first Marcotte Cup berth. Kurohara has logged three straight upsets as their squad looks loose and focused. [KUR wins 4-2]

5 Bancana Kings vs 7 Portarra Pioneers
The Pioneers opened the series with a 5-0 blanking but Bancana responded with a 1-0 shutout of their own in a taste of how the series would go. Game 3 was a thriller that went deep into a 3rd-overtime period before Elisha Nadeau won it. With both teams exhausted and visibly slower in Game 4, it was still at zeroes to go into yet another overtime. This time Pete Lentini scored a one-timer to mercifully end it. Both teams collected themselves for a 7-5 scorcher in Game 5 that the Kings were able to take the edge late on a Lentini hat trick. The Sallee brothers scored a goal apiece in Game 6 but Walker and the Pioneers came back to win it 4-3 in OT to set up a deciding Game 7. Cameron Sallee opened the scoring but the Pioneers saw Thomas Nelissen cash in 2 goals and 3 assists as the Pioneers cruised to 7 goals to take the series and send them back to the Cup for the second time. [PTP wins 4-3]

Up next: Two underdogs on magical postseason runs meet in a surprising Cup matchup

C&C always appreciated!

At least the Killers took out the Swans when my Blazers couldn't. Any time the Swans lose is a good day in my book.

1984 Marcotte Cup Championship Finals

7 Portarra Pioneers vs 9 Kurohara Killers

The Pioneers meet the Killers in an interesting and intriguing matchup for the 25th Marcotte Cup. Kurohara is the first wildcard team to make the finals, entering as a #9 seed despite being the 4th-best overall team in the regular season. They feature a lethal top line of Alex Kirkland, Stan Johanson, and Damien St. Pierre, along with an equally capable second line with Carmen Ledesma, Kirby Dorris-Johns, and Hans Rohr. Their net is unique with Austin Ellis being a rookie and rotational goalie Tom Caruso being a former undrafted player who played three seasons for the UHA's Dosa City Cyclones. The tough Tony Champagne anchors the blue line with a young Drew Paterakis. Kurohara's coach John Otto has plenty of playoff experience from his UHA days.

In Portarra, the squad is led by the perennial play of reigning two-time best defenseman Thomas Nelissen who has carried the team by himself at times. Rusty Connellson is his pairing partner and the team has a capable if not flashy group of defenders. Nick Casselman holds down the net after Adrian Petrov's retirement with Donnie Cantrelle backing him up. The Pioneers have a talented group of forwards led by the calm, steady presence of Jonathan “Bull” Walker. His linemates Jerry Razzo and Elisha Nadeau are capable scorers but can be inconsistent. Free agent signing Jake Makarski leads the second line with Ryan Fitzroy and Terry Valentini. Head coach Ted Gooden is a former coach of the year and has been to the finals before.

The Pioneers have home ice advantage and a better defense while the Killers are more highly-ranked and explosive on offense. 


Game 1: KUR 8 @ PTP 0 – The Killers had been talking about how they wanted to make a statement and boy did they ever, pasting the Pioneers to 8 goals as Alex Kirkland secured the hat trick and Damien St. Pierre had 4 assists in a complete beatdown.

Game 2: KUR 1 @ PTP 0 – The Pioneers regrouped and came back strong in Game 2. With the score still at zeros late in the third, it was a scramble in front of the Portarra net that left a rebound for Stan Johanson to punch in the winning goal in a tight game to steal both games in Portarra.

Game 3: PTP 1 @ KUR 2 (OT) – In a tight, closely battled game, both teams saw players ejected for fighting and scrapping. Tied at 1 after goals from St. Pierre and Walker, the teams went into overtime looking for any advantage. Tony Champagne delivered a huge hit on the boards to Elisha Nadeau to dislodge the puck into middle ice which was scooped up by Alex Kirkland who promptly took it down and unloaded it on Casselman for the winner.

Game 4: PTP 2 @ KUR 6 – Facing elimination and with Thomas Nelissen a non-factor in the series, the Pioneers tried to keep themselves in the hunt with an early goal from Walker. The Killers saw their second line erupt with goals from Ledesma and Dorris-Johns. The Pioneers tied it in the second period with a shot from Jerry Razzo but it was all Kurohara after that as Alex Kirkland took charge and flipped in the tiebreaker early in the third. Late goals from the Killers put it well out of reach as Kurohara swept the Pioneers for their first Marcotte Cup. Kirkland was awarded Series MVP.

1984 Marcotte Cup Champions: Kurohara Killers (1)

Up next: A special look into the first 25 years of the THL

And now, while the Killers bask in their championship win, we present a look into the past 25 years of the THL. This was quite a project to tackle so I hope y'all can dig deep into the stats and bring some takes and takeaways. I'll add some of my thoughts as well. It was pretty fun to see it all written out, a few things even surprised me.

(Dedicated to Stickman)

Torland Hockey League 25 Year Anniversary (1960-1984)


These are some of the big hits on 25-year stats.

- One of my favorite players is D Allen Lombardi who was a very underrated player his whole career and anchored several great defenses. Despite his only official accolade being a Blue Collar in 1971, Lombardi found himself on good teams that racked up five rings, including the Falcons, Heralds, and Rockets. He is still the All-Time leader in championship rings.

- Non-THL championships were left off the list, so players such as Gary Wiz (3 THL, 1 UHA) missed the cut.

- Deciding on the GOAT for the 25-Year anniversary was supremely difficult. Geno Pasternak, Gary Wisniewski, Paul Kauffman, and others all have sterling resumes that are hard to beat. I ultimately went with Ferdy Haight for his career longevity and his sheer dominance of his position for his era. (22 years in the THL and 9 Best Goalie awards)

- Also listed in full for the first time is the current THL Hall of Fame.



Here we have a full list of the championship banners by year. I designed each banner to represent the look of the team identity for that year.

- Only three teams have ever repeated. The Heralds are the only team to do it three times in a row. The Falcons and Glaciers are the only other teams to repeat as consecutive champions.

- The Heralds are the only team with at least one championship in every decade. (60's, 70's, 80's)



I have briefly mentioned retired numbers at times throughout the narrative but probably haven't listed them out by team like this before. A few teams have numbers Out of Circulation (OOC) that are not officially retired but haven't been reissued.

- The Heralds unofficially retired Nat Marchant's #29 after his HOF induction but allowed Frankie Albertelli to wear it when he was drafted in 1980. It is rumored that Marchant is still salty about the slight.

- The Anchors retired #9 for Lehman but reissued it with Lehman's blessing to Paul Kauffman after trading for him in 1976. They are the only team with a number retired twice.

- Gary Wisniewski has a number retired with three different teams (Anchors, Heralds, Swans) and his number is officially honored and hanging up in the rafters by the Wizards but not officially retired. (D Chris Waterman wears it currently) Gary Wiz also is one of only two players to have two different numbers retired, (#22 and #11) the other being Lou D'Angelo (#22 and #44).

- Something I haven't written much about is the Ring of Honor which is a precursor to the Hall of Fame. Teams can nominate anyone to the Ring of Honor and is considered a prestigious distinction. Several teams have retired or taken numbers out of circulation for ROH players. (Case in point: Dalton Causey's #13 is retired by the Glaciers and was a popular player, team captain, etc but ostensibly has no shot at ever making the Hall of Fame)



Alright boys and girls, here is the hardcore nerd stuff. I compiled all-time stats from 1960-1984. I left out defunct teams. Category entries in red/blue are the category leaders for best/worst.

- Obviously the big elephant is the Lecayne Saints. What a rough stat line. I knew it was bad but it looks a lot worse spelled out.

- With the Killers' recent playoff run, they soared to the top of the playoff stats, an impressive feat especially considering their regular season record.

- The Whales and Captains are the only teams with an entry in every award category.



This one was super difficult to compile. I had to weigh resume, impact, longevity, etc to decide and it was a tough one.

- Pasternak's 4 MVP's gave him the edge over Gary Wiz who is perhaps a slightly bigger household name. Determining #3 was hard though, as anyone in the 3-6 range could probably be interchanged.

- Outside of Paul Kauffman, the defensemen were hard to separate out. At the end of the day, Pat Ossola may rise up to that second spot. Darren Cain is a rising player who seems poised to rise up the list as well.

- One and two are pretty easy in Haight and Wentz, but deciding on 3-4 was much harder. 5th drops off a cliff in terms of resume strength but I went with Sagendorf.


I hope you enjoyed that recap! Anything that stands out to y'all? Any surprises? I'd love to hear some takes.