VHLE Semi-Finals: Stockholm Vikings and Cologne Express

[thadthrasher 1,692]

Coming off an amazing season, both Cologne and Stockholm were neck-in-neck in the race for the best regular season record, but both fell short to the mighty Istanbul Red Wolves, who only one season prior was in dead last. But, as everyone knows, the playoffs are completely different beast, especially in the world of professional hockey. Teams need to shake off the previous season, the rivalries, and issues that came up, and treat the playoffs as a brand-new season to be played. And, that’s what Stockholm and Cologne were hoping to do.

Game 1 – Cologne Home

There’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that Cologne was loving the home-ice advantage. Every team who plays in a series of games against the same team strives to capture the first win. That win is crucial to every team, and it gives a big boost to the morale of the team. In this first game against Stockholm, Cologne put in 4 goals to Stockholm’s 1 and only, coming from George Sanderson. This defeat was something that many thought would deflate Stockholm in Game 2.

Game 2 – Cologne Home

Instead of deflating though, Stockholm showed up in full force, wanting to capture Game 2 no matter what. In a game where every goal was back and forth, Stockholm was able to put in the only goal that seemed to matter, the overtime winner. Coming after the closed hand on the puck minor from Zeljko Ranogajec, Florida Man took a shot on goal, which was blocked by Cologne’s Preobrazhensky. Gathering the puck again, Florida Man’s shot blew beyond the goal, bouncing off the glass behind. But, that bounce favored Stockholm as the puck found itself right on Lochlan Chisholm’s stick and then subsequently in the back of the net, securing a Game 2 win for Stockholm.

Game 3 – Stockholm Home

It could have been a game 2 hangover, or maybe just the home ice advantage, but Stockholm found themselves playing decent hocky in Game 3. While they allowed 5 goals against, they rifled 8 beyond Anime Protagonist. Most impressive in this game was Stockholm’s Matt Avens, who found himself with his first playoff hat trick, and one apple on top of that. Now, with a 2-1 series lead, Stockholm needed to keep the pressure up, and the moment forward.

Game 4 – Stockholm Home

Game 4 was another close game between these two Norther Conference competitors. It was a game that continued to show why these two teams dominated their conference and were on the heels of one another in the standings all season. At the end of the first period Stockholm was behind 3-2. It’s always good to end the first period in the lead, and Cologne was feeling confident. Going almost the entire second period in the lead, Cologne let in the tying goal by Zaza Colors at 16:13. With only 19 seconds left in the period Cologne’s Sergey Preobrazhensky found himself entering the sin bin after a hooking minor. This was not the end of the second period that Cologne needed. After nearly killing the penalty in the third period, Stockholm’s Nezuko made Preobrazhensky regret that hook by putting in the final goal of the game, keeping Stockholm in front with a now 3-1 series lead. This was everything that Stockholm needed, and the fans loved it.

 

Game 5 – Cologne Home

Game 5 had Cologne back at home, and this was the advantage that they absolutely needed. Unfortunately for Cologne they were never able to find themselves in the lead in this game, only ever tying the score up a few times. The most exciting moment of this game for the Cologne fans came at 18:51 in the 3^rd period. Behind by only 1 goal, and with possession in Stockholm’s zone, Cologne pulled Anime Protagonist. However, Mr. Duk not only shut down this momentum with a massive hit on β-COL RW4, but he collected the puck and fed it to Florida Man who killed all hopes of victory for Cologne after he secured an empty netter. The game and series ended with a score of 6-4 in favor of Stockholm, who took home the Conference Championship. Now, they wait to see who they will face in the Renaissance Cup Finals.

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706 words, claiming week ending 9 January 2022

[CowboyinAmerica 2,731]

Review: 9/10

 

Solid stuff here, and congrats on the win! Don't think it's anything too crazy or creative, mainly just a recap of the games. But it's a well-written recap, keeping me interested with good flow from beginning to end. Didn't notice anything off on a first read grammar-wise either. I'm a fan of headlines/lead photos and wouldn't have minded one here, but I do appreciate the bolded subheads to set each game apart. Straightforward article, think it works well.

[Beaviss 4,949]

Review:

Good article even though the result sucked. It had titles, bolding and good grammar but the lack of pictures or even team logos makes it a little plain IMO. If some color and or team logos were added it would push this solid 8/10 to a 9/10. All in all good job and a good read.