International Glory~An Italian Hockey Story

[DrGravyBoat]

Italian Comeback Falls Short

Italy's Men's Hockey Team at Germany's Men's Hockey Team
Jun, 27 2014 1 2 3 F ITA (1-2) 0 0 2 2 GER (3-0) 1 2 1 4 Three Stars Jochen Hecht 1 Goal, 1 Assist Michel Wolf 1 Goal Marcel Goc 2 Assists	Team Stats Comparison ITA GER Shots on Goal 16 22 Hits 5 17 Faceoffs Won-Lost 8-12 12-8 Penalty Minutes 2 9 Power Plays Converted 2 0 Power Play Opportunities 4 1 Time on Attack 33:08 26:52
Scoring Summary

Sorry, forgot to record the scoring summary


Italy's comeback came just short as they fell to Germany, 4-2 on Day 5 of the tournament.

It was a sloppy game for the Italians as struggled to find any rhythm which lead to an early deficit against a very talented German defence.

" If we played the entire game like we did the last period, we win this game 5-2." Said Italian captain, Alberto Cacciaguera.

Italy will have a day off before playing in their quarterfinal matchup on Monday.

A lone bright spot in the game was back-up goalie, Luca Poli. Poli came in after the 3rd German goal, stopping 10 shots after a less then Stellar performance by Andreas Bernard. Luca Poli may or may not be starting in Italy's first elimination game.

Around The Tourney

Day 5

France Claims Second in Pool A with a 2-1 win over Poland

Day 6

Japan Beats Great Britain 5-2

Austria loses to Latvia, 4-2

[DrGravyBoat]

Playoff Matchups

Side A

1. Germany Vs 4. Japan

2. Austria Vs 3. Italy

Side B

1. Latvia Vs. 4. Poland

2. France Vs. 3. Great Britain

Intial Take

Entering the elimination games, I feel like we got the worst draw of all the teams in these playoffs. We have to play a team I projected to go first in Austria then if we win, we likely play Germany a team I thought would place second and a team we lost to. Finally, if we make it through all of those games we play in all likelihood Latvia a team that went undefeated in the round robin. Italy has got to play their best hockey and hopefully will.

[DrGravyBoat]

Italy's Big 3rd Leads to Win

Italy's Men's Hockey Team at Austria's Men's Hockey Team
Jun 31, 2014 1 2 3 F ITA (1-0) 1 0 4 5 AUT (0-1) 2 0 0 2 Three Stars Riccardo Tammaro 2 Assists Alex Trivellato 1 Goal Mario Cavallo 1 Goal	Team Stats Comparison ITA AUT Shots on Goal 24 21 Hits 9 24 Faceoffs Won-Lost 10-12 12-10 Penalty Minutes 2 4 Power Plays Converted 1 1 Power Play Opportunities 2 1 Time on Attack 31:12 28:48
Scoring Summary FIRST PERIOD AUT 3:24 T. Vanek (3) (M. Ulbricht, D. Welser) ITA 13:55 G. Fini (3) (M. Azzaroni, R.Tamarra) AUT 14:43 M. Raffl (3) (M. Grabner, M. Schoten) THIRD PERIOD ITA 3:50 A. Trivellato (1) ITA 14:08 M. Calvallo (1) ITA 16:23 G. Veggeti (1) (L. Emmer, A. Bernard) ITA 19:29 A. Cacciaguera (3) (R. Tammara)

Post game Write-Up

Italy won a close, fast game as they advanced to the 2nd round in the Great 8 tournament after beating a talented Austria team.

Giampolo Fini led the way for the Italian attack with a goal and many opportunities in the Austria zone.

"Polo (Giampolo) is the Italian Erik Karlson. He can join the rush if need be but is also incredibly responsible defensively. He can play well every night and that can be important when we (forwards) can't get going, he's really explosive." Said captain Alberto Cacciaguera who added an empty net goal to the Italian's cause.

Italy will play Germany next. There is some speculation Luca Poli will get the start over Andreas Bernard. Italian officials have confirmed Bernard may be on the bench to start.

With the goaltending situation looking stranger than usual, tomorrow's game will answer all our questions.

Not going to down an "Around the Tourney" want to see who we play in the finals exciting if we make it.

[DrGravyBoat]

The table didn't show the O.T. in the score by period for some reason.

Italy Loses Absolute Heartbreaker

Germany's Men's Hockey Team at Italy's Mens Hockey Team
Jul 2, 2014 1 2 3 F GER (2-0) 1 1 0 3 ITA (1-1) 1 0 1 2 Three Stars Thomas Larkin 1 Goal, 1 Assist Thomas Gerlinger 1 Goal Marcel Goc 1 Goal	Team Stats Comparison GER ITA Shots on Goal 26 23 Hits 21 9 Faceoffs Won-Lost 16-7 7-16 Penalty Minutes 2 2 Power Plays Converted 1 0 Power Play Opportunities 1 1 Time on Attack 37:57 22:03
Scoring Summary FIRST PERIOD ITA 6:09 T. Larkin (2) (A. Trivellato, D. Kostner) GER 10:23 M. Goc (2) (C. Ehrhoff, J. Hecht) SECOND PERIOD GER 6:14 J. Tripp (2), (J. Hecht, C. Ehrhoff) THIRD PERIOD ITA 1:44 A. Cacciaguera (T. Larkin, L. Poli) OVERTIME GER 17:06 T. Greilinger (2) (A. Barta)

Post Game Write-Up

Italy lost a hockey game on Thursday but they also lost a piece of their heart.

The Italians fell to a talented German team in OT and they had lost against the same German squad only 5 days before.

Poli got the start however, it was Andreas Bernard that finished the game. Poli's reactions looked slow and so the Italians felt the need to put their normal starter in for the overtime period.

"I screwed up. It didn't work, oh well. We'll come back next year and won't make the same mistakes." Said Italian coach

Germany moves to the finals to face the Latvia team which was predicted to finish 3rd.

Italy will finish 4th in the tournament due to a loss to France earlier, during the round robin.

Italy's next game is a regulation IIHF game against Austria, a team they beat for the right to face Germany. Let's hope for a repeat result.

Tournament Placement
1. Germany
2. Latvia
3. France
4. Italy
5. Poland
6. Austria
7. Great Britain
8. Japan

[DrGravyBoat]

It Ain't Pretty



Thomas Larkin our Anchor Defensively

Well, that wasn't pretty. Where to begin is the question.

Let's begin with our goaltending. Andreas Bernard allowed 3 goals on 4 shots for a dismal .250 save %. So, its official, Luca Poli is the starting goalie for the immediate future of Italian hockey.

Secondly, we need to clean up our turnovers. I'm not saying Andreas Bernard would be shutting the Austrians out if we didn't turn the puck over but it would have helped. 3 of their goals came off of turnovers, meaning it could have been a tie game if those hadn't gone in.

Thirdly, we need to get quality scoring chances over quantity of scoring chances. 31 shots is pretty good however, many of those shots were lazy and easy to see which brings me to my fourth point.

We need to create havoc in front of the net and in the corners. A goalie can't stop what he can't see. The other team can't score if they don't have the puck, therefore limit their time on attack and we'll be Div. II champs.

We play Poland next, looking to avenge our loss earlier in the year.

Austria's Men's National Hockey Team at Italy's Men's National Hockey Team
Jul 7, 2014 1 2 3 F AUT (4-1) 1 3 1 5 ITA (3-2) 1 0 1 2 Three Stars Michael Grabner 3 Goals Thoas Vanek 1 Goal, 2 Assists Diego Kostner 1 Goal, 1 Assist	Team Stats Comparison AUT ITA Shots on Goal 17 32 Hits 11 9 Faceoffs Won-Lost 12-9 9-12 Penalty Minutes 2 4 Power Plays Converted 2 0 Power Play Opportunities 2 1 Time on Attack 32:03 27:57
Scoring Summary FIRST PERIOD AUT 8:05 M. Grabner (Unassisted) SECOND PERIOD AUT 3:55 T. Vanek (Unassisted) AUT 4:35 M. Grabner (T. Vanek, M. Ulbricht) ITA 10:16 A. Cacciaguerra (A. Alberici, D. Kostner) AUT 16:54 M. Grabner (T. Vanek, G. Obergauer) (Hat-trick) THIRD PERIOD AUT 10:50 D. Kuhl (R. Lottner) ITA 19:16 D. Kostner (T. Larkin)

[DrGravyBoat]

I would like to thank everyone who's ever read this dynasty as we reached 1,000 viewers tonight. You guys rock and I can't wait to see how far we get before we reach 2,000 views. Thank you and have a good night.

[DrGravyBoat]

A Win and a Loss


The Hit that could see a major protest from Polish supporters

The Italian National Hockey team handled Poland's team quite easily however, there will be aftermath.

Before we begin with the drama however, lets review the game.

Luca Poli got the start and did not disappoint, only allowing 2 goals on 17 shots. The Italians turned the puck over in front of the net leading to one goal while the other was a deflection that caught Poli off guard.

Diego Kostner found his scoring touch again after a few sub-par games, scoring twice. One to open the scoring and the other to give the Italians a lead they would not relinquish.

Now, time for grown man hockey player drama. In the second period, Diego Kostner delivered a massive hit to an unsuspecting Polish defender. However, video shows Kostner leaving his feet. By IIHF rules, Kostner will be suspended for at least one game. Now, depending on the the injury (none), force (a lot) and whether he had past run-ins with IIHF law (no) Kostner could be suspended more than one game. Because Kostner scored later in the period, the Poles are now allowed to protest the game because in essence Kostner is an ineligible player, the IIHF will make a ruling later this week.


I do have the video if you guys would like to see it.

Poland's Men's National Hockey Team at Italy's Men's National Hockey Team
Jul 10, 2014 1 2 3 F POL (4-2) 0 2 0 2 ITA (4-2) 1 2 1 4 Three Stars Diego Kostner 2 Goals Janusz Dembki 2 Goals Mario Calvallo 1 Goal, 1 Assist	Team Stats Comparison POL ITA Shots on Goal 17 28 Hits 5 10 Faceoffs Won-Lost 7-9 9-7 Penalty Minutes 6:00 2:00 Power Plays Converted 0 1 Power Play Opportunities 0 2 Time on Attack 23:51 36:09
Scoring Summary FIRST PERIOD ITA 1:56 D. Kostner (A. Alberici) SECOND PERIOD ITA 3:33 D. Kostner (T. Larking, L. Poli) POL 7:44 J. Dembski (G. Stasiak, D. Kaszuba) ITA 10:56 A. Trevisian (M. Calvallo) POL 12:34 J. Dembski (Unassisted) THIRD PERIOD ITA 16:42 M. Calvallo (Unassisted)

[DrGravyBoat]

Diego Kostner Gets 1, Polish Appeal Denied

Italy get minimal punishment for their game against Poland earlier this week.

The IIHF has ruled Diego Kostner to be suspended for only one game, their next against Austria, a team they recently lost 5-2 against.

Diego Kostner has been a force to be reckoned with, recording points in almost all the Italians games. With Kostner gone, the Italians lose their best player.

The defence will need to step up, and lead the rush. The Italians need to stay out of the box. They have been abysmal on the penalty kill, allowing goals on the power play in their last three.

Poland, earlier in the week, announced they would protest the game. The IIHF reviewed and denied the Polish protest stating that

"Diego Kostner would not have been suspended had he not left the ice. Furthermore, Diego Kostner's goal was irrelevant to the game's outcome. The Italians won by more than 1 goal, therefore we will not allow the protest to pass."

So, the Italians got off easy but, we will now see, if the Italians are a one man team.