With a full week of activity in the league and seven games under our belt we can be satisfied with the overall balance of our ten formations. With more than forty newcomers and a number of players coming back after some prolonged absences, the challenges were enormous to put together balanced teams in our two divisions. The most complex being that of the south shore mostly composed of new faces. In this case, after two weeks of games, only one team seems to need reinforcements, the other three having done well in hard-fought games with tight scores. In terms of our Montreal division, some adjustments will have to be made, but at first glance, our six formations seemed competitive and balanced.

That said, with my administrative duties and the various positions I occupy in the league (including that of writer in the absence of our usual journalist) I did not have the chance to fully analyze the teams on the ice. I hope in the next few games to be able to see more of the games to give me a better idea before proposing final adjustments to the selection committee members and captains. As for the trades and the balancing of the teams, know that there is a lot of politics and situation that complicates the task, so we will do our best as always to make everyone happy and in teams that are all in position to win the big honors but it's not as simple as it seems, believe me.

I take your happyness seriously and I will do everything in my power to offer you with the help of the league's collaborators an optimal hockey experience. Speaking of collaborators, here is a new one with his first impression on our Montreal division. I take this opportunity to invit anyone who wants to contribute in one form or another to the LFA for everyone's enjoyment !

Have a good one
JFD

START OF ACTIVITIES IN THE MONTRÉAL DIVISION

While our friends of the South shor got the ball rolling last week, it was Sunday night that began the activities for the Montreal division  .. finally! From the outset, we could feel a certain excitement from the players, not only about the idea of tepping on the ice for their first time, but mainly because they would get to know their teammates they were going to be with during the summer. While some veterans found famillliar faces, it was the arrival of the new recruits that got most of the attention. Per team, it's an average of 3 to 4 new players who took their first shots in the LFA, and let's say that the young and not so young fellows did rather well! Welcome aboard rookies! I take this opportunity to remind everyone, both new and old, that "chirping" on the ice and annoying the opponent may be part of the game and be fun when it is friendly and controlled, Keep in mind that we play for fun, so please keep this "gentlemen". Nothing more awkward than falling nose-to-nose (not to say tail-to-tail ..) in the shower with the guy you messed around with all game .. Better keep that in mind boys! Note for newcomers that in the spirit of the Hockey Brotherhood from which the LFA is issued, the two teams share the adjoining showers to keep a friendly corridor allowing players to go from room to room to exchange and take a beer together. Hence the friendly aspect of our competitive league.

As for the match-ups of the evening, the three games were fiercely disputed, all with very good pace and high intensity. In spite of a clear cohesion obviously given the new line-ups, chemistry seemed to take place between team-mates as the game progressed. The opening game saw the Vipers against the Rhinos, the latter having to contend with the absence of their captain Patrick Blais. They will have managed to stand up to the Vipers' attack for a good part of the match, but in the end, to play with a reduced defense, at our level and our age, it always ends up catching you ... The Vipers took advantage of the situation by opening the machine in the second half of the game, finally winning 6-2.

In a game a bit tighter than the previous one,  the Loggers against Danny Beauregard'sTorpedoes made good courtesy of a replacing goalkeeper, the Loggers managed to forge and maintain a lead of a few goals until the third period. A period "won" by Torpedos determined to give the Men in Black a hard time, visibly short of juice, but the damage was done.

Final score, 7 to 4 Loggers. The evening ended with the tightest game of the preliminary games, with the Shamrocks winning in a defensive battle against the Hackers, 4 to 3.

This completes the wrap-up of this first weekend of Montreal activities.

Have a good week and see you on Sunday!

Thibault Varin