Player deposit for next season is now available. The deposit is $75 dollars and due by the end of the business day on Monday, June 12th. After that, returning players will be treated as new recruits. If you are unable to pay the deposit by June 12th but intend to play with us next year, please contact Shelly (treasurer@madisongayhockey.org).

As a reminder, we will be maintaining 10 teams and expect to fill up. In following with our mission statement, in recruiting and in accepting new players, we will prioritize members of the LGBTQ+ community and other groups with historically limited access to hockey.

As a reminder, we will be sending announcements for when we have 100 players, 125 players, and a full roster.

Looking forward to next season with y’all,

-Recruitment team and MGHA board

We’re happy to announce the MGHA Members have elected a new Board of Directors for 2017-2018.

Specific roles and responsibilities will be announced over the summer, but here’s the folks in charge!

• Amanda Thornton
• k8 walton
• Matthew Dorris
• Randi “Viking Princess” Hagen
• Sara Colopy
• Shelly Kennedy
• Tim Tender

Many thanks for the service of outgoing Boardo’s – Brian Bischel, Nichole Whetter, and Christina Libs.

Next up – a league-wide survey will be sent to all players to collect feedback on the past year and help the new Board make improvements for next year.

Thanks,
The 2016/2017 MGHA Board of Directors

It’s almost the end of the season, and we want to spend our last night of league play celebrating together. It will be structured a little differently than the usual Sunday nights, so this is your heads up for scheduling on Championship Night, March 26. Especially put on your calendars a league-wide photo at 7:30 and a potluck all evening! Friends and family are welcome to watch games, eat with us, and hang out all evening too.

Schedule

Game #1: 3:40 – The Lean Mean Pink Machine vs The Unforgiveables
Game #2: 5:00 – Golden Skate Warriors vs The New Black
Game #3: 6:20 – The Flamers vs The Greyt White Sharks
***League photo: 7:30**** wear your jersey!
Game #4: 8:00 – The House of Blues vs Green Gays and Ham
Game #5: 9:20 – GryffinDucks vs Bluega Whales

If you’re going to be absent, or you want to sub, indicate as such for each game!

Scorebox

We need some volunteers to work the scorebox for the championship games!

Championship Games 2017 SCOREBOX SIGNUP

You must log in to sign up.

Potluck

Please bring something to share if you can! This will be a rolling event, so come before or after your game. We’ll have tables near the concession stand to spread things out on. Sign up if you know what you’ll bring, or surprise us.

Awards

We like to recognize someone from each team for playing hard, playing fun, keeping everyone in the zone and embodying the MGHA way of hockey. The MGHA All the Way Award is nominated by captains from each team. Input from the team is welcome too! It’s meant to recognize the on-and-off ice contributions of a player on each team who has energized and enlivened their team. Awards will be announced right before each team’s game.

Hockey will go on….

Remember to sign up for the MGHA Classic April 28-30! Also keep an eye out for that email some time in the summer to save your spot for next year, and maybe some summer scrimmages as well…

See you on Sunday!

The MGHA supports Women’s Hockey, and we ask that USA Hockey uses our dues justly and continues the negotiation with the US Women’s National Hockey Team.

So we sent this to Dave Ogrean, Executive Director of USA Hockey.

Letter To Dave Ogrean, Executive Director of USA Hockey,
From the Madison Gay Hockey Association

We, the Madison Gay Hockey Association (MGHA), pay for 150 skater registrations at $40 per person to USA Hockey. This equals $6,000 – the amount paid to one U.S. Women’s National Hockey player. While we know from reading recent reports that our money doesn’t go directly to these elite female athletes, we believe that USA Hockey should pay fair wages to these players that makes important contributions to the visibility of the sport of ice hockey and serve as role models for younger players.

All of the talented women hailing from our community (Hilary Knight, Brianna Decker, Megan Duggan, Alex Rigsby) and other hockey towns deserve better. In Madison, the MGHA is a part of the University of Wisconsin community. We’re students, faculty, health care practitioners, and engaged citizens with a mission to provide opportunities for those who have historically felt uncomfortable in traditional sports settings. That makes us speak up.

Our requests are:

• As members of USA Hockey, the MGHA ask our membership dues be used to equitably support women’s and men’s hockey programs, which includes equitable support for the Women’s National Development team.

• We ask that you continue the negotiations put forth by the representatives of the U.S. Women’s National Hockey Team.

We support the demands of the U.S. Women’s National Hockey Team, and we urge USA Hockey to move quickly in finding a just resolution to this unacceptable situation.

Respectfully,
The Madison Gay Hockey Association

The Madison Gay Hockey Association (MGHA) is an adult developmental ice hockey league for people of all sexualities and gender identifications. We are especially committed to providing opportunities for those who have historically felt uncomfortable in traditional sports settings to learn and teach ice hockey in a safe, supportive, and fun environment. We aspire to the highest standards of sportsmanship and promote integration of the wider Madison community into the gay community.

Hey Lovelies!

This Sunday is the last set of challenge games for the season.

PLEASE ONLY SIGN UP FOR ONE GAME until 12pm noon on Saturday, March 4th. Also, please sign up for a game in which you can safely play.

The games will be scheduled as follows:
4:40 – Intermediate
5:50 – Beginner
7:00 – Intermediate
8:10 – Advanced

See you on the ice!
-HOps (Matthew, Mark, John, Nichole, Kelli, Brian, Tim)

5Mar2017 Challenge Games

You must log in to sign up.

Bluega Whales v. GryffinDucks

The feature game last Sunday at Hartmeyer was the first real test of the first-place GryffinDucks. The team in maroon was without the league’s leading scorer, Chuck, who has 15 of the team’s 26 goals on the season. The Bluega Whale’s high-powered offense and solid defense was bolstered by the addition of Katy, the Flamer’s goalie, in net. If there was ever a matchup in which the league’s top team could look like an underdog, it was this one.

The opening minutes of the game tried to erase any doubt of maroon’s dominance. A few quality chances for the GryffinDucks had the Bluega Whales on their heels, unable to even exit their defensive zone until two minutes into the game.

That first zone exit would prove to be killer though. With the GryffinDucks caught in a delayed offside, Streicher was able to carry the puck all the way down the boards into the attacking zone. He attempted to pass to Ashleigh waiting in the low slot, but the pass was deflected into Ryan. Streicher picked up the rebound and maneuvered around the back of the net, just beating Ryan to the far post for a wraparound goal.

Streicher scored the game-winning goal to help the Bluega Whales take down the GryffinDucks #MGHA pic.twitter.com/Z5hnUBFINx

— MGHA Gifs (@MghaGifs) February 24, 2017

After the goal, the Bluega Whales stole the momentum. Scoring chances evened out over the rest of the first period. Ryan became a lot more athletic in goal and began trying to set up breakouts for the GryffinDucks. A failed breakout attempt though would lead to a second goal for the Bluega Whales. After Sebastian tried to wrap the puck around the boards from behind the net, Streicher activated from the point and again tried to center a pass. After a few bounces, the puck found its way back to Streicher, who lifted it over Ryan’s pads for his second of the game. The Bluega Whales entered the first intermission with a 2-0 lead.

The second period started strong for the GryffinDucks, but Katy proved to be up to the task. After a scary spell of zone time where Ryan had lost his stick, Anton and Libs created an excellent 2-on-1. Katy tracked it the whole way and was able to easily block the resulting shot. Shortly after, Dan generated a breakaway chance by catching the Bluega Whale defense standing still. Once again, Katy was there with a pad save to keep maroon off the board. Libs would get one more quality chance before the period was up, taking an offspeed shot from the low slot. Katy was able to get a piece of it with her pad and it trickled onto the line but not over. Against all odds, the second period ended scoreless.

The third period would be all Bluega Whales. Despite the best efforts of the GryffinDucks defense, Ryan would be tested multiple times by high danger shots. Eventually the Bluega Whales got one more on the board, thanks to a beutiful play by Ashleigh. She took a hard shot from the top of the right circle, and Ryan was unable to control the rebound. He attempted to stick the puck towards the boards, but Ashleigh was crashing the net and it bounced off her shin pad. She picked it up behind the net and ricocheted it off Ryan’s skate as he was retreating into the net. An unusual goal, but a goal nonetheless.

When the dust (snow?) settled, the Bluega Whales had stunned the GryffinDucks and earned a 3-0 victory, scoring as many goals on Ryan as he had allowed in the entire rest of the season. Katy recorded the first shutout against the GryffinDucks, stopping all 20 shots put against her. With their second loss, Ryan’s first, the GryffinDucks fell out of first place in the league, though still maintain the top spot in the East Conference. With the win, the Bluega Whales move into third in the West Conference, as they hope to use their last three games to edge out the Greyt White Sharks or Green Gays and Ham, who are currently tied for first.

Looking Ahead: Golden Skate Warriors v. Lean Mean Pink Machines

Ashleigh will look to bring her success back to the Golden Skate Warriors, who are within striking distance of third place in the East Conference. The Lean Mean Pink Machines will be hungry for their first win of the season, especially after the incredible game they played last week against the (now) first-place Green Gays and Ham. The last time these two teams met, the Golden Skate Warriors easily claimed a 6-0 victory. Don’t expect that to be the case this time around. Keep an eye on the Lean Mean Pink Machines to play spoiler and showcase just how far a team can come in a few short months. Celebrate your favorite team winning (or eat your feelings after a loss) at Shamrock, our social sponsor for the evening. See you on Sunday!

The New Black v. The Greyt White Sharks

(Watch the full game here)

Teams are really coming together at this point in the season and shoring up lines and pairings, but the subs really shined in this match-up between The Greyt White Sharks and The New Black.

The Greyt White Sharks took a page out of The New Black’s playbook and went for an early attack right off the opening faceoff. Miranda surprised Rob by winning the draw directly back to Amanda Forbes, who started a couple feet in front of her defensive blue line. Amanda streaked past Rob and The New Black defense and centered a pass to Miranda who was waiting at the back door. A timely stick lift from Kelli, who was on loan to The New Black from the Unforgivables, stopped Grey from breaking open the scoring.

Greyt White Sharks got off to an early start in their 2-1 victory over The New Black. pic.twitter.com/ksQvgbsHhz

— MGHA Gifs (@MghaGifs) February 9, 2017

You can see in this play how much The Greyt White Sharks have come together as a team over this season. Miranda wins the faceoff back to Amanda, who seemed to be planning to skate it forward (given her aggressive starting position). Nancy on right wing sees this and immediately falls back to cover Amanda’s open defensive spot. When Amanda enters the attacking zone, you can see Allison on the left wing look back to make sure k8 is covering left defense (instead of shifting over to cover right defense), giving her the all clear to continue deep into the zone behind Amanda. Rather than splitting the defense, Amanda pulls to the left, giving Miranda an opportunity to get to the back door. Luckily for The New Black, Kelli wasn’t pulled out of position and was able to notice Miranda sneaking in and lift her stick before she could receive the pass. This was an excellent offensive play and would’ve been a sure goal without someone as experienced as Kelli on defense.

And yes, this was all just the first 11 seconds of the game.

Kelli was not the only sub to impress for The New Black. Patrick, also subbing from The Unforgivables, went coast to coast to open the scoring and give The New Black a 1-0 lead. Coming off an icing call, John won the defensive zone draw and the puck made its way to Patrick in the slot. He used a bit a speed to get through the neutral zone and around one defender, taking a shot that just went a bit wide. His shot was hard enough though that it rebounded off the end boards. The Greyt White Shark defense was caught watching the puck, and Patrick was able to use his forward momentum to get to the puck and put the odd-angle shot past Kit, who was still coming across the crease.

The New Black looked to take that lead into the first intermission, but Greg would dash that dream with 29 seconds to go. Greg picked up the puck in the defensive zone and began to skate it along the boards. Patrick tried to step in to challenge, but Greg sped around him, leaving only Drew to contend with. Drew wasn’t able to force Greg far enough out of the center, and Greg’s shot ricocheted off of Andrew’s shoulder and in to tie the game at 1.

The second period would prove to be largely uneventful. The New Black’s defense was able to lock down and deny The Greyt White Sharks on some prime scoring chances. The increased focus on defense left them wanting for quality chances of their own, though.

Just 30 seconds into the third period, Greg would strike again. Jim did an excellent job to clear the zone and push the puck forward. Patrick corralled the puck just inside The New Black’s defensive zone, but his cross-ice-pass was read perfectly and picked off by Greg, who found himself all alone squaring off against Andrew. He made no mistake with his shot, and gave The Greyt White Sharks the lead 2-1.

Try as they might, The New Black was not able to get past the Grey defense. Patrick had the best chance to tie the game, but Kit was up to the task and made a fantastic blocker save off the shot from the right circle. Even with the goalie pulled, The New Black was unable to generate any more offense, and The Greyt White Sharks took the game 2-1.

The player on the ice that impressed the most was Dex, who was subbing for The Greyt White Sharks from The Flamers. Despite having to suit up with his own team immediately after this game, Dex was giving everything he had on the ice, generating multiple quality scoring chances. This game was a perfect example of how teams have locked down their systems, but also of how subs can still have a tremendous impact.

Looking Ahead: House of Blues v. The Flamers

House of Blues is looking to remain in sole possession second place in the Eastern Conference, but The Flamers can get a share of that spot with a win. The teams last faced each other in mid-December, with House of Blues claiming a 3-1 victory. Expect this game to be a closer than the last. The Flamers have found their scoring groove in the last few games and are backstopped by Katy with a 0.914 save percentage. The scoring has been streaky for House of Blues, but the triumphant return of Simon, who had 13 goals last season, may be just the spark they needed. As if that wasn’t enough excitement, there will be Girl Scout cookies on sale from 5:30-7pm! Don’t forget to join us at Dexter’s Pub, our social sponsor for the week, before or after the game.

This Sunday (February 5th) we have challenge games. These are scrimmage style for fun games where you can choose the general level of play that you can safely play in.

We ask that you only sign up for 1 game so that everyone can try to get a spot in a game they are interested in.

We will allow open spots to be filled after Saturday at 12 noon.

The games will be scheduled as follows:
4:40 – Intermediate
5:50 – Beginner
7:00 – Advanced
8:10 – Intermediate

Thanks and see you at the rink,
-HOps

5Feb2017 Challenge Games

You must log in to sign up.

Green Gays and Ham v. The Greyt White Sharks

(Watch the full game here)

Drama was the name of the game at Hartmeyer Arena on Sunday night, as the undefeated Green Gays and Ham squared off against a Greyt White Sharks team that had shutout its last two opponents.

The Greyt White Sharks won the opening draw, but after a failed zone entry it would be the Green Gays and Ham that earned the first bit of offensive pressure. The Grey defense did a good job of getting in the way of shots to keep Green from scoring early.

Grey would get a chance of their own off a center ice faceoff win. After a prolonged period of zone time, Green attempted to clear the puck down the center, but it was picked off by k8 who read the play beautifully. They skated into the high slot and attempted a quick shot before being taken out, but Greg picked up the puck and fired a hard shot at Mary. Not only was it a great save by Mary to keep the game scoreless, it was her 1000th save in the MGHA!

https://twitter.com/kcolelli/status/824094058175930369

Kit would make some stellar saves of her own later in the period. Less than 20 seconds after Mary’s save, Kit managed to keep her skate on the post while Courtney and other Green Gays jammed at the puck in the crease. Somehow Kit was able to hold her ground, and the Grey defense cleared the puck behind the net.

Courtney would find the back of the net soon enough though. With just under six minutes left in the period, she broke away from the Grey defense and got Kit to commit the butterfly before tucking the puck in behind Kit’s right leg. Kit’s bad luck would continue less than a minute later, when Claire took a shot from the high circle that just squeaked past Kit’s left pad and in to double Green’s lead.

Grey would attempt to get on the board themselves, with some great chances from Amanda Forbes and k8, but neither we be able to solve Mary’s goaltending quite yet. The first period would end 2-0 Green, but the game was more evenly matched than the score let on.

Grey would come out in the second period looking to get back in the game. Amanda would continue her strong assault on the net, even collecting her own rebound for another shot, but Mary continued to hold strong. Despite their lack of luck on offense, Grey got a bit lucky on defense. Justin broke away and was poised for a quality scoring chance, but lost the puck off his stick before he could take a shot on Kit.

Grey finally got on the board with just under seven minutes to go in the period. Amanda passed down low, and the puck trickled behind Mary but not over the goal line. Greg was there to poke it home for the first Grey goal. The rest of the period would be all Grey. A pair of goals, one shorthanded, would put then in the lead for the first time in the game. It was a lead they would not relinquish.

A beauty of a goal from Amanda would extend the lead to 4-2 four minutes into the third period. Mary was down on the ice after making the initial save, and Amanda picked up the puck behind the net and lifted it to go bar down.

The goalies would really step up at this point. With Grey catching Green on a bad line change, Mary made an excellent pad save then leaped out of the crease to cover the puck and allow her team to reset. Kit made a few pad saves to preserve Grey’s lead, but Green would get one back after Claire capitalized on Amanda catching an edge.

The final two minutes were nail-biters. With Amanda catching another edge, this time it was Courtney who got a chance, but she shot high and wide. Mary would skate to the bench for the extra attacker, and Green almost tied it up, but an amazing block from k8 in the waning seconds clinched the win for the Greyt White Sharks. The win gave them a share of the league league, and the defeat of Green Gays and Ham leaves no more undefeated teams in the league. Stars of the game in my opinion are Claire for her two goals and k8 for their amazing defense.

Looking Ahead: The New Black v. The Greyt White Sharks

The last time these two teams met, the Greyt White Sharks skated away with a narrow 1-0 victory. Both teams have shown they are capable of high scoring games, so it seems that strong defense will prevail. This game could really go either way, but I’m giving the edge to the Greyt White Sharks after the incredible defensive showing from k8 and Amanda. The New Black may want to watch last week’s game and take notes. Join us on Sunday at Hartmeyer Arena at 7pm to catch the action. We will be joined by Community Sponsor GSAFE, and will celebrate the day at Shamrock, our Social Sponsor for the weekend.