Ben Bobick Tom Sheetz

Zack Wahal

Matt Musiol

Neil Murray

The FHL would like to introduce a new part-time writer for the website, Bill Kostkas. Bill is a 2007 grad of Steel Valley and currently attends Slippery Rock where he contributes to their school newspaper. He also operates a blog called 'The Barstool". We're excited to have him on board. With the Franklin Hockey League trading deadline looming on us this Friday, not much action is expected to hit the wire. I’m here to remind everyone that there is a good chance that is far from the truth. Last year, just 6 minutes prior to the 11 p.m. deadline, the Hawks and the Pirates made FHL history with the league’s only deadline deal. The Pirates sent Jeff Rogers and Dan Rojtas to the Hawks for Shane Lucas, Brian Hreha and Drew Hruska. The bargaining chip n the deal was Hruska, who ended up finishing sixth in the FHL in points (37), fourth in assists (19) and eighth in goals (18). The trade was effective for the Pirates, who went 6-2 after the trade, propelling them into the FHL Championship, where they lost to the Jets. Unfortunately the trade wasn’t effective for the Hawks, who lost six of seven games after the trade, winning only one game against Bishop Boyle due to forfeit. Two members of the Kings, Zack Wahal and Mike Stadleman will be expected to be big targets come Friday. The Kings currently sit in last place, and will be looking to do anything possible to improve their chances down the stretch. Rojtas might be on the move for the second year in a row. The Crosby's have made it known that they would be interested in acquiring more depth if the right opportunity presented itself. A move for Wahal, Stadleman or Rojtas would make the most sense in terms of getting back depth and talent. Don’t be surprised if the Crosby's keep to their word, because they have already made noise on the trade market. They previously acquired Hruska, Ryan Marino and Buddy Doyle. Underachieving Bishop Boyle now sits at 4-9, their worst record in franchise history. Captain Brian Grise has been known to be very active on the market. Earlier in the year they brought in Adam Pander, Mark Fetsko and Thomas Sheetz. A few names that might have popped up on Boyle’s radar are Brian Hreha, who has had a sub-par season thus far, and Jason Kortz, who hasn’t put up first round numbers as he was expected. Either move would be great value for Boyle. Since each team makes the playoffs in the FHL format, any deal that will be made by Friday’s 11 p.m. deadline will be strictly for playoff position. When the actual playoffs start in a few weeks, we will see who were the winners at the deadline, and who were the losers.

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Crosby's: 9-3 (29-21) vs. Jets: 8-4 (28-17)

This clash of the Titans is set to go at 11:00am this week, as the Jets, who are coming off a bad 3-0 sweep from the middle of the pack Pirates, look to get back on track against the Crosby’s. The usually high powered offense of the Jets led by Brian Barca, only got one goal in game two from Jason Kortz, his 8th of the season. Crosby’s are still rolling coming off a 3-1 series win against the undermanned Kings, in which they lost game 1 and went on to win three straight, including a 1-0 overtime victory in game 3. Defenseman Mike Cullen, notched the winner. All-time point leader Brian Barca needs 4 goals to become the first player ever in the Franklin Hockey League to score 100 career goals. Crosby’s will be without forwards Roy McDonald and Andrew Hruska. Cristallini Prediction: Jets win in 5 games Pirates: 5-7 (22-26) vs. Moose: 9-3 (32-16) Last week, it took the Moose 2 whole games in which they won 1-0 each time, to realize that, “ Hey, there’s no one else out there but us”, before they turned the turbo on against Bishop Boyle. The Moose scored 6 goals in game three as they routed the depleted Lancers. Jeff Pingor continued to stay hot, contributing to half of his team’s total of 8, and he also added 2 more assists. The rest of the Moose are really benefiting from his style of play and the intensity he’s brought each week. It’s hard not to say they will be riding him through the playoffs in May. The Pirates are still playing mediocre hockey, playing good one week and not showing the other. A little bit of bad blood has started a nice rivalry between these two teams since Pingor and Tony Bonacorso were in each other’s throats a several weeks back. Having carried over to this week is yet to be seen. And whatever Pirate team shows up will have a major impact on the decision. Cristallini Prediction: Moose win in 4 games Kings: 2-10 (13-32) vs. Bishop Boyle: 3-9 (16-28) Well, well, well. Look what we got here. It’s the 2:00pm game and the bottoms feeder will be the top game this week. The Kings take on the hapless Bishop Boyle Lancers. A combined record of 5-19 is fitting for these two teams, since they clearly have no offense or defense. Both teams have scored a total of 67 and have given up a whopping 125. It is still a question if enough BBL players will show up. The Kings hope they do and are playing desperate hockey. Still, without Mike Stadelman and Zack Wahal absent from the team, Ryan Stottlemeyer and Adam Cristallini will have to continue to lead the way on offense. Thomas Sheetz and Brian Grise share the team lead in goals for Boyle with 10 a piece. Cristallini Prediction: Kings win in 4 games Goalie Report New FHL Goaltender Rick Severa showed dominance last week, while in Craig Hixon's absence, Dave Gilson and Jeff Rogers filled in. Week Twelve Results: Jeff Rogers: 1-3 (0-0 Season) Dave Gilson: 2-4 (7-10 Season) Rick Severa: 7-3 (14-7 Season) DNP Craig Hixon: (45-34 Season) Jamie Zelena: (2-3 Season) Mr. Meade: (9-4 Season) Jeff Pingor: 0-0 (6-2 Season) Brian Barca: 0-0 (1-4 Season) Weather Report Not as hot as last week, but sunny, High of 58 degrees.

The Commissioners Corner is a weekly segment where FHL commissioner John George talks with some of the leagues top stars. This weeks piece is with Crosby’s star forward Roy McDonald. McDonald currently ranks 5th all-time in career points (104) and is the reigning goal scoring champion and MVP candidate. He came to the Crosby’s in a waiver draft during the 2007-2008 season and was re-drafted the following season in the 2nd round. He was the Crosby’s franchise player for this season and is an alternate captain.

Roy, you just became the 5th player in FHL history to score 100 career points, what does that mean to you? It means a lot. I love playing for the Crosby’s. Anything I can do to help them win. You guys are off to a 9-3 start, the best in franchise history. Are you guys a legitimate title contender? We have a very balanced squad this year, better than the last two years. We have solid depth on offense in myself and Drew (Hruska), and the emergence of (Drew) Blasko and (Ryan) Marino make a great 2nd line. And we have the deepest defense in the league I think with Buddy (Doyle), (Dave) Gilson, (John) George, and Brick (Mike Cullen). And Tom (Cunningham) also is a great depth guy that can step in on either O or D. I don’t think any team will want to play us come playoff time. What team is the biggest threat to you guys? I think anytime you talk threat in the FHL, the Jets come to mind. You cant ignore (Brian) Barca. The guy just wins and puts up insane numbers all the time. They would be the last team I want to see in the playoffs. Favorite NHL player? Sidney Crosby Favorite FHL player? Buddy Doyle Favorite line mate? If I had to choose one guy to play with it would be Mitch, but me and Drew are developing great chemistry. Player you hate playing against the most? Gilson, glad he’s a Crosby. - - - - - Career of Roy McDonald:

• Came into the FHL as a a waiver draft pick, by the Crosby's during the 2007-08 season.
• Scored 14 goals and added 10 assists for the Crosby's during the 07-08 campaign.
• After not being franchised, the Crosby's managed to draft him 10th overall during the 2008 FHL Draft.
• During the 2008-09 FHL Season, McDonald scored a league best 36 goals and added 15 assists, totaling 51 points, good enough for third in the league.
• He was franchised by the Crosby's at the end of the 2008-09 Season.
• Currently has 20 Goals and 9 Assists for the Crosby's in the 2009-10 Season.
• Scored his 100th Career Point on a slap shot goal during the 2nd game of a four game series, as the Crosby's defeated the Kings 3-1 on 3/20/10.

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