Spring Season - Week Thirteen - April 27th

9:00 PM Finals Game 1: Emaan (Orange) vs Ridha (Blue):

Welcome to the 2018 I-Slam Hockey Spring Season Finals. With eight teams and two different conferences, this was the hardest season to win the I-Slam cup. Emerging out of the Mecca conference is Emaan. It is often said that first impressions can be nearly impossible to reverse or undo and they set the tone for what follows. Well for every rule there is an exception; after losing their first game of the season to Yaqeen 6-0, Emaan found a way to learn from their mistakes and give credit to them as they were able to figure things out. This team has really reflected this saying, “the only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing.” Coming out of the Medina conference is Ridha. The consensus coming out of the draft was the gm pair of Mohammad Bilal and Shaukat Khan were the most offensively skilled. What people did not see coming was the point productions this season from Black Panther, Abdu Sharkawy and Shehryar Khan (all finishing top 5 in scoring). Credit to Bilal and Khan for getting the most out of these players and putting them in an environment to thrive.

How will these finals shake out? Offense, Ridha has a clear advantage. Not only did they score the most goals out of the eight teams during the season but also their opponents, Emaan has no one in the top ten in scoring. On the defensive side Ridha’s key cogs are Farrukh Khan, Shehryar Khan, and Shaukat Khan whom I would take over Emaan’s Mohammed Hamoud, Humza Hussain and Rayhan Malik. In net, Ali Khwaja (Ridha) has out-performed Kaunain Saiyed (Emaan) in all major goaltending categories throughout the year. So, with the better offense, the better defense and the stronger tender all signs point to Ridha being crowned the 2018 I-Slam Hockey champions. Not so fast! I am actually rolling with Emaan… The more cohesive team is Emaan and many of this group knows what it takes to conquer the summit (see here). During the season, Emaan torched Ridha for four goals back in February. Expect a tight battle between these two teams but when the pressure gets turned up, Emaan has been there and done that, making them better equip (in comparison to Ridha) to overcome any situation.

Spring Season - Week Twelve - April 20th

9:00 PM Medina Conference Championship: Sabr (yellow) vs Ridha (blue):
The team that finished first in the Medina conference is 30 minutes away from being sent home if they are unable to score one more goal than Ridha tonight. Ridha has defeated Sabr in back to back weeks (Week 10 by a 4-0 score & Game One of this Series 2-1) and in the process holding the team boasting the league’s top two scorers to just one goal. One way to stop Waqar Khan and Yousuf Sowdagar is not to let them shoot. That is exactly what happened last week as Sabr was held to a dismal offensive output of just seven shots. If Ridha can repeat this performance then by the end of the night they will come out as the Medina Conference Champion and advance to the finals. As well, if Ridha gets the first goal, it is hard to see Sabr winning this game. For Sabr, it would appear that they need to get more shots on net. While that would be nice, I think their focus should be on defense. Last week, Ibad Khan faced 21 shots only surrendering goals to Mohammad Bilal and Shaukat Khan. His performance was great but tonight he needs to be almost perfect - if not 100% perfect. As the first goalie selected in the draft these are the type of games where he needs to be the first, second and third star. Sabr would be wise to check Bilal and Khan more tightly this game and see if the others on Ridha can score against Ibad Khan. If this plays out, I got my money on Ibad shutting the door long enough for Sabr’s dynamic duo to do their thing.

10:00 PM Mecca Conference Championship: Shukr (red) vs Emaan (orange):
Just like the Medina conference, a similar storyline is unfolding in the Mecca conference – Top-ranked Shukr is 30 minutes away from having their season come to an end. Last week, they lost Game One of this series 3-1 with all three of Emaan’s goals coming off the stick of Osama Soliman. In fact Osama Soliman was a man among boys scoring whenever and however he wanted which included a tremendous shorthanded effort. You can anticipate Shukr will be paying closer attention to him tonight, which puts the pressure on the rest of the Emaan forwards to step up. In fact, Yousuf Soliman had two goals last week in his team’s 3-1 wildcard win over Yaqeen and is definitely another player that can keep the Shukr defense honest. If you are rooting for Emaan then you have to be concerned with their lack of discipline shown last week. Rayhan Malik took three penalties and was automatically ejected and Mohammed Hamoud took an unnecessary unsportsmanlike conduct infraction that gave Shukr a chance to tie the game. If you continue to play with fire, eventually you will get burned. Actually, that is what happened last week as Shukr’s lone goal came via the power play off the stick of Maaz Haq. That was pretty much the lone highlight for them as they looked lifeless for the rest of the game. Not sure what it was, but Shukr did not resemble anything close to the team that finished first overall in the entire league during the regular season. Maaz Haq and more-so goaltender, Fahad Mohammad have had back-to-back stellar regular seasons but have yet to win a game during the playoffs. If they want to take the next step then the two need to figure out a way to get it done in the playoffs. As for the rest of the Shukr team, they absolutely need to pay more attention to Osama Soliman and try to get a better start in the first half.

Spring Season - Week Eleven - April 13th

8:00 PM- Yaqeen (white) vs Emaan (orange):
The winner of this game will go on to face Shukr (red) in game 1 of the semi-finals later tonight. Yaqeen won the season series 1-0-1 against Emaan. However, you could probably toss the first meeting between these teams out as it was back in Week 1 (Yaqeen thrash Emaan 6-0). Tonight’s contest will probably follow a long in a similar fashion to their most recent meeting where the game ended in a 2-2 draw. In fact, in that game, Emaan were moments away from emerging as 2-1 victors had it not been for Azhar Kalair saving his team with 12 seconds remaining. Yasir Hussain (goaltender for Yaqeen) was tested a lot during this game and did well, turning aside 21 of the 23 shots he faced that night. If Emaan is able to generate the same amount of shots one would have to assume at least one of the following names will factor in on the scoring play: Yousuf Soliman, Hany Soliman, Osama Soliman or Mohammed Hamoud. Assuming this is the case the pressure will fall on Yasir Hussain to produce a similar if not better performance in comparison to the last time these two teams met up.

9:00 PM-Ridha (blue) vs Haya (grey):
The winner of this game will go on to face Sabr (yellow) in game 1 of the semi-finals later tonight. Ridha won the season series 2-0 versus Haya, outscoring them 6-2 in the process. In both of those games Ibrahim Hindy was not in the lineup for Haya. No doubt he can make a difference but the question remains is he enough for Haya to get their first victory over Ridha? Personally, I do not think so. Look no further than the last time these two teams played. Ridha scored 4 goals in the first half and cruised to a 4-2 victory. What was impressive was they won without Shaukat Khan, Farrukh Khan, and Abdu Sharkawy. Logic says this is Ridha’s game to lose but I wouldn’t count Haya out yet. For Haya their playoffs started last week with a 4-3 win over Ihsan. A clutch performance resulting in four different goal scorers- Abdul-Wahab Mohammad, Farooq Sani, Arif Khan and Sahil Mohammad. Momentum is definitely on Haya’s side. If they are able to get the first goal and ride the high they are on from last week this would put Ridha in some serious hot water.

10:00 PM- Shukr (red) vs winner of Yaqeen/Emaan:
A fresh Shukr will take on a weary Yaqeen or Emaan team working on an hour rest. They won the season series versus Yaqeen 2-0 and against Emaan 1-0-1. For Shukr the major storyline is whether or not Maaz Haq and goaltender Fahad Mohammad can shake off last season’s playoff failure and breakthrough for the finals. It is now time to see if they can take the next step. This will be game one of the semi-finals with game two scheduled for April 20th.

11:00 PM- Sabr (yellow) vs winner of Ridha/Haya:
A well-rested Sabr will go up against a tired Ridha or Haya group. Both potential matches are intriguing- Sabr tied the season series with both teams. Against Haya, Sabr scored 3 goals and conceded 5 goals. Versus Ridha, Sabr scored 4 goals and gave up 6 goals against. Both Ridha and Haya were able to keep Sabr’s dynamic duo of Waqar Khan and Yousuf Sowdagar in addition to the rest of the high powered Sabr offense off the scoresheet. The big headline we will be following with Sabr is whether or not Waqar (Boom-Boom) Khan can make it back to back to back championships. For sure no easy task and for it to happen Khan will most likely need to take his game up to the next level… perhaps even capture Playoff MVP honours, something he did not accomplish the past two seasons.

Spring Season - Week Ten - April 6th

8:00 PM: Haya (Grey) vs Ihsan (Teal):
After a week off what a way to get back into things. This is for sure the must-see-game of the night. What is at stake is the last and final remaining spot for the 2018 I-Slam Hockey Playoffs. Ihsan needs to outright win this game to qualify whereas Haya just can’t lose (meaning a tie will suffice). The last time these times met Haya came flying out of the gates and took a 4-0 lead into the second half. Ihsan though did battle back and scored three goals in the second half in a valiant attempt to make an impressive comeback. Circumstances for tonight is a lot different. Two weeks ago both Ihsan’s Ahmad Mobin and Haya’s Shuaib Hussein both left their respective games with a lower body injury. Given the magnitude of this game both gms aren’t revealing much. Nonetheless, one of these teams can pack away their equipment until Salaam Cup after this game.

9:00 PM: Ridah (Blue) vs Sabr (Yellow):
In Week 9, Imran Lakhanpal scored the goal to send Ridha to the playoffs. Now they await the winner of the Haya-Ihsan game to see who their wildcard opponent will be. It would appear that this game is not significant for Ridha but it would be good for them psychologically to prove to themselves that they can beat Sabr as the path to the I-Slam Cup runs through them (Note: Ridha lost to Sabr in Week 4, 4-2). For Sabr, we will be watching to see if Waqar Khan can win the double-crown, winning both the overall scoring race and as well as the top goal-scorer award. A rare feat and quite the accomplishment which will most likely also earn him Regular Season MVP honours. As well their goaltender, Ibad Khan can make a stronger argument for The Best Goaltender Award with a win and possibly finish as the leader in this category (amongst goalies). Lastly, finishing first overall out of the eight teams does come with its perks, such as being the home team throughout the playoffs and getting the last change - an advantage for teams that look to line-match.

10:00 PM: Ikhlas (Green) vs Yaqeen (White):
Team Ikhlas knew for a few weeks now that this will be their last day. In Week 9 they showed that they weren’t just going to mail it in but rather enjoy the moment, battling hard with Emaan for a 3-3 tie. With rumours swirling of a potential Mecca vs Medina allstar game this is the last opportunity for the Ikhlas players to make the case that they belong in that game. With regards to Yaqeen it is all about getting some momentum heading into their wildcard game against Emaan next week. You do not want to be doubting yourself at this time of the year.

11:00 PM: Shukr (Red) vs Emaan (Orange):
Emaan knows next week they will be facing Yaqeen in the wildcard game with the winner facing Shukr in a best of 2 semi-final series. Akin to Ridha’s situation at 9 pm, Emaan could put some fear into the hearts of Shukr and give them something to think about next week by beating them. Also, similar to Yaqeen, you want to be firing on all cylinders heading into the playoffs. With the recent addition of Sajid Khan, this game does allow Emaan to help integrate him into the lineup in perfect timing for the playoffs. For Shukr, beating Emaan tonight would give them a huge mental advantage should these teams meet in the semi-finals. Consider it as winning the war before it even starts. Let’s also not forget depending on the results of the 9 pm game, Shukr might be playing for first overall in the entire league. On an individual note, if Shukr is able to win there would be a strong case for their goaltender, Fahad Mohammad to win The Best Goaltender Award as he would lead the league in sv%, gaa and wins. Perhaps even Regular Season MVP?