Spring Season - Week Fifteen - April 27th Championship Friday!

9:00pm: Ikhlas vs Shukr

One game remains. One game to take all the marbles. Ikhlas is simply coming in hot. Everything is on point for them. Passing. Shooting. Defensive Coverage. GM Zubair Wahid has pretty much solidified his bid for Playoffs MVP as his move from defence to offence has helped spark this offence. His play, although sometimes it does not show on the stat sheet, it has helped set up many goals this postseasons. The man himself Mr Toots, Zaid Toorawa after getting a stern talking to from Coach K, scored a nifty power play goal from the point to open the scoring in game 1. After that, Ikhlas looked composed and in control for the rest of the game. Sufyan Shaikh scored 2 goals to end game 1. Luqman Arshad is looking to avoid another finals meltdown, where last season he lost in shootout of game 2 of the finals. His game plan has worked brilliantly as Ikhlas’ chip and chase and neutral zone trap tired out Shukr in Game 1. Shukr looked disappointing in game 1 only mustering 6 shots on net. Getting on the board off of a soft roller from youngster Tayyab Kalair. This team has the offence and the defence. The GMs are known to come through in big moments like these. They just need to execute. They have 2 full lines of offence, but have not run away with games this season as analysts have predicted. Arslan Mian has been disappointing since the mid season trade and it looks like he needs to play with Humza Chaudhry more to get his spark going. Game 2. Erfan Bhanapatel coming off a 4 goal game was shut out. One would expect that the Shukr GMs know Imran Alvi’s weaknesses well as the goalie has played with the Greenbirds in tier 3 and last year’s Salaam Cup. But nothing has been shown for. Expect a different type of game this time around from Shukr. Can Osman Buttar finally add the ISlam cup to his championship repertoire or will the Ikhlas’ potent all around game be too much to handle. 9pm. Friday.

Prediction: Shukr wins Game 2 but Ikhlas will take the game in Overtime and become Winter 2019 Champions. 

Spring Season - Week Fourteen - April 20th Finals!

9:00 pm: Ikhlas vs Shukr

Shutdown Huzaifa Panchbhaya and Rahman Rana - CHECK

Shutdown Humza Ali and Maaz Haq - CHECK

Next Challenge. Shutdown Humza Chaudhry and Erfan Bhanapatel. Ikhlas comes in guns a-blazing, defeating challenge after challenge. Rolling into the finals after dethroning the 2018 Fall champions in overtime. Some say it was a lucky goal by Tahir Mahrouf, but in the end, it doesn’t matter. Haya wasn’t going to let this be an easy victory as they peppered Imran Alvi with 15 shots after only registering 4 shots in game one. Humza Ali tapped in a loose ball with 2 seconds left to force overtime, but Ikhlas prevailed. Zaid Toorawa had an immaculate chance in ending Hayas season on a breakaway with less than 60 seconds to play in the 2nd period but couldn’t control the ball as it ultimately got away from him. Safe to say, after the stern talking from Coach K, Zaid’s antics will be on a short leash for the championship games. Ikhlas knows all about winning, as this team is constructed with multiple pool A salaam cup champions and I-Slam champions. The key for Ikhlas in game 1 is to simply keep doing what they have been doing. Keep clogging up the neutral zone, and nullify the speed of Shukr. It’s worked so far. Since the trade went down and subsequently moving Zubair Wahid up to offence, this team has just taken off. Abu Manjra has taken his game to the next level totalling 4 points in the last 2 games. On the opposite side, Shukr is rolling with ease into the finals. Cruising by Yaqeen 4-1 in the wild card game, and just dismantling the offence of Ihsan by a score of 5-2. Shukr has outscored its opponents 10-3 in the playoffs. This savvy group of players turn the notch a level higher when it comes to playoff hockey. Sleeper pick Erfan Bhanapatel, who was called out by analysts, responded in a huge manner as he picked up 4!!! Goals last game. Shukr has it all. Offence. Defence. Goaltending. This offense runs through the young stud Humza Chaudhry who has finally taken his game to the next level. This kid is simply amazing to watch. Buttery smooth with his execution, he is leading the playoffs with 7 points (3G 4A). If he continues to drive the ball like has the past few games, Shukr will break the unstoppable defensive core of Ikhlas. Although offense is where this team shines, the defence has been rock solid as Osman Buttar and Ali Wadee have played most of their minutes here, and they’re strong play help shut down the leagues best offense in Ihsan. But probably the most surprising is the play of goalie Yasir Hussain, who has put forth his best season in years. This will be one hell of a championship series. 2 Wild Card Teams. Married at the hip from the huge mid season trade. It has all come full circle. Will the championship experience of Shukr be too much for Ikhlas to handle? Or will Ikhlas continue its Cinderella story and dismantle another high-octane offence. Find out Friday – 9pm.

Spring Season - Week Thirteen - April 13th Semi-Finals!

9:00 pm: Ihsan vs Shukr
Game One was a barn burner.  Two evenly matched veteran teams going at it.  Game 2 is going to be even better - probably the game of the season. Shukr’s offence runs through the young phenom Humza Chaudhry, when he is on his A-game, this team is rolling. Chaudhry was everywhere last game, setting up the tying goal on the power play, feeding Ali Wadee to tie it up 1-1 with about 6 min left to play. But he can not do it all, and this game truly will come down to which team’s secondary scoring does its magic. As much firepower and savvy veterans that Shukr has, 41% of its goals have come from it’s GMs. Erfan Bhanapatel, Arslan Mian who have played in big games before have to rise to the occasion and put some into the net. Ihsan, getting a surprise goal from Hannan Ghafoor early in the 1st period, couldn’t muster a goal after that. Although they had quite a few chances after and even had an amazing opportunity in the dying seconds of the game. Arif Bijabhai needs to get open and utilize his big shot, which we haven’t seen in a while. The experience of Razi Ahmed, Farooq Khan, Moe Bilal know how to handle Shukr and I expect them to have a huge game. If they continue putting pressure on Yasir Hussain, and stay out of the box(Razi Ahmed...) then this game is theirs for the taking. The secondary scoring of Ihsan, has had more success this season and that is where this game will be won. This is a winner take all game, whoever wins is off to the finals.

Prediction: Ihsan wins


10:00 pm: Ikhlas vs Haya
Ikhlas is for real. The depth is for real. They just neutralized Haya in ways not seen before. Ikhlas rolled past Haya by a score of 3-1. Just like with Ridha before, they clogged up the neutral zone and nullified the speed of Humza Ali and Maaz Haq. Haya’s only goal came off of a lucky bounce in which Imran Alvi thought he had the ball covered up but the ref did not see it and Dawood poked the ball in. The defending champions seemed lost out last game generating only 4 SHOTS!!!! What is happening with this squad? Haya needs to come out guns blazing utilizing its offence that it is known for. Expect a stacked line of Haq, Ali and Dawood Ciombar. For Ikhlas, they need to utilize the same game plan that’s been working for them the past few games, going back to the regular season. First Overall pick Abu Manjra, finally had a massive game picking up 2 goals. But Ikhlas’ defence was the theme of game 1.  Will Haya figure out a way to solve the defence of Ikhlas, or will Ikhlas be too much and punch its ticket to the championship?  Based on what Ikhlas did when they executed the gameplan of Coach K it doesn't look like Haya - or whoever Ikhlas will face in the finals has much of a chance.

Prediction; Ikhlas wins

Spring Season - Week Twelve - April 6th Semi-Finals!

9pm – Shukr V Ihsan

On to the final four. This matchup is a classic throwback to the Rink City Tier 1 days, as these GM trios have faced each other numerous times over the years. Ihsan, comes in on fire!!!!! Winning it’s last 4 of 5. In which Zayd Agjee has only let in 5 goals. This team led by the slick defensemen Razi Ahmed, the unstoppable Farooq Khan and the high flying Moe Bilal. They have built a team that is all about offence. Both Razi and Farooq sit 1 and 2 on the scoring leaderboard with 20 and 19 points each. The offence was on display in its purity in the 9-2 drubbing of Emaan, where Razi picked up 7 points and Farooq – 6 points. For Ihsan to win this series, they need more than for the GMs to show up. The secondary scoring from Ajmaal Esmatyar, Imran Lakhanpal and Abraar Gangat need to come in bunches here. For as high octane as this offence is, they tend to play lazy and the back-check is where this team needs to improve or else the experience of Shukr will burn them. Shukr showed its prowess last week as they just steamrolled Yaqeen to a 4-0 win. Humza Chaudhry finally had a break out game as his hat trick led the way. GM’s Osman Buttar and Ali Wadee both chipped in with a couple of assists each. For Shukr to continue winning, Humza needs to be scoring. This is one of those series you don’t want to miss. Expect GMs from both sides to log heavy minutes in this game. Will the scoring champ Razi Ahmed lead his team to another victory, or will the experience of Osman Buttar and Ali Wadee be too much. 

Leading Scorers:

Ihsan - Razi Ahmed (5G 15A – 20P), Farooq Khan (7G 10A-17P)

Shukr - Osman Buttar (2G 13A – 15P), Ali Wadee (2G 8A-10P)

Who's Hot: 

Ihsan - Razi Ahmed (5G 15A – 20P), Farooq Khan (7G 10A-17P)

Shukr - Osman Buttar (Playoffs 3A-3P), Humza Chaudhry (Playoffs 3G-3P)

Who's Not:

Ihsan – Umaar Panchbaya (2G 5A – 7P), Adeel Awan (0G 3A – 3P)

Shukr – Abdur Buttar (0P), Tayyab Kalair (0P)

Analyst Prediction: Shukr Wins Game One

10pm – Ikhlas v Haya

Ikhlas won a thriller last week in overtime. The depth of this squad is just unreal. It was too much for the Malton Kids to handle as Ikhlas won 3-2 via an Overtime goal from Akib Malik, that was reminiscent of the goal he scored for Green Army to secure the Salaam Cup Championship in 2015. Two of Ikhlas’ three goals came from the new guys, Sufyaan Sheikh and Zaid Toorawa. Loaded with Zubair Wahid, Luqman Arshad and Mohammed Hamoudi, they face yet another fast team. Haya comes in with young GM’s Humza Ali, Maaz Haq and Fahad Mohammed. This team is very similar to the team that won the championship last season. But the one that thing that is troubling is the lack of time played for certain players. Maaz has barely played this season in what analysts are saying “Load Management” but the likely reason is because he is hiding an injury. This Load Management stuff is going to haunt this team going into this game as they looked shaky in their last game losing 3-1 to none other than Ikhlas. 13 of its 23 goals have come from Maaz, Humza and Dawood. There just is no secondary scoring here. If Ikhlas plays the trap game like they did last week, Haya is in for a rude awakening. Sulemaan Bhatti has been non existent this season after being in the top 5 of scoring last season. Is it a sophomore slump? Or was last season a fluke because he was paired with Maaz. Ikhlas will look to continue its Cinderella story or will Maaz finally break out and take over like he did last season. 

Leading Scorers: 

Haya - Humza Ali (6G 8A – 14P)

Ikhlas - Zubair Wahid (8G 6A – 14P)

Who's Hot:

Haya - Humza Ali (6G 8A – 14P), Maaz Haq (4G 6A – 10P)

Ikhlas - Akib Malik (Playoffs – 1G), Zaid Toorawa (Playoffs-1G)

Who's Not:

Haya - Sulemaan Bhatti (1G 4A-5P), Farrukh Khan (1G 2A – 3P)

Ikhlas – Luqman Arshad (1G 2A – 3P), Abdur-Rahim Manjra (1G 6A- 7P)

Analyst Prediction: Ikhlas wins Game One

Spring Season - Week Eleven - March 29th Playoffs!

Week Eleven kicks off the QuarterFinal games:

9pm: Shukr vs Yaqeen A wild card matchup for the ages. Greenbirds vs. Malton Slappers. As we have seen in previous Salaam Cup matchups, the Greenbirds have always come out on top. Shukr will look to replicate the success of years past, but the team has looked shaky since the acquisition of Arslan Mian and Abdur Buttar. Shukr has tied its last 3 games and in all 3 games looked like they were destined to lose if it were not for some late game heroics. Shukr needs its young guns to step up as Humza Chaudhry and Arslan Mian have been held pointless since the trade went down, where usually these two are unstoppable when playing together. We all know what to expect from veterans Osman Buttar, Ali Wadee and Rizwan Kalair, and much of it was on display last week as they scored a nifty goal in the dying seconds of the game to tie it up against the lowly Emaan. These veterans will log most of the minutes and as we have seen quite often, these are the guys to have on when the game matters the most. On the other side, we have the old veterans from Malton who analysts have wondered if they even have what it takes to compete. They are old. They are slow. But what they lack in age and speed, they make up in experience. Led by powerhouses Adil Patel and Emmad Khawaja, this team is trending down going into the playoffs, as they are 1-1-1 in their last 3 games. Goalie Mohammed Khandwala needs to step up big to save this team as he needs to post a better than 2.88 GAA season average to advance into the playoffs. The #2 overall pick Mohammed Kazi has been a disappointment as he only has 2 goals this season. Yaqeen needs a big game from him. Another hidden gem has been Mohammed “Dippy” Patel as analysts have raved about his vision and smarts for the game along with a big booming shot. Can Humza and Arslan rekindle their magic in order to make the playoffs, or will Yaqeen finally get a big game from Kazi and help lift them into the next round.

Leading Scorers:
Shukr - Osman Buttar – 2G 13A – 15 Points
Yaqeen - Emmad Khawaja - 14 Points

Who’s Hot:
Shukr- Osman Buttar (2G 13A – 15P), Ali Wadee (2G 8A-10P)
Yaqeen - Adil Patel (5G 6A – 11P), Ihtisham Qureshi (5G 6A -11P)

Who’s Not:
Shukr - Humza Chaudhry (4G 2A – 6P), Arslan Mian (4G 3A – 7P)
Yaqeen- Mohammed Kazi (2G 7A – 9P), Yasser Habib (1G 1A – 2P)

Samad Prediction; Shukr Advances


10pm: Ridha vs Ikhlas
They were touted as the GM’s to not make the playoffs. They were not even prepared at the draft. Somehow, the kids from Malton have made a massive dent on the I-Slam hockey scene as the 3 young GM’s Rahman Rana, Huzaifah Panchbhaya and Sufyan Kazi have made this team a must-watch every Friday. This team has lost the last 3 out 4 games after starting the season off winning 4 of the first 6. But expect them to come in guns ablazing this Friday as this team is full of speed and snipers. This was evident in the 5-0 romping of lowly Sabr last week. One surprise addition has been the emergence of Farhan Saleh on the defensive end, if this team goes deep he is going to be a lock for defenceman of the year. Expect heavy minutes from the GM’s and defenceman Salman Khalid and Farhan Saleh. While no one can match Ridha’s speed, Ikhlas brings depth that no other team can match. Led by GM’s Luqman Arshad and Zubair Wahid, this team has been locked in since the trade for Sufyaan Sheikh and Zaid Toorawa winning its last 3 games with only giving up 1 goal each game. Rumours are that the Montreal Legend Zubair Wahid will miss this game to play in his brother’s tournament in Montreal, and that will be a huge blow as last season’s Defenceman of the year has been there best player this season. #1 overall pick Abu Manjra has been a huge letdown as his 1 goal in 9 games has made him seem non existent this season. Ikhlas needs Abu to step up and give it his all in this elimination game. Can Luqman lead his boys (and family) back to the promise-land or will the young kids from Malton use their speed to take over.

Leading Scorers:
Ridha – Omar Husain (2G 10A – 12P)
Ikhlas – Zubair Wahid (8G 6A – 14P)

Who’s Hot:
Ridha - Huzaifah Panchbaya (7G 5A – 12P), Rahman Rana (5G 6A – 11P)
Ikhlas - Zubair Wahid (8G 6A – 14P), Tahir Maarouf (2G 6A – 8P)

Whos Not:
Ridha - Salman Khalid (0G 3A – 3P), Umar Mahmood (1G 0A – 1P)
Ikhlas – Luqman Arshad (1G 2A – 3P), Abdur-Rahim Manjra (1G 6A- 7P)

Samad Prediction; Ridha Advances

Spring Season - Week Ten - March 22nd

8:00 PM: Ihsan (5-2-2) vs Yaqeen (4-3-2) 

	Ihsan	Yaqeen
League Rank	2nd	4th
Division	1st in Medina	2nd in Medina
Week 3 Score:	4	1
Goals Scorers in W3:	Imran Lakhanpal (2) Mohammad Bilal (1) Razi Ahmed (1)	Azhar Kalair (1)
Total PIMs in W3	2	0
Absences in W3:	Umaar Panchbhaya Abraar Gangat Zahid Panchbhaya Arif Khan Ibrahim Hindy	Rizwan Hassan Yasser Habib Muhammad Hudda
Context For Tonight	Have first in their division all but pretty much locked up. Trying to get bragging rights to be the first overall team in the entire league. Also Razi Ahmed and Farooq Khan are battling for the scoring title.  Lastly, Zayd Agjee trying to take home the lowest GAA award.	Trying to finish the regular season 2nd in the Medina division. For teams that are prepared and well-managed the advantage of being the home team means you get the last change. This could be huge especially for a single elimination game coming up next week.  Emmad Khawaja trying to win the goal scoring title.
Prediction	Ihsan Win

9:00 PM: Haya (5-1-3) vs Ikhlas (4-3-2) 

	Haya	Ikhlas
League Rank	1st	3rd
Division	1st in Mecca	2nd in Mecca
Week 3 Score:	3	1
Goals Scorers in W3:	Farrukh Khan(1) Dawood Ciombar (1) Maaz Haq (1)	Abdur-Rahim Manjra (1)
Total PIMs in W3	2	16
Absences in W3:	Omar Essawi Azeem Mohammad Wesam Issawi	Adil Malik Rammez Siddiqi
Context For Tonight	Already clinched the division title and are now trying to get bragging rights as the best team in the entire league. Humza Ali is in contention to pull off a rare feat as the overall scoring champion and the goal scoring champion in the same season. Fahad Mohammad has a shot to take home the lowest GAA award.	Trying to finish the regular season 2nd in the Mecca division. For teams that are prepared and well-managed the advantage of being the home team means you get the last change. This could be huge especially for a single elimination game coming up next week.
Prediction	Haya Win

10:00 PM: Ridha (4-4-1) vs Sabr (1-4-4) 

	Ridha	Sabr
League Rank	6th	7th
Division	3rd in Mecca	4th in Mecca
Week 2 Score:	3	3
Goals Scorers in W3:	Huzaifa Panchbhaya (1) Faizan Kazi (1)	Addel Awan (1) Waqar Khan (1) Gehad Al-Hundi (1)
Total PIMs in W3	4	6
Absences in W3:	Abdur-Rahman Buttar Salman Khalid Farhan Saleh Omar Saadat Sufyan Kazi	Taha Azhar
Context For Tonight	This team is trending in the wrong direction especially with the playoffs coming up.  Trying to finish the regular season 2nd in the Mecca division. For teams that are prepared and well-managed the advantage of being the home team means you get the last change. This could be huge especially for a single elimination game coming up next week.	Eliminated from the post-season. Trying to play spoiler and keep Ridha from getting the number 2 seed. The biggest question is will Sabr be man enough and compete?
Prediction	Ridha Win

11:00 PM: Shukr (3-2-4) vs Emaan (0-7-2) 

	Shukr	Emaan
League Rank	5th	8th
Division	3rd in Medina	4th in Medina
Week 3 Score:	2	2
Goals Scorers in W3:	Rizwan Kalair (1) Erfan Bhanapatel (1)	Abdur Nafea Zuberi (1) Farooq Sani (1)
Total PIMs in W3	4	2
Absences in W3:	Sufyaan Shaikh   Humza Chaudhry Hamza Amin	Umer Buksh Aazar Zafar Naem Akhter Hammad Khan Usamah Rao
Context For Tonight	Trying to finish the regular season 2nd in the Medina division. For teams that are prepared and well-managed the advantage of being the home team means you get the last change. This could be huge especially for a single elimination game coming up next week.	Eliminated from the post-season. Trying to avoid tying ‘the fewest wins’ in a regular season record.
Prediction	Shukr Win

Spring Season - Week Nine - March 15th

8:00 PM: Shukr (3-2-3) vs Yaqeen (4-3-1) 

	Shukr	Yaqeen
League Rank	5th	4th
Division	3rd in Medina	2nd in Medina
Week 2 Score:	2	6
Goals Scorers in W2:	Hashim Qureshi (1) Erfan Bhanapatel (1)	Emmad Khawaja (2) Adil Patel (2) Ihtisham Qureshi (1) Mazhar Hussain (1)
Total PIMs in W2	2	0
Absences in W2:	Sufyaan Shaikh	None
Context For Tonight	Only trail Ihsan by 1 point for first overall in the Medina Division. Finishing first avoids playing a single game elimination and a bye to the semi-finals where it is a best of two	Only trail Ihsan by 1 point for first overall in the Medina Division. Finishing first avoids playing a single game elimination and a bye to the semi-finals where it is a best of two
Prediction	Shukr Win

9:00 PM: Ikhlas (3-3-2) vs Ridha (4-3-1) 

	Ikhlas	Ridha
League Rank	6th	3rd
Division	3rd in Mecca	2nd in Mecca
Week 2 Score:	1	3
Goals Scorers in W2:	Zubair Wahid (1)	Umar Mahmood (1) Huzaifa Panchbhaya (1) Zain Malik (1)
Total PIMs in W2	2	4
Absences in W2:	None	Abdur-Rahman Buttar Tariq Baksh Faisal Mehboob
Context For Tonight	Big win last week against Sabr, but they better come to play this week as they have not clinched a playoff spot.  Also if things line up right and Ikhlas is able to win their two remaining games and with a little bit of help then surprisingly this team can finish first in their division.	This team is sliding at the wrong time of the year. They have not clinched and a loss this week will put them in serious trouble of missing out of the playoffs.
Prediction		Ridha Win

10:00 PM: Emaan (0-6-2) vs Ihsan (4-2-2) 

	Emaan	Ihsan
League Rank	8th	2nd
Division	4th in Medina	1st in Medina
Week 2 Score:	2	5
Goals Scorers in W2:	Idrees Deen (1) Ali Murtaza (1)	Farooq Khan (2) Mohammad Bilal (1) Fuzail Thakur (1) Abraar Gangat (1)
Total PIMs in W2	4	0
Absences in W2:	Umer Buksh Abdul-Wahab Mohammad Arif Bijabhai	Imran Lakhanpal Arif Khan
Context For Tonight	Eliminate from the playoffs. Trying to avoid going win-less the entire season	Looking to stay on top of the Medina Division.
Prediction		Ihsan Win

11:00 PM: Haya (4-1-3) vs Sabr (1-3-4) 

	Haya	Sabr
League Rank	1st	7th
Division	1st in Mecca	4th in Mecca
Week 2 Score:	1	1
Goals Scorers in W2:	Dawood Ciombar (1)	Gehad Alhundi (1)
Total PIMs in W2	2	2
Absences in W2:	Maaz Haq Wasel Kabir Omar Essawi	None
Context For Tonight	If they win Haya will clinch first in their division.	They are on their last breath. With that said if they take care of business and win their last two games then this team will most likely make the playoffs.
Prediction	Haya Win