Toronto, Canada

Eastern Conference, Hotel X

My line and I are on the ice to start off the game. When I first heard the news break that we were getting a rematch with the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round, I was honestly excited. A few others were hesitant, thinking of last year, but most of us were eager and ready to exact revenge (even if we say it's not revenge haha)

There is a penalty to us (dammit, Killer...) almost right away and we head to the PK. On the ensuing powerplay for Columbus, Alexandre Texier gets the puck and slams it down to the net, where it is tipped passed Vasy and into the net by Pierre-Luc Dubois.

0-1 Blue Jackets...

It's not the start we want. At all.

But we respond with some push into the zone, until it finally ends in Kuch getting a goal (or Pointer) -- I really can't see who's scoring today haha. But either way, it's a tie fucking game now!!

1-1.

Back and forth action proceeds the goal. And it ends with Vasy making a key stop on Jenner.

I'm back on the ice soon after that and as the clock winds down to ten minutes (halfway), I take the puck away from a Blue Jacket player and launch into the zone for a chance to score. I dish it to Pickles, but we go for a line change and watch as more back and forth action happens. (You know, us in the zone and then in the zone.)

Before long, I'm back on the ice and taking the faceoff. I'm tossed from the dot. I enter the zone though and round behind the net. I turn to get a pass off to Heddy, who I hear calling loudly for it.

I guess I wait a second too long, because as I get it off, Heddy is covered and the puck is back in Blue Jacket hands. I groan and launch off to pick the puck back off, managing to do so and getting it to the blue line point for a d-men, before heading off the ice once more for a line change.

Jeff Halpern (or Halpie), one of our many coaching staff patrons, comes over to chat with me about the incident. I explain to him about what my thoughts were and he pats me. He tells me what I can do differently, maybe one-time the puck instead of hesitating until the player gets covered and a turnover happens.

I watch as we pour on pressure, taking control of the zone and generating momentum galore. Tony shoves Texier to the ice and I can see the young man get back up, wincing and looking around briefly.

Easy, Tony. We're not here to hurt them physically, just on the scoreboard.

Mitchell, Maroon and Ceddy take the ice for a dominating, grinding shift behind and around the net.

I return to the ice and create a takeaway, heading back into the zone. There is a collision around the net and then the Blue Jackets are buzzing around our end. I'm crossing the ice to make a play before Vasy, when I feel a stick come up and get me in the face.

I shake it off, but the play is whistled dead.

I spin around and see the ref gesturing toward Texier.

A penalty for high-sticking is called on him. They show a replay and I can see that Texier is skating behind me, but his stick doesn't seem to touch me. But he heads to the bench to take his penalty, hanging his head down with shame and embarrassment.

Poor guy.

Even I'll admit that I didn't see him do anything. He shouldn't be in there. It was a happy accident from our own player. Luckily the friendly fire was just a little stinging slap against my cheek, nothing major.

But either way, we're heading to the powerplay.

I guess we should thank the refs for one fluky one. It's a good start to the powerplay and we'll resume and finish it off in the second period.

And we'll happily take a 1-1 tie game into the locker room.

The second period starts off with us on the powerplay still because of the fluky high-sticking penalty to Texier. At the end of it, Savard decides to come after me and a scrum lights up from the chaos in the zone.

We shove each other, before we slowly separate and head to regular five on five.

Mitchell almost has a takeaway but his line sparks pressure on the Blue Jackets once more.

Vasy tries to make a save and everyone thinks he does, until it pops out and we scramble to get control back and clear it. It leads to Tony limping off the ice from a weird collision.

He shakes it off though.

I find myself back on the ice for a faceoff win with Pointer and Kuch, but the Blue Jackets stifle us and we're pinned back in the zone as they pour on pressure of their own. And then Tony returns to the ice, feeling better and looking fine.

Killer falls on his own after breaking away from getting tangled up with a Blue Jacket and we pound back at them with more pressure, swinging the game's momentum back our way. But just as that happens...

My line ventures back onto the ice. Vasy makes a diving save and is kneed one the head (at least I think) by Robinson, who comes flying in to get the puck.

But play is stopped and we rush to the protection of Vasy seeing him down on the ice momentarily.

As the refs break up the scrum, we can all see the replay and know that his knee actually connected with Vasy's upper chest. And thankfully not his head and that our "big cat" is a-okay.

With emotions running high, our fourth line (Maroon, Mitchell and Ceddy) take the ice and buzzes around the Blue Jackets' end of the ice. Pressure is heating up on them again and I can smell a goal coming up.

Pickles gets a shot off and Seth Jones draws a call on me. Oy vey. I barely touched him... I glance up to the replay and shrug as I'm guided toward the box. Okay, touche, I did get him with a nice slash on the stick.

Stupid, Yanni, stupid!

I watch from the box as my team heads to the PK. Tony is on and he and his partner [Killer] are able to pokecheck and get a solid short-handed chance going. It actually leads to the Blue Jackets getting whistled for holding Tony.

So it's 4-on-4 hockey for a bit.

On the play, Heddy gets the puck to Pointer, but he fans on the chance and the puck is sent down the ice.

Heddy backtracks to stop the play, just as I launch out of the box. I'm free!!! Heddy gets the puck to me and I easily tap it to Pointer, who speeds into the zone.

Misha gets caught playing the puck as he goes for a change though and we're whistled for 'too many men'. Maroon takes the penalty and so we head back to the PK.

Killer and Tony pick off a pass together and try to start something, but instead Tony dishes the puck into the zone and heads off for a change.

Pickles comes on with Goodrow and almost gets a pick off, but fails. Cernak, instead, manages to get the clear for us.

Texier shoots the puck again, but he doesn't succeed and the penalty is killed off!

Ceddy lights Foligno up by the benches. At his punishing hit, I scream with the others and add on, "Ha-ha, you okay, sir?" Foligno jumps back up, growling and grumbling to himself. He shoots our bench a death glare and lines Ceddy up to return the favor. He hits him, but it's not as impactful and I burst out laughing.

As the game continues on and the clock winds down in the second period, I watch as Kuch backchecks and breaks his stick legally cross-checking Texier against the boards behind the net.

McDonagh bats the puck out of midair and Killer crushes a player into the boards.

Misha blasts a shot on net from the blue line, but it's snared and play halts.

Then I'm back on the ice, going against that tiny guy, Nathan Gerbe. He tries to rough me up and I shove him back, laughing at his efforts. My line generates pressure from it as we keep in the zone.

But then there's a missed trip on Kuch, which leads to the Blue Jackets taking our zone and Bjorkstrand shoots and scores.

1-2 Blue Jackets.

And right before the end of the period too! Dammit.

Pointer tries to get it back for us and tie the game back up, getting a nice shot off at the end. Like RIGHT as the buzzer sounds. But it doesn't go in and we head to the locker rooms this time down by one goal.

The third period, I'm on the ice to take the opening faceoff. My line and I launch into the zone and before long, roughly 30 seconds into the period, we're scrambling around the net, whacking and trying to get the puck in.

Korpisalo goes down.

I get my puck on it and think I've stuffed it in.

Then I see it pop out and sail away right toward his pad. My heart skips a beat. And then...it's in!

IT'S IN! IT'S IN! I scored!!

Tie game!!

All the emotions run through me as I scream and shout out, "FUCK YEAH! I SCORED!!"

My teammates smash together with me and I wriggle myself free and head for the bench. The rest of the team is cheering with hype as well.

After the goal, we're flying. We pound on more pressure, feeling the hope rushing through us! We're going to win!

No sweeping us this year, Columbus!

That's when Shatty [Kevin Shattenkirk] is called for holding Nyqvist and we head back to the PK.

On the short-handed chance, Goodrow and Pickles work hard to get themselves a quality rush into the Blue Jackets' zone and a shot on net.

Bjorkstrand shoves Johnny but Tony gets him back and the Blue Jackets proceed to pour on pressure against us finally.

We cancel it out though, getting the momentum back. (Once again, thanks to Mitchell's fourth line.) Mitchell gets a great chance to put us ahead, but it's stopped by Korpisalo. Ceddy is then shoved by Maroon.

Kuch hits the goalie thinking that the puck is still lose and another scrum breaks out, including Pointer, who has Werenski in a headlock.

From this there is more Blue Jackets pressure and I'm back on the ice. I lose my footing in a rut on the ice and fall, sliding on my back into the boards. It's a gentle collision though. No worries. Like the high-sticking friendly fire from earlier, this one doesn't hurt me at all and I shake it off, scrambling back up to my skates.

We're whistled for another 'too many men' penalty, which is once again severed by Maroon. Back to the PK.

Pickles gets a block and Tony flips the puck into the bench toward the end of it.

"Whoa! Heads up, boys!" I yell out, ducking. "Tony's trying to kill us!"

But the penalty is killed off.

The clock winds down to the final seconds. We're going to OT, I know it. I'm on the ice as the game goes under a minute. But there is a whistle to stop play at one second. My line changes out and Johnny comes on. His shot is stifled by Korpisalo and we're heading to overtime!

Overtime begins and I am on the ice to start it for the faceoff. We kick off, pounding pressure on the Blue Jackets and sending off shots galore onto him. Killer has a fantastic chance to end things, but it's thwarted.

Dubois shoves Maroon and I chuckle at that. Good luck, Dubois if you REALLY wanna get into THAT.

We push our pressure with a shooting gallery for the next few minutes. Korpisalo stands tall and our shots on goal goes up.

Toward the end of the first overtime, I'm pushed into Korpisalo by Nyqvist. I try to get out of the crease, but the goalie grabs me by the collar of my jersey and yanks me down to the ice. I scramble back up to my skates and skate off as the whistle blows.

Gavrikov bumps into me on purpose as I skate toward the bench.

I halt and spin to him. "What the hell? You got a problem with me, sir?"

"Stay off our goalie, Gourde!" he snarls at me.

"I was pushed."

"Like this?" I hear someone remark, before I'm rudely shoved from behind.

I see Korpisalo, the goalie, skating by. I'm sure he doesn't know I was pushed and doesn't believe me, but I WAS PUSHED BY NYQVIST! If you wanna shove anyone, shove him, NOT me. It's so ridiculous that they find me at fault. I spin away and burst out laughing, like I always do. I find other teams amusing when they go after me.

So nothing from the first overtime.

Second overtime comes and goes with nothing to show from it. It ends with Kuch doing a little shoving.

The third overtime...I'm on for the faceoff and I get high-sticked (or high-skate bladed). THIS TIME it's NOT friendly fire and it's for real. The dude's skate literally came up and almost cut my face. I shake it off. I'm okay. No damage to this pretty french-canadian's face.

There is a slashing penalty called no Foligno as he gets Bogosian.

Powerplay for us!

I get a few chances off on the man advantage, before I am chopped down to the ice on the last shot that I get.

The powerplay is wasted with nothing really happening and we play on.

Kuch pokes his stick again at the goale and this causes Cam Atkinson to freak out and jump on him. A scrum follows suit from it.

The clock winds down on the third overtime period and ends with a rush up the ice by me.

To a fourth overtime! FOURTH! Holy shit, this game won't end! I'm on the ice again to start it off.

Nothing comes still...Misha makes a nice defensive play and then, I'm shoving with Foligno.

That overtime comes to an end and we're now heading into a FIFTH OVERTIME!

I can't believe this game is still going on. We're all feeling it. We're all tired. We want to end it. And we're trying to, but we're just...exhausted. Luckily, I'm not as exhausted as some of my teammates, but I am feeling the drain.

And so we come back out for the fifth...FIFTH overtime!

It's the same back and forth, occasional chance, until...

Pointer, finding a sudden burst of speed, zooms around the net in the Columbus zone. He gets to the blue line and spots Kuch, open on the side and sends the puck to him. Kuch sends a shot on net and it rebounds out toward the pinching Shatty. He taps it back to Kuch, who takes another slapshot at the net.

It rebounds off Gavrikov, who's tangled up briefly with Pally. The pucks sails right to an open Pointer.

Pointer shoots at the net...and...

IT'S OVER!!

144 minutes later. 9:24 into the fifth overtime.

Kuch and Pally head toward the net. But they both stop. It's in. It's over.

Finally.

Kuch halts and almost falls as his hand scrapes the ice. Pally spins around. Pointer is alive with excitement and he's dancing and leaping across the ice, yelling all the emotions out. Pally and Kuch come toward him.

Pointer spins and he's mobbed.

The rest of us lose it on the bench and spill over onto the ice, rushing for the heroic, clutch young man.

Cries of "It's over, fuck yeah!" and "YES POINTER!" and "CLUTCH POINTER!" ring out as we mob him by the boards.

Someone smashes into me, but I don't care. We're all just overrun with excitement and adrenaline. We're tired, exhausted even, but we ended it.

Phew, I'm exhausted and tired and hungry (some of us haven't even eaten since 9am!!). I need to recharge myself now. Big time. Shit. 

Bring on game two, Columbus!!