We had a pretty solid turnout for the night before Easter as the LTHL
held Week 8. About half the guys there were tuning up for the big
Boston tournament at F1. Rob Chargo, who did better than anyone from
Chi-town at last year's Boston tournament (including a very impressive
second round robin that garnered him a top seed for the playoffs), went
unbeaten and untied to take first place on the evening. A couple guys
got close, but Chargo couldn't be stopped. Taking second was Ron
Marsik, who's also headed to Boston and likely a lock for the Elite
group. Third was Jim Rzonca, who's also headed to Boston and hopes to
end up in that top group as well. We missed Garry "Da Bomber" Butler,
who was taking a well-deserved vacation as he continues his recovery.
The biggest story of the night had to be Russ Leonard, however. Russ
met Jim at a Bubble Boys tournament (one that Rzonca and Jerry
Pytlewski ultimately won, getting a trip to California to watch the
Stanley Cup finals) a couple years back and looked up the LTHL. Russ
struggled his first week, but didn't let that stop him. He came back
last time and did a little better. In his third week, he broke out,
winning not just one game, but his first five games of the season. He
also had two ties. From my perspective, he's improved at a quicker pace
than any new player to enter the LTHL ever (Chargo, with his years of
top-level tournament experience, doesn't count;-). Russ picked up some
international players recently, so his learning curve will probably
just get shorter.
Three Stars of the night
1. Russ Leonard: breaks through with first win, gets four more.
2. Rob Chargo: unbeaten and untied as Boston looms next week.
3. Jeff Farwell: looked good.
Standings
PLAYER W L T GF GA GP LTHL PTS
ROB CHARGO 21 0 0 105 23 21 13
RON MARSIK 17 2 2 111 37 21 12
JIM RZONCA 14 5 2 98 63 21 11
JEFF FARWELL 13 8 0 78 60 21 10
JEFF THILL 10 10 1 66 54 21 9
ERIC KROL 9 10 2 72 68 21 8
JOE SALAZAR 7 10 4 54 73 21 7
RICH THILL 5 14 2 38 61 21 6
RUSS LEONARD 5 14 2 38 82 21 5
JOHN MEDEMA 4 13 4 41 88 21 4
DAN LORD 4 7 0 35 45 11 3
JERRY PYTLEWSKI 2 18 1 29 111 21 2
Note: each player gets one point for attendance and points based on what place they finish.
