Nor'easters remain undefeated! Blitz draw all four games to remain 2nd

Breaking news:

With a scary but successful 3-1 win over Philly Inventors, the New England Nor'easters have moved to 6.5/7 to take a 1.5 point lead in the USCL East Division. They have become the first team to CLINCH a playoff spot. With three weeks to go, that is excellent news. Now at stake for the newbie Nor'easters are playoff draw odds.

Meanwhile, the Boston Blitz, on the verge of winning the match with the New Jersey KOs, instead had draws on all four boards to earn 0.5 points and remain in 2nd place in the East.

The Boston Blitz and New England Nor'easters pages will undoubtedly continue to bring great recaps of every game, so instead I will simply recap my predictions from Monday-- how did I do?

First, I was trying to channel James Joyce, but half the time I think it sounded more like Faulkner. Only parts of Portrait of the Artist (I mention a moocow in the first line, for example), the streamy of consciousness parts, bear any semblance to the original. Score, maybe 0.5 points? Are all the stories in the post real Rihel events? Again, about 0.5 points.

New England Nor'easters vs. Philadelphia Inventors

From my post: "....and one day we saw rain pouring down about 60 yards away before it hit us....as the dark rain finally caught us and turned our clothes to droopy tears."

I was talking about a storm (a Nor'easter, perhaps?), but the storm made our clothes cry. I clearly meant that New England was going to make us unhappy this week.

Plus--
"I wanted to catch him one day, so I invented me a crawdad catcher out of an old Saltine tin, which I punched holes in with some awl...."

and earlier: "I dream of grandmas sometimes, and she invents things for me, like a little wooden man that sits on the end of a stick...."

Clearly, I had positive thoughts about inventions, reinforcing my prediction that the Inventors were going to surprise New England this week. Even though, looking at the embedded game predictions, this is clearly at odds with my individual predictions.

Prediction Score, team result: 0
Internally consist?: 0

Board 1. Hungaski vs. Bonin
I clearly thought that Hungaski was going to win, as I had Bonin getting grilled: "The bonin's were stickin' out of one side of the juicy meat sizzling' and cookin' up..."

Actual Result: Draw.
Prediction Score: 0

Board 2. van de Mortel vs. Dehmelt
I said, "like I was invincible, immortel. He didn't fall down or nothin'...." and "...my abject failure to even cause a tear to come to that eye of his just dehmelt me such a blow...."

A nod to Dehmelt.

Actual result: van de mortel wins
Prediction Score: 0

Board 3. Riordan vs. Costigan
"...there is a Charles in that Joyce book they make some of us read in college. A Mrs. Riordan, too. With a fortuitous coincidence like that, I don't see how anyone else has a chance..." and "...there was a Costigan in the Departed, but I'm pretty sure it don' turn out none too good for that Costigan, either."

No doubt--I predicted a Charles victory

Actual result: Draw
Prediction Score: 0

Board 4. Cherniack vs. Wilson
"I was hiding from him [Mr. Wilson] on account of my dog, Alex the astrodog, had reared up and bitten him in the behind...."

I think biting on the butt is an obvious signal for victory.

Actual result: Cherniack wins
Prediction Score: 1

Total for this half-- 1

Boston Blitz vs. New Jersey KOs

For the overall team result, I predicted: "...we can all lay down and have lightning pass through us and ferry us to the other side."

Lightning = Blitz. The [Blitz] will ferry us to the other side.... i.e. win.

Actual Result: Draw
Prediction Score: 0

Board 1. GM Christiansen vs. GM Benjamin
"She was a Christian, with a big C, and those aliens she saw were dressed in white, just to make sure she would know they are angels on the side of good."

Kooky to see aliens, but like Larry, they had the White pieces. I thought Larry's attacking game would finish the job this week.

Actual result: Draw
Prediction Score: 0

Board 2. Shmelov vs. GM Gulko
"-Gulk, Gulk, Gulk, went that Crawdad Catcher as the air passed through the perforations and let my saltine can sink to the bottom. I scooped him up and the sound of concrete mixed with the mud that accumulated over how many decades made a -SHM-ELOV kind of scrape and glop as I caught that little crawdaddy."

Hmmm, a little cryptic. On the one hand, Gulko is escaping from a trap. On the other hand, Shmelov is a bunch of mud. Anyone still reading this post will agree- I thought it would be a draw.

Actual Result: draw
Prediction score: 1

Board 3. Martirosov vs. Kapengut.
"I felt real sick in my guts, after that, for I was sure..."

A win for Kapengut was the feeling in my guts.

Actual Result: draw
Prediction score: 0

Board 4. Krasik vs. Matlin
" ...and lightning came krasiking down on us like the finger of the dead and we thought for a moment we were all struck dead. We remained matlin'ed to the ground...."

Krasik as lightning that strikes death and mats Matlin to the mat. Clear enough.

Actual Result: draw
Prediction score: 0

Total for this part: 1
Total for both matches: 2

Not a very good prediction, but I hope everyone enjoyed it. Stay tuned next week when New England plays New York and Boston plays Carolina.