Equestria Hockey League

by XFizzle

EHL Part XVI - Semifinals: Game 1

Equestria Hockey League Part XVI – Semifinals: Game 1
by XFizzle

Ponyville Pond was alive with lights and echoing sounds. The Ponyville Golden Leafs, fresh off their quarterfinals series victory over the Manehattan Rangers, were hard at work preparing for their next opponent, the Cloudsdale Red Wings. The pounding of the puck on the boards reverberated to the rafters as a faint smell of sweat dissipated into the cold air. Once the Leafs’ general practice routine was finished, Twilight rounded up the team to go over strategy.

“Alright team, when we face Cloudsdale, we have a very big task in front of us. Spitfire is the best scorer in the EHL and she’s super fast. We’re going to pay special attention to her in order to stop her from single-handedly beating us. I want us to double team her to ensure we always have somepony pressuring her. To practice this task, we’re all going to chase Rainbow in pairs. Rarity and Applejack will go first, then Fluttershy and I, then Big Macintosh and Spike. Rainbow are you ready?”

“Ready as ever, Twilight!”

“On my whistle, three…two…one…”

Tweeeeeeeeet

Rainbow exploded from the starting blocks and was gliding all over the ice while Rarity and Applejack gave chase. After a good minute of chasing, Rarity began to fade, leaving just Applejack to skate after Rainbow. Eventually, Applejack tired of skating and fell to the ice, leaving Rainbow victorious after three minutes of skating. Twilight gave Rainbow a minute to recover before starting the next wave.

Tweeeeeeeet

Twilight herself and Fluttershy were next to try hunting down Rainbow. Twilight faded quickly while Fluttershy was able to match Rainbow stride for stride for a decent amount of time. Gaining ground on Rainbow’s flank, Fluttershy leaned forward to tag her with her nose but just missed. Fluttershy spun out to the ice as Rainbow skated on. Fluttershy was given a round of helmet pats for her effort by the whole team as Rainbow recovered. Big Macintosh and Spike stepped for their turn.

Tweeeeeeeet

Rainbow blasted away, leaving Big Mac and Spike in the dust. The two forwards tried skating after her but Rainbow’s speed was just too great to catch. The chase drill continued for another six waves, three for Rarity-Applejack and three for Twilight-Fluttershy. By the end, the starters were wasted and sapped of all their strength. The Leafs took a long break to talk a little strategy. Twilight was back in front of the team with her notes.

“Since we know Cloudsdale is a very quick team, Rarity will go back to starting now that her hooves are healed. Big Macintosh, we will still need you for the penalty kill but we’ll need Rarity’s agility for even strength. Also, Cloudsdale passes the puck a lot. They like to bring the puck into our end instead of dumping it and chasing after it. That’s why when we’re done with this break, we’re going to practice flooding the center zone and preventing them from carrying the puck over the blue line. If we can stop their passes and force them to dump, we have a chance to control the puck.”

“Sounds pretty smart to me,” said Applejack.

“Oh yes, I’m ready to skate fast! Spitfire and Soarin are going to look like statues next to me!” shouted Rainbow.

“So let’s get back to the ice and work some more. Cloudsdale is very smart, calm, and collected. We’re going to need to work harder than them to win. Out-hustle and out-power. Let’s do it.”

“Right!” yelled the Leafs before heading back out onto the ice for practice.

The Leafs’ practice resumed and they worked on their defensive strategy. After an hour passed by, the team was spent again and were ready to pack it in. Before exiting the ice, an EHL official poked his head in to drop off a package.

“Hello?? I’ve brought your winged skates for Cloudsdale! Return these at the end of the series to the Canterlot headquarters okay? Good luck!”

“Thank you!” yelled Twilight from across the rink.

The Leafs skated off and picked up their pair of winged skates on the way to the locker room. Like the previous time, Twilight placed a spell on Fluttershy’s skates to give them wings as well because they were adorable and made her happy. Twilight and friends cleaned up and left the arena with confidence in their strategy and satisfaction in their practice effort.

---

Game day crept up on the Golden Leafs. To allow themselves enough time to get ready for the game, the Leafs met at the treehouse early to put on their winged skates and fly up to Cloudsdale. The flight up to Cloudsdale was easy but soon the atmosphere began to overwhelm them. Nearly every part of the city was turned red in support of the Red Wings. The Red Wings’ theme song “Hey Hey Hockeycloud” was blasting in the streets leading up to Foal Louis Arena. Despite it being a few hours before the game, Cloudsdale fans were beginning to bunch up at the arena entrances, anxiously waiting to enter. The Leafs reached the entrance and made it to their locker room. Taking their time and trying to remain calm, Twilight and company dressed and prepared their equipment. When the Leafs were done preparing, there was still nearly an hour before the puck dropped. A bright light emerged from the hallway and drew the Leafs’ attention. Trotting into the locker room was an EqSPN technician with a clipboard.

“Uhh, is Rainbow Dash here?”

Rainbow jumped from her stall with a smile. “Yes! I’m here!”

“Great, you’re going to be interview in five.”

Rainbow hopped up and down with glee. “Aww yeah! This beautiful face is going to be on television!”

Twilight and Applejack rolled their eyes while Rarity pouted. “Why won’t they interview meeee? I’m the most fabulous pony here. Don’t they care about my hoof injury healing?”

Rainbow pranced to the hallway for her interview. EqSPN reporter Beary Melrose was there to greet her with the cameras ready to roll. The technician counted down until the red light came to begin rolling.

“Hello hockey fans, I’m Beary Melrose and I’m here with the Ponyville Golden Leafs’ game three hero, Rainbow Dash. Now Rainbo-“

“Greetings Equestria! I am Rainbow Dash, the quickest skater in all the EHL! You can rest assured that I will do whatever I can to lead my team to victory and to put on a show for you all!”

Beary stared with confustion at the technician who shrugged back. Beary regained his composure and started asking his question.

“What will be your strategy when it comes to containing the EHL’s leading scorer and league MVP, Spitfire?”

Rainbow grabbed the microphone out from Beary’s claw. “We’re going to try to double team her to make sure she doesn’t destroy us. It will be okay though. She may be fast, but I’m faster!”

“Your starting left winger Rarity is back from her injury-“

Off in the background, a loud “THANK YOU!” rang out from Rarity in the locker room.

“-what will she bring to your lineup now that she’s healed?”

“Rarity’s fine. She’ll give us a wicked fast shot on the net. But her shots still aren’t as fast as me.”

“Finally, how important is it to come out strong early considering Cloudsdale’s been sitting at home for almost a week now?”

“It’s very important because if we score first, then we take the crowd out of the equation and the Red Wings will have to fight uphill. If anypony knows about fast starts, it’s me because I am fast. I will-“

Beary quickly interrupted before Rainbow could ramble off again. “Alright, that’s all from Ponyville center Rainbow Dash. Back to the fellas up in the booth. Guys?”

Rainbow growled when she got cut off and stomped back to the locker room.

Once Rainbow was back at her stall, Twilight stood up and walked to the front of the room for the pre-game speech.

“Alright girls. It’s a brand new series with new opportunities. Across the rink from us is a team who is very skilled, quick, and poised. It will take a lot of will and a lot of strength to knock them off. Be ready to push your bodies harder than you’ve ever pushed them before. Our strength will push us through. Also we have to be mentally tough. Mentally tough as in smart and sharp, not emotional. Cloudsdale is very skilled. We need to be alert and know what is going on at all times. One second of hesitation could result in a breakaway for Spitfire or for Soarin. Keep the Wings in front of us and we will come out fine. We have the talent to beat this team. We pushed them to the edge twice in the regular season. They won because we just couldn’t finish the job. Now’s the time to prove that we can put them away. Win tonight and we head home with a chance to end this thing. Hooves in, alert on three.”

The Leafs stood up and met at the center to put a skate in. “One…two…three…ALERT!”

The minute horn blared over the rink just as the Leafs had their cheer. Twilight turned to lead the team into the hallway and down to the ice surface.

---

Red Wings fans trotted to their seats for the introductions. When the lights dimmed, a roar rumbled out from the audience. First up were the Golden Leafs’ introductions. A spotlight shone over the Leafs’ entrance and one by one, the Leafs’ starters were announced. The girls skated out to boos and lined up side by side at the blue line. Big Macintosh, Spike, and Sweetie Belle made their way to the bench as fog rolled over the ice. “Hey Hey Hockeycloud” blasted through the speakers along with a video showing the Red Wings’ season highlights on the fog, bringing the crowd to their hooves. When the video ended, a giant decorative octopus slowly lowered from the rafters, eyes glowing red and smoke billowing from under its tentacles.

”Fillies and gentlecolts, introducing the regular season champions and Princess’ Trophy recipients, YOUR CLOUDSDAAAALEEE REEED WIIIIIIIINGSSSS!! Starting at left wing, number 44, GIIIIILDAAA! At center, the regular season MVP and Hart Maremorial Trophy winner, number 13, SPIIIIIIITFIIIIIRRRREEEEE!! At right wing, number 96, SOOOOAAAARIIIINN!! On defense, number question mark-exclamation point, DIIIITZY DOOOOO! Also on defense, the captain, number 5, PUUUUCKSSSS!! Starting in goal, number 35, SCOOOOOTALOOOOO!!”

The Red Wings skated out onto the ice to a raucous ovation. Foal Louis Arena was blanketed in red all around. The Leafs remained at the blue line as the Wings blazed around their end of the rink. When the lights came back up, the Wings’ playoff reserves, Cloudkicker and Boxxy, took their seats on the bench. Both the Wings and Leafs finished skating around and stretching, ready for the game to begin. The referee grabbed the puck and made his way to center ice. Rainbow met Spitfire at the dot as their respective teams drifted to their positions behind them. Pinkie Pie and Scootaloo raised their gloves to indicate their readiness. The Cloudsdale crowd stomped their hooves like a drumroll and let out a yell when the puck dropped on game one of the EHL semifinals.

---

Rainbow beat Spitfire off the draw and kicked it back to Twilight. Immediately Rainbow broke for the Cloudsdale zone. Twilight swiftly zipped a pass right onto Rainbow’s stick and the Golden Leafs were on their way. Ditzy and Pucks skated hard on both sides of Rainbow trying to grab the puck away. Being sandwiched coming up on the crease, Rainbow came to an abrupt stop, sending Ditzy and Pucks flying past. Rainbow flicked her stick and sent the puck over Scootaloo’s leaping blocker save. The Red Wings crowd was stunned to silence as the Golden Leafs crowded Rainbow to celebrate their quick goal.

”Ponyville goal scored by number 20, Rainbow Dash. Assisted by number 42, Twilight Sparkle.

Only twenty seconds into the game and the Golden Leafs had already taken a 1-0 lead. The teams were back at center ice for the faceoff to which Rainbow won again. The Leafs entered the Cloudsdale zone and did a great job of moving the puck around and taking shots when open. The Red Wings’ rustiness from their long layoff was showing as they had trouble taking the puck away from the Leafs’ grasp. The Leafs were able to send off five shots in a minute and a half of possession on offense.

Cloudsdale had their first surge of offense when Gilda jumped up to intercept Twilight’s pass to Fluttershy along the blue line. Gilda rumbled toward the net with Fluttershy and Twilight chasing behind her. The Cloudsdale crowd jumped up to watch the breakaway attempt. Gilda strode in with strength, choosing not to deke at all. With real estate running out in front of her, Gilda fired a shot on net. Pinkie swung her glove up and plucked the puck out of the air to a groan by the crowd. Instead of covering up, Pinkie dropped the puck and passed it up to Twilight who then hit Applejack in stride who had sneaked behind the Red Wings’ defense and had a breakaway herself. Applejack came in as Scootaloo wiggled up to the top of the crease. Applejack tried a deke but lost control of the puck, sending it to the corner. Both teams glided into the Cloudsdale zone and the Leafs had a couple more scoring chances before Scootaloo covered up.

Spitfire won the ensuing faceoff and led the Red Wings’ charge into the Leafs’ end. The Wings were starting to get their legs back and were shaking off the rust as the period went on. Spitfire was harassed by Rainbow behind the net as she tried weaving and bobbing to get a pass off. Finally she found Gilda on the left wing boards and shoveled it off. As Gilda received the puck, Soarin planted himself at the top of the crease to screen Pinkie. Gilda dodged a hitting attempt by Rarity and passed it to Pucks at the point. With Soarin giving Pinkie a fit, Pucks shot on net. As the puck came closer, Soarin became a little overzealous with his screening and knocked Pinkie with his rump. The puck pounded the top corner of the net to bring the fans to their hooves. The goal light and siren turned up when the referee charged in to emphatically wave his forelegs across his chest.

“No goal! Goalie interference!”

The cheers soured into boos when the crowd realized that the goal was waved off and the goal light and siren turned off. Soarin skated off to the penalty box in frustration as the referee announced the call.

“Cloudsdale, number 96, two minutes for goalie interference.”

The Leafs were about to begin their first power play of the series and kept their starters out for it. Spitfire won the faceoff to Ditzy who dumped it down ice. Pinkie skated out of the net to play the puck to Fluttershy who was first back. Fluttershy was carrying the puck up but got overwhelmed by Spitfire’s forecheck. Fluttershy fired off an errant pass that was controlled by Pucks, leading to another Wings dump on the penalty kill. Pinkie came out again to play the puck, this time to Twilight. Twilight passed to Applejack to bring it into the Wings’ zone with a minute left on the power play. Applejack dumped the puck behind the net for Rainbow to grab it. Pressured by Pucks and Spitfire, Rainbow fired the puck back to Applejack along the boards. Applejack then gave it to Fluttershy at the point who went to shoot. Gilda dove for the block, causing Fluttershy to pull the puck back and pass to an open Rarity on the left boards. Rarity was getting challenged by Spitfire and frantically looked for an outlet. Applejack switched positions with Fluttershy and was now at the point slapping her stick. Rarity looked up to see Applejack open and quickly flung the pass over before absorbing a hit. Applejack wound up as the puck came to her and pulled the trigger on the one-timer. The shot was rifled high toward the corner, just out of Scootaloo’s reach. With the goal light illuminated and the crowd moaning, Applejack stood up tall and did a hoof pump before her teammates surrounded her.

”Ponyville power play goal, scored by number 88, Applejack, assisted by number 9, Rarity, and number 0, Fluttershy.”

Soarin emerged from the box and the Red Wings got into their faceoff formation. The Leafs made their way to center ice now holding a stunning 2-0 lead over the regular season champions. Spitfire won the faceoff and the Red Wings tried to muster up a goal before the first period came to an end. Pinkie came up with a couple clutch saves to deny the Wings a deficit-cutting goal as the final seconds of the first period ran out. Confused and concerned, the Cloudsdale crowd sat in silence as the teams exited the ice for the locker rooms. The Leafs happily strolled into their room and refreshed for the second period.

---

The mood inside the locker room was pleasant and ecstatic. The team was somewhat in awe of their 2-0 lead on the mighty Red Wings. Twilight stood before them and tried to smack them back to reality.

“Although we had a GREAT period, we cannot let the Red Wings back in. They’ve proven that they can easily enter back into a game at any point. We were just able to capitalize on their rust. Let’s continue to own the puck because the longer we hold onto it, the less opportunities they have to score. If we get another goal early, we’ll definitely have the momentum. Everypony got it? Control the puck and we’ll be sitting pretty.”

Rarity let out a laugh. “Oh Twilight, we’re always sitting pretty. Well, maybe I am more often than the rest of you.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and then turned to lead the Leafs back to the ice for the next period.

---

The Golden Leafs were back on the ice first and were greeted by a round of boos. It took a few minutes before the Red Wings hit the ice, appearing that they were given some extra coaching by their captain during the intermission. Now that both teams were ready to go, the faceoff at center ice dropped and was won by Rainbow.

Ponyville’s attempt at controlling the puck and owning time of possession started off shaky as the Red Wings skated much faster than they had in the first period. Also the Wings were making a very conscious attempt at hitting the Leafs. Coming out from behind her own net, Twilight passed the puck to Rainbow along the glass before getting rocked by Soarin. Right when the puck came to Rainbow, she looked up and got absolutely steamrolled by Ditzy Doo. The hit was jarring enough to spark the crowd for a giant cheer. Off the flattening of Rainbow, Ditzy grabbed the puck and hit Spitfire in stride launching through the center. Twilight jumped in front of Spitfire to stop her from entering the crease. Spitfire was not deterred as she flicked the puck through her legs behind her to Pucks who was trailing behind. With a clear shot and with Spitfire and Twilight screening the goalie, Pucks rifled the puck to the left post. The puck glanced the pipe and hit the back of the net behind Pinkie for the goal. The crowd jumped up with the goal light flickering and the horn blaring as the Wings finally got on the scoreboard.

”RED WINGS GOOOOOAAAALLL scored by number 5, PUCKSSS! Assisted by number 13, SPIIIITFIIIIREEEE!! And DITZY DOOOOOO!!

“Hey Hey Hockeycloud” played as the Wings finished up their goal celebration and the Leafs set up at center ice. When play resumed, the Wings won the draw and proceeded to dominate the following two minutes. The Golden Leafs’ zone resembled a shooting gallery as the Wings passed, shot, then collected the rebound to set right back up. The Leafs had trouble keeping up with the Wings’ quick movements as the rust was all shaken off the Cloudsdale crew. Pinkie came up big with key saves and was exhausted by the end of the Wings’ flurry. Pinkie had to cover up and took a while to hand the puck over so she could catch an extra breather. On the faceoff, Spitfire won it back to Ditzy who held onto it so Gilda could get open near the left circle. Rarity picked up on the play and went over to cover Gilda as the puck came near them. Right as Gilda got the puck, Rarity whacked her stick onto Gilda’s, snapping it in half. The referee’s hoof immediately went up and the crowd was cheering for the penalty.

“Ponyville, number 9, two minutes for slashing.”

Rarity pouted her way to the penalty box and Big Macintosh came in for Fluttershy to help out the penalty kill. Foal Louis Arena was rocking now because the crowd was alive and ready to encourage their Wings to tie the game up. The crucial faceoff on Pinkie’s left was won by Rainbow and the Leafs dumped the puck down to Scootaloo. Scootaloo skated behind the net to hold it for Spitfire to collect. Spitfire carried the puck through center and brought it into the zone herself with a nice deke past Big Macintosh. Twilight and Rainbow closed in on Spitfire and forced her to shoot the puck into the left corner for Gilda to pick up. The Leafs and Wings set up into the respective formations with Gilda holding the puck along the boards. With the Leafs in their box formation, giving the Wings space to move, Gilda fired the puck around the back of the net for Spitfire. Soarin cut to the left faceoff circle and Spitfire threaded the needle on the pass through Big Mac’s and Rainbow’s legs to him. Pinkie overextended herself to follow the puck and was leaving the whole top half of the net open. Soarin reared back for a shot with Rainbow diving to block. The puck glanced off Rainbow’s stick blade, redirecting the shot just high enough to where it grazed the top of the crossbar and into the protective netting above the glass. A loud “Awwwww!” bellowed out from the stands as the Leafs had a big sigh of relief.

Rainbow won the faceoff to Big Macintosh who dumped the puck down to the Wings’ end. One last burst up the center for the Wings’ power play fell short as Spitfire’s pass to Soarin was off the mark and picked up by Twilight. Twilight dumped the puck one last time before Rarity exited the penalty box and Big Mac retreated to the bench. Only twenty seconds remained in the second period and the Wings could not get another shot off. The crowd was mostly silent again with only a couple smatterings of cheers as the period ended and the teams skated off.

---

“Alright! Ten more minutes and we’re up 1-0 going back to Ponyville! Let’s get this!” shouted Rainbow.

Twilight shot down Rainbow’s remark with her own. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, team. The game isn’t over yet. It’s not over until the clock reads 0:00. Our lead is only by one. All it takes is one goal by Cloudsdale and this game is up for grabs. We’re going to crowd the middle area and force them to dump the puck in. Not only will they have to skate more to get the puck, but it will allow us a chance to get the puck out of our zone more often. We have to pressure them and force them to make bad decisions. If we sit back and let them pile up shots, it’s not going to end well. Let’s forecheck, force them to dump, and hold on for the win. Pressure on three, team.”

The Leafs got together for their usual pump up tactic. “One…two…three…PRESSURE!”

The Leafs exited the locker room and hit the ice for the third and final period of game one.

---

“Here we go Red Wings, here we go!” was the prevailing chant among the fans as both teams were back for the third period. Wings and Leafs skated around their ends before the referee called them over for the faceoff. Spitfire and Rainbow met at the dot and went helmet-to-helmet. When the puck dropped, Spitfire dipped under Rainbow and squeezed the puck back to Pucks. The Leafs stayed up in the neutral zone instead of dropping back on defense, hoping to force a Wings turnover. Since they couldn’t move into the Leafs’ zone, Pucks and the Wings had to dump into the corner and chase after it. The Leafs’ strategy was working early as they grabbed the puck from the Wings’ dumps and brought it back on offense. As the opening minutes of the period went on, the Leafs could not get the backbreaking goal and the Wings began to figure out the Leafs’ forecheck. The Wings passed quicker and switched up their natural positions to confuse the Leafs.

With half the period over, the Wings controlled the puck and had to dump it down into the Leafs’ corner. Twilight went over to corral it but Spitfire came in fast to take it away. Rarity and Gilda came over to help win the puck battle as well. After a few minutes of pushing and poking, the puck squirted out from the scrum to the middle of the zone. Rainbow saw an opportunity and sprinted for the puck. Ditzy dove to poke the puck away from Rainbow’s path but missed, leaving Rainbow open for a breakaway. Spitfire got out from the corner and cranked up her speed trying to catch up to Rainbow. With Spitfire hot on her tail, Rainbow tried skating harder as both teams followed. When Rainbow wound up to fire a shot, Spitfire leaned forward and yanked the puck away. Rainbow continued her follow through and fell to the ice. Spitfire bolted the other direction with Fluttershy turning around to stop her from breaking away. Spitfire and Fluttershy were flank-to-flank as they closed in on Pinkie. Just as Spitfire went to make a move, Fluttershy stuck her stick out for the puck and knocked Spitfire to the ice. The crowd erupted with booing as the puck landed on Pinkie’s pad for her to cover up. When it looked like the Leafs got away with a break, the referee glided over and pointed his hoof at the net.

“Penalty shot awarded to Cloudsdale!”

Red Wings fans stopped their jeering and were now cheering wildly as the referee skated the puck to the center dot and Spitfire drifted around behind it. The Wings and Leafs gathered at their respective benches and the fans all stood up to watch. With the blow of the whistle, Spitfire began her stride and picked up the puck at center ice. Pinkie came out near the faceoff circles to cut down the angle and backed in as Spitfire got closer. Spitfire moved the puck right then left, then pushed it up closer to Pinkie. Pinkie was now in the crease and came up as Spitfire pulled the puck back. With Pinkie out of the net and on her knees, Spitfire floated the puck up over Pinkie’s blocker. Pinkie was thrown off by the shot and got a piece of it when she stood up but in the end, the puck flopped back down to the ice and trickled into the net. Foal Louis Arena erupted as Spitfire skated over toward her teammates at the bench.

”RED WINGS GOOOOOAAALLL scored by number 13, SPIIIIITFIIIIIREEEE!!

The game was now tied 2-2 as the Leafs looked on incredulously at what just happened. The Red Wings were still stoic in their demeanor and lined up for the faceoff, ready to take over the game. The Leafs quivered a tiny bit as they took their place. Rainbow won the faceoff but the Leafs quickly turned the puck over with poor passing. Cloudsdale controlled the puck as the electricity returned to the arena atmosphere.

A “LET’S GO WINGS!” chant echoed while the Wings cycled the puck around the Leafs’ zone. After a very hard shot on net from Ditzy, Pinkie gave the puck up to Rainbow who sought to put the team on her back and to reclaim the lead. Rainbow slashed through the neutral zone and tried passing it over to Applejack but missed. Pucks intercepted the puck and pushed it forward to Soarin who now had a 2-on-1 along with Spitfire. Rainbow spun around and got back to defend the break off her own bad pass. The crowd stood up to watch the play unfold hoping for a reason to celebrate again. Soarin passed to Spitfire as they crossed the Ponyville blue line. Rainbow stayed with Soarin, leaving Pinkie to deal with Spitfire. Spitfire aimed a shot right at Pinkie’s right pad. The puck bounced off right onto Soarin’s stick unbeknownst to Rainbow. Soarin flicked the rebound in, whipping Foal Louis Arena into a frenzy and sending the Leafs spiraling into despair.

”RED WINGS GOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLL!!! Scored by number 96, SOOOOOOAAAAAAARIIIIIINNNN!! Assisted by number 13, SPIIIIITFIIIIIREEEE!! And number 5, PUCKSSSSS!!

Soarin was smothered in the corner by the Wings as the arena reached a deafening pitch between the goal siren and the crowd. Rainbow kneeled down to the ice and banged her head against it in disappointment. Twilight and the others skated up to her to console her. During the Wings’ celebration, an octopus was flung onto the ice which garnered another loud cheer. The Wings’ zamboni mule trotted out to pick it up and flung it around his head much to the delight of the Wings faithful. When the revelry died down, Twilight called a timeout to delay the restart of the game. Pinkie came off the ice and Big Macintosh went on as the extra attacker since a minute and change remained in the game.

The referee called both teams over for the faceoff as Foal Louis Arena continued to stand. Spitfire won the faceoff to Ditzy who immediately tried firing into the open net. The puck skipped wide and Twilight went back to pick it up. Twilight passed up to Applejack who then tried hitting Rainbow cutting through the center. The pass missed and flopped into the corner where Pucks went after it. Big Macintosh charged in and pinned Pucks to the boards while trying to get the puck out. The puck came out to Rarity and she passed it to Twilight at the point. Thirty seconds remained in game one as the Leafs tried to tie up the contest. Twilight wound up for a shot hoping to make a Wing dive but nothing doing. She passed over to Fluttershy who then passed over to Applejack. Big Macintosh parked himself in the crease and towered over the young Scootaloo. All the Leafs needed was to fire on net but the Wings’ perimeter defense clogged the shooting lanes and stifled the Leafs’ movement. Applejack battled along the glass with Soarin and Spitfire on her. Ten seconds left. Rainbow swooped in and skillfully poked the puck out of the huddle to Fluttershy. Fluttershy ripped off a shot in desperation toward the net. As the puck came in, Big Macintosh shifted over to try to get a stick on it. Wings’ fans yelled out the final seconds. “Five…four…three…TWO…ONE…” The puck glanced off Big Mac’s stick and landed wide of the net, killing the Leafs’ chances to tie game one.

The final horn rung out as the Red Wings met at the net to hug Scootaloo and to celebrate the game one win. Fireworks exploded near the scoreboard and streamers shot out into the crowd. At the other end, the Leafs hung their head in bitter disappointment. Twilight’s crew sadly skated off toward their locker room having been defeated by the Red Wings for the third time this season under the same circumstances: blowing an early lead.

---

Ponyville’s locker room was dead silent as the team undressed. Once it appeared that everyone was done, Twilight kept her head up and stood up at the front of the room, remembering what happened last time they lost to the Wings.

“We didn’t close it out and get it done. We gave Cloudsdale life and just as we thought, they made the most of it. We’re still a good team! We held them off for two periods. We have the power and talent to beat them. We just need to put a full three period effort together. Hold your heads high because if you were to ask anypony on the street before the season started, no one would have imagined that we would be here right now. We are defying expectations by being here and even hanging with Cloudsdale. We can beat them! We have a great opportunity to go back home and tie this series up in front of our fans. All we need is a solid, complete effort and we’ll be back here for game three. I’m not going to mope around this time. I believe we can win and I hope you believe as well because if you don’t, then you might as well not show up at Ponyville Pond. Let’s get home and let’s come back here for game three, alright?”

“You got it, Twilight!” said Rainbow who appeared not too beaten up by her game-losing turnover.

Applejack stood up proudly. “I believe in this team! We can do it, y’all! Like Twi said, just need ta’ play a full game is all.”

“We’ll win the next game because I want to use my adorable winged skates again!” squeaked Fluttershy.

Fluttershy’s response lightened the mood as everyone laughed at her cute, yet serious reason.

“Back to Cloudsdale!” shouted Twilight.

“Back to Cloudsdale!” responded the Leafs.

To Be Continued

---
Three Stars for Ponyville @ Cloudsdale
* Spitfire (CRW)
** Ditzy Doo (CRW)
*** Pinkie Pie (PGL)

EHL Semifinals
---
(1) Cloudsdale vs. (4) Ponyville
(Cloudsdale leads 1-0)
Game 1: CLOUDSDALE 3, Ponyville 2
Game 2: @ Ponyville
Game 3 (if nec.): @Cloudsdale

(2) Appleloosa vs. (3) Canterlot
(Canterlot leads 1-0)
Game 1: Canterlot 2, APPLELOOSA 1
Game 2: @ Canterlot
Game 3 (if nec.): @ Appleloosa

Comments

[Fallen Knight]

Didnt start reading it yet but plan to when finished or sooner maybe, just find it unfair that the Canterlot team has a princess of their team

[Pencil Sketch]

Just in time for The Jets to come back, lose, and still have their insane fanbase.