If you recall, in last week's edition of the Game of the Week, I presumptuously stated that the Crown Point Bulldogs would "mark their territory" against the Munster Mustangs, 3-1.  Boy, was I wrong. The mustangs came out on fire, scored three goals in the first period and cruised to a 4-2 win.  I like to think it was because they read the Game of the Week article and got all amped-up.  Do I have that kind of far reaching impact? Not likely but a man can dream, can't he?

Everybody who has been to Vegas knows that when you lose, you have to double down.  It's the only way to get back on top.  So this week, in true Vegas style, I am doubling down with two Games of the Week!  I'm calling the Zionsville Eagles at the Columbus Icemen high school match-up AND the JR. Fuel 14U squad at the Evansville Thunder 14U.

I like the Zionsville and Columbus matchup because both teams are playing good hockey at the moment, despite a few hiccups on the schedule.  Their last meeting was early in the year when the Icemen netted the only goal in the third period to squeeze out a 4-3 victory.  Plus, two outstanding senior hockey players, Columbus' Noah Carlock (30 pts) and Zionsville's Jeremy Tromiczak (26 pts) square off.  

This will be another good game with solid offensive production from both sides (sorry goalie parents).  I like Columbus to take this one at home in a barn burner, 6-5.  You can catch this game at 9:15pm on Friday night at Hamilton Center in Columbus.  

It is good to note, Columbus did slip below Zionsville in this week's INHockey.net rankings. Columbus dropping to #6 and Zionsville grabbing the #5 spot.

Now, let's take a look at that 14U game between the Jr. Fuel and Evansville.  The tough thing about calling a youth hockey game, even an older 14U game, is the teams are wildly unpredictable. Maybe it's the teenage hormones, but rarely does the same team take the ice in a weekend doubleheader.  Nonetheless, I think this match-up will showcase some quality hockey games.

On one side, you have the Evansville Thunder playing at home in Swonder Ice Arena, which is a great rink, by the way.  This team carries a 5-2-1 record in the Buckeye 14U A Gold 1 division and a 6-3-1 overall record.  Teams from Evansville have a history of physical, aggressive play and this team is no different, with three player suspensions already this season (two for head contact and one for fighting).  Their solid offensive production of 3.5 goals per game coupled with their gritty play style  makes them a pretty tough team to beat, sitting at the #2 spot in the division.  

On the other side we have the Jr. Fuel 14U team playing in the same division but carrying a 1-3 Buckeye record into the weekend match-up and currently sitting at the #5 spot in the division. However, two of those three losses came against division power house, Indian Hill, which is essentially a AA team playing in the wrong division.  And that other loss...you guessed it, Evansville. The two teams played each other back on October 9th and split the games.  

In the Buckeye standings Evansville certainly looks like the better team however, the Jr. Fuel has a combined 11-4 record with solid performances against decent non league opponents. 

My gut tells me their going to split the games again, but since I'm doubling down, I'm calling for the Jr. Fuel to steal both games in Evansville.

There you have it, the Columbus Icemen and the Jr. Fuel 14U A Gold are my teams for the weekend.

You heard it here first!

Disagree?  Let us hear about it in the comments section below.