03.15.10

06.30.09

2009 Edition of Team Pakistan

06.20.09

HEAD COACH NAVEED MOHAMMAD
ISSUES STATEMENT

06.20.09

Game #6: B-Pool 5th Place
FINLAND STYMIES PAKISTAN
AGAIN TO END TOURNAMENT

Goals and assists: 20. Maenelainen Henri (Viitanen), 23. Ruismaki, 32. Maenelainen Henri (Koskela), 44. Koskinen (Nurmikolu, Makinen) Video highlights (WMV)

Report

Closing out their disappointing showing in the 2009 World Ball Hockey Championships, Pakistan was hoping to at least go out with a win over the disliked Finns. Instead, Finland trumped Pakistan again by a score of 4-0 to finish in 13th place and leaving Pakistan in 14th place overall in the World (6th place in the B-Pool). Pakistan falls from being the 2007 Pool-B champions, which correspeonds to 9th place in the tournament, to a lowly 14th ranking which will likely require the team to have to qualify sometime in 2010 in order to play for the 2011 tournament.

Pakistani goaltender Ibad Khan got the start in goal against Finland again but he fared no better this time out than last. The calm-and-cool goaltender was left out to dry at times and was unable to stop the Finnish attack forcing coach Naveed Mohammad to change goalies in the 3rd period. Young-Gun goaltender Raza Zaidi entered the game with Pakistan trailing 3-0 but it would be too little too late for Pakistan at that point. Zaidi would surrender the final goal to the Finns.

The tournament now comes to a disappointing end for Pakistan who at least get the rest of the trip off to relax and watch other matches. One of those matches includes tonight's final for the Gold medal featuring the host Czech Republic taking on the suddenly-powerful India squad. The game should make for an excellent finals matchup before the Pakistani team heads back to Canada on Sunday.

by Nauman Abbasi

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SEE PICTURES FROM THE GAME HERE

06.19.09

Game #5: B-Pool Classification
HUSSAIN'S HAT TRICK LEADS
ROUT OVER GREAT BRITAIN

Goals and assists:8. Buttar O. (Ayubi S., Mahmood), 8. Ayubi S. (Mahmood), 11. Alvi (Mohammad), 16. Bilal (Choudhry S., Buttar O.), 23. Patel (Bilal, Lucas J.), 28. Patel (Lucas J., Lucas B.), 29. Hussain (Alvi), 29. Ayubi S.(Ayubi T., Buttar O.), 31. Hussain (Hassan), 32. Alvi (Ayubi T.), 41. Buttar O., 44. Hussain (Kalair) - 4. Snowdon (Chahal), 35. Cree (Ashfield), 45. Ashfield (Porubsky). Video highlights (WMV) Report: Powered by Mudasser Hussain's hat-trick and two goals apiece from Osman Buttar, Sajjid Ayubi, Imran Patel and Dilawar Alvi, Pakistan destroyed Great Britain by a score of 12-3. The colonial team finally got its offense going against the imperialist nation of Great Britain whom every team in the tournament had, thus far, routed. No matter as Pakistan needed a little fun and confidence in order for their looming rematch against Finland tomorrow. Great Britain opened the scoring to make it 1-0 before Pakistan finally woke up. Buttar scored off a slapshot from the slot to tie the game up at 1-1 before Ayubi scored off a beautiful backhand to the top corner to make it 2-1. Alvi then scored on a Pakistani powerplay to make it 3-1 before the first period ended. In the second, Pakistan cracked open the game. Mohammad Bilal scored his first goal of the tournament and then Imran Patel scored off a beautiful deke around the British goaltender to make it 5-1 for Pakistan. The scoring would not end there as Patel would score his second goal of the game followed by Ayubi's second goal of the game and Hussain's first goal. Just like that, it was 8-1 for Pakistan with cheers coming from the fans of "Mal-ton, Mal-ton!" for Hussain who hails from that region in the Greater Toronto Area. However, coach Naveed Mohammad was unimpressed by the team's effort and threatened to bench any players who did not dump the ball in while trying to gain the offensive zone. Hussain and Alvi would score quick goals to open the third period to make it 10-1 before Great Britain finally scored a goal of their own past Pakistani goaltender Raza Zaidi. The young goalie got a piece of the shot but was unable to keep the rebound from falling into the net. Regardless, Zaidi turned in a good effort while handling the ball every chance he got. Buttar then scored a highlight-reel goal while going end-to-end while the team was shorthanded to make it 11-2 before Hussain completed the hat-trick to make it 12-2. Great Britain would score a goal late but at that point, it was all semantics - Pakistan had crushed the lowly Great Britain squad whose fall from the A-pool had resulted in yet another poor performance. Pakistan now moves on for a rematch with Finland to determine who earns 13th place in the tournament. After failing to move into the A-pool and failing to defend its B-pool Gold, Pakistan can at least look forward to facing off against a Finnish team whom they lost to earlier in the tournament. The game takes place at 3am EST on Saturday. by: Nauman Abbasi

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06.18.09

Game #4: B-Pool Quarterfinals
GREECE DROPS PAKISTAN 4-2
ENDING ANY GOLD MEDAL HOPES

Goals and assists: 11. Vassilakis (Trougakos), 24. Kontitsis, 26. Kourousis (Kamisis, Koutsogiannopoulos), 28. Papasterigiou (Koutsogiannoupoulos) - 33. Mahmood, 39. Mohammad (Buttar) Video highlights (WMV) Report: Greece defeated the defending Pool B champions in Pakistan by a score of 4-2. The two teams both had their moments of control and pressure but ultimately, it would be Greece's moments that would shine chasing Pakistan goaltender Ibad Khan out of goal. The game started off at a good pace with both teams playing a free-flowing style intended to generate chances. Pakistan forward Bilal Buttar was stopped on an excellent scoring chance after a great pass from linemate Imran Patel while goaltender Khan stood tall in net making, not one, but two big glove stops while shorthanded. However, the Greeks would finally solve Khan after a point-shot on the powerplay found the back of the net. Pakistan would earn itself a powerplay as well but that would come to a premature end after a tripping penalty was issued to defenseman and captain Ijaz Chaudhry. The Greeks would lead 1-0 at the first intermission. In the second period, Pakistan pressed for the tying goal. The Pakistani forwards sustained a lot of pressure in the Greek zone but were unable to generate enough scoring opportunities nor solve the Greek goaltender when they did get their chances. Finally, a penalty by defenseman Sami Choudhry turned the tide. The Greeks went to work on the powerplay but goaltender Khan made a big pad-stop to keep the game at a one-goal differential. Shortly after the powerplay ended, Greece scored its second goal of the game after a beautiful cross-zone lob-pass resulted in an even nicer tip by the Greek player. Not long after, the Greeks were at it again this time scoring off a beautiful individual effort that saw Pakistani defenseman Tariq Ayubi get deked around. Goaltender Khan had no chance after being left out to dry resulting in the 3-0 lead. Pakistan tried to get its offense going but forward Bilal Buttar lost the ball in the neutral zone resulting in a play coming back the other way. The Greek forward blasted a shot from the slot to make it 4-0. Just like that, the Greeks had a sizeable lead and control of the game after two periods. A change in goaltenders started the third period as Raza Zaidi took over for Khan. The switch may have helped as Pakistan finally caught a break in the third period when a 3-on-0 rush emerged with forward Usama Mahmood leading the way. Mahmood would make no mistake and shoot the ball past the Greek goaltender to make it 4-1. The comeback attempt had begun and Pakistan had its chances. However, it would have to be done without forward Bilal Buttar who sustained an injury into the boards after being hit-from-behind. The graceful player was helped off the ice while the Greek player was assessed a five-minute major penalty along with a game misconduct. Pakistan, already on the powerplay, now had a 1:31 two-man advantage but, as has been the story of the tournament thus far for Pakistan, the offense was unable to produce anything from it. Forward Osman Buttar managed to score a goal after the two-man advantage had become a one-man advantage to make it 4-2 but it was too little too late. Pakistan would fall to Greece by a final score of 4-2 and with that, their defense of the Pool B gold medal had come to an end. Pakistan now moves on to play the hapless United Kingdom squad on Friday. The two teams play at 6;30am EST in an effort to determine whom will advance to play for the Pool B 5th-place honour. by: Nauman Abbasi

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06.16.09

Game #3:
PAKISTAN AND BERMUDA
BATTLE TO A 2-2 DRAW

Goals and assists: 13. S.Choudry (J.Lucas), 40. J.Mohammad (O.Buttar) - 20.McKay (Critchley), 36. Bouwens (Desjardins). Video highlights (WMV) Report Requiring a win to face off for a chance to move into the coveted Pool A, Pakistan earned itself a 2-2 tie against Bermuda instead relegating the team to Pool B status. Had Pakistan overcome Bermuda, Pakistan, the defending champions of Pool B, could have faced off against the United Kingdom to move into Pool A. With how poorly the United Kingdom had played thus far in the tournament, it was an opportunity for Pakistan to advance but alas, it was not to be. Pakistan opened the scoring when Sami Choudhry blasted a shot from the point to make it 1-0. The mercurial defenseman fired away shots all game and was a threat to score each time the ball came to his stick. The first period would see both teams trade chances to score but Pakistan goaltender Ibad Khan kept the door closed while the Bermuda goaltender was equally up to the task. In the second period, Bermuda would finally solve goaltender Khan to make it 1-1. Yet again, Pakistan found itself shorthanded due to penalty trouble in which the Bermuda team capitalized on to score the equalizing goal. The two teams would end the second half that way despite the myriad of chances each team would have to score. Pakistan's anaemic offense would be unable to score on the several powerplay opportunities the team earned while giving Bermuda chances to take the lead with its numerous penalities. Things would be no different in the third period as Pakistan would continue to allow opportunities on the powerplay to Bermuda. The island nation would finally be rewarded with a goal to take a 2-1 lead after scorig on the powerplay while defenseman Brian Lucas sat in the box. However, Pakistan would get a chance to tie the game on the powerplay yet again and this time, they did just that. Winger Junaid Mohammad blasted a shot which found the back of the net after a slow but well-placed cross-ice pass from forward Osman Buttar. With the game tied 2-2, Pakistan would pull their goalie in a desperate effort to score the much-needed go-ahead goal in order to win. The attempt would bear no results and the game would finish as a hard-fought 2-2 tie instead. With that, Pakistan now faces Greece on Thursday at 11:30am EST for Pool B contention. Should Pakistan defeat Greece, the team will move on to face another foe for Pool B Gold while a loss will drop Pakistan to finishing no better than 5th-place. by: Nauman Abbasi

TRACK THE STATS

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06.15.09

Game #2:
NEWCOMER FINLAND
SQUEAKS BY PAKISTAN

Goals and assists: Branky a nahrávky: 16. Khwaja (Buttar B.) - 20.Luukkanen (Maenelainen Henri, Ylamaki), 38. Viitanen (Koskinen, Skytta). Video highlights (WMV)

Report

Coming off a solid effort in their opener against the Cayman Islands, Pakistan knew they had their work cut out for them against the debuting Finland team. "Their fans are nuts," said one Pakistani player while another commented on how unpredictable the Finnish squad was after their come-from-behind 4-4 tie against Bermuda. The two factors led to a game in which Pakistan had difficulty establishing their game plan against Finland and ultimately lost by a score of 2-1.

The opening period saw Finland earn itself an early powerplay due to a penalty by Pakistan. However, the special-teams came through as Pakistan killed off the penalty thanks to some solid shot-blocking by its defense corps. Shortly afterwards, Pakistan would find itself on the powerplay but disorganized play and an inability to properly gain the zone would effectively neutralize the opportunity. Defenseman Sami Choudhry would even crush an opposing player but would fortunately not get called a penalty for it. Later on, Pakistan would be on the powerplay again as the Finns would be undisciplined and find themselves in the box. Choudhry would come through with a big slapshot from the point that would find the back of the net but the goal would be disallowed as forward/defenseman Imtiaz Dawood would instead get called for interfering with the goalie and negate the opportunity. Just when it seemed Pakistan had gotten the lead, it was taken away and Pakistan found itself sitting in the box again. The period would end tied at 0-0 despite the chances that both teams would get.

In the second period, Pakistan would earn itself another powerplay. Forward Emmad Khawaja would be left all alone in front of the net and score past the Finnish goaltender to make it 1-0 thanks to a pass from forward Osman Buttar. Buttar, the assistant captain, would celebrate by showing the rowdy Finnish fans the "be quiet" symbol by placing his finger to his mouth in which the fans would respond by taunting back with chants of "Os-man". The goal would spur the Finns who would tie the game up at 1-1 after a blast from the point found the back of the net past Pakistani goaltender Raza Zaidi. Buttar would then get robbed by the pads of the Finnish goaltender after being left alone in front of the net to which the Finnish fans would loudly taunt Buttar for.

The third period would start off with more penalties being given out and Pakistan yet again on the penalty kill. Forward Junaid Mohammad would be called for tripping but Pakistan would again kill off the penalty. Defenseman Brian Lucas would then find himself sitting in the penalty box and the Finns would finally capitalize on the opportunity after an odd-angle shot found itself behind goaltender Zaidi. With the game at 2-1, Pakistan would try and press for the tying goal. Forwards Imran Patel and Bilal Buttar would each have solid chances to score but would not be able to thanks to the stellar play of the Finnish goaltender. Captain and defenseman Ijaz Chaudhry would also come up short after a few opportunities to score would not bear fruit. The game would end with Finland winning 2-1 despite a mad-scramble ensuing in front of the net and a scuffle taking place. Bilal Buttar would be at the bottom of the pile before things cleared up. Ultimately, a suspension was handed out to a Finnish player for his unprovoked attack on Buttar.

The inability of Pakistan's powerplay to capitalize on its numerous opportunities would be their downfall against Finland. Pakistan, now 1-1 after two games, now meets Bermuda tomorrow at 6:30am EST in which they will need their powerplay to start generating goals. Otherwise, the team risks finding itself with an unfavourable matchup on Wednesday when the Pool A-crossover game takes place.

by Nauman Abbasi

TRACK THE STATS

SEE PICTURES FROM THE GAME HERE

06.14.09

Game #1:

PAKISTAN DOWNS CAYMAN ISLANDS TO WIN OPENER

Goals and assists: 10. Lucas B. (Buttar B., Buttar O.), 30. Chaudhry I. (Buttar O.), 37. Zafir (Baig) - 31. Maw (Bourne).,

Video highlights (WMV)

Report

Referred to by other teams as "bees" in terms of the way they attack opposing defenses, Pakistan upheld that moniker after defeating the Cayman Islands 3-1 in their first game of the ISBHF World Ball Hockey Tournament. The Pakistani offense applied pressure from the get-go against a Cayman Islands squad that fell on its heels from the start and ultimately was unable to withstand the speed and hustle of Pakistan.

The game started off with Pakistan dictating the flow and pace of the game. Defenseman Brian Lucas controlled the offense with his deft passing and puck control which forced the Cayman Islands to scramble desperately in an effort to contain. Lucas' control and play would result in the first goal of the game after he ripped a shot into the top corner past the Cayman Islands goaltender giving Pakistan the early 1-0 lead. The goal, Lucas' first of the tournament, would come after Pakistani forwards Sajjid Ayubi and Rizwan Kalair each had their own chances to give their team the lead. Ultimately, the first half would end 1-0 despite the pressure applied by Pakistan as goaltender Ibad Khan would only face his first shot of the game after 13:02 minutes had elapsed in the first period.

In the second period, the Cayman Islands managed to start generating some scoring opportunities but each time, goaltender Khan was there to make the stop including a big spread-eagle glove save that preserved the Pakistani lead. However, the continued success of Pakistan's centres in winning the faceoff draws would shift the attack back on their side and again, the "bees" would go back to work. Forward Usama Mahmood applied his speed and skill on a give-and-go play with centre Osman Buttar but could not get the ball into the back of the net while forward Mohammad Bilal generated a few scoring chances by using his speed as well. The exciting brand of attacking hockey displayed by Pakistan won over local Czech fans who started to cheer for Pakistan. Soon after, they would be rewarded when captain and defenseman Ijaz Chaudhry blasted a shot off the faceoff past the Cayman Islands goaltender. The goal would give Pakistan a 2-0 lead going into the second intermission.

The Cayman Islands would finally manage to get on the board just 8 seconds into the 3rd period after a blistering slapshot beat goaltender Khan to make it 2-1. The goal would thrust the Cayman Islands back into the game and stun the small but pro-Pakistani crowd due to how quick it came. Goaltender Khan would keep the Islanders trailing after making some big saves before Pakistan again went back on the attack. Forward Kalair would come close to extending Pakistan's lead but would be unable to beat the Cayman Islands goaltender yet again. However, defenseman Zafir Rashid would fulfill that responsibility instead after a blast from the blue-line to make it 3-1 and give some breathing room to Pakistan. Ultimately, the game would finish by that score for a Pakistani team that had outplayed its opposition for most of the game. They outshot the Cayman Islands by a 30-12 shot advantage when all was said and done with forward Camran Baig earning Player-of-the-Game honours for his two-way play and solid work ethic.

Pakistan now moves on to a date against Finland. The rowdy Finnish fans bouyed their national team to a 4-4 draw against Bermuda and should pose an interesting matchup for Pakistan. The game will take place at 5:30pm local time (11:30am Eastern Standard Time).

by Nauman Abbasi

TRACK THE STATS

SEE PICTURES FROM THE GAME HERE

06.09.09

FINAL TEAM PROFILE
PICS UNVEILED

Click here to view

02.26.09

TOURNAMENT GROUPS SET

Group A

Group B

Group C

Group D

The city of Pilsen Zvolen