Igor Orlov reaches 100 goals in a week built around him

Last week's call was that the shot share would hold and the goals against would drift back toward what the shots predict. The shot share held, but goals against barely moved, from 29 the week before to 28, so the call misses.

The scoreboard read 2-0, and the same name stood beside both goals. On Monday, May 11, the Boogeymen beat Blurky Yoints 2-0, and Igor Orlov scored each of them. The first came at 15:46 of the 1st period, set up by Benson and Silky. The second came at 09:55 of the 3rd, set up by Erb and Silky. Matteo Lehmann stopped all 18 shots he faced for a shutout, a steal in net. With that, a run of 3 straight losses was over.

A turnaround is a small word for what came after it. The Boogeymen went 8-1-1 over the week. They finished it on a 4-game win streak. Across the week they out-shot their opponents 177 to 126, and the night of Friday, May 15 ended as a sweep. Through all of it, the numbers kept coming back to the same forward.

Igor Orlov played 9 games this week. He scored 13 goals and added 9 assists for 22 points. He put 58 shots on net and threw 43 hits. Of the 37 goals the Boogeymen scored in the week, 13 were his. No one else on the club scored more goals in the week, and his line is the anchor that every other total in this piece hangs from.

Wednesday, May 13 is where the week found its weight. The same night brought a loss to Longshots, 3-2 in overtime. Then the Boogeymen beat Skillaz 4-3 in overtime. Orlov scored 4 goals in that game, on 10 shots. The 10 shots were a career high in 6s. His 6s average as a forward is 1.6 goals over 31 games, so this was a game far above his usual line, and it belongs to him.

He did not do it by himself. Joey Flopfish added 3 assists from defence against Skillaz, big numbers for him. Raz threw 9 hits in that game, a career high in 6s. The Boogeymen out-shot Skillaz 31 to 8, a margin that says the club owned the shot count in that game.

Two milestones came with the week. Orlov reached 100 goals this title. He also reached 50 assists this title. His title line now reads 101 goals and 56 assists. That adds up to 157 points in 62 games.

Friday, May 15 showed how close some of these wins were. The Boogeymen beat Kinngait Nanuks 3-2, and Orlov scored 1 goal. Then they beat Missionary Men 4-3, and Orlov scored 2 more. Erb had 3 points in each of those wins, both big games for him from defence. Two close wins made the sweep of the night.

Silky gave the week its other loud number. On Monday, May 11, the Boogeymen beat Lisa Annvalanche 6-5 in overtime. Silky had a hat trick in that game, 4 goals and 6 points in all. Orlov added 2 goals and 3 assists in the same game, a 3s season high in assists for him. Silky also reached 50 goals this title. The Silky and Orlov pairing now stands at 31 wins in 40 games together.

The week ended on Sunday, May 17, with a 7-5 win over Buffalo Dusters. Raz scored 6 of those goals, a hat trick and then some.

There is a cost inside these totals. The Boogeymen allowed 28 goals on 126 shots across the week. Matteo Lehmann finished at 84% over 5 games. Jonas Wagner finished at 68.6% over 4 games. Wagner had a meltdown against Lisa Annvalanche at 61.5%. Lehmann had a meltdown of his own at 53.8% when the Boogeymen lost to Planet Gearth 6-2.

That gap is why the Orlov week matters beyond its totals. A club that gives up 28 goals in a week has to score its way through, and Orlov scored more than anyone else that week. When the losing run reached 3, his 2 goals ended it. When the Skillaz game went to overtime, his 4 goals led the way.

The case for Orlov is not a hunch; it lives in the shot column and the goal column, and both are full. The week closed on a 4-game win streak and a new number beside his name: 101.

Igor Orlov leads the Boogeymen in goals again next week, and the shot share holds.