Jan 03, 2015 | goldfield | 343 views
Hayden Charges Strong into the Cyclone
Oro was excited to be home in Guthrie for the first time to finish the final of a three game regular season set vs the tough Stayner Cyclone
It was to be a hard match down two regulars in Chaser and Eddie, but the boys came ready to get back on the winning side of the ledger after tasting the bitterness of defeat in Niagara falls
There may have been some shiny new toy distraction for our gang playing the first time on new digs and having to adjust to the much larger ice surface,and Stayner matched us rush for rush in the first 5 minutes.
The Cyclones got on the board first with a lightning shot that Justin had no chance on from high slot...something the team was made aware of pregame. They didn't let it happen twice.
This was a stalwart and game winning defensive effort from our squad...with Justin holding the fort with timely big stops.
Colt,Harry,Magoo and some other big guy played smart,mistake free hockey for three periods and the results were on the scoreboard.
Our lads began to break through Stayner's D and had several point blank chances but were unable to figure out the strong Stayner keeper who took away low ice very well.
Stayner took the 1-0 lead into the second period.
It became obvious we had to get dirty and score some greasy in tight goals and the forwards began to battle for ice in the hotly contested crease.
Halfway through the second Aidan peeled out of the corner and sent a crisp seam pass through the crease that Ty smartly one timed home to tie the game. The boys were jubilant to finally break the goose egg and mobbed our suddenly hot winger in celebration.
The forwards were rolling every other shift and when Ben took ill,we had to make a big adjustment
I have been eyeing Flash for some time at forward,knowing his skill and speed would translate well.
Problem is he has played D all his life,so could he adjust without reps?
With some quick X's and O's...quite swimmingly it turns out ;)
Connor,who has played wing way back in the day and has the grit and skating skill to go two ways/win puck battles/crash the net was paired with Eric hoping their defensive chemistry would translate.
It was the boost our tired forwards needed.
Oro began to take the play to Stayner from the mid point on and Doogie,Aidan,Owen and Jacob were stymied time and again with fabulous chances on breakaways and beautiful 2-1's.
Still,the ice was beginning to tilt and even our penalty kills were played mostly in Stayner's zone!
Third period it was time for the DC Comic book boys to take charge
Flash was rushing the net as Doogie drilled a shot on pads for a big rebound that Flash wasted no time putting home. The celebration following for our Dman's first goal at forward was quite a show and drew some smiles and a couple chuckles from the fired up bench.
Down to four D we saw weariness set in the rotation,yet they all sucked it up shift after shift
Hayden,aka Supes, was a monster in this game.
Hayden continually looks to make a great,heads up first pass from his zone and is always thinking defense first which works so well with the more offensively minded Magoo..another great tandem on D
All game Hayden had stepped up high slot as asked and used his long stick to thwart oncoming rushers and chances
Third period he added some much needed physicality
Hayden used his great size and strength to continually shut down Stayner's equally large center,he of the deadly wrister.
One memorable play was when the big C was one on one and pushed the puck past Hayden as they met just outside our blueline. Hayden went eye to eye,chest to chest with the fast rushing big man and stopped him in dead in his tracks. This was one of many terrific,don't show up on the scoresheet, plays that he made through the entire game.
Late third Supes had swallowed some kryptonite and was having trouble breathing.
I asked if he needed a shift off and he said "no way coach,I'm good"
Gut check leadership and Player of the Game to our tower of power whose strong defensive play never goes unnoticed by coaches but isn't lauded often enough.
Penalty trouble saw Connor have to swing back to d for a couple shifts.
With the game still very much in doubt, he was one on one with #18 and was a little overmatched in speed.
He never game up,pivoted,drove him wide with body on body and then dove to force a bad angled ripper that Justin gobbled up.
A small play some might think,but another little detail of extra determination that could have possibly changed an outcome. Its tough enough moving up F to D but bouncing around like you did Connor and playing SO WELL deserves special mention buddy. Kudos game long.
Flash wasn't finished in his debut.
Late third he and Aidan were battling in Stayner crease and Eric roofed an in tight,high flip bar down that somehow squeaked behind the netminder
He was listening to coaches who implored the team to "go high" and showed exceptional hands to make the difficult shot burying the dagger in Stayner's A division hopes.
Final minutes saw Oro play shutdown D..great effort that seemed easy... and I even lost track of the final 120 seconds secure in the fact the boys would bring it home.
The team played fantastic hockey,especially considering the extra challenges faced and playing a top tier team
We spoke post game how we did our friends/foes up the road a huge favour in winning the series vs the Cyclones, allowing them a chance to slip into the A pool....a just reward considering earlier sportsmanship
More importantly,Oro always kept composure against a team that they weren't fond of and as we reminded them; the best revenge is always on the scoreboard otherwise it's a dish served cold.
This was a steaming hot victory and lets hope we can keep the momentum tomorrow vs our hard charging Oro counterparts
It's game on boys.