Dec 23, 2013 | Bob Richards | 238 views
Black vs Red Dec 21st
The Black Attack squared off against the Red Machine at 11 am after a pre-game prediction from head coach Brent Urie that it would be a close game, which ended up being bang-on in this nail-biter showdown that ended in a 2-2 tie.
The Attack went into this one with a defensive strategy in support of rookie goaltender Bella Lane, who was well defended throughout the first period with strong backchecking and a stacked defensive lineup. The home team forwards were outsized by the larger Red Machine players, but nevertheless held their own within the tightly packed scrums. Forward Thomas Harmsworth broke through one of these scrums halfway through the first period and got a direct shot on net that was saved, but his rebound shot was not, and the Black Attack went up 1- 0. Shortly after, the Red Machine got their one and only pure breakaway, but were shut down by Bella Lane who held firm with good positioning and stance despite the pressure. The game was tied early in the second period when Machine forward Blake Edwards got a strong, clean wrist shot away from the middle of the right circle, while under hot pursuit, that grazed goalie Bella Lane's helmet on its way into the net. The rest of the second period consisted of more tight scrumming action between the blue lines, with few shots on net, as forwards on both sides persisted unsuccessfully trying to clear the puck forward, but were halted by defensive walls. When the puck did get through the Attack defencemen, it had been reduced to a trickle and was pounced on by the Attack goalie, and frozen for safe keeping. During one close call for the Attack, Charlie Hall-Elwood made a diving swipe from behind to halt a two-on-none strike deep in their end. In the third period, forwards from both sides started to break through the defensive fortresses and had many opportunities inside the blue line and in front of the net. Forward Ethan Guthro, earned his MVP award for the Black Attack by leading this offensive. Charlie Hall-Elwood saw a chance, and advanced from his position at the point to pop one in and take his team to a 2-1 lead. The Black Attack got called back to their zone with many icing calls as they dumped the puck too deep, and on one of these instances, the Red Machine countered with an ice level shot to the left of the net during a scrum in front to tie up the game. Both teams poured on the heat during the last two minutes to try to grab the game-winning goal, and it could have gone either way, but stayed tied due to defensive digging and forward backchecking. The energy and hustle by both teams kept the crowd on the edge of their seats until the buzzer sounded. Written by Samantha Lane