They say revenge is a dish best served cold, but Sunday at KHS Arena it sunny and warm. It didn't matter, because the
Ventura Mariners Bantam Killer Bees had pay-back on their minds as they faced the Beach City Lightning. In the Thanksgiving
tournament the Lightning handed the Mariners a pretty embarrassing loss, so the boys were looking to redeem themselves. Unlike
the tournament, however, this game actually counted.
If there was any question as to whether
the Mariners were ready for this game, they were quickly erased. Early in the first period, Jason Hart chased down a lightning
player, picked his pocket clean, and zipped a perfect pass down to the net. Luke Tickle received the puck and slammed it through
to the back of the net. The crowd went wild. Remember: they weren't booing, they were saying "Luuuuuuke". Not long after
that, Conor Gleason used his shifty moves to get through the defense and bury the team's second goal. It looked like the kids
were going to run away with this one, but the Lightning wasn't ready to give up.
As the game progressed,
there was lot's of end-to-end action. If I wasn't emotionally invested in the outcome, it would have been really exciting.
Instead, it was nerve-wracking. Thankfully, Gianluca Allen's New Years resolution was obviously to dominated the crease. The
Mariner's net-minder was nothing short of awesome. He was seeing the puck through a seas of bodies and even playing tips and
deflections like they were routine dump-ins.
Inspired by their goalie's brilliant play, the team
set out to put the game away. In the second period, the Mariner's lackluster powerplay found some purpose. Set up in a perfect
triangle, the kids scored a goal that any NHL coach would have been proud of. TJ Samuel hit Patrick Dalton with a pass behind
the net, who in-turn found Killian Anderson wide open out front. BOOM. The Mariner were up 3-0. The team continued to pour
it on in the middle frame with Brian Zacchia and Shane Heller getting some glorious scoring chances.
In
the third period, the defense decided to settle things down a bit. Josh Kuchinski was strong, both in his stopping power and
his nice head-man passes. JB Lovelace had a fantastic game on the blue-line, knowing when to pinch and when to back off. Blake
Burlew was also quite good with outlet passing. He was finding the seams and reversing the flow to get the puck safely out
of the zone. Tom Dobrokhot was his usual scrappy self, sacrificing body and mind to keep the puck away from the crease. My
biggest complaint about this game was the lack of physicality. As if on cue, as I commented on this, Cameron Torres obliterated
a skater who thought he could stick-handle his way through. Thanks for the late Christmas present Cam.
The
Mariners were going to win this game. In that, there was no doubt. There was only one thing left to prove. It's a thing that
begins with the letter "s" and you can't say it or you'll jinx it. Unfortunately, I heard somebody on our side make a comment
about "the shutout" and wouldn't you know it, a few minutes later, the Lighting got a lucky goal. I don't know who said it,
but you people really need to respect the Hockey Gods. The Mariners came right back and reclaimed a three goal lead. Killian
got his second of the game on a carbon-copy score. Only this time it was Patrick passing to TJ, who found The Killer wide
open out front.
The boys rode out the clock with a hilarious powerplay that saw Jason get a half-dozen
scoring chances. The Mariners had indeed redeemed themselves with a 4-1 victory. It was a great way to ring in the New Year
and to start the stretch run towards the play-offs.
Pockey Huck
Niko Utash missed the Maple Leafs game because his sister had chicken pox
and his folks were concerned that he might get it or pass it on to the team. He missed this game because he now actually has
it. We wish him a speedy recovery.
Stylin'
Mark
Becica was the back up in this game. He set the fashion tone for 2009 with his sporty new hair-do and dynamic new jersey.
Three Cheers
A big shout-out goes to our
Batam A team for laying a smack-down on the West Valley Wolves. I guess them boys are only good when they're playing against
pee wees in a bantam b tournament.
