Feb 18, 2015 | Todd McIver | 834 views
Game 3 In London
Hoping to build on Sunday's success Team Blue traveled to London to take on the Knights Green team. With 2 points on the line, this would be an important battle! Each boy seemed to be ready to dig in and get dirty!
As soon as the puck dropped, both teams came out fast. Back and forth the play went until London gained control deep in the Blue end. A few quick shots on net were turned away by the blue goalie and then Blue went to work. Taking the puck into the Green zone, the Blue forwards made some good passes and had a couple scoring chances of their own. As time ticked on in the period, London began to take over and dictated much of the play. The period would end with Team Blue on their heels and needing to dig deep but in a scoreless tie.
The second period began with both teams battling hard. A couple minutes in though, London started to dictate the pace of play and time of puck possession. The Blue skaters seemed to be watching the play develop and sitting back as opposed to playing the aggressive hockey that has made them successful. 3 minutes into the period, a mistake by a Blue defender at our blue line ended in a bad bounce of the puck from the corner to the front of the net, a shot, a rebound, and a goal to get Green on the board. At the half-way point of the period, Blue would get into a little trouble when a blue defenceman got a penalty in the corner below Green's goal line. The resulting power-play saw Green march into the Blue zone, set up shop, and after a couple passes take a shot on net that was misplayed by the Blue tender. Off the glove, off the post, off a leg, and into the net! 2-0 Green. A serious lack of wanting the puck and shying away from getting bumped saw most of the remainder of the period played in the Blue end. At the end of the second period, Team Blue knew they were behind the 8-ball.
The coach's message was simple for the final frame. Win every race to the puck and get more physical. When the final period began there was some life in the boys. A few good scoring chances were created when the Blue D moved the puck smartly to the wingers (who picked the puck up off the half wall) and either took the puck deep into the Green end or passed it to a streaking line-mate. A couple 2 on 1's didn't yield any goals but fired up the bench! A few more good scoring chances for Green were again turned away by the Blue tender and the period was pretty even until the final 3 and a half minutes. Hoping to pull the goalie in favour of an extra attacker, the goal was to get the puck deep into the Green end. This did not happen. Again, watching the play happen and not attacking the puck carrier allowed London to run the clock out holding the puck in the Blue end until the final buzzer.
So it comes down to Saturday in Kitchener to try and even the score! Remember Blue, taking short-cuts and not begin aggressive leads to more losses than wins. You need to give 100% every second you are on the ice and not watch the play. Stick to the systems you have been taught and good things will happen! Green has given us all they can and despite not playing our greatest, they only won this game 2-0. Imagine what could happen if we play our Real Team Blue game??!!