Halifax Floor Hockey LeagueHackers vs Lynx
First game of the night saw the power house Hackers stepping up to the struggling Lynx. The Lynx got some bad news this past week as team Captain and back bone Rickie Miller had to step away for the rest of the season due to a “lower body injury “. In his place the Lynx welcomed a blast from the past in Matt Grove.
The Lynx opened the scoring when Stu Whidden beat Bob Strum on a pass from Mike Collier. Veteran Rob Tyrrell then beat Strum off a pass from Stu Whidden. The Lynx were up by two quickly. But we know how fast the Hackers can turn it on, and they answered back with two of their own. Geoff Briggs beat Marty Kane off a pass from Joe Murphy. Geoff’s little big bro evened things up when he buried a wrister in the bottom corner. Rob Tyrrell then gave the Lynx the lead scoring on a pass from Jason MacIsaac and they took a 3-2 lead into the second.
Hackers versatility player Geoff Briggs evened things up beating Kane with a ripper from the point. But Matt Grove made his mark scoring a nice goal off a feed from Shane Erb. Stu Whidden followed up with his second of the night on a pass from Andrew O’Keefe. Lynx up by two. But the Hackers kept the pressure on and Dab Carver fired a big shot from the point. Kane gave up the rebound, of course, and Jonathan Hunson buried it low glove side to keep it close. 5 - 4 Lynx headed into the third.
The Third saw the Lynx hunker down and tighten things up on the back end. Knowing that Kane had only faced 4 shots and gave up 4 goals, they stepped up and shut the Hackers down. They also added 3 goals, two from Whidden on feeds from Shane Erb and Matt Grove, then Grove closed it out with a selfie. Despite the score, an under the weather Bob Strum still made some awesome saves. The Hackers just need 4 more shots on Kane and this game would have been a lot different. Lynx win this one 8-4
Sabres vs Chill
The Sabres were once again without their fearless leader Kyle Bradbury, while the Chill were com8ng off a poor showing vs the Hackers last week. Both teams looking for a much needed boost. The first period saw two stingy goalies keep the door shut. Special mention to Craig Burgoyne, who put on a show with 22 saves. 0-0 after one.
The Sabres opened things up in the second with new guy Alex Yeadon scoring an unassisted goal. Aaron Brown then gave the Sabres a 2 goal lead off a pass from Yeadon. Chill power forward, Cam Power scored an unassisted goal to keep it close, then Alex DeSousa buried a Wes Cook pass to tie it up. But Alex Yeadon moved the Sabres ahead by sniping a shot off a pass from A.J.Brown. Sabres were up 3-2 after two.
The third was all Sabres as second round pick Myles Raymond reminded everyone why he went so high by taking control. Myles scored the first goal of the third on a pass from Alex Yeadon, then he set up Liam Macleod and THEN…he scored another goal this time on a pass from Liam Macleod. Sabres push hard and get the win by a score of 6-2. This was a great game by both goalies. The Chill have two more games left to sort things out.
Slayers vs Fire
This was the game of the night by all accounts. Both teams had full benches with exception of the Fire missing Anil Snook for undisclosed reasons. The first period saw these teams traded goals twice as Eric Gale took a pass from Mark Duggan and ripped it home. Matt Strum replied beating Kevin Kennedy on a pass from D Man Matt Monk. The other Gale brother, Alex then sniped a a shot past Boudreau on a pass from Steve Combdon, who is having a banner year. But Matt Strum stuck again when Trevor Thompson fed him a nice pass and this one was tied at 2 after the first.
The second saw each team battle and it was Matt Strum scoring his third on a pass from Jeff Withers and they had the lead once again. Mark Duggan answered back on a pass from Eric Gale but Strum scored his 4th again from Withers and they were back in the lead. Fire beast of a rookie Liam Oxner tied it up again when he roofed a shot over Boudreau on a pass from Duggan and this was tied again. End of the second, 4-4.
The third saw the Slayers surge and D man Sheamus MacDonald grabbed two in a row, one unassisted the second from Jordan Castilloux . Jeff Withers got into the action early in the third on a feed from Matt Strum. The Fire fought back scoring two in a row when Steve Combdon hard work got rewarded off a pass from Eric Gale. Then Eric scored one by his lonesome and this one was one goal apart. But the Fire ran out of time and this gave the Slayers the win and a slim 1 point lead at the top. Slayers take this one 7-6
This weeks player of the week goes to Sabres Keeper Craig Burgoyne who stepped up big time stopping 41 of 43 shots this week. Great job Craig.
Well that’s how it looked from here folks. Come on back next week to see how things unfold in week 9. Pretty tight race this season.
I’m Billy Concarney andI hope you all have a great week. Stay well and be safe people!