Pirates make Captains walk the plank

Trying to capitalize on some of the momentum from last week’s 8-4 win against George Mason, the Captains came into Friday night’s game with a lot of emotion.

The fact that it was Senior Night against an ECU team that consistently defeated the Captains in the past only added to the fervor filling the IcePlex. Unfortunately, they would come out on the tough side of a 6-4 defeat.

The start of the game was filled with big hits and big slap shots. The ECU Pirates would be the first to convert on their scoring chances, as a massive slap shot from the blue line found its way past the senior goaltender Nick Thompson for a early 1-0 lead three minutes into the game.

One minute later, the penalty minutes started to accumulate as ECU scored on a power play, giving them a 2-0 lead with 14 minutes left in the first period.

Later in the 1st period, the Captains would have a 5-3 man advantage for a minute and a half. Solid defense by ECU stalled the Captains’ power play and preserved the 2-0 lead. Then, with three minutes left in the period, the Captains would once again gain a 5-3 advantage that was halted by the nifty goal tending of the Pirates.

After the numerous power plays ended, both teams seemed out of position as they began streaking back and forth down the ice in a furious effort to score a big emotional goal for their team.

With 30 seconds remaining in the 1st period, the Captains screeched down the ice with a breakaway opportunity that led to the first goal of the night for CNU.

The start of the 2nd period definitely had a familiar feel to it as ECU went to the penalty box beginning a trend that would stick with them throughout most of the game. Their penalty would soon cost them, with 14 minutes left in the 2nd period, sophomore forward Ryan Dove scored from the blue line to tie the game on a power play.

The scoring in the 2nd period would be capped off by an ECU tip-in, to put them up 3-2 with seven minutes remaining in the period. The game became increasingly more aggressive, as both sides began to take more penalties and began to play more physically to close out a tight 2nd period. Thompson credits his team for the close score after two periods of play.

“Our penalty kill was on fire tonight, I can’t say enough about the guys I had in front of me. They definitely stepped up tonight on the penalty kill, [Tyler] Bemis had a big play and stepped up to take a hard shot block. It was a great combination of team work,” Thompson said.

The 3rd period would open up with a great chance for CNU with a breakaway, which was shut down by an ECU penalty. The Captains’ failure to cash in on the power play early in the period would cost them, as ECU would score their 4th goal with 18 minutes left in the 3rd period.

Despite their difficulties on the power play, the Captains were far from out of the game. One minute later, with 17 minutes left in the game, senior defenseman Tate Dietrich would score a goal that passed through three defenders before finding its way to the back of the net.

Soon after the goal, the penalty boxes began to fill. This led to the Captains’ game-tying 4th goal of the game, scored on a power play by senior forward Chris Mihlon who said after the game, “Once we got tied at 4-4 we were pumped, and we were hoping we could get out with a win.”

The power play that helped CNU tie the game also cost them, as penalties for too many men on the ice and tripping led to two quick goals for ECU, giving them a 6-4 lead with six minutes left in the game.

The flow of the game had taken its toll on the Captains, and as they fought back to regain the lost goals, they became increasingly frustrated with their opponents.

This became evident when during the final 30 seconds of play when a fight broke out inside the ECU goalie crease.

Senior goalie Nick Thompson explained, “It is tough in close games like this to keep your composure and keep your cool, to come so close against a familiar opponent during a game at home on a big night we unfortunately blew our lids a little bit.”

The final 30 seconds were never played out as both teams were forced to leave the ice.

At the end of the game, 50 penalties were issued, and a incredibly tight game ended with a bitter 6-4 loss for the Captains, a tough ending for Senior Night.

Adam Baker/The Captain's Log

Posted by Joshua McDowell on Feb 9 2011. Filed under Hockey, Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.