The morning following the year’s biggest snowstorm, the ATOMc Blue Fireballs were prepared to face a vicious White squall on the ice in the form of ATOMc White. These two teams were set to face off at the Waterloo Rec Complex against an opposing team that had struggled so far this season, but was stocked full of talent and skill. The bigger ice always made for exciting hockey games, and this one would be no different than usual!
The boys took to the ice for this
game three members short; Carson A., Lucas B. and James R. were absent for
different reasons. Their teammates would
have to work that much harder to accommodate for these absences.
Jackson M., Ryan S. and Jett S.
took the opening face-off, while Michael R. and Josh R. backed them up on the
blue line. As always, Luke C. stood
strong and ready in the Blue net, daring anyone to attempt to put the puck past
him. Action started immediately, with
White breaking into Blue’s end only to be turned right back around, as Josh poke-checked
the puck away from the opposing player, and Jett picked it up and skated the
length of the ice for a backhand attempt on the White net. What a game this was going to be!
As had become very standard for
the Fireballs, everyone was melding and playing their positions
effectively. Very early on, Matthew M.
showed his skill at his own blue line, as he used the boards to clear the puck
into the neutral zone. Very quickly,
this transitioned into an offensive zone attack for Blue, with all players
contributing. For example, Calder W. was
in good form as he prevented the puck from clearing the zone and sent it right
back into the corner for an extended scoring opportunity.
Although the play came back into
ATOMc Blue’s zone during this shift, it promptly changed direction, and Riley
D. rushed down the ice with the puck in his possession. After Riley took the initial shot, Matthew M.
picked up the rebound and buried it in the back of the net to put his team up
by one just shy of three minutes into the game.
The shots kept coming for Blue
as, mere seconds after the first goal, Jett S. carried the puck into White’s
zone and dished it off to Halen R. in front of the net for a great shot and
near goal. ATOMc Blue was firing on all
cylinders today, and the scoring opportunities kept presenting themselves!
The defence were getting in on
the offensive action, as well, as Josh R. used his keen eyes and insight to
pick a perfect moment for an end-to-end rush.
As he wrapped around the net for a scoring opportunity, a White defender
did the only thing he could and used his body to help prevent what seemed like
an inevitable goal.
On the power play that followed,
Blue just kept at it! On one play, Tony
R. carried the puck into the neutral zone and passed it off to Riley D., who flew
quickly towards the net and nearly scored his team an insurance goal. On the point, both Tony and his defensive
partner, Calder W., worked hard to keep the play in White’s zone by preventing
in from escaping over the blue line. The
pressure on the opposition was immense, but they managed to hold out and
prevent Blue from capitalizing on their many opportunities. In particular, their goalie stood on his head
to keep the puck from getting past him and into the net.
Just before the end of the
period, White earned a dangerous scoring opportunity when they set up a passing
triangle in Blue’s end. However, Josh R.
read this play like it was a children’s book, and he stuck his stick out at
just the right moment to disrupt the pass from one player to the other and
deflect the puck out of harm’s way. With
this excellent defensive effort, the period came to a close with the Fireballs
leading 1-0.
Both teams had played very
aggressively so far, and this style of play carried over into the second
period. Unfortunately, two minutes in, an
incident of unintentional contact led to a Blue double-minor, potentially
giving White the one-man advantage for four minutes. However, the Fireballs were up to the
challenge, and didn’t let their guard down the entire time. On defence, both Michael R. and Josh R. used
their powerful shots to clear the defensive zone time and time again, sending
White back to their own end to regroup and try again.
Part way through the penalty,
Tony R. found himself battling alongside the boards for possession of the puck
against two White players. The frustration
of not being able to defeat the pesky opposing player led one of them to slash
Tony’s stick, causing the referee to hold up his arm and blow the play dead,
sending said White player to the box for two minutes. This evened up the teams for the remainder of
Blue’s penalty and, through their hard work, the Fireballs had maintained their
one goal lead through this difficult experience.
Both teams continued to have
their opportunities, and both teams continued to defend their own net
diligently. Sam Z.’s effective
back-checking resulted in one particularly beautiful play when he stripped an opposing
player of the puck before spinning quickly away from the boy in White and
clearing it out of the zone.
Before the buzzer went to end
the second period, Blue had one more close scoring opportunity. Mason D. found himself rushing up the ice,
once again playing forward to fill in for one of the absences. A line change brought Halen R. on the ice as
his teammate shot towards the White net. Mason saw Halen open in front of the net, and
placed the puck directly on his stick with a beautiful pass. Halen’s shot was equally beautiful, but the
White goaltender must have foreseen this as it played out, and his gloved hand
shot out to prevent Blue from increasing their lead.
The third period seemed to pass
in the blink of an eye, as the puck continued to move back and forth over the
ice’s surface. Tony R. and Matthew M.
teamed up for a moment of excitement early in the period, when Tony pinched in
at the point and fought off three opposing players to send the puck back into
play in front the White net. Matthew
picked it up and released a shot towards the net with lightning speed. The puck seemed to weave in and out and
around the two defenders, and it was only a surprised but well-positioned White
goalie who stopped it by shooting out his leg at the last possible second.
Luke C. had been protected well
from White’s attacks throughout most of the game. However, one play near the end brought Blue
players and fans to the edges of their seats.
One of the opposition’s wingers used his speed to beat a Fireball
defender to the outside, and then proceeded to cut back to the middle, where he
was met by one of his teammates for a two-on-zero against Luke. The Blue netminder stood his ground, coming
out to cut down the angle slightly and following the puck with his eyes but not
his body. The White player had nowhere
to go and ended up shooting the puck harmlessly into Luke’s pads.
In the final two minutes of the
period, Calder W. started a play that resulted in a goal that helped cushion
his team’s lead. Around his own blue
line, he used his body to shield the puck from any White aggressors before
passing it neatly to Riley who broke towards the net and took a shot before the
opposition’s defenders could reach him.
Waiting dutifully at the net was Sam “The Tipper” Z. himself, and he redirected
the puck perfectly past the White goalie into the open net. The game ended less than two minutes later,
with the ATOMc Blue Fireballs earning another win and Luke C. adding another
shutout to his growing collection.
The team had played a fantastic
game today, and their pride showed through in their smiles and excited chatting
in the change room. Matthew M. was
awarded the Gold jersey for his fantastic efforts and positive attitude, not
just in this game, but throughout the entire season. Great game, boys! Now let’s do that again tomorrow against
ATOMc Red! We’ll see you at 7:30
tomorrow morning at Albert McCormick West!