Spiders Surprise Uninspired M’s

Feb. 19, 2012

The losing team member summed it up when he said, “What have we to play for?” For the fan-favorite Spiders, it was a victory rivaling some of the greatest games ever played.

The last time these two teams faced, the M’s were the clear favorite and the scoreboard reflected it with a 4-0 result. A lot of changes have taken place since then. The M’s were notified by the league that they would be playing the C1 play-in post season tournament and the Spiders have not lost a game since.

Sporting the away red, the Spiders had moments of offensive pressure during the first period and even netted the only goal. However, the M’s showed they could dominate a game when they want to. Crisp tape-to-tape passes and well-coordinated breakouts were fortunately met with solid lines of defense and backchecking. Midway through the period, Jack Delsing picked up Greg Lindsley’s rebound and patiently picked an upper corner to jump out to a 1-0 lead. Dow finished with 10 saves and the defense stood tall blocking even more than that. When it was done, it was still evident that the M’s had more to offer than they had shown.

The M’s captain could be heard during the intermission through the locker room walls and the conversation wasn’t nice. This season, second periods have been a challenge for the Spiders they have given up nearly half (15) of the total goals (34) against during the middle frame. Tonight would be no different. The energy and tenacious play of the M’s put 21 shots on the Spider netminder and gave them two goals. Our team made the most of their five shots when Cory Vandenberghe took Adleman’s pass on the breakaway to slide in his fourth of the season. When the second intermission arrived, the scoreboard read 2-2.

The third period continued the M’s pressure style play. Midway through the third when the box was full and Dow needed oxygen, Captain Dave utilized his time out. This time it was our captain peeling the paint off the walls, but for a different reason. The character of the Spiders has always been to play clean and work hard, but the Captain felt the penalty count was counter-balancing that message. He implored the team to clean it up. The team listened but he didn’t as he notched his third penalty of the season immediately following his speech.

The ice continued to tilt in the M’s favor as the legs grew tired and the power plays took their toll. Legs were tired and opportunities were scarce. The Spiders killed each penalty off, utilized their time out, and iced the puck hoping to keep as fresh as possible. At the 2:05 mark, the game winner came out of nowhere. A neutral zone turnover led to a Spiders rush into the zone. Bruce Gustafson carried the puck into the zone and fed Josh Cagle streaking down the middle. Cagle collected the puck and passed to Greg Lindsley, who banked one off the post from between the circles.

When the final horn sounded, the score was 3-2 and the team had put together its best effort thus far and had been rewarded. Dow stood strong, stopping 40 of 42, the defense blocked at least that many, and the offense seized the opportunities that were afforded them. In the end, the winning team proved they could hang with the best team in the division if they put an entire game together. Captain Dave remarked many times throughout the game that the opponent was not skating to their potential. The M’s continued to vocalize their displeasure with the league’s final decision and this writer can’t help but wonder if the stakes were higher, what kind of effort could they have really put out.

Next up is the Aces at Highland North.

Attendance: 5