Spiders tie 4-4 with Chaos

Jan. 3, 2016

The Spiders finally put an end to the losing streak, albeit with a tie rather than a win, with a 4-4 tie against the Chaos.

The Spiders again had a short bench but it was a more manageable 10 skaters as illness, work, and injuries continued to take their toll.

Jay Hilden and Joe Long got the Spiders off to an early 2-0 lead before the Chaos quickly pulled a goal back. Josh Cagle scored an own goal for the ages to pull the Chaos even as he fired one cleanly past Spiders goalie Mike Speakman.

Shawn Tromiczak gave the Spiders the lead late in the second but the Chaos answered with two power play goals early in the third. Cory Vandenberghe was the hero for the Spiders as he poked home a rebound with less than six minutes left to knot the score.

Both teams had chances in the extra frame with Jay Hilden but neither team could break through, ending the game with a 4-4- tie.

The game was a sloppy, choppy affair with no continuity on the ice as both teams spent a lot of time in the penalty box. The Spiders tallied 24 minutes in penalties on 8 infractions and the Chaos capitalized with 3 goals. The Chaos were slightly less surly as they only had 7 penalties for 14 minutes with the Spiders scoring twice on the advantage.

The tie improves the Spiders to 3-6-1. The Spiders are still in last place in the division but due to congesting in the standings, the Spiders are only two games out of the playoff spots and three games out of first place.

The Spiders have a 10 day break until their next game on January 13th. Aaron Bedessem and Tim Stalpes are expected to be activated from injured reserve so the Spiders expect to have a full bench.