Another week, another shutout, 4–0 victory over Stars

Feb. 28, 2009

In these final weeks of the 2008–09 AHA winter season, the Spiders are apparently improving with age, as they have given up just four goals in the past six weeks, including a second consecutive shutout.

This Saturday night contest at SLP originally had the makings of a short-benched Spiders, considering one came down with the road-bus flu, and other two were going to be late. But the Gophers’ quick victory over UMD ensured everyone showed up on time.

The Spiders’ forecheck benefited from the full bench, as the first five minutes of the game were played in the Stars’ end, with the Spiders controlling play through the first shifts. However, it was star Stars netminder Jay Weiner, who set the tone, keeping it even through almost the entire first frame. The Spiders would get on the board first, with 3:48 remaining, on a setup from a deep Aaron Bedessem, up to the point for defenseman Jeremy Litton, who slid it over to a waiting Jay Hilden, who nailed it home from the blue line far top corner. “I swear it was tipped,” said Hilden, who would later look for a tip from the rafters.

The second period saw more up-and-back hockey, with neither team able to capitalize. An untimely comment from the ref, who must’ve reviewed the teams’ stat sheets prior to the game, came at around 7 minutes into the second, “Hey, I don’t think we’ve called any penalties yet.” An unwise Pandora’s box to open, as just two minutes later, the Stars got the gate for interference.

The Spiders were unable to capitalize during the man-advantage, but at 2:26 remaining in the second, defenseman Litton retrieved the puck from the end boards, and sent it up (dangerously) to new-at-right-wing Cory Vandenberghe, who made an off-the-board move to center Aaron Bedessem. And Bedessem went to work, grinding through three Stars defenders to beat the goalie and give the Spiders a 2–0 advantage.

And the third, much like the second, saw a lot of up-and-back, though the Spiders began to increase their chances, including an almost-second-career-goal chance by a pinching defenseman Paul LaCosse, only to shut down by the Stars’ solid netminder.

But at 4:09 remaining, it was left wing Michael Armel, who, after not capitalizing on a previous perfect setup (hint), was fed by sub-extraordinaire right wing Lee Martini, and Armel put the game seemingly out of reach, Spiders 3–0.

The Stars continued to press, though, and almost got one by Obermoller from the top of the left circle. But it skidded harmlessly to the corner, buffeted by a chorus of groans from the Spider bench and the moderate (but sleepy) SLP bleachers.

At 2:43, a scrum in front of the Spiders’ net resulted in the Stars forward getting the gate for cross-checking. And it only took six seconds for the Spiders to convert, with center Chris Pettengill, who returned to the lineup after missing a week with an “upper body” injury, capping off the night, on assist from left wing Rob Droullard, the Spiders’ leading assist getter.

Final, Spiders 4, Stars 0.

Despite the ref’s jinxing of the penalty situation, the Spiders somehow kept themselves out of the cooler. According to the ref, it was by “not cheating.” However, in the post-game dressing room confessional, LaCosse and Armel both requested to be retroactively assessed with penalties.

Shots on Obermoller by the Stars were 18 (6, 8, 4), a five-week high (the Wingmen had 21 in their OT victory), all of them stopped by Amber. The Spiders put 21 (5, 10, 6) on Jay Weiner.

With the win, the Spiders are 14–0–2–1, the first AHA team to reach 31 points in the standings, and continue their hold on first place in D1 East. The Stars stay in 7th place, at 6–10–1–0.

Coming up for the Spiders, no time to rest for the second and final matchup with the 0–16 Snowmen, on Tuesday at Highland. Despite their record, the previous matchup proved to be a close game, including a 2–1 lead by the Snowmen in the second period of that game.