Spiders take care of business over Blue Ox
March 7, 2025
Highlights:
Spiders at Blue Ox
Friday, March 7, 2025,
07:30 p.m. – Doug Woog 1
Game 17 (AHA game 25965)
- Spiders final score:
- 4
- Blue Ox final score:
- 2
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spiders | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Blue Ox | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Spiders keep playoff pace under the Friday night lights at the Woog.
With post-season ramifications in every remaining game in March, the 11th place Spiders (6–7–2–1) took on the 13th place Blue Ox (5–9–2–0) as the early C3 game on rescheduled from the larger Woog 1 to Woog 2 due to less-than-stellar ticket sales (albeit 9 did show, fully entertained by the DJ/scorekeeping duo of Kendall & Kaitlin).
The Spiders had never faced this team, but the Gold Rush beat them twice last season (11 to 3 and 13 to 2), their first at C3.
The short-benched (9 skaters) Blue Ox started the scoring on a power play, midway through the first. Late in the first, Captain Double-Zeros finally got noticed by the refs, giving the Spiders their first man-advantage, which resulted in a Berman PPG from Johnson and Andres. Tie ball game.
In the second, the Blue Ox took back the lead 5 minutes in, which they held until the Spiders second power play opportunity, which lasted all but 10 seconds, as a net-front scramble was popped in by Olk, assist to Klein. Tie game again. And on the next shift, a rare coast-to-outer harbor by D-man Litton, who took advantage of a fallen Blue Ox backchecker to get off a shot that rebounded right to a trailing Mara, fresh back from 6 weeks by the beach, and Mara didn’t miss the yawning net. Spiders up by 1.
That second power goal was the first time this season the Spiders’ vaunted power play (3 for 19 before tonight) has converted twice in a game. The last time was Jan. 15, 2024, vs. the Kan Jammers (a 3-PPG+1SHG night). And a 2-PPG night Dec. 10, 2023, vs the Nordeasters.
The third period highlights were mostly the parade to the penalty box, including three-way party for the Spiders. But right after returning to full strength, Mettee bought the Spiders an insurance goal (from Johnson and Litton, who was just returning to the bench and was surprised they counted an assist).
The Spiders locked down after that, with the short-benched Blue Ox running out of gas. The Spiders took a strategic PK in the last minute, so they could ice the puck at will. Which caused the Oxen to pull their netminder. But the Spiders controlled the puck. And in the waning seconds, Vandenberghe didn’t miss on a blue line empty netter, and just as the puck crossed the line, the buzzer sounded, with the ENG getting inexplicably waved off from a ref at center ice.
Nonetheless, the Spiders emerged from the Woog victorious, 4–2, and headed up the hill to the Polish National Basement
| Team | GP | W | L | T | OTL | P | % | GF | GA | PIM | DIFF | GR | TPP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fighting Loons Black–x | 17 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 33 | 0.971 | 89 | 27 | 68 | +62 | 3 | 39 | |
| Pines–x | 17 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 0.853 | 95 | 40 | 72 | +55 | 3 | 35 | |
| Marauders–x | 17 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0.765 | 69 | 50 | 84 | +19 | 3 | 32 | |
| Nordeasters–x | 17 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 0.735 | 71 | 40 | 70 | +31 | 3 | 31 | |
| Kan Jammers–x | 17 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 0.706 | 68 | 36 | 66 | +32 | 3 | 30 | |
| Wildcats–x | 18 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 23 | 0.639 | 75 | 62 | 106 | +13 | 2 | 27 | |
| Wood Knocks | 17 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 0.647 | 71 | 55 | 54 | +16 | 3 | 28 | |
| Spartans | 17 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 0.559 | 59 | 63 | 58 | −4 | 3 | 25 | |
| Bold North | 17 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0.529 | 67 | 56 | 62 | +11 | 3 | 24 | |
| Spiders | 17 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 17 | 0.500 | 50 | 49 | 102 | +1 | 3 | 23 | |
| Les Etoiles du Nord | 17 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 17 | 0.500 | 58 | 51 | 54 | +7 | 3 | 23 | |
| Growlers | 17 | 6 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 15 | 0.441 | 62 | 62 | 72 | ±0 | 3 | 21 | |
| Troopers | 17 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 0.382 | 43 | 58 | 52 | −15 | 3 | 19 | |
| Fighting Walleye | 17 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 0.382 | 52 | 74 | 84 | −22 | 3 | 19 | |
| Blue Ox | 17 | 5 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 0.353 | 38 | 56 | 106 | −18 | 3 | 18 | |
| Saints | 17 | 4 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0.294 | 45 | 67 | 62 | −22 | 3 | 16 | |
| Ice Cobras | 17 | 4 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0.265 | 38 | 67 | 50 | −29 | 3 | 15 | |
| Blade Runners | 17 | 2 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0.176 | 38 | 112 | 56 | −74 | 3 | 12 | |
| Fighting Loons Red | 17 | 1 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0.088 | 38 | 101 | 50 | −63 | 3 | 9 | |
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Standings watch
The Spiders will need to scoreboard-watch the rest of the season to see if April hockey is in the cards. If the season ended today, the Spiders would eke out the 10th and final spot thanks to the tiebreaker with LED Nords, who lost 1-zip to the 17th place Ice Cobras, dropping from 8th to a tie for 10th. Elsewhere in the crowded middle of C3, with 9 teams vying for the bottom four berths, the Growlers lost at Woog in overtime fashion to the Spartans. While the Bold North, one spot ahead of the Spiders, knocked off the third place Nordeasters 4–2.
Next up, the now-in-eighth Spartans (9–7–0–1). The Spiders last (and first) played the Spartans in the 2022–23 season, that team’s first at C3, where the Spiders went 2–0 (7–2, 5–0). Last season, over in C3 East, the Gold Rush split the series (6–4; 3–5).
Puck drop is Wednesday, 9:30 p.m., at Breck.
For details, see the box score and game summary.
