Spiders lose royally to Royals 5–1

Jan. 27, 2008

OK, it wasn’t that bad, considering the three-game stand at the Coliseum the Spiders just came off of, where the Spiders were outscored 28–4 in those three games. And considering the previous matchup with the Royals, where the Spiders were shut out 9–0. The Spiders put a respectable 19 shots on goal, including some good scoring chances that were ultimately stuffed by the Royals’ netminder.

The first period was the most notable for the Spiders tonight, when new-to-left wing Dave Schaefer scored on a pass from center Aaron Bedessem as he was about to change on the fly. It put the Spiders within one on the Royals.

Unlike the last number of weeks, the two teams’ benches were almost evenly matched, with a last-minute scratch of John McGrane (who still appears on the scoresheet) putting the Spiders down by just one skater. But the second-place Royals (9–1–1–1 going into tonight) would prove to be be too much the Spiders as the game wore on.

Into the third, the Spiders cooler dwellers — first defenseman Jeremy Litton at 4:05 into the third for playing the puck (tripping), then defenseman Paul LaCosse, with 3:44 remaining in the third, for clearing out the front of the net (checking) — would test the Spiders’ PK unit, and find they were up to the task, killing off both with few scoring chances by the Royals.

Goalkeeper Mike Derer saw a whopping 33 shots on net tonight, stopping 28.

The Royals ended up winning 5–1, and with the victory move up to first place in D1 East, at 10–1–1–1. The Spiders fiercely defend their bottom-dwelling status, at 2–11.

Next up, a schedule change by the AHA, the Spiders will not face the Lumberjacks until Feb. 29 instead of Super Bowl Sunday. Therefore, the next matchup is against the Fighting Piranhas, Sunday, Feb. 10, at 7:15.