Lightning High School Hockey League Playoffs - Round #1

Period Length

There wasn't a lot to report on during the opening period of tonight's matchup, as the only official event to make it into the scorebook was a Fighting Gators penalty for hooking with less than five minutes remaining. Land O' Lakes was able to kill off the penalty, only allowing a single shot on goal during the two minute Riverview power play. The opening period would come to a close with the score tied at 0-0, with the Ice Sharks holding a 10-5 shot advantage.

The second period was similar to the first. Once again there was no scoring during the fifteen minute period, but there were some good looks for each team. Riverview took an interference penalty with just over seven minutes remaining, and gave up a couple of scoring opportunities but no goals while shorthanded. With a little less than two and a half to go the Gators were called for roughing, and they too were able to kill off that penalty. We would head into the final intermission with the scored still knotted at 0-0.

Land O' Lakes would take another roughing penalty with ten minutes to play in the third, and the Ice Sharks peppered the Gators net with shots, but they were unable to net the elusive goal that was needed to grab the lead. In order to give the team a rest, the Riverview coaches called for a timeout with just under six minutes to play. The brief break didn't lead to any extra offense for the Sharks, however, as the Gators would manage the next four shots on goal. It was that fourth shot that proved to be the difference maker, as a Gators forward fired a shot from the right circle that snuck under the arm of the Riverview goaltender, giving Land O' Lakes a 1-0 lead. The Ice Sharks would attempt to claw their way back to even, but they just weren't able to do so.

After the game Drew said that his team was convinced that they had scored the games opening goal, but that the Land O' Lakes goaltender somehow managed to pull the puck out of the net before the referees were able to see it. Although I missed it live, it appears that the puck is just about to cross the line in picture #9 below, which leads me to believe that he is correct. I also heard a parent next to me say that the puck crossed the line when viewed from that end of the rink. I'm not sure if the outcome of the game would have been any different, but it certainly would have changed how things went during the end of the game. Of course, replay isn't available, so we have to live with this ending...

Although it wasn't the outcome we wanted, it was a great season for the team. Way to go Ice Sharks!