SMJHL S43: Game 20
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Montreal Militia 3 vs  Detroit Falcons 2

3 Stars
1 - Charlie Schieck (MTL)
2 - Pavel Pivonka (MTL)
3 - Mason Hudson (MTL)

This matchup was an extremely close game; the Falcons fought valiantly in spite of receiving the short end of the stick with penalties. The difference maker in the game was perhaps that Detroit took 6 penalties, while the Militia were only shorthanded once. In spite of this, Detroit outshot the Militia 26-23, but Montreal netminder Petr Vrana came through with a .923 save percentage, sealing the match.

1st Period

Mason Hudson opened the scoring just over 5 minutes into the period, giving Montreal an early advantage. The assists were awarded to Willie Fisterbottom and Pavel Pivonka.



Just four seconds into a powerplay, with a tripping call having been assessed to Justin Siddals for hooking, Charlie Schieck maneuvered to the crease and slid the puck home. This would be Montreal's lone powerplay goal of the night. Daniel Daniil and Kevin Kazarian received the assists.



Things looked bleak for Detroit heading into the second, but the Falcons did not plan to go down without a fight.

2nd Period

Rookie Ola Wagstrom, who was highly drafted in the second round, finally flashed the speed and silky wrist shot that scouts had written about. Just 3:04 into the 2nd, he earned the first SMJHL goal of his career, after Eero Makinen set him up for a breakaway. Marcel Puhringer was awarded the secondary assist on the play. Detroit had drawn within one.



The Falcons would not stay within striking distance for long. Veikka Toivanen fed the puck to Rafe Ulrich, who left a wicked back pass for Charlie Schieck. Schieck would fire the puck at Falcons netminder Cedric Robinson and slap at a rebound to tally his second goal of the game. Recorded at 13:54 in the period, this sapped Detroit's early-period momentum.



3rd Period

Detroit came out with a vengeance, striking just 2:22 into the period. Wolfhard Richter slid the puck to David Fantobens, who lucked into his first goal of the season on an ugly deflection off of one of Montreal's own men.



Detroit struggled to maintain the pressure and took two rather sloppy penalties in the latter half of the third, wasting valuable time on the penalty kill. Montreal was able to correct their defensive errors and play a tight game, frustrating the Falcons' offensive strategies and allowing them to take the win.

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