Login

***CampinKiller*** · 03-06-2019, 02:30 PM

(0-0-0)

Starting Lineups:

Anchorage Armada Armada

Olivier Cloutier - Dean Colt III - Maxime Bouchard

Leopold Lockhart - Kalevi Karhunen

Peter Larson

Montreal Militia Militia

Commander Shepard - Keegan Angello - James Truong

Chuck Crutchfield - Nikolai Evans

Aleksi O'Koivu-Volkova

[Image: deab24f857c04c4b52322d659785839f.png]

[Image: deab24f857c04c4b52322d659785839f.png]

On the first day of the SMJHL season, we had an intriguing matchup in Montreal and Anchorage. Montreal, fresh off an unfortunate ending to their last season in the 2nd round of the playoffs, looks poised for another, more successful, run at the Four Star Cup. On the other side, we have Anchorage, a team that finished 2nd in the league last year, only to go out of the playoffs disappointingly early. The difference between the two sides is that Montreal is poised for a deep run, while Anchorage does not seem to have that ability this season. Both teams hoped to get this season started off on the right foot at the Sullivan Center in Anchorage, Alaska.

1st Period
Both teams would strike once, on the powerplay, to give us a tie game headed into the 1st intermission. We go to the Sullivan Center for the calls.

Quote:Angello wins the draw to start the powerplay. Hagan gives it across to Evans. Evans, down to Kvalheim. Kvalheim slides it across to Angello. Angello to Evans, one timer, score! Nikolai Evans with a rocket from the point, and Montreal is on the board first!

Quote:Anchorage working the powerplay well, 30 seconds gone on it. Karhunen puts it over to Lockhart. Lockhart gives it to Colt who scores! Dean Colt ties us at 1!

2nd Period
Montreal would start the period on the powerplay, and would cash in on the chance, before both teams traded goals. Montreal would end the period on top, however, 4-3.

Quote:Evans has it at the point, under 45 left on the powerplay. Evans, across to Truong, he'll fire, and they score! Mason Hudson tipped it in front, and another powerplay goal for Montreal makes it 2-1.

Quote:Off the draw, it comes to Bouchard. Bouchard takes it into the Militia zone, gives it to Cloutier. Cloutier drops it to Yoshimura, who scores! A little over 30 seconds have passed, and we're tied again!

Quote:Shepard comes the other way, a 3 on 2 for the Militia. Shepard, to Raanteli, to Angello, they score! A beautiful passing display on the rush, and Montreal takes a 3-2 lead!

Quote:Right off the draw, Lockhart has it. He'll move it to Karhunen, who's in with Emmerton. Karhunen fires, saved, rebound, they score! Just 18 seconds gone, and it's tied up yet again!

Quote:Evans brings the puck in and will dish it to Kvalheim. Kvalheim waits, makes a move, dishes to Svensson, who scores! Svensson was wide open on the backdoor, and buried a great pass from Kvalheim, to make it 4-3!

3rd Period
Both teams showed signs of fatigue in the third, as they combined for a total of 10 shots. Montreal would grab an insurance marker to secure a 5-3 victory. Peter Larson was pulled after allowing the 5th Montreal goal of the night.

Quote:Svensson clears it out of the zone, and Kvalheim's got it on a breakaway! Andreas Kvalheim...scores! A great pass from Svensson sets up a breakaway for Kvalheim, and it's 5-3 Montreal!

3 Stars of the Game
1. Andreas Kvalheim - 1 G, 2 A, 3 P - an outstanding game from the veteran winger
2. Nikolai Evans - 1 G, 2 A, 3 P - the 1st overall SHL pick shined in his sophomore season opener
3. Keegan Angello - 1 G, 1 A, 2 P, 15/18 FO - the veteran center showcased his abilities in the faceoff dot, helping his team win some important draws.

Fordyford · 03-07-2019, 04:54 AM

Tony's Stars of the game

1: Andreas Kvalheim MTL: 1G, 2A. 16:55 played. A wonderful performance from the Montreal winger, causing huge problems for Anchorage on all areas of the ice. Other teams will need to watch him in their preparation for future games against Montreal. 1 shot and one goal on the night, and he really showed that he created his own luck out there.

2: Leopld Lockhart ANC: Leopold managed 22:04 this game, and in every one of those minutes he brought his a-game. Anchorage lost this game largely with an ineffective PP, but Leopold tried to recover that. He caused problems for the defense, and also broke up attacks. An excellent game at both ends for the veteran Anchorage captain.

3: Nikolai Evans MTL: Nikolai was as usual a terrifying player for Anchorage to deal with, taking advantage of the relative weakness of the second defensive line of Anchorage. A brilliant game where he showed some real flair. A well earned 3rd star.

Fordyford · 03-07-2019, 07:29 AM

A Tale of two goalies

This was quite a close game stats-wise, with both teams recording 24 shots on goal. Larson, who tended his team to second in the regular season as a rookie last year sadly had a bit of an off night, recording 17 saves from 22 shots (he was pulled after 6:49 in the third) at just .773. Montreal, however, had the rock at the back O'Koivu-Volkova, who saved 21/24 for .875. A brilliant showing from him, and really, this was the major difference between the two teams. Maybe Larson needed a bit more support at the back, which he will find throughout the season hopefully, or maybe he just had an off day. Either way, a disappointing result for Anchorage can largely be attributed to the .102 difference in SV%.

Fordyford · 03-07-2019, 07:33 AM

Playoff race?
While this match, being the first of the season, might have seemed unimportant, it seems as though these teams will be fighting to avoid playing in the first round as things stand. Although it's not as important as a win against Halifax or a loss against Colorado, this game could be quite important when we get towards the end of the season. Anchorage will definitely seek to avoid the first round, as they we're disappointed last season and want to make a big push for the playoffs. Montreal also had a disappointing end to last season, dropping out in the second round. Anchorage might end up thinking this game, where they played well enough to compete for the win, was the one that got away.

***hotdog*** · 03-07-2019, 12:47 PM

Squaring off in the Circle: A Glance at Faceoffs

Game 2 of the season saw Montreal triumph over Anchorage 5-3; lets take a look inside the faceoff circle.

Montreal: 42/65 - 65%
Keenan Angello: 15/18 - 83%
Kristofer Svensson: 11/17 - 65%
Marc Hagan: 4/9 - 44%
Pavel Pivonka: 8/13 - 62%

Anchorage: 23/65 - 35%
Dean Colt III: 9/22 - 41%
Kenji Yoshimura: 6/20 - 30%
Xena: 6/17 - 35%

It was a rough night inside the circle for Anchorage, and a dominant performance by Montreal. Though the shots wound up even (24 apiece), one has to wonder if the possession advantage led to better shots for the Militia en route to their 5-3 victory. Anchorage will have to buckle up inside the faceoff circle in games to come; Montreal should look to keep up this strong performance

birdwatcher69 · 03-24-2019, 09:03 PM

PSN Cindy of the game

A spirited start to the season for both teams indeed, with 8 goals scored in total it was certainly not a boring affair. Although the three stars of the game went to the high point getters; Andreas Kvalheim, Nikolai Evans, and Keegan Angello who combined for a total of 8 Militia points there was one Militia player in particular who flew under the radar for a fantastic performance. Chuck Crutchfield, the veteran dman played a game high 21:03 mins. He moved the puck extremely well and came away a plus one all while matched up against Anchorages top scorers. He blocked shots and killed nearly 4 minutes of powerplay time. His performance was enough to garner him the PSN Cindy of the game (Pro Sports Network Cinderella), as Montreals largely unsung hero. WIthout Crutchfields bluecollar effort who knows what the outcome of the game could've been.

Samsung virtual assistant · 04-05-2019, 11:36 AM

Unsung Hero

This games unsung hero according to me would be Leopold Lockhart.

"But he was on the losing team how is he the unsung herooo?"

Well, that may be true, but if he hadn't been on the ice the loss would be even worse. Leopold was a +/-0 throughout the game, played a bunch of minutes, 3:14 on the PP and 1:57 on the PK. He had 2 assists too. However he had 2 hits as well as 2 shots blocked, which i tend to look at when i decide these things. Yaya D-men are going to get a lot of these awards but it is what it is.

Navigation

Extra Menu

About us