(Game #49)Detroit Falcons 3 vs. Halifax Raiders 2 F/SO

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. – The entire narrative for the Detroit Falcons’ season to this point has been “What is going on?”. The team blasted through the preseason, and adopted a “Detroit vs. Everybody” mantra leading into the season. It may have irked other players throughout the league, but it brought the Falcons closer. That feeling of togetherness was shattered early on in the regular season, as Viktor Nerokov decided he was above the team, and his constant shenanigans and trade demands ruined team chemistry. As a results, the Falcons struggled on the ice, currently possessing a 6-5-1 record coming into tonight’s game. With the season seemingly not going as expected, the locker room became more “Detroit vs Detroit” than anything.

However, Nerokov finally got his wish, and he was shipped off to Montreal in exchange for forward Henrik Vikstrom. The attitude in the Detroit locker room was noticeably different before the game tonight against the Halifax Raiders, a team with some struggles of its own, holding an identical record at 6-5-1. Detroit held a 2-1 edge this season over the Raiders. What we got was one hell of a game, an early season “game of the year” candidate in the SMJHL. Lets go over how it went down.

The first period featured no scoring, but it did have 18 shots between the two teams. Luckily, Georgette Pel and Sivy McSieve were up to the task at hand. The first half of the second period was pretty much more of the same. Nice shots, nicer saves. It wasn’t until halfway through the period that the poster child for Halifax struggles, Pietra Volkova, would break through on the power play:

Quote: Alex Reed with the puck now and he’ll dump the puck down into the Detroit zone as both teams make a line change. Nearing the halfway point of the second period here, both teams yet to score. Rising Hippo gets the puck on his stick and clears it down the ice into the Raiders’ zone. Its Colin Banning behind the net picking up the puck and looking to give it to one of his teammates. He finds Reed Laing along the wall. Laing with it now, sending it up to Jean-Luc Reflieux in the neutral zone and he’ll bring it across the line. Reflieux loses the puck but makes a smart stick lift on a Detroit defender and keeps the puck. Halifax setting up now as JLR sends it to Banning at the point. Banning slides it over to Battle. Battle with it now, thinks about shooting but reconsiders. Instead he finds Volkova down low. Volkova makes a nice move towards the net and lets it go, SHE SCORES. Pietra Volkova on the power play finally breaks the scoreless tie, and its 1-0 Halifax.

Volkova from Battle and Banning opens the scoring at 9:52 of the period with her power play tally, the third goal of the season for Volkova. Detroit would keep the pressure on however, but struggled to solve Pel in net. It wasn’t until a minute and half left in the period that Detroit would finally tie the game back up, and it came from the newest Falcon:

Quote: Evans now with the puck, looking to pass and it’s intercepted by Victor Lindstrom. Lindstrom looks to make a pass of his own and Evans steals it back! Evans, looking to send the puck across ice and he’s picked off again, this time by Azarov. Azarov turns it back over to Evans! What a display by Evans here, Detroit going the other way with numbers. Evans with the puck and he actually completes a pass this time, to Konstantinov. Konstantinov with it now and he’ll give it to Berzins. Berzins drops the puck for Evans and he skates into Raider territory, sending the puck over to Konstantinov. Konstantinov, to Berzins, who fires it across to Vikstrom who shoots and HE SCORES. Welcome to Detroit Henrik Vikstrom! This game is tied once again!

Vikstrom’s 4th goal of the season, his first as a Falcon, ties the game with 18:34 left in the period and Detroit buzzing. However, a Marc Leclerc penalty with less than a minute to go in the period put Halifax on the power play once again, And they’d beat the clock this time around:

Quote:Faceoff down in the Detroit zone, as Jean-Luc Reflieux wins it over to Reed Laing, who quickly sends it back to Lindstrom at the point. Lindstrom is looking to pass now, 30 seconds to go in the second period. He sends the puck over to and its intercepted by Prince Daniel James who dumps it down the ice. Pel will get the puck and pass it up to her teammate Reflieux as time is winding down in the period. Jean-Luc sends it to Laing who flips it to Lindstrom into the Detroit zone. 20 seconds to go in the period. Halifax getting set up now in the zone Lindstrom sends it to Laing, back to Lindstrom. Pass to Reflieux jumps over his stick, he collects it along the boards, 10 seconds left in the period. Passes it over to Lindstrom at the point and he’ll take a shot, blocked by PDJ. The puck rebounds right back to Lindstrom, he steps around the defender and shoots again quickly HE SCORES. Victor Lindstrom beats McSieve with only 5 seconds left in the period, and Halifax takes a 2-1 lead on the power play!

That’s clearly how the period would end. The third period brought us a hard charging Falcons squad, almost reeking of desperation, firing at all cylinders, but Georgette Pel would not allow the game to be tied. It wasn’t until about a minute left in the game that Detroit would send this one into extra time:

Quote: Alex Reed and Konstantinov are going to take this draw after the icing by Banning. Reed gets ejected from the circle and Azarov will have to step in for him. Konstantinov wins the draw back to James. James, back to Konstantinov, who gives it right back to James at the point. James sends it across to Vikstrom who has the only Detroit goal today. Vikstrom with it now, as the Falcons are applying pressure on the Raiders who need a change. Vikstrom to James at the point and hes takes a one timerrrr and shoots it wide. Time winding down in this game. The puck travels around the boards and its picked up by Sinikka. Sinikka shoots right away, blocked by Kosonen. The puck ricochets right to Vikstom who shoots right away and THEY SCORE! IT WAS ZACH EVANS IN FRONT OF PEL AND HE TIPPED THE VIKSTROM SHOT THROUGH THE LEGS OF THE GOALTENDER! THIS GAME IS TIED AT 2 A PIECE WITH ONLY A MINUTE TO GO!

Evans’ 3rd goal of the season jolted the Falcons off their bench and it sent the game into overtime. Overtime was a hit show between the teams, but there was no winner in the extra time as McSieve and Pel both shined, each stopping 3 shots in the extra five. This lead us to a shootout, and let’s listen to the play by play:

Quote:Its going to be Detroit shooting first as we head into the second shootout of the season between these two teams. Detroit won the last one. Hans Moleman, who’s making an MVP case already this season will be shooting first on Georgette Pel. Moleman skates into the zone a little wide, comes in on his forehand, dekes to his backhand, back again and scores! Moleman saw daylight between the wickets of Pel, and deposited the puck in the net five hole.
The first shooter for Halifax is going to be Niklas Flower. Flower skates in rather quickly, does a head fake and shoots and its stopped by McSieve.
Detroit’s second shooter is Konstantinov. He’ll skate in on goal, deking in front and OH MY! Pel with the unexpected poke check knocks the puck of the stick and covers up on it. Nice play by Pel there.
Round 2 for Halifax is Issac Kaiser. Kaiser skates in over the line and takes a quick wrister and its gloved by McSieve!
Detroit with Alex Berkis now with a chance to put this one away. Its been a hell of a game so far. Berkis skating in, gets Pel out of position, shoots and Pel somehow rebounded from being beat to making a nice blocker save. Berkis can’t believe it.
That puts all of the pressure on Pietra Volkova, who scored a long time ago in this game. Volkova skating in on McSieve, she fakes the shot and goes to her backhand AND SHE SHOOTS IT WIDE. Volkova had McSieve beaten and all she had to do was put the puck in the net, but it rolled up on her and she pushed it wide. What bad luck! Detroit wins it in a shootout!

Detroit takes a crazy game, going 1-0 in the post-Nerokov era so far. The other stats show quite the close game here. Both teams had 25 shots. Faceoffs were 43-42 in favor of Halifax. Blocked Shots were close with Halifax leading that 10-7, but Detroit outhit the Raiders 19-14. Detroits 12 Penalty minutes really hurt the team as both Halifax goals came on the power play. This was as close a game as you’re gonna find in the SMJHL folks.

Three Stars
1. Henrik Vikstrom (1g, 1a)
What a debut for the new guy! These are the type of trades that can turn around a season for a team. Great work while still developing chemistry with his new teammates.

2. Zach Evans (1g)
The game tying goal late was nothing to sneeze at, obviously. Neither was his impressive display of constantly getting turnovers to get the puck back for Detroit which lead to the first goal for the Falcons.

3. Cikgnar Konstantinov (1a).
He only had 1 assist but could’ve had a lot more if it weren’t for some great saves by Pel today. He was a plus two today, the only player to do so, and was constantly creating.