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***Gwdjohnson*** · 05-13-2019, 11:19 AM

Montreal Militia Militia

vs

Anchorage Armada

Game Link

PREGAME:

Montreal Militia

This is the second time Montreal are forced to make a trip of over 6 600 kilometres for an away day in Anchorage, and also the second time I'm covering a Militia game in Anchorage! Montreal currently has a very impressive record of 11-6-1 through the opening 18 games, and have been providing the goods both offensively and defensively. They have not quite got the level of production expected from their top forwards, but one of their big strengths has been the scoring they have gotten all around their lines. Another big plus has been the great form of netminder Aleksi O'Koivu-Volkova, who already has two shutouts on the season, and tops the lot in the league's goalie charts. Coming off a 5-2 win last game against Anaheim, Montreal looks to be a big threat to the rest of the league this season.

Key Players:

- Commander Shepard (LW): Shepard is a diminutive two-way forward, standing at 5-foot-7, and 180 pounds, but has a deceptively lethal shot for his size. Almost always topping his team's shot count on a game-by-game basis, Shepard currently has 8 goals and and as many assists in 18 games. A 53rd overall pick for Winnipeg, the Canadian is capable of making something from nothing better than anyone else on this Montreal team, and could wreak havoc on an inexperienced Armada defence.
- Aleksi O'Koivu-Volkova (G): As mentioned earlier, O'Koivu-Volkova is statistically the best goalie in the league at the moment. The giant Russian, standing with a large frame of 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, has had to be relied on many times during lacklustre Militia performances, and has rarely disappointed. For his size, he possesses incredible reflexes and has single-handedly won Montreal some points. A 61st overall pick for the Hamilton Steelhawks, 'AOK' has a very bright future between the pipes.

Armada

Anchorage Armada

Anchorage host Montreal for the second time this season, having lost 2-0 when they played earlier in the season. The Armada currently have a respectable 9-6-3 record, but have lost their last two games. The young side, with a large selection of rookies, is in a bit of a transition phase this season, where they are focusing on developing their youngsters as much as they are focusing on getting results. Their defence has been shaky, with half of their core being new rookies, but many of their forward newbies have been producing at the level expected. Like Montreal, they have also been getting good goaltending, with Peter Larson putting up numbers that are around the top as well.

Key Players:

- Xena (C ): The star center and leading point scorer for the Armada, Xena is having a very productive final SMJHL season so far, as she aims to become the all-time leading point scorer in franchise history. She is off to a great start in her pursuit of that accolade, as she has 22 points through the first 18 games, and has contributed massively to the offensive production of the team, as the squad's most senior member.
- Olivier Cloutier (LW): The newly-appointed captain in Anchorage, Cloutier has been living up to his status off the ice, but especially on the ice, with 10 goals and 19 points on the season. He has formed a devastating one-two punch with Xena, as they represent a very large portion of the offensive numbers the Armada have produced. Anytime that the Boats have a high-scoring game, you can bet Cloutier and Xena will be involved.

GAME SUMMARY:

First Period:
The first period has the Armada in complete control, as they lead 2-0 after 20. Out-shooting Montreal 11-8, their two goals did not come from the usual customers, however. Just 31 seconds into the game, Johnny Sins found Alekski Leskinen with a stretch pass, before the Finn's wrister found its way in under the arm of O'Koivu-Volkova to give a very early 1-0 lead to Anchorage . Montreal recovered well and the next half-period was rather balanced, but it would be the Armada who struck again, as a shot by Andris Dzerins got blocked and found its way to Jonas Larsen, who tucked away his 3rd of the season to make it 2-0 Anchorage. The period draws to a close with the Armada leading 2-0, and generally being in control of the match.

Second Period:
Montreal got themselves on the board in the second period, but the Armada added another to retain a 2-goal cushion. Just over two minutes into the period, Olin Dowd played a puck across to Svensson, who gained the zone before finding Hans Zucker with a pinpoint pass. Zucker took the puck in stride, before rifling it top corner on Larson to make it 2-1. The Militia's momentum would be short-lived however, as a scramble in front after a shot by Xena hit the post led to Olivier Cloutier jabbing home his 11th of the season to extend the score to 3-1. The shots in this period were 10-5 in favour of the Armada, as Montreal are slowly fading from the game. The Militia are going to need a big 3rd period effort to turn this one around.

Third Period:
Wow. I will let the highlights speak for themselves in this period. Just 9 seconds into the period, Commander Shepard has a shot miss the net, before finding his own rebound and slotting it in while Larson accidentally knocked his net off. It went to video review to make sure it went in, but it clearly did. 3-2 game. Around two and a half minutes later, Shepard took a pass from Svensson and shot, but after a block it fell to the front of the net, where Shepard jammed it in through Larson. For the second time in the game, Shepard had a goal go to review, but it was approved again. tie game, 3-3! Montreal continued to press forward, and after Jaguar Johnson intercepted an errant pass from Cloutier, Svensson broke forward on a 2-on-1 with Oliver Klozoff, and set him up for the Militia to take their first lead, at 4-3. Svensson, with the primary assist on all 4 Montreal goals, is flying! Things only got better for the Militia, as later on a blocked shot from Svensson ended up on the blade of Shepard, who roofed it on Larson for his hat-trick goal to extend Montreal's lead to 2. 5-3! Anchorage were starting to sink without a trace at this point, having conceded 4 unanswered goals, but they did get one back. A good combination play in the zone from Tony Ford, Dzerins and Xena saw Ford notch his 4th of the campaign to make it 5-4 with 5 minutes left. The Armada kept pushing, but after Brock Emmerton took a poorly-timed holding penalty, Montreal took advantage of the powerplay, as a loose rebound from Griffith Cadwallader's shot was potted in by Shepard for his 4th (!) of the game, in what has been an incredible showing by the winger. That goal made the game 6-4, and that's how it ended, as Montreal once again get a win in Anchorage, with Commander Shepard's 4-goal performance and Kristoffer Svensson's 5-assist outing steal the headlines for this one.

3 STARS OF THE GAME:

3rd Star: Hans Zucker (RW) Militia

: Zucker wasn't the star of the show today, but he was a contributing member in an overall incredible performance for the Militia top line, and he got them initially on the board in the 2nd period.

2nd Star: Kristoffer Svensson (C ) Militia

: It's not very often that you will see a player get 5 points in a game and not be first star, but take nothing away from Svensson. He had the primary assist on all 5 of Montreal's first goals, in what will almost certainly be the best game of his season.

1st Star: Commander Shepard (LW) Militia

: A dominant performance from the small winger, as he scores 4 goals, all in the third period, to essentially smash and grab a win for Montreal in one period when all seemed lost. Him and Svensson each had probably the best individual performances of their seasons, and essentially stole the game themselves in the 3rd.

-gwdjohnson

Word Count: ~1.4k

shutdown · 05-13-2019, 02:55 PM

Comment 1

Unsung Hero:
Kristoffer Svensson made a huge impact with his faceoff taking ability in this game. He went 14/24 in the circle with multiple offensive faceoff wins leading to sustained pressure in the third period. He also played a huge part in Montreal’s comeback win with his precise passing ability. He had five assists in this game which were all primary assists. Five primary assists. Four of them coming in the third period alone. That’s not an easy feat for anyone, regardless of passing ability. His awareness and positioning were wonderful in the offensive zone all night and helped spark his team to a victory.

Comment 2

MVP:
Pretty easy to see this one when looking at the stat sheet but nonetheless, Commander Shepard absolutely took over the game in the third period. When things were looking grim and the Militia were being outshot handily, Shepard dug deep down and put on a display that will be remembered for a long, long time. He scored four goals in the third period as the Militia came storming back from a 3-1 second period deficit to win 6-4 in regulation. The Armada could not find an answer for the Svensson-Shepard combo in the third. Svensson had the primary helpers on three of the four goals Shepard scored in the third.

Comment 3

Key Factors/Stats:
Tonight’s key factor in Montreal’s comeback was their ability to win clutch face offs all over the ice. Whether it was in the offensive or defensive zone, it takes a load of pressure off the rest of the team when your centers can win the puck off the draw cleanly. Sometimes the face off stat can be glanced over, but it is still very important in today’s game. Clearly that skill is not lost in Montreal where they must have been putting in some extra work at practice and it was a large contributing factor to this win as they were able to keep sustained offensive zone pressure with key face off wins in the third period.

Bruins10 · 05-14-2019, 10:25 AM

TIRED LEGS COST THE GAME
Entering the 3rd period, this game was looking like one team was running away with it. Unfortunately, it seems as though the Armada died out entering the 3rd period and the Miltia took advantage of that. Just 9 seconds into the 3rd period, the Militia scored a goal to bring the game within 1. After that, just 2 minutes and about 30 seconds, the Militia tie the game with Commander Shepard scoring his second of the period. In just 10 shots in the 3rd period, the Militia scored a total of 5 goals and it all came from mostly 2 people. Commander Shepard scored 4 goals in the frame with Kristoffer Svensson adding 4 apples. They put the team on their back to get the dub.

Darkened_Rose_16 · 05-16-2019, 04:39 PM

Comment 1:

Commander Shepard has scored a Hat Trick! And all in the third period. The first goal of his Hat Trick coming just 0.09 into the period. You could tell that he wanted that puck. The lightning fast reflexes set the pace for the rest of the period. He scored goal two of three for the Hat Trick at 2:45. another goal was scored in between his second and third goals by another Militia player. The third goal for his Hat Trick came at 13:20, but that wasn't his last goal for the night. He was able to do all of this with 20 total minutes on the ice. (110)

Comment 2:

The third period was a very active one for the Militia. Coming into the third down by two, the Militia knew that this had to be their comeback period. Commander Shepard took a very obvious leadership role scoring a total of four goals in the third. He was also joined in scoring during the third by Oliver Klozoff. After four straight goals by the Militia, the Armada were able to squeeze one by. Shepard came back around to score his fourth and the final goal of the night. The Militia fought hard to come back during the final period of the game. With the outstanding game play, they definitely deserved the win. (112)

Comment 3:

The Goalie of the night goes to Aleksi O'Koivu-Volkova. With a save percentage of 87.5, he was able to stop 28 out of the 32 shots made on his net. One of his best saves of the night came as a glove catch from behind. It looked like a for sure goal and then he just reached behind him and snatched it out of the air. His his second best save of the night came from a shot to the five hole that he blocked with his stick, popping the puck onto the top of the net. He casually stood up and tossed the puck to the ref. (108)

Tydy · 05-18-2019, 11:48 AM

Comment 1:

Commander Shephard, Kristoffer Svensson and the Halifax Raiders were not happy being down 3-1 coming into the third period. And they proved their point. Just 9 seconds after the third period face-off Kristoffer gives a beautiful pass to Commander Shephard and he was able to put it into the net. And oh boy it didnt stop their. Throughout the rest of this period Commander Shephard scored 3 more goals with Kristoffer getting 3 more assists. These 2 may have given Halifax this game. They were obvious picks for the 3 stars just because of their play during the 3rd period.

Comment 2:

Anchorage Armada probably should have won this game. They out shot the Halifax Raiders 32-23 throughout the game, but obviously it was not enough. Going up early in the first period 2-0 and keeping the lead at 3-1 at the end of the second period. But throughout the third the Armada just could not hold on to the lead even though Tony Ford had a big goal towards the end of the period. They were struggling to get shots past the Halifax Raiders starting goalie Aleksi O'Koivu-Volkova. O'Koivu-Volkova had a great game holding off Halifax's 32 shots with an impressive 87% shooting percentage. This was all to much for Armada to handle and cost them the game.

Comment 3:

Penalties may have been the name of the game. Even though throughout the first period there were no penalties; During the second period however Tony Ford and Raphael D'Alcott both had minor penalties making Anchorage have to deal with 4 minutes of penalty kills during the period and they were able to hold off Halifax through the 2 penalty kills. Through the third period there were 3 penalties, 2 from Anchorage and 1 from Halifax. The first penalty helped give Halifax a come back allowing them to tie the game at 3 during the penalty. During the penalty caused by Halifax, Anchorage was able to score their 1 and only goal in the 3rd period. And finally with the last penalty from the Armada, Halifax closed the game out bringing the score to 6-4 with only 2 minutes left.

Le_Kris · 05-23-2019, 06:41 AM

Comment #1
I would like to point out a thing that in my oppinion costed a game for Armada here. And that is face offs. As you see noone from Anchorage team finished this game with more than 50% from the dot. For example Andris Dzerins who is playing in third line won only 5 out of 16 face offs. Spencer MacLean won only 9 out of 19. For Anchorage coaching stuff this will be a huge part to improve from during offseason and offseason might start really soon if team can’t win those crucial face offs when the game is even and is yet to decided.

Comment #2

Montreal Militia won this game, but what leaves a bad taste afterwards is how bad second line played. Impresivelly bad plus minus coeficient for all second line. Jaguar, Truong and Hagan with crazy minus 3 here. Pretty crazy if you think that Armada scored 4 goals in the game and 3 of them against this line. What might be the couse of it? Well, maybe it was a lack of chemistry there, maybe players wasn’t ready for this game. Game was played during mid part of season, maybe guys wasn’t ready physically. There might be a lot of resons for such a bad game for these 3.

Comment #3

Absolutelly terrible ending for Armada team. Right after the break Anchorage was in lead 3:1. But then just 9 seconds in to the third period Montreal scored. You think that should a wake up call for Armada, but that was just a start of potentially worst period in franchise history. Two and a half minutes later Militia now tied the things up. Now a powerplay for Montreal and and Klozzof with pwerplay goal and to give the lead once again. 2 minutes later Shepard with second goal of thenight. I have to say that Armada got one back, but then again a penalty kill for them and now Montreal sealed the deal and Shepard with hattrick.

KenitohMenara · 05-24-2019, 05:20 PM

Comment #1
What the heck was that third period, Anchorage? You had the lead and all you had to do was continue your momentum from the 2nd period and finish strong. The Militia were practically handing you this game on a platter and you decided to choke on the air itself. You looked to gain some measure of revenge against Montreal for the early season embarrassment and yet all you have done is choke. This may be a blessing in disguise for the rookies as it can be a learning experience but if I am in that locker room right now, I am sick to my stomach.

Comment #2
While the ending was absolutely dreadful, there is aspects in which the Armada rookies can hold their heads high. The Militia is a very talented team that can do serious damage (Command Shepard proved that with his hat trick tonight) and throughout the first two periods, they showed that they could hang with this incredibly talented team. While they probably won't go far in this year's playoffs, if they keep up with their development, we could be looking at a potential 4-star cup winner. Now obviously that is hugely up in the air and relies on SHL teams keeping them as send downs but there is always hope.

Comment #3
Montreal's 2nd line is proving to be somewhat problematic for the team. Going -3 is never a pretty sight but this is was almost painful to watch. At points it was difficult to tell which side was playing with rookies, it was that bad. While this could be excusable in the early season because teams are getting back to playing regular games again, this is mid season and completely unacceptable. All players need to be rolling at this point and if the Militia don't sort this out or worse, let it become a trend, other teams will notice quickly.

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