Game Recaps 10/25/24

PORT HURON PROWLERS at HUDSON VALLEY VENOM


Venom Win First Game in Franchise History, 4-3 against Prowlers


by Jim Cerny


Newburgh, NY -  Quinn Chevers scored with 2:03 remaining in the third period to snap a tie and lift the Hudson Valley Venom to their first win in franchise history, 4-3 against the Port Huron Prowlers, Friday at Ice Time Sports Complex.


Danila Belov slid a pass to Chevers, who was left alone in the low slot and roofed the game-winning goal past Prowlers goalie Makar Sokolov. The Prowlers had tied the game earlier in the period at 4:58 when Lukas Lacny scored his first goal, and overtime appeared on the horizon until Chevers scored his first of the season.


The Venom lost their first two games last weekend in a home-and-home set against the defending Commissioner’s Cup champion Binghamton Black Bears. But they never trailed Friday against the Prowlers, finding a way to secure their first victory.


Davide Gaeta had a goal and two assists for the Venom and Belov, a 20-year-old rookie from Russia, scored his first goal to open the scoring 6:52 into the first period.


Gaeta’s goal was a 4-on-3 power-play tally which gave Hudson Valley a 2-1 lead at 3:27 of the second period. Blake Siewertsen made it 3-1 at 5:20 when he pushed the puck over the goal line on a rebound of Gaeta’s initial shot.


Port Huron defenseman Alex Johnson scored a 4-on-4 goal at 10:13 of the second to make it 3-2; and Lacny tied the game early in the third.


John Moriarty had 28 saves for the Venom, including 10 each in the second and third periods. Sokolov also had 28 saves for Port Huron, which received a goal and two assists from Johnson, who reached the 200-point milestone with the club on a first period assist on Austin Fetterly’s goal at 9:13.


The Venom are right back at it Saturday when they host the Danbury Hat Tricks in the first game of the I-84 rivalry.


Tickets can be purchased at Ticketmaster or by calling 845-454-5800.



Late Goal Dooms Prowlers Against Venom


by Will Wiegelman


Newburgh, NY -  Quinn Chevers scored the game-winner with 2:03 remaining in regulation to help the Hudson Valley Venom win their first game in franchise history. They defeated the Port Huron Prowlers 4-3 at Ice Time Sports Complex on Oct. 25.


Early in the first, Danila Belov took a pass and got into Port Huron territory. He pulled off a spin-move in the slot and beat Makar Sokolov on the backhand to open the scoring for Hudson Valley.


A couple of minutes later, the Prowlers got a power play and Austin Fetterly floated a wrister from the blue line, through traffic and into the top corner to tie the score. Alex Johnson and Lukas Lacny assisted on the goal, for Johnson, it was his 200th point as a Prowler and for Lacny, his first.


The Venom responded on a power play early in the second when Dustin Jesseau’s one-timer was knocked down by Sokolov but Davide Gaeta found the rebound and put it home to make it 2-1. Less than two minutes later, Gaeta’s shot produced a rebound that Blake Siewertsen cleaned up to double the Hudson Valley lead.


Johnson responded with a quick shot off a faceoff win to pull Port Huron within one heading into the third.


Less than five minutes into the final frame, Johnson’s shot from the point was stopped by John Moriarty but Lacny battled through a defender to put home the rebound and tie the score at three.


That stood until the puck popped out of a scrum in the corner to Chevers all alone right in front of Sokolov. He blasted home his first pro goal and the Venom survived the final 2:03 to get the win.


Johnson had a goal and two assists while Lacny produced one of each in his Prowlers debut. Tucker Scantlebury dished out two helpers while Sokolov made 28 saves.


Gaeta led the way with a goal and two assists for Hudson Valley while Belov had a goal and one assist. Moriarty picked up his first victory of the season after a 28-save performance.


The Prowlers are back in action on Oct. 26 when they visit the Binghamton Black Bears at 7 P.M.



CAROLINA THUNDERBIRDS at BLUE RIDGE BOBCATS


Bobcats Blank Birds 3-0 In Rivalry Renewal


by Brett Wiseman


Wytheville, VA -  The Blue Ridge Bobcats didn't have to wait 12 games for a victory over their I-77 rivals this time. In fact, they didn't have to wait at all. Hunter Virostek earned his first career shutout in his first start as a Bobcat in a dominating 3-0 triumph over the Carolina Thunderbirds.


In a playoff-like atmosphere before a crowd of 1,241 at Hitachi Energy Arena, the first of 14 meetings between the two foes lived up to the billing and then some. Both squads played through a tight checking scoreless first period, and remained the same through two-thirds of the middle frame, until the 'Cats finally broke the seal on Carolina netminder Boris Babik.


Carson Andreoli won a puck battle, centered to Devin Sanders, who found Joel Frazee in the high slot. The Monroe, MI native did not miss, rifling a wrist shot top shelf on Babik to put Blue Ridge ahead. 


The Bobcats never looked back, defending their net with force and protecting their crease in front of the wall that was Virostek. Devin Sanders helped seal the deal with a pair of empty-netters and earned second star honors for his three-point night. Frazee earned third-star for his go-ahead goal. Virostek's shutout earned him first star of the night. 



Both teams meet again at 7:30 tomorrow night for Slap Shot Night.




MOTOR CITY ROCKERS at WATERTOWN WOLVES


Wolves Down Rockers, 7-1


by Jeff Barrett


Watertown, NY -  For the first time in the new season, the Watertown Wolves hosted the Motor City Rockers for the first game of a 2 game weekend between these teams here in the Watertown Municipal Arena.


The Wolves would strike early and often in the first twenty minutes. First it was Kyle Heitzner lighting the lamp at the 4:25 mark assisted by Chiwetin Blacksmith.


The second marker came at the 11:56 mark when Tate Leeson knifed a Ross Bartlett pass past the Rocker starter Trevor Babin for a powerplay goal.


The Wolves also added a short handed goal from Trevor Lord getting behind the defense and giving Watertown a 3-0 lead. Trevor Grasby and Carter Thornton were credited with assists on the goal.


Shots on goal were 19-9 in favor of the Wolves.


Just 1:01 into the second, the Rockers would get on the board with an Adam Kuhn goal, beating Watertown starter Anton Borodkin. Assists on the goal belonged to Theodore Rowell and Sam Gagnon, making it 3-1.


At 9:42 of the period, Trevor Lord netted his second of the night on a beautiful feed from Kyle Heitzner and Carter Thornton, putting the Wolves back up by 3.


Watertown continued to outshoot Motor City in the second 23-7, and took the 4-2 lead to the locker room after 40 minutes of play.


Just :54 into the third, Tate Leeson lifts one past Babin to extend the Wolves lead to 5-1 on an even strength effort.


The 14:59 mark found Carter Thornton with a beautiful redirect of a Timothy Payne shot making the score 6-1. Tate Leeson was also credited with an assist.


Ross Bartlett added a power play goal at the 17:23 mark, assisted by Tate Leeson and Kyle Heitzner sending the score to 7-1


These same two teams will square off again Saturday evening for game two of the weekend, with the puck drop slated for 7:30





ATHENS ROCK LOBSTERS at DASHERS of DANVILLE


Dashers Deliver on Opening Night


by Devin Dobek


Danville, IL -  The Dashers returned to Danville searching for their first win of the season against the Athens Rock Lobsters. In a game of back and forth momentum swings, the Dashers found a way to come from behind and hand Athens their first loss of the season. Unfamiliar heroes and exceptional goaltending would paint the picture for an entertaining night of professional hockey back in the 217. 


The first period started with some early fireworks as Garrett Milan wasted no time lighting the lamp to make it 1-0 Athens just 56 seconds into this one. Athens continued to crank up the heat, creating a plethora of grade A scoring chances. 2 posts were hit and an early whistle saved another goal in the Rock Lobsters early push to blow the game open. The first intermission couldn’t come soon enough for the boys in black and orange.


Period two began with a different energy in Danville. The crowd got loud and the Dashers found a way to establish themselves in the O-zone. The reward came when Lester Brown made a nifty move through the high slot to get a shot away that was picked up and buried home by Yegor Kabatayev for his first of the season. Tied at 1, physical play would serve as the narrative the rest of the way. 


The final frame opened up with the same intensity as period two. The suspense would build as the home crowd pondered who would be the hero or the villain. It would come in the form of Zach Demarce, who found the five-hole of Jack Bostedt off a great pass from Brandon Stojcevski. On the ensuing faceoff, Rock Lobster’s assistant captain Malik Johnson challenged Dashers’ assistant captain Lester Brown to a fight at center ice to try and spark some life with his time. The bout did not last long, with Brown tackling Johnson after about 5 seconds. A couple more posts hit would deny the Rock Lobsters in their efforts to comeback and Yegor Kabatayecv provided the dagger with an empty net goal. 


Athens would fall for the first time this season, dropping to 4-1. The Dashers improve to 1-2 thanks to their gutsy effort. The two teams will square off tomorrow night once again at 7:05 over in the David Palmer Arena. 




BINGHAMTON BLACK BEARS at DANBURY HAT TRICKS


Hat Tricks Bested in Overtime Loss to Binghamton, 3-2


by Doug Lattuca


Danbury, CT -  The Hat Tricks dropped a back-and-forth overtime thriller to the Binghamton Black Bears, 3-2, on Friday night. Cameron Clarke tapped home the game-winner on the power play at 3:03 of OT to seal the victory for the Black Bears and push their win streak to three. All five goals in the game came on special teams, four on the power play and one shorthanded. 


Binghamton's Jamie Buccell started the scoring just 2:55 into the game with a one-time rocket on the power play. A few minutes later, Chase Harwell answered for the Hat Tricks with his first goal of the season with the man up at 5:10. Labelle's point shot range off the cross bar and straight down and Harwell buried the rebound to tie the game.


In the second, the Hat Tricks stepped in front for the first time on Cory Anderson's short-handed goal, his first score since the 2021-22 season with Danbury after returning from a two-year hiatus from pro hockey. Through three games, the veteran forward has three points (1g, 2a). 


The Danbury lead stood up until the middle of the third period when Gavin Yates, the Commissioner's Cup Finals MVP, tied the game with a snipe over the left shoulder of netminder Conor McCollum on a 5-on-3 man advantage. The Hat Tricks would kill off another two-man disadvantage moments later to keep the score level at 2-2. Veteran Danbury defenseman Dustin Henning threw down with Buccell late in the third period for the Hat Tricks' first fight of the 2024-25 campaign


The game headed to overtime and Danbury forward Jacob Ratcliffe was called for hooking at 1:22. Clarke made him pay with the game-winner on the power play.



The Hat Tricks return to action Saturday night in Hudson Valley for their first road test of the season and the first-ever matchup against the Venom in their inaugural season. The first installment of The Battle of 84 gets underway at 7 p.m.




Binghamton Defeat Hat Tricks In Overtime On The Road


by Cole Parenti


Danbury, CT - The Black Bears and Hat Tricks met for the first time this season inside the Danbury Ice Arena. This would be the first of 11 meetings this year between the teams. The contest saw the Black Bears take the game by a final score of 3-2 in overtime.

 

Jamie Bucell got things started early for the Black Bears, connecting for his first since returning to the team on the power play. Tyson Kirkby would pick up an assist on the goal that being his 100th in a Black Bears sweater. He is the all time leader in assists and first player to reach 100 as a member of the team. Chase Harwell would follow with a power play goal of his own about 2 minutes later. After some stellar saves from both goaltenders the teams would skate off to the locker room tied at 1.

 

The second period only saw one goal as the play tightened between these two competitors. Jacob Ratcliffe was able to connect a pass to Cory Anderson who deposited a goal, short handed leading to a Danbury 2-1 advantage at the end of the period.

 

The third period saw the Black Bears tie the game as Gavin Yates found twine on the two-man advantage. This would ultimately be the only goal in the frame as this game was destined for overtime.

 

The Black Bears were able to take care of business as Cam Clarke ended the game on the power play by finishing a rebound in front. Finishing off a 3-2 win for Binghamton.

 

Connor McAnanama was sensational again as he stopped 42 of the 44 shots he faced. His counterpart Connor McCollum also had a fantastic performance stopping 49 of the 52 shots asked of him. The Black Bears get their first overtime win of the season and collect two points on the road. The Black Bears are back in action tomorrow as they clash with the Port Huron Prowlers.

 

Hockey season is back! Call the Black Bears office at 607-722-7367 or stop into the third-floor hockey offices of Visions Veterans Memorial Arena. Fans can secure their seat for all 28 home games next year and save up to 30% on tickets. Stay current with the latest team news by visiting www.binghamtonblackbears.com and by following the Black Bears all year long on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tik Tok @BlackBearsFPHL. 





MISSISSIPPI SEA WOLVES at BATON ROUGE ZYDECO


Zydeco Get Back in the Win Column


by Andy Poetzinger


Baton Rouge, LA - There are some things that are bigger than sports. 


With 4:25 remaining in the game, Nick Ketola, defenseman for the Baton Rouge Zydeco, was the recipient of an open ice hit from Carter Eha that sent Ketola hard to the ice. Ketola seemed to lose conscious for a moment or two before regaining consciousness. 


Paramedics arrived to help Zydeco Athletic Trainer Julie LaCour as she tended to Ketola who stayed on the ice for nearly 20 minutes. Ketola was stretchered off by paramedics and seemed to be moving his hands and feet.


The game was officially called by the FPHL, the Zydeco win this game 3-0 and improve to 2-1-0-1.


Breandan Colgan earns a 21 save shutout and his first win as a Zydeco. Brodie Thornton, Tyler Larwood and Matthew Gordon scored for Baton Rouge. 


These two teams meet up again tomorrow night in Mississippi at 6:05pm CT. 


As soon as we have updates on the status of Nick Ketola, we will share them.