Hull Stingrays 5-2 Fife Flyers
Player-coach Sylvain Cloutier tonight recorded two goals and an assist and netminder Ben Bowns turned away 32 of 34 shots as the Hull Stingrays ended a five game losing streak by defeating the Fife Flyers by five goals to two at the Hull Arena.
With 13 imports on the books, the Stingrays scratched netminder Greg Blais and forward Janis Ozolins from the line-up for this game - the latter perhaps controversially, adding futher fuel to the fire that he may soon be departing the club.
Six days ago the Stingrays were 6-1 down after twenty minutes in Edinburgh, therefore, with so much riding on this game after last week's demoralising demolition at the hands of the Capitals, a good start was imperative. Thankfully, the Rays came out with purpose and determination, Martin Ondrej typifying the opening minutes by levelling Flyers forward Danny Stewart with his head down.
Home debutant Danny Wood lined up alongside Jason Silverthorn and Jereme Tendler and the trio showed early promise, however, it was the Stingrays energy line of Ryan Hand, Cale Tanaka and Tom Squires that drew first blood.
With Hand and Tanaka pressuring the Flyers in their own zone - a reoccurring theme, particularly in the first period - the puck came to Tom Squires behind the net and he neatly tucked the puck home on 2.18 with Fife netminder Bryan Pitton covered the opposite post.
A boarding penalty from Josh Scoon on 8.21 then gave the Stingrays their first powerplay of the night having killed a Fife man advantage on a Jason Silverthorn trip moments earlier. The Flyers would pay for Scoon's boarding hit on Dominic Osman just twenty-five seconds later as goalscorer Jereme Tendler raced into the Fife zone and dropped the puck to linemate Jason Silverthorn - who ripped a wrist shot by Pitton to double the Stingrays lead.
The visitors came back into the game mid-way through the first period but the Rays spurned two great chances late in the period with puck jumping over Silverthorn's stick with the goal gaping and Osman missing the net having outwaited Pitton on a breakaway.
Following a somewhat slow start, the Flyers finally found their legs in the second period but not before the Stingrays again came out physically, Dmitri Rodin twice hitting Bobby Chaumont hard early on.
That physicality would eventually cross the line and cost the Stingrays 3.28 into the period. With Cloutier already sitting a cross-checking minor, Jeff Smith took the first of six penalty minutes in ten minutes of game time, giving the Flyers a 5-on-3.
Fife forward Chaumont this time benefited from Rodin hit - which missed it's target and saw the Estonian lose his balance, leaving the Rays with just two men at the back - as the Canadian slid the puck in at the back post for the Flyers first of the night on the powerplay.
The Rays quickly responded though and less than four minutess later Cloutier deftly tipped in Rodin's shot from the point for his first of the night to give the home side a 3-1 lead.
Smith's second and third penalties of the night came on 32.29 as he took a cross-checking penalty before needlessly roughing up Danny Stewart after the whistle to give the Flyers four minutes of powerplay.
The indiscipline could have potentially been so costly for the Stingrays but, while the Flyers did score six seconds later thanks to a re-direction from Kris Hogg, they were - luckily for Smith - unable to equalise during the second half of the powerplay.
With less than two minutes left in the second period, Cloutier - who was a driving force for the Stingrays throughout the night - determinedly hacked the puck past Pitton in a scramble around the crease six seconds after Todd Duitaume's slashing penalty to give his side a crucial two goal, 4-2 lead heading into the third period.
The Rays player-coach's final decisive move of the night was the choice not to attempt an ambitious breakaway from way out for his hat-trick goal on a Stingrays penalty kill.
Selflessly and sensibly, the 38 year old instead opted to wait for support from Osman - creating a two-on-one - before feeding a beautifully timed and weighted pass across the front of the net for the American forward to easily tap home at the back door for a much needed goal. The goal completing a brilliant performance personally for Cloutier and, he'd say far more importantly, a big win for the team.
Although a big, confidence boosting win - which came without a Jereme Tendler goal for just the third time in the last month - the Stingrays and Cloutier desperately crave and need a four point weekend to get themselves back in the mix in the Gardiner Conference.
Tonight's victory puts the Rays two points ahead of fifth placed Edinburgh - who they meet at Hull Arena on Wednesday - in the Gardiner Conference with the Rays playing one fewer game while also putting them level on points with Fife albeit having played a game more. Two points in regulation time tomorrow night will put them in third, two points in front of Fife, four points ahead of Edinburgh and just four points behind the conference leading Braehead Clan.
Player-coach Sylvain Cloutier tonight recorded two goals and an assist and netminder Ben Bowns turned away 32 of 34 shots as the Hull Stingrays ended a five game losing streak by defeating the Fife Flyers by five goals to two at the Hull Arena.
With 13 imports on the books, the Stingrays scratched netminder Greg Blais and forward Janis Ozolins from the line-up for this game - the latter perhaps controversially, adding futher fuel to the fire that he may soon be departing the club.
Six days ago the Stingrays were 6-1 down after twenty minutes in Edinburgh, therefore, with so much riding on this game after last week's demoralising demolition at the hands of the Capitals, a good start was imperative. Thankfully, the Rays came out with purpose and determination, Martin Ondrej typifying the opening minutes by levelling Flyers forward Danny Stewart with his head down.
Home debutant Danny Wood lined up alongside Jason Silverthorn and Jereme Tendler and the trio showed early promise, however, it was the Stingrays energy line of Ryan Hand, Cale Tanaka and Tom Squires that drew first blood.
With Hand and Tanaka pressuring the Flyers in their own zone - a reoccurring theme, particularly in the first period - the puck came to Tom Squires behind the net and he neatly tucked the puck home on 2.18 with Fife netminder Bryan Pitton covered the opposite post.
A boarding penalty from Josh Scoon on 8.21 then gave the Stingrays their first powerplay of the night having killed a Fife man advantage on a Jason Silverthorn trip moments earlier. The Flyers would pay for Scoon's boarding hit on Dominic Osman just twenty-five seconds later as goalscorer Jereme Tendler raced into the Fife zone and dropped the puck to linemate Jason Silverthorn - who ripped a wrist shot by Pitton to double the Stingrays lead.
The visitors came back into the game mid-way through the first period but the Rays spurned two great chances late in the period with puck jumping over Silverthorn's stick with the goal gaping and Osman missing the net having outwaited Pitton on a breakaway.
Following a somewhat slow start, the Flyers finally found their legs in the second period but not before the Stingrays again came out physically, Dmitri Rodin twice hitting Bobby Chaumont hard early on.
That physicality would eventually cross the line and cost the Stingrays 3.28 into the period. With Cloutier already sitting a cross-checking minor, Jeff Smith took the first of six penalty minutes in ten minutes of game time, giving the Flyers a 5-on-3.
Fife forward Chaumont this time benefited from Rodin hit - which missed it's target and saw the Estonian lose his balance, leaving the Rays with just two men at the back - as the Canadian slid the puck in at the back post for the Flyers first of the night on the powerplay.
The Rays quickly responded though and less than four minutess later Cloutier deftly tipped in Rodin's shot from the point for his first of the night to give the home side a 3-1 lead.
Smith's second and third penalties of the night came on 32.29 as he took a cross-checking penalty before needlessly roughing up Danny Stewart after the whistle to give the Flyers four minutes of powerplay.
The indiscipline could have potentially been so costly for the Stingrays but, while the Flyers did score six seconds later thanks to a re-direction from Kris Hogg, they were - luckily for Smith - unable to equalise during the second half of the powerplay.
With less than two minutes left in the second period, Cloutier - who was a driving force for the Stingrays throughout the night - determinedly hacked the puck past Pitton in a scramble around the crease six seconds after Todd Duitaume's slashing penalty to give his side a crucial two goal, 4-2 lead heading into the third period.
The Rays player-coach's final decisive move of the night was the choice not to attempt an ambitious breakaway from way out for his hat-trick goal on a Stingrays penalty kill.
Selflessly and sensibly, the 38 year old instead opted to wait for support from Osman - creating a two-on-one - before feeding a beautifully timed and weighted pass across the front of the net for the American forward to easily tap home at the back door for a much needed goal. The goal completing a brilliant performance personally for Cloutier and, he'd say far more importantly, a big win for the team.
Although a big, confidence boosting win - which came without a Jereme Tendler goal for just the third time in the last month - the Stingrays and Cloutier desperately crave and need a four point weekend to get themselves back in the mix in the Gardiner Conference.
Tonight's victory puts the Rays two points ahead of fifth placed Edinburgh - who they meet at Hull Arena on Wednesday - in the Gardiner Conference with the Rays playing one fewer game while also putting them level on points with Fife albeit having played a game more. Two points in regulation time tomorrow night will put them in third, two points in front of Fife, four points ahead of Edinburgh and just four points behind the conference leading Braehead Clan.
FBB Three Stars
1. Sylvain Cloutier
2. Jereme Tendler
3. Ben Bowns
