Game type: Regular Season
Date: Sunday 17th April 2011
Face-off: 18:30pm
Attendance: 414

Match Report

On Fire Freeze Finish Season on a High.

Lancashire Raptors once more made the short trip down from Blackburn as Sunday’s visitors to Deeside Ice Rink for Freeze’s last game of the season. After another action packed game, the full moon smiled down on the faithful Freeze fans who left the arena happy despite having given up a lovely spring evening to support their team.

The first period opened cautiously with a couple of Freeze players, including Peter Gazda, testing out the Raptors defence with shots on the net. Then a technical hitch gazumped the timeclock board and the game was delayed whilst the use of a stopwatch was debated. When the game restarted, Raptors showed their cards playing the advantage as soon as the ref indicated he was going to send Gavin Austin to the sin bin for charging, when they pulled their net minder for an additional out player but the Freeze touched the pick to stop the play. Down to four players, the Freeze also showed their intentions as Chris Jones was lined up by firing partner Si Furnival for a shot which went wide. The match officials asked the crowd not to blow any whistles as this was disrupting play then, at the six minute mark, a flurry of activity around the Raptor’s net resulted in a David Swanston shot sneaking over the line for Freeze to get the first points on the board. Raptors responded with a shot flying off Phil Crosby’s glove. At the other end, Alex Parry shot wide and, between the posts for Raptors, Matthew Phair held on to the rebound off the nets. When play went down the ice to the Freeze net, Gazda found himself sitting out 2 minutes for roughing and 12 seconds later Raptors made the most of the power play opportunity to score their first goal with less than 3 minutes of the period remaining. The first period saw some skilful and much improved passing from the home side but the chances in front of goal were once more not capitalised on, as the shots on goal stats show. At one point the Raptors thought they had made the most of their chances when the puck slipped over the Freeze goal line, only for the ref to call a ‘no goal’ for players in the crease. C Jones tested his range with a couple of hard shots but Phair stood firm. With 4 seconds left on the clock Callum Ruddick took a long shot but this too was swept aside by Phair and the period ended at 1 -1 . Shots on Goal: FF – 20, LR – 7

The second period started with the Freeze on their toes and a barrage of shots at goal was eventually rewarded with their second goal – the first of the night from top scorer C Jones assisted this time by Andy Chappell. This is followed by a great attempt by Alex Parry who picked up the puck at his own blue line from a Raptors player who slipped on the ice, and took it all the way to the Raptor’s goal only to shoot narrowly wide. In the goal, Crosby also played his part, tipping a shot over the cross bar. That man C Jones tried again at the other end only to be denied once more by the Raptor’s keeper. Then the Raptor’s got their first penalty of the night when ex Freeze player Wes Barnett got a 2 minute penalty for hooking. Freeze got their first power play of the night but couldn’t take the advantage. With 13 seconds of Barnett’s penalty left, Freeze’s first line tried their luck. C Jones whacked in a shot which Phair seemed to fumble. C Jones, swooping in on the follow up, flicked the puck from in front of the goalie over the line but, with the puck clearly sitting in the back of the net, the Raptors took umbrage and the ensuing kerfufflle saw C Jones take 2 + 2 for roughing and 2 for slashing whilst his main antagonist in this disagreement, the Raptor’s Paul Mercier, took 2 + 2 for roughing. As soon as both teams are back to full strength, Gavin Austin & Bryn Roberts fed the puck to Gareth Roberts who scored a lovely switch back goal to take the Freeze to 3 – 1. As the Freeze fans celebrated, the Raptors took the puck from the restart face off and snuck in their 2nd goal. Now at 3 -2, Freeze once again called on the skills of their net minder Crosby to fend off some fine attacks from the opposition, pushing shots wide with his stick and plucking others from the air. When shots did get past him, they pinged off the metal work or bounced back from the safety nets. Then, in the last 4 minutes of the period, Austin made the most of a Michael Jones pass to side step the Raptor’s defence for the sweetest goal to take Freeze to 4 -2. The end of the 2nd period saw both teams take penalties and was most confusing for the crowd with fans from both side quoting C–Lo Green … Why? Why? Why|?… and the Raptors made the most of the confusion with Barnett taking advantage to lift a 3rd goal over a crouching Crosby into the top of the net with merely seconds left. Having checked the figures with budding junior reporter Tegan, on her first visit to the Freezer, the 2nd period ended 4 -3 with Freeze making a further 15 shots on goal compared to the Raptor’s 10 shots.

At the start of the 3rd, some nifty juggling by Phair prevented the Freeze scoring and then Chappell was denied when his shot glanced off the cross bar. But nothing could stop C Jones from smashing in an unassisted goal for Flintshire’s 5th within 2 minutes of the restart. Raptors replied by heading down the ice but a scramble in front of the freeze net resulted in the goal post being knocked out. Play then stopped as concerned Freeze players called for medical assistance for Parry who was carried from the bench with a reoccurring leg injury. This proved to be a turning point in the game and, from the restart, the Raptors made the most of a clearly unnerved Freeze team to try and get a goal. Crosby made a save only to have Barnett dig out the puck and pop it over the line. Unlike C Jones similar effort earlier, the ref declared this a goal and Barnett got his hat trick and Raptors drew back to 5-4. The middle of this period proved to be Freeze’s worst patch of the game, the home team seemed to pale whilst the visitors grew in confidence. Freeze failed time and time again to take advantage of power plays when the Raptors went men down to penalties. This period was paying off for the Raptors as, with 12 minutes left on the clock, Steven Etherington scored their 5th goal assisted by Barnett and Bobby Caunce. As the last period drew to a close, some more great saves from Crosby kept the score even as Freeze’s forward attacks proved futile and were foiled by some great net minding from Phair. Unfortunately play was interrupted as once again some idiot in the crowd blew a whistle at a critical stage when the Freeze forwards were attacking. Roberts got sent to the sin bin for 10 minute misconduct for losing his temper when play is stopped because of that during his attempt to score. As it was a penalty against the player, Freeze remained at full strength and with only 1 min 11 seconds on the clock, Raptors called a time out to discuss tactics. On the restart, cool headed captain Marc Lovell takes the puck and shimmied up the ice to score an unassisted goal for the Freeze’s 6th to take the lead and knock the wind out of the Raptor’s sails. Freeze then called a 30 second time out and with 32 seconds left on the clock the Raptors pulled their goalie off for an extra out player. They took a shot at goal but Crosby saved and held it for a restart in front of his goal. Raptors had no net minder but had six out players to make the most of the restart in front of the Freeze goal. There were only 12 seconds left on the clock and within 2 seconds Chappell had passed to C Jones for him to stroke the puck down the ice towards the un-manned goal for his hat trick and the Freeze’s seventh. Although both the Freeze’s winning goals had been scored in the last minute of the game, the Raptors and the crowd knew that there was nothing that could be done in the last 10 seconds to change the outcome of the game. Freeze ended their 2010/11 campaign on the best note – a great home win and a sense of optimism for next year.
Final score: FF 7, LR 5
SOG: FF 45, LR 28
MVP: FF 91- Marc Lovell, LR 10 – Kurtis Hall

Yup – it was another nail biting finish for the Freeze fans, but this was a win. A brilliant, exciting, fast, contentious and exhilarating win, but a win all the same. Soooo good to end the season on a high! Well done to all the team and all the support staff who make these match nights happen. Commiserations, but good wishes, to our adversaries tonight and the other teams we have played all through the season. We all look forward now to next season with high hopes… and Tegan – we hope you and your family, and all the other new fans we have made, will join our long time supporters again next year for some more exciting action packed hockey here at Deeside Arena. Have a great summer everyone!