BULLETS LOSE GAME BEFORE BOUNCING BACK FOR DECISIVE WIN ON WEEKEND, News, Atom Lambton Middlesex, 2013/2014 (Southwest Bullets)

This Team is part of the 2013/2014 season, which is not set as the current season.
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Nov 25, 2013 | jimfergusson | 879 views
BULLETS LOSE GAME BEFORE BOUNCING BACK FOR DECISIVE WIN ON WEEKEND
On Thursday November 21, the Atom Southwest Bullets hockey team (4-1-1), of the LM LL, lost a close one 6-4, for only the second time this season, against the Strathroy Rockets Jr. Blue (5-5-0) in Bothwell,

being outshot by their opponent 25-15. This was just their second loss this season and only the second time (both losses) in which the SWB team had been outshot in a game. The game was a battle all game long as teams traded goals until late in the third period, the SRB team scored the go ahead goal and capped the night with an empty net goal to clinch the win. Braxton Haggith (#8)  finished the night with 2 goals and an assist, Peter Katsoulakos (#16) finished with 3 assists, Sawyer Watson (#36) had a goal and an assist, Dylan Henry (#40) had a goal, Wyatt Johnson (#12) had an assist, Ethan Keating (#6) had an assist, and Owen King (#22) finished with an assist to complete the scoring. Owen Dewild (#2) was unavailable and did not dress for this game and his absence was definitely noticeable. The defence played strong and Jacob Smith (#30) stood on his head to keep the game close but the team began to run out of gas against a determined SRB team late in the game as this game will be remembered as the one that slipped away from them.

On Sunday November 24, the Atom Southwest Bullets hockey team of the LMLL, with a 4-2-1 record, entering the game, played a morning road game against the Mount Brydges Cougars Red team with a record of 2-5-0, entering the game. The SWB team beat their opponent 3-0 in another showcase game displaying their third best win percentage record in their division with sights set on the two remaining undefeated teams and top two teams in their division. The SWB team opened the game by smothering the MBCR team in their own end outshooting them 9-1 and outscoring them 2-0 in the first period. The opening goal was scored just 49 seconds into the game on a pretty tic-tac-toe play which started when Peter Katsoulakos (#16) picked up a puck in the right corner boards and fed Braxton Haggith (#8) at the face-off circle who quickly relayed the puck over to a waiting Ethan Keating (#6) at the doorstep of the goal who in one motion redirected the puck into the open side of the net for the 1-0 lead before the MBCR goalie could slide over to his other side. The SWB team enjoyed a 2 minute power play when a MBCR player went off for hooking with 3:22 remaining but could not beat the MBCR goalie on the power play. The SWB team scored again late in the opening period as the team pressed hard to keep the MBCR team hemmed in their own end in the dying minute of the period. Katsoulakos battled with Wyatt Johnson (#12) in front of the net for the loose puck until Katsoulakos found the back of the net when he slid the puck with his backhand past a sprawling MBCR net minder for the 2-0 lead with just 34.4 seconds left on the clock. Johnson picked up the lone assist.

The second period began much like the first period ending with the SWB team outshooting their opponent 10-2 and outscoring them 1-0 in the middle frame to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the game. After a sliding pad save on a Keating shot from the slot, Katsoulakos picked up a loose puck near the right goal post of the MBCR goal and skated behind the net in a wrap around motion and using his reach tucked in the puck between the left post and goalie’s skate, with the puck sliding along the goal line, and bouncing off the right post and into the net for his second goal and third point of the game. The lone goal of the second period was scored with 4:24 remaining. Keating picked up an assist for his efforts on the play. Haggith picked up a body checking penalty with 1:01 remaining in the period on an innocent play along the boards as Haggith hit the breaks in an attempt to avoid a MBCR player but the opposing player went down in a case of Goliath meets David in what was clearly a size differential bump. Jacob Smith (#30) was forced to make a difficult stop for SWB for just the second MBCR team shot on goal of the period as a result of the power play.

The SWB team went into defence mode in the third period as the MBCR was outshot 10-7 in the final period. The MBCR team pressed a little more in the third period forcing Smith to make back to back saves on two occasions preserving his bid for his second shutout of this young season. MBCR’s team aggressiveness cost them late in the game as they picked up a body checking penalty with 4:46 remaining on the clock. The SWB team just killed off the clock until the end of the game with the only threat from the MBCR team coming off a high flip shot from the blue line, by a MBCR forward. This shot did not fool Smith at all as he kept his eye on the puck the whole time as it went up in the air and came down and bounced off his face mask and down to the ice in front of him where he smothered the puck for a face-off late in the game with just 0:33 remaining on the SWB power play. The SWB team jubilantly congratulated their goalie at the end of the game as the team had only 13 total defensive and neutral zone give-aways in the game, a vast improvement over previous games as they continue to improve in their quest for hockey supremacy. Although Smith did not face many shots, he did make some difficult stops when called upon to earn his second shutout.  Evan Damaiter (#26), Morgan Hutson (#24), Will Lambrecht (#10), and Johnson were a tower of strength on defence especially as they patrolled the opposition blue-line when the team was on the offence as they were instrumental in keeping the puck in the offensive zone most of the game. Dylan Henry (#40) and Sawyer Watson (#36) also played important roles in digging out loose pucks along the boards as the team dominated the possession game.

The SWB team is now 5-2-1 with 11 points and sits fifth in their division of 13 teams with games at hand on each of the teams it is chasing ahead of them. The team could easily be undefeated as their losses and tie all came near the dying minutes of the game. Come out and enjoy the entertainment value displayed by this enthusiastic group of young kids. They get an A plus for their effort with every game played. The team plays their next game on Thursday November 28, in Bothwell at 7:30pm against this same team (MBCR). Come out and support your local team.