BULLETS BOUNCE BACK AFTER LOSS AND DEFEAT MT BRYDGES NEMESIS FOR THE SECOND TIME IN 10 DAYS, 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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Jan 07, 2014 | jimfergusson | 2003 views
BULLETS BOUNCE BACK AFTER LOSS AND DEFEAT MT BRYDGES NEMESIS FOR THE SECOND TIME IN 10 DAYS
On Sunday December 22, the Atom Southwest Bullets hockey team of the LMLL, with an 8-3-2 record entering the game, handed the Mount Brydges Cougar Blue team, with a record of 12-1-1 entering the game, their second loss of the season by defeating them 5-3 in Mt. Brydges

Both of the Cougar losses were at the hands of the Bullets. The first period was a very tight checking affair with both teams exchanging puck possession in the neutral zone throughout the period as the period ended with the Bullets enjoying a 3-2 shots on goal advantage. The first shot of the period was recorded when Jacob Smith (#30) made a nice save down low on a Cougar forward with 3:46 gone in the first period. The only goal of the period came with 1:03 remaining when Dylan Henry (#40) gave the Bullets the lead on a beautiful individual effort when he chased down a loose puck, deflected through centre ice from just outside the Bullet blue line. After beating his man to the puck near the right face-off circle of the offensive zone, Henry skated towards the Cougar goal and slid the puck past the net minder for the 1-0 Bullet lead.

The second period was all Cougar Blue as the Bullets were outshot 9-1 in the period. The Bullets iced the puck on many occasions just to relieve some of the Cougar pressure and were lucky to escape the period with the game tied 1-1 after the Cougars scored with 2:24 remaining in the period. Smith managed to stop the initial shot but was unable to trap the rebound as it trickled into the net. The Bullet’s Owen King (#22) received the first minor penalty of the game when he was sent off for hooking with 1:00 remaining in the second period..

The third period began with the Cougars on the power play with 1:00 remaining in the King penalty. The Cougars pressed with the man advantage and were rewarded with a goal shortly after the penalty expired to take a 2-1 lead with 13:43 remaining in the game. The Bullet defence had broken down and Smith was helpless as the puck was flipped into the net over his sprawled body along the goal crease. The Cougars continued to press after the go ahead goal, hemming the Bullets inside their own end on several occasions. The Bullets managed to tie the game at 2, with 9:54 remaining, when Braxton Haggith (#8), from behind the net, fired a shot around the boards to an open wing where a circling Peter Katsoulakos (#16) picked up the puck and skated down ice, along the right wing boards, past a fallen Cougar forward near centre ice and while cutting across the Cougar blue line, past the lone Cougar defenseman, and towards the slot, fired a backhand shot to the near side of the net past the Cougar net minder. Haggith picked up an assist on the play. Both teams exchanged goal opportunities with both goaltenders making big saves to keep the game close. The Bullet defense broke down during one shift as they allowed the Cougar forwards to control the puck along the boards and blue line in the Bullet end without confrontation. The result was the go ahead Cougar goal with 6:11 remaining in the game. This goal appeared to awaken the Bullet team as they pressed the Cougar defense at will forcing them to ice the puck on several occasions. The Bullets were rewarded with the tying goal with 5:25 remaining, when the Cougar defense broke down, allowing Owen Dewild (#2), in front of the net, to fire a shot past the Cougar goalie. Henry picked up an assist on the play. Once again the Bullets pressed the Cougar defense hard late in the period when Haggith fired a hard shot wide and behind the Cougar net from the right face-off circle, only to have the shot picked up by Katsoulakos off the back boards near the left face-off circle who fired a rising bullet wrist shot off the goalie’s glove and into the net for a 4-3 Bullet lead with 3:20 remaining in the game. The Cougars pulled their goalie shortly thereafter for an extra skater on the ice but were unable to muster any offence against a confident Bullet team. A face-off near the Cougar goal forced their goalie back in the net with a little over two minutes to play in the game. On the ensuing face-off, the Bullets attacked the Cougar goal firing several shots at the Cougar net minder and scoring an insurance marker when Wyatt Johnson (#12) picked up a loose rebound as a trailing forward with 2:15 remaining in the game to make it 5-3. When play resumed the Cougars attacked the Bullet net creating a mad scramble around the crease of Smith causing the referee to whistle the play dead and issue coincident minor penalties to each team with 1:48 remaining in the game. Evan Demaiter (#26) received 2:00 for interference while a Cougar player received 2:00 for roughing. The game ended with a 5-3 Bullet victory, its first victory when outshot (16-13). Although, this game continued to exhibit many give aways in the neutral and defensive zone areas, they were mostly of the non-costly type as the Bullet team was able to quickly respond and adapt to their mistakes. Smith played much better with timely saves. Morgan Hutson (#24), Demaiter, Johnson, and King were solid in keeping shots on Smith to a minimum. Sawyer Watson (#36), although without points on this evening, played an integral part in the offensive threat of the Katsoulakos, Haggith, and Watson forward line all night long. The Bullet team ended their 2013 portion of their current schedule on a winning note with a 9-3-2 record (20 points) and a 0.714 winning percentage. They have scored 76 goals while allowing only 40. These statistics are good for no worse than fourth or better in their division of thirteen teams. They now enjoy a 10 day holiday break until January 2 when they will host the Lucan Irish team in Bothwell at 7:30 pm. Come out and support your local team.