The Adirondack Thunder had a difficult weekend as they got swept by the opposing Maine Mariners. The Thunder have plenty of time to get their revenge after the weekend sweep as they will play Maine four more times before the month of December is over.
Adirondack Comes Back To Earn A Point On Friday Night
Adirondack had a few new faces in their lineup on Friday night as Meirs Morse was making his Thunder debut and Evan Cormier was back in Adirondack for the first time since November 15. The first period was a very whimsical one by both the Thunder as well as the Mariners as they managed to each get five shots on goal, but besides that, it was a dull opening frame. However, Adirondack and Maine have had high scoring games as the last four matchups between the two sides have seen a total of 20 pucks finding the back of the net respectively.
As I previously stated, goals had to be on the horizon for these two teams and that’s exactly what the second period brought. With that being said, it wouldn’t take long for the visiting Mariners as Maine would open up the scoring early, just 0:45 into the game’s middle frame. Luck was not on the side of Charlie Curti on Friday night as the second Mariners goal would go off his stick and find the back of the Thunder net.
This would give the Mariners a 2-0 lead over Adirondack. Less than 10 minutes in, it was looking like Maine would run away with the victory as the Mariners held a 3-0 lead over the Thunder with Adirondack unable to muster up much of anything. Jake Linhart, at the 8:37 mark, would finally get the Thunder on the board, only for a puck 0:20 later to find the skate of Charlie Curti then behind Evan Cormier to give the Mariners their three-goal lead back. Alex Carrier would cut Maine’s lead to two before the end of the second period.
Adirondack would come alive early in the game’s third and final frame as they were all over the Mariners early in the period and it would be Robbie Payne on the power play which would give the Thunder life and cut the deficit to one. Speaking of which, this would be credited to the team’s strong play as Adirondack would continue throughout the period with the Thunder leading the Mariners by a 13-4 shot advantage.
Payne would score once again to tie the game up and send it to OT which would give Adirondack a well-deserved point after trailing the Mariners by two. Jake Elmer would complete his hat-trick three minutes into the overtime period which would give Maine the extra point as well as the win over the hometown Thunder. “It’s huge any time you get points in the standing. We’ve had some changeover in the roster and on the lines.”
Despite this being the first power play goal in a while for Adirondack, head coach Alex Loh isn’t worried. “Nope, that goal just happened to go in. If you look at Linhart’s goal, it was seconds after the power play ended.”
Goals:
First Period: None
Second Period:
MNE: 0:45 Elmer (6) from Kile and Day
MNE: 5:33 Wallin (10) from Racine and Hart
MNE: 6:20 Hart (4) from Tschantz and Racine
ADK: 8:37 Linhart (2) from Pierro-Zabotel and Popaugaev
MNE: 8:57 Elmer (7) from Wallin
ADK: 16:10 Carrier (2) from Nazarian
Third Period:
ADK: 6:06 Payne (5) from Linhart and Popugaev (PP)
ADK: 15:43 Payne (6) from Popugaev and Curti
OT:
MNE: 3:30 Elmer (8) from Crawley and McNicholas
Thunder Blow 3-1 Lead and Suffer Sweep to Mariners
Goals:
First Period:
MNE: 2:15 Elmer (9) from Hart and McNicholas
ADK: 12:14 Sissons (1) from Henry and Pierro-Zabotel
ADK: 12:50 Henry (4) from Verpaeist and Payne
ADK: 15:05 Parran (1) unassisted
MNE: 18:27 Gropp (3) from Ronning and Crawley
Second Period:
MNE: 6:11 Ferill (2) from Kile
ADK: 14:36 Pierro-Zabotel (9) from Henry and Curti (PP)
Third Period:
MNE: 6:04 Elmer (10) from McNicholas and Kile
MNE: 11:40 Ronning (4) from Wallin and LaCouvee (SH)
The Adirondack Thunder had their three-game point streak snapped on Saturday night as they suffered a 5-4 loss to the host Mariners in Maine. Adirondack would fall behind early as Jake Elmer would get Maine on the board just 2:15 into the game’s first period. However, Adirondack would respond 10 minutes later as they would put up three goals in under three minutes.
This would give the Thunder a commanding 3-1 lead. Colby Sissons and Tommy Parran would account for two of Adirondack’s three goals as they would both notch their first of the season to go up ahead on the hosting Maine Mariners. Late period goals can be a momentum changer in hockey and with Maine scoring with less than two minutes left, the tides would turned in favour of the Mariners.
In the second, the two clubs would trade goals as Casey Pierro-Zabotel would notch his team-leading ninth goal of the season, making it two straight games that Adirondack would find a way to score on the man-advantage. Despite outshooting Maine 15-6 in the final frame, the Mariners would find a way to pick up two goals which would give them the victory in Sunday night’s contest. Jake Elmers has been a Thunder killer all season long in the games they’ve played as nine of his 10 goals this season have come when squaring off against Adirondack.
This includes five goals in the past two nights for the 20-year-old right-winger. The Thunder are currently sitting six points ahead of the rivalling Mariners for fourth place in the North Division and are only two points behind the Beasts for third in the division after Sunday night’s game. The Thunder will play in Maine once again on Tuesday at 7:00pm before preparing for a tough weekend series against the league’s leaders in the Allen Americans.