Fife Flyers: ‘team win’ secures Challenge Cup elimination place
It has been a season topped with statement wins, and few will come any sweeter, or bigger, than a 3-2 penalty shoot out over Belfast Giants.
They needed just one point to secure second spot in their Challenge Cup qualifying table and claim a slot on the elimination game. They did that, and more, nailing a second successive home win over the Northern Irish side, and sealing a glorious four-point weekend.
There were just under 2400 fans at Fife Ice Arena to witness another great night of hockey which saw Flyers deliver a hard-working, committed performance, and manage this game to a hugely satisfactory conclusion.
They will now go head to head with Guildford Flames for the right to join Giants, Sheffield Steelers, and Cardiff Devils in the final four of the competition.
Tim Wallace, head coach, paid tribute to his side.
“The guys laid it on the line,” he said. “This was a team win - lot of battling, blocking shots. If you stick to it, work hard, you get the rewards.”
Cameron Hough netted both of their goals in regulation time, and could have sealed a hat-trick, and the win, in the penalty shoot out. He took the MoM award on a night when there were more than a few strong contenders.
Fife had to weather some pressure from Giants. They had started to find some momentum when Giants opened the scoring after 13 minutes when Patrick Guay threw a puck to the net, and the rebound opened up for Jordan Kawaguchi to convert.
Flyers’ response could not have been better timed. With just four seconds on the clock, Xander Lamppa pursued a puck on the left, won his battle with a Giants player, and sent a great pass across to Hough who nailed it with a superb shot.
That deadlock remained until the 36th minute when Joey Pierce was penalised for firing the puck out the rink, and Jake Gaudet tipped a shot past netminder Blair Pietila.
The turning point came just 18 seconds into the third as Michael Drabek was penalised for boarding, and Flyers delivered the sweetest short handed strike - a Giants skater lost an edge come out of his zone, and Hough scuttled away before converting with style at 41:44.
At 2-2, the momentum started to shift. A Fife side that had, at times, been at sixes and sevens, found its stride and started to push.
They killed off a 51st minute penalty, and then stood their ground after Morten Jensen’s bad check put Hough head first into the boards at 56:49. Defenceman Isack Bandu came from nowhere, and simply ragdolled the Giants player.
Jensen left the game on boarding minor and five minute fighting penalty - not that he did any fighting such was the rapid fire of Bandu’s punches - while the Fife player was ejected on a 2+10 for instigating and five for fighting.
Giants had a powerplay in overtime which they couldn’t convert, and neither could they match Fife’s finishing in the shoot out. Fife scored in each of the opening two rounds to take control.
As the players made their lap of honour, Bandu was on the other side of the plexi to celebrate with them. A team win indeed.
This cup journey could be about to become something special.