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Habs Stumble to Islanders and Mariners, Stars Earn Huge Win
in "Paint the Rink Pink" Game
By NSHL Media
With six games slated for this past weekend's action, two of
the NSHL's top teams faced setbacks while taking their impressive records on
three-game road trips.
With a two-game series at the surging Islanders and a Sunday
matchup at the Mass Mariners, the first place Habs squandered four points, as
they lost two out of three on the weekend in a split with the Islanders and a
loss to the Junior Mariners.
On Friday night, the Habs set out on what was sure to be a
dominant road weekend, shutting-out the hometown Islanders, 3-0. A consistent
offensive threat this season, Tommy LaBrecque provided a huge spark by
participating in all three of Trenton's scoring efforts, netting two himself
and assisting on a goal from Austin Crane.
Brody Wagner had a magnificent night in goal, stopping all 46 Islander
efforts.
On Saturday, Cape Cod looked to build on the offensive
effort they put forth on Friday night, as they converted shots and possession
into goals. After falling to a 1-0 deficit in the first period, the Islanders
finally found their offensive stride in the second through a magnificent
hat-trick from forward Colton Hart. The two teams exchanged third period goals
but the hometown Islanders were able to hold on for their third win in fourteen
played this season.
After kicking off their weekend with an emphatic 4-1 win on
the shoulders of defenseman Matt Rasimowicz and his brilliant hat-trick at the
Kodiaks on Friday night, the Lake George Fighting Spirit rolled into Skate 3
Pavillion for a two-game showdown with the New England Stars.
Saturday's game was special for New England, as the Stars
hosted the Fighting Spirit in a "Paint the Rink Pink" contest from which all
the proceeds went to the Dana-Farber
Cancer Institute for breast cancer research. The Stars took the ice in black
uniforms with pink trim, and sported pink laces and stick tape. The hosts clearly displayed a boost in
confidence on Saturday and looked poised for an upset against the Fighting
Spirit (9-1).
After keeping the
Fighting Spirit at bay through the first two periods and only facing a 2-1
deficit, the Stars capitalized on two power-play efforts from Lespasio and
Marden, both coming off beautiful assists from Maxime Pitre. With Cameron
Webster being the backbone of the Stars defense, goaltender Joe Walter had a
spectacular night in net, saving 29 of the 31 shots he faced, giving his team
the 3-2 victory.
Sunday's contest
between the two teams was equally as tightly played as Saturday's, and this
time required overtime and a penalty shoot-out to separate the two sides. After
falling behind to an early first period onslaught from the Stars, the Fighting
Spirit rallied to tie the game at two in the second. Cameron Webster put the
home team in front on a power-play goal early in the third, but the Fighting
Spirit fought back to tie the game quickly on a goal from Brandon Patraw.
After a scoreless
overtime, the Fighting Spirit pulled away with two points as they won in a
shoot-out. Given the gap between the two sides in the standings, the New
England Stars will be able to hold their heads up by taking three points in a
two game series against one of the NSHL's most powerful teams.
The Trenton Habs
journeyed on Sunday to Allied Arena to wrap-up their three-game road trip after
splitting their series with the Cape Cod Islanders. The suddenly surging
Mariners stormed the visiting Habs with great play from their offensive
leaders, Tyler Boudrow (2G) and Andrew Mathieu (1G,2A), and pulled away with
the 4-2 victoy. The first place Habs dropped two of their three games but
remain at the top of the standings having played twice as many games as
Syracuse and six more than the Fighting Spirit.
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