Nov 17, 2014 | dhouse | 827 views
Express Selects Open Season On A Winning Note
Express Selects Open Season On A Winning Note
The Ingersoll Express Butterworth's Service Tyke Select team travelled to Strathroy this past Sunday for the opening of their Tyke Select season. A tightly contested first period between both teams had the teams exchanging scoring opportunities, but it was Express winger Sam House (assisted Westin Matsumoto / Jonah Martire) who took a great feed from his centre man Westin Matsumoto in the slot then slid a rocket into the deep corner of the back of the net. Express starting goalie Christopher Hardeman made some spectacular breakaway saves to keep the Rockets in check, but the Rockets were able to slide one underneath Hardeman's right pad to tie the score.
The second period was a defensive battle as both sides were held off the scoreboard but still maintained a strong scoring threat. The defensive play of Ryan Wolfe and Charlie Ashman were outstanding holding the line, and making great reads and passes to their forwards. The highlight of the second period was rookie goalie Riley Vyse who pushed aside a flurry of shots from the Rockets to keep his ten minutes of work goal free.
In the final frame it was the work of the line of Wyatt Thompson, Tanner Belore and Will Johnson who did an outstanding job cycling the puck low to keep a strong pressure around the net that led to the eventual wrap around goal from Thompson (assisted by Johnson and Belore) to give the Express the 2-1 lead. The Rockets once again answered the bell with a quick goal that slipped by Hardeman to bring the game back to a 2-2 tie. With just over three minutes to go the relentless attack of Dylan Lale managed to push the game winning goal over the line to give the Express the 3-2 lead. One final flurry by the Rockets in the dying seconds was snuffed aside when Brandon Plaquet was able to make a strong sliding dive to block the final Rocket shot to secure the win. Coach Troy Matsumoto was asked after the game on how he felt after the tight win... "Extremely happy the with the team's efforts tonight. We seemed to get better and better each period of play, showing we have that sandpaper in our game when it matters most."
Next up for the Express is the St. Thomas Junior Stars as the puck drops at 7:00pm at the Madhouse on Mutual.