The Shooters
Photography Midget LL team travelled to Paris on December 5 to face off against
the Wolfpack. The game was a weird one to say the least, with dozens of
penalties being handed out, many of them for undisciplined infractions on the
part of Paris players who realized as the game wore on that they would not be
able to match the speed and skill of their opponent. On four separate occasions
Ingersoll enjoyed a two-man advantage, but the Express were only able to cash
in once on the powerplay.
Matt Molnar opened the scoring for Ingersoll at the mid-way point of the first period. Molnar had possession of the puck in behind the Paris net. Number 11 was able to bank a shot off the goaltender’s back and into the cage to put the Express up 1-0.
Ingersoll carried the one goal lead into the second period. Brendan Aarts stickhandled the length of the ice and came within inches of putting the visiting team up by two. The talented trio of Alex Schuett . Matt Molnar and Cohen Belore continued to generate quality scoring chances, even while the Express were down a man. Tenacious forward Tanner George was sent sailing through the air as he stormed through the crease area.
As play continued in the final frame, a Ben Scott wrist shot from the point was deflected just wide of the post by Belore. Dawson Sharpe was forced to make a nice pad save when a Paris forward cut in front of the net and attempted to beat the Ingersoll netminder along the ice glove side. Ingersoll was finally able to score an insurance marker when Liam Knox slid a nice pass from the slot area over to Tyler Bergman who was positioned off to the side of the Paris net with plenty to shoot at. The constant parade of players to the penalty box continued in the final minutes. In the end, the Express skated away with a 2-0 victory.
Ingersoll currently shares the lead in the Midget LL standings with the Waterford Wildcats. The two teams are scheduled to do battle on December 15th, but not before the Express tangle with teams from Burford, Delhi and Tillsonburg in the days to come.