Writeup of California Cougars 3-2 win over SLT Grizzlies on 12/18/11

The Cougars took to the ice Sunday morning once again without two of their defensemen, Tommy Beebe and Elliot Salazar.  It appeared Tahoe had revenge on their mind, as they tried to pressure the Cougars from the drop of the first puck.  The Cougars would find themselves down a man, a recurring theme throughout the game, early on when Matthew Lydon got his number on the score sheet first (and eventually last, but more on that later) by drawing a tripping call not even 3 minutes into the game.

With the Cougars fighting to get the puck out of their zone, leading assist man John Bohac found the puck on his stick, chipped it off the boards to himself and promptly slid it between a Tahoe players legs to Center Nash Berkowitz who cashed in with his 4th short-handed goal of the year, and a 1-0 Cougar lead.

After the Cougars failed to clear the puck and Tahoe tied the score near the end of the first period, the game seemed to pick up in its physical intensity.  Both teams exchanged some big hits and bigger scoring opportunities for the better part of the second period.  Defenseman Max Frenkel's bid to put the Cougars back on top was denied by the Tahoe goalie.  Forward Eric West just missed a one-timer set up beautifully by Center Adam Rosenduft.  Then when Daniel Schmidt laid out a Tahoe winger and found himself in the sin bin, the Cougars found themselves short-handed, as they would be for most of the remainder of the game.  Head coach Rob Tenore commented that he was happy to see the "penalty kill system he has been teaching the kids was working."

With Schmidt leaving the box, forward Shura Boz stepped onto the ice, immediately taking away the passing zone, causing the Tahoe player to change directions with his pass.  Unfortunately for Tahoe, the pass was deflected by the shin pads of Berkowitz, who corralled the puck and streaked down the side of the ice promptly ripping a wrister into the back of the Tahoe net for his 2nd of the day, and a 2-1 Cougar lead.

The whistle continued to be unkind to the Cougars, adding extra pressure on defensemen Chase Bolling and Ryan Bockholt.  It was the active stick of both Bockholt and Bolling, as well as some nifty goaltending by Nick Gary, that kept the Cougars holding their slim 1 goal lead.  Tahoe was having a tough time matching up to the physical play of the line of Lydon, Schmidt and bruising forward Pace Farbstein.  Tahoe also had a tough time matching the speed and deft stick-handling of winger Tal Horovitz.  While the fleet-footed Horovitz did register 6 shots on net, Tahoe did a god job of keeping him in check.  When a non-call against Tahoe left Horovitz frustrated, he retaliated and found himself in the box for roughing.  The 4th straight short-handed situation proved to be a bit too much for the Cougars and Tahoe ended up tying the score with just under 8 minutes left.  The very next shift, Farbstein planted a Tahoe forward into the boards, and was escorted from the ice for the rest of the game.

After successfully killing off the 2 minute penalty, it was time for Schmidt and Lydon to pick up their line mate.  Schmidt weaved through a couple of Tahoe defensemen, but his bid to put the Cougars on top was denied.  With Horovitz filling in for Farbstein, the Cougars kept the pressure on.  Kyle Tanaka, playing his second straight game at defense was active along the boards, twice thwarting Tahoe clearing attempts, sending the puck back in deep into the corners.  With Horovitz and Schmidt fighting for the puck in the corners, Tahoe got a hold of the puck and sent it hard up the boards.  Tanaka slid over and barely kept it in, quickly controlling it and finding Lydon all alone in the high slot.  When Lydon ripped a shot into the top corner of the net with 2:37 left in the game, the Cougar fans and players erupted.  Coaches Devin Ernst and Christian DeJesus exchanged high-fives and celebrated with back-up goalie Carson Murison.  Tahoe was relentless in the last 2:37, pulling their goalie and putting relentless pressure on Cougar goalie Gary.  The defense of Bolling, Tanaka, Frenkel and Bockholt did their best to help out their goaltender, and it was Gary's save on a point blank shot from the slot with .2 seconds left that sealed the deal for the Cougars.

Game notes:

The Cougars outshot Tahoe 36-24, their third straight league game over 30 shots.  Cougar centers were a bit more mortal in the circle winning 25 of 41 draws, led by Berkowitz winning 14 of 16 draws.  The Cougars killed off 6 of 7 short-handed situations, recording a short-handed goal and killed off 8 of 9 short-handed situations for the weekend.  While the Cougars went 0-3 on the power play, including a full 2 minute 5-3, it wasn't for a lack of effort, as they did tally 11 shots on the 3 power plays.  Nick Gary stopped 22 of 24 shots to record the victory.

The team moved to 5-2-2 on the year, with 12 points.  The Cougars also evened their season mark at 8-8-3.

Goals

2: Berkowitz (17, 18)

1: Lydon (2)

Assists

1: Tanaka (6), Bohac (14)

Plus / Minus

+2: Tanaka

+1: Frenkel, Schmidt, Bohac, Bolling, Berkowitz, Horovitz, Lydon

0: Boz, Bockholt, Rosenduft, Farbstein, West