HOUSTON, Texas – Game one of the Western Conference finals was a Jekyll and Hyde affair, with the Houston Aeros dominating the first half, and then handing the controls over to Hamilton for the final 30 minutes. But after racking up an early two-goal lead, which was supported by stellar goaltending from netminder Matt Hackett, the Aeros were able to walk away with a 2-1 win and a 1-0 series lead. The Aeros overwhelmed the Bulldogs’ defense early in the game, peppering Drew MacIntyre with 13 shots in the opening frame and narrowly missing several more solid chances that hit posts or missed sticks. They converted on a power play with 5 minutes left in the first period when Casey Wellman passed the puck from the corner out to Chad Rau at the hash marks. He fired it along the ice through traffic to beat MacIntyre. Then Jed Ortmeyer bought the Aeros some insurance at 2:59 in the second period. Jared Spurgeon fed the veteran the puck at the blue line, where he split the Hamilton defense, streaked in on MacIntyre, and ripped a shot past the goalie for his second marker of the playoffs. But after two back-to-back penalties on the Aeros midway through the second, the momentum shift was palpable as the shots for Hamilton started ticking upward. The Bulldogs ultimately racked up 39 shots, 21 in the third period alone. “Certainly we gave them momentum in this game. We gave them confidence going into the next game. But at the same time, I don’t believe in the whole ‘we’ve got momentum-they’ve got momentum.’ I believe the next game is a completely different animal,” said Aeros coach Mike Yeo. “I think we needed this. We don’t have a rivalry or hatred with this team, or even necessarily the respect factor that we need to, and the quicker you can get those things into your game the more urgency you’re going to play with shift in and shift out.” Still, Hackett managed to hold his shutout until he lost the puck in his pads during a save with less than a minute left in the game, and Mathieu Carle put it home at 19:09 for his second goal of the playoffs. Yeo was quick to praise Hackett for his composure in the eye of the storm. “This is a team that shoots the puck from everywhere, and they’re looking to create chances off their shots. They’re not picky. They’re going to take them every chance they get,” said Yeo. “If you shoot enough pucks there’s going to be some scrambles around the net, and I thought he did a nice job making himself big during those scrambles.” Hackett, who saw relatively few shots compared to the Milwaukee series, enjoyed getting into the game more. “That was a lot of fun. It kept me in the game,” Hackett said. “That’s why I picked to be a goalie, all the pressure at the end there, it’s what makes this position fun. I was glad to make a couple of big saves there for the boys.” In spite of recognizing the failures that nearly gave away the game at the end, the team felt starting the series with a home win was particularly important. “It’s huge. That first win secures us the home ice. Their goal is to come in here and split, to get that first one,” said Ortmeyer. “It’s a win for them to get a split here, so game 2 is going to be even more important now.” The teams meet again Sunday afternoon in Houston before the series moves to Hamilton on Tuesday. Contact Heather.Galindo@prohockeynews.com
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