Slow start hurts Outlaws

WAYNE, NJ – Hockey is a 60-minute game. In order to be successful, a team has to be playing well every second otherwise it can spell disaster.
Saturday night at the Ice Vault in Wayne, the New Jersey Outlaws had a poor first period and it cost them as the visiting Brooklyn Aviators used a strong opening stanza and a late goal to beat the Outlaws 3-2. It was just the second time that New Jersey had lost at home all season and Brooklyn’s second straight victory over the league-leading team.
Given the fact that the Outlaws and Aviators could see each other in the playoffs a month from now, the contest was important to both sides. It didn’t take long for the visitors to jump in front as Andrew Owsiak and Michael Thompson combined to set up Lucas Schott who beat New Jersey goalie Adam Dekker 33 seconds into the game. A little over six minutes later, Owsiak scored his own goal with the assists going to Casey Mignone and Henry Coxe. By the end of the period, Brooklyn had out shot New Jersey 13-10 and led 2-0 on the scoreboard.
The Outlaws played a much better second period, pouring 20 shots on Aviators goalie Josselin St. Pierre and putting two past him. The first New Jersey goal came at the 4:50 mark when Jason Reese and Matthew Puntureri helped Kevin Cooper light the red light. Midway through the period, the Outlaws pressured the Aviators with the power play and it worked as Cooper and Battaglia combined to set up Gentry Zollars for the tying goal just four seconds after the man advantage ended. Neither team found the back of the net after that, sending the game to the final stanza tied.
The final period had a playoff feel to it as both teams and the 892 fans in attendance knew the next goal would be big. Eight minutes into the stanza, Andrew Scampoli and Steve Koich were able to work the puck to Nick Petriello who beat Dekker for what would be the go-ahead score. The Aviators made the goal stand up as St. Pierre turned away all ten shots he faced in the period. A late penalty didn’t help the Outlaws as they had to kill off the Brooklyn power play, leaving them with less than a minute to try to pull Dekker for an extra skater. The Aviators never allowed Dekker to get off the ice as they kept New Jersey at bay.
Brooklyn out shot New Jersey 42-40 in the game that took just two hours and 27 minutes to play. The Outlaws went 0-for-1 on the power play while the Aviators were 0-for-5. Brooklyn’s Petriello was awarded the first star of the game with New Jersey’s Cooper being named the second star and Brooklyn’s St. Pierre getting the third star.
The Outlaws are off until Thursday when they meet the 1000 Island Privateers in a game scheduled for Lewiston, Maine. Brooklyn’s next game is Friday at home against Danbury.
Contact the author at gary.marchese@prohockeynews.com