The Solent Devils continued their race for the title this weekend, with a very rare, home double header, which started Saturday evening against Cardiff Fire.
Following on from last week’s shut out victory over Basingstoke Buffalo, Aaron Taylor skated out to guard the net for the Solent Devils, meanwhile James Whiting took up position in the Cardiff goal.
Right from the start, the Devils controlled the game, pressuring the Cardiff unit from the second the puck dropped.Fire managed a few dangerous turnovers and breakaways but couldn’t get through the Devils defence.
Jamie Fitzpatrick – Photo courtesy of Steven Ferguson
On one such foray in to the Devils zone, the puck was sent out in to centre ice, was picked up and taken in to Cardiff goal.Alex Murray, Drew Campbell and Richard Facey peppered the netminder with shots, until, finally, Facey slipped one past Whiting, starting the scoring less than three minutes in to the game.
Jamie Fitzpatrick sat a hooking call, and seconds after he returned to the ice, the puck was sent flying out of the Devils end and was picked up on the Cardiff blue line by Facey.Facey fired a long shot that made it through the small gap between Whiting’s skate and the post.
The puck was dropped back in centre but was taken almost immediately in to the Cardiff end once more, this time Alex Murray putting the puck in to the roof of the net.
Facey then completed his hat trick – his fifth game in a row with three or more goals – taking the puck deep in to the Cardiff end and knocking it under the outstretched leg of Whiting as he stretched to stop the shot he thought was coming.
The Devils, now 4-0 up with less than ten minutes of the game played continued their attack but didn’t manage to break through before the end of the first period.
The second period started, and it took slightly longer to get a goal than in the first period – a whole minute more.Dan Shier taking the puck to the goal, his shot rebounding from the leg pad of Whiting and the loose puck being picked up by Sam Boothroyd.Boothroyd was under pressure from Ross Wilkinson, but a quick trip around the back of the goal and when Wilkinson dived to block any shot, it gave Boothroyd the space to skate round him and put the puck through the gap under Whiting’s arm.
Cardiff never gave up, kept attacking when they could and defended well, but with Wilkinson in the penalty box with two minutes for tripping and an additional two minutes for roughing, the Devils were well in the Cardiff zone.Jamie Fitzpatrick rang the post with his shot, the rebound coming out and the onslaught continuing.Finally, Alex Trendall scored for the Devils, Sam Rudkin and Mark Pitts with the assists.
Wilkinson still in the box got to watch his team mates suffer another blow just thirty seconds later.Chris Hocquigny sending the puck in to the Fire end, Trendall with a quick pass and Pitts finishing the job.
Coming in to the third 7-0 up, the Devils clearly weren’t done, and while Rhys Harding was sitting a cross checking penalty, Facey picked up another goal, Murray with another assist, Kieran Annis picking up the secondary assist on this one.
Shier finally got the goal he had been looking for all night a few minutes later after Shire, Rudkin and Rhys McCormick were attacking the Cardiff goal with pure determination, making it 9-0 to the Devils with just over ten minutes still to play.
Cardiff never gave up, and eventually Harding broke through and despite Taylor getting his glove to the puck, the speed and the momentum saw the puck bounce out of the keeper’s glove and flip over in to the mouth of the goal.
The look of devastation on Taylor’s face was evident for all to see, and with his concentration broken Cardiff managed to break through again a minute later, Andre Norris adding a second to the visitors side of the score board.
Morgan Evans missed the last few minutes of the game and Facey sat in the penalty box.Facey with a two minute minor for roughing, Evans getting a matching minor but also a ten minute penalty for incitement.
This ended the game 9-2 to the Devils, but with another game against Bristol Pitbulls the following day.
Sunday saw Christian Cole take over from Taylor in goal, letting Taylor have a well deserved rest after the previous evening.
It was obvious from the off that it was going to be a different game from the night before for the Devils, small mistakes in their game being compounded by the fast and physical play from the Pitbulls.
The puck went back and forth on the ice, but the Devils eventually managed to break the deadlock following a turnover in the Devils zone.The puck was taken down the wing by Pitts at real speed, supported by Trendall coming up the middle of the ice.As Ross Miller in the Bristol goal committed to stopping Pitts scoring, Pitts sent the puck across the ice where Trendall knocked it home.
As the period was entering the dying minutes, Murray crossed the Pitbull’s blue line and crossed to Facey in support.Facey held the puck long enough for Murray to slip behind the Bristol defence, and sent the puck back.Murray had plenty of space, and put the Devils 2-0 up in time for the break.
The second period, the Pitbulls continued their attack, and with them sending the puck round the Devils zone, Olly Shone beat Cole to bring the score back to 2-1.
This was the only goal of the second period, despite the fast and physical play that was a true delight to watch, and the teams retreated to the locker rooms for a well deserved break with the score remaining 2-1.
Not long after the third started, Bristol managed to equalise, Shone once more being the man to beat the Devils netminder, after Jordan Jefferies fed him the puck in the Pitbulls zone, Shone made a huge run managing to beat the entire Devils squad and flicking the puck over Cole’s shoulder.
Drew Campbell had the home fans on their feet minutes later, when his goal put the Devils in the lead once more.
Ben Lock recieving his Man of the Match award from Managing Director of Fallen Acorn brewery and Devils Sponsor, Matt Curd – Photo courtesy of Steven Ferguson
Bristol, however, weren’t done and there was plenty of game left.They only needed fifty seconds, Shone with his hat trick levelling the score once more.
Now with both sets of fans screaming their support and the game heading in to the final ten minutes, Joshua Dolphin sat a high sticking penalty.This gave the Devils a chance, and stay at home D-man, Alex Cole picked himself up a rare goal putting the Devils in to the lead once more.
The Devils continued pushing, and in less than two minutes from Cole’s goal, Campbell picked up two more to go with his earlier one, earning himself a hat trick and lifting the Devils to victory 6-3.
The Devils will be taking on Guildford this coming Saturday, 5pm at the Gosport arena.
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