Dundee Stars twice came from behind before eventually beating a short-benched Guildford Flames side 5-2 on Tayside.
Guildford arrived in Dundee with just three lines, and handed a debut to 19-year-old Elliot Lewis on a two-way deal who scored in his first professional game. “It was fantastic, everyone has been really welcoming,” said Lewis post-game. “It was a shame we couldn’t get the job done as I think we deserved more. I’m so grateful for the opportunity and I want to thank the organisation for it.”
Despite the limited numbers, the Flames struck first. Cole Ully put the visitors ahead with 7:18 played, and the visitors grew into the game as the period wore on. Emil Kruse was forced into a big save to deny Josh Waller on a breakaway, keeping the Stars within one.
Guildford’s resistance was finally broken midway through period two when Morten Jürgens fired past Taz Burman to level the game. But less than three minutes later, the Flames were back in front – Marcus Tesink’s shot was stopped by Kruse, and the rebound fell perfectly to Lewis, who calmly pulled the netminder across and finished into the top corner for his first professional goal.
“The coaches didn’t put any pressure on me,” Lewis added. “They told me to just go out there and enjoy the game, but to play smart at the same time. It was great on a personal note to score but disappointing that we couldn’t get something out of the game.”
The third period belonged to the Stars. Otto Nieminen tied things up 2:24 in with a close-range wrist shot, before Keanu Yamamoto tipped a Matt Boudens shot past Burman at 48:02 to put the home side ahead. “Honestly, I thought we were playing well all game, we never really felt out of it,” said Yamamoto. “The message was to keep it going. It was really good for the group to get the win in the way we did, and hopefully we can build on it.”
Boudens added a goal of his own with just over six minutes remaining, before Matt Berry sealed the result with an empty-net finish at 57:18.
“I was just happy to score – it was my first of the season and it felt good to see one go in the back of the net,” Yamamoto concluded.
Photo: Derek Black
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