Leigh 10 Franchise Hockey 4
Leigh jumped out to an early lead and controled the game throughout. A second period surge made the score close, but Leigh pulled away in a disastrous third period.
Ray Cleverly scored his first career goal in the first period, taking a breakaway pass from Cam Rowland. In the second, Matt King wristed home a long rebound. Josh Capelle, signed to a one-day contract, added two more.
However, the game came unraveled in the third period. Leigh turned up the pressure offensively, and the play turned chippy. Cleverly was involved in an altercation in front of the Franchise bench and matching minors were called. However, the Franchise took an extra penalty after the Leigh bench began to taunt Franchise players.
After Nick Sako was called for an elbow, a Leigh player ran Rowland into a goal post while the second year player was on a breakaway. King, standing up for his injured teammate, picked up an additional penalty.
The ten goals given up by Mikey Stanzler were another throwback to the 2006 Summer League days. While Stanzler didn't play poorly, a defense in bad need of Ragoobeer's presence combined with Leigh's dominant offensive performance to doom the Franchise.
Capelle is expected to be in the lineup next week, as Ragoobeer will return. And not a moment too soon.
Box Score:
1st Period:
Cleverly 1 (Rowland, Cornelius)
2nd Period:
King 1 (Rowland, Capelle)
Capelle 1 (King, Cornelius)
Capelle 2 (King, Rowland)
Goaltending:
Stanzler 0-1 (10 GA)
Captain's Thoughts:
The officiating was poor, Leigh was chippy, and we were badly outmanned.
But a loss is a loss.
No matter the score, a loss is a loss. Fortunately, we'll be able to put this game behind us and forget about it.
But before we do that, there are certainly some things to dwell on. We played well offensively, but we didn't have enough of the puck to have much of a chance. Our defense was solid at times and horrendous at others (namely when I was involved). As much as I would like to criticize certain things we did, I don't know if I would have wanted us to change them. It's true we took some emotionally charged penalties in the third, but, with the game out of reach and our teammates on our mind, I don't know that they were completely unreasonable. What Myles said about discipline is 100% correct. Yet, I am glad we've come together as a team and stick up for one another.
There are gonna be games where we don't get the breaks; the trick is winning them. It looks like Sheraj will be back for next week, and we might even have Josh in the lineup. Hopefully, it'll be a whole different ballgame.-
Your Captain
#37