RANGERS TURN FRUSTRATION INTO CELEBRATION

 

GLANBROOK (Feb. 23) — Cooper Hood’s third goal of the game at 0:40 of overtime capped off a raucous rally and propelled the Glanbrook Rangers to a 4-3 overtime triumph over the Niagara Riverhawks.

It was a case of stagnation, then frustration, and finally elation for the hosts, who with the win preserved the slightest glimmer of a chance at capturing top spot in the Bloomfield Division. But more on that later.   The favorable outcome definitely wasn’t easy, but it certainly was thrilling, particularly since the beginning stood in such a stark contrast to the finish.

It was one of those games where nothing seemed to go according to plan, and each team labored through a first period where the number of errors committed was overshadowed only by both sides’ inability to exploit the opportunities.  Of the two, the Riverhawks came closest to breaking the impasse, but Rangers’ goaltender Mitchell Robinson held firm, several times wading into mob scenes in his crease area to smother loose pucks before Niagara could jam them home.

Hood’s first goal, at 1:50 of the second frame, signalled that the Rangers might be ready to shake off their doldrums, but it was a false alarm and it didn’t take the Riverhawks long to gain the upper hand, helped in large measure by a troubling loss of focus on the part of the Rangers.   Second-period goals by Giacomo Cotrufo and Alex Pettipiece gave the Riverhawks what seemed  to be a commanding lead, especially since the Rangers were looking increasingly frustrated.

They were notably upset at the antics of Riverhawks’ goaltender Cameron Johnston, whose net came off its moorings with an uncanny regularity that the Rangers clearly felt was no mere coincidence.  The loss of leading scorer and sparkplug Sean Golebiowski, sent off early in the period with a checking-from-behind game misconduct, also may have sapped some of their intensity.   And when Hunter Willys added a third marker for Niagara at 11:59 of the third stanza, it looked like the Rangers might be done.

But not so.

“We got sucked into playing their game,” said Rangers’ forward Matt Wright.  “Their game was to get us rattled and keep us in the (penalty) box and it worked for a while.  After the second period, the boys were down.  But Hoodie came up big for us.  That whole line (Hood along with Chase Johnson and Harrison Farrugia) was going hard all night and we started to feed off the energy they were bringing.

“We stayed out of the box and started playing our game.”

Nobody was really quite sure precisely when or why that transition occurred, but just a few minutes after Niagara’s goal, it was apparent that the Rangers had taken over.   Hood scored his second goal at 14:25 and that ignited both the crowd and the Rangers.

“We really started to put pressure on them,” said Rangers coach Kevin Miket.  “They were playing on their heels and we were starting to create chances.”

Wright got his chance with a scant 18 seconds left in the period as the puck came to him in the slot and he whirled and rifled the tying goal past Johnston.  Then, in the overtime, defenceman Dallas Nadasdi swept up ice and around the Niagara defenders, then slipped a backhand pass to Hood, driving through the slot, and he made no mistake as he capped off both his hat trick and the Rangers’ comeback.

So,  Glanbrook is still theoretically in the hunt for the Bloomfield crown, and that’s how they intend to approach their final two games against Dundas and Grimsby, who currently stand one and two points respectively ahead of the Rangers in the standings.

“We’re still looking for first place, or second, of course with some help needed,” said Miket, referring to the fact that both of their rivals hold games in hand on the Rangers.   “We’re going out to play to win every shift and every game and roll into the playoffs with home ice advantage.”

NOTES:  Glanbrook finished their home schedule with a 10-3-0-2 record. Against Niagara, they wound  up with a 3-2 mark in five games, although they were outscored 19-11 owing to a couple of lopsided losses earlier in the season.

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