The Original Six conspiracy against the Johnny’s Red Liners was in full force today. The early game at 5:20pm increased chances of players not showing up from oversleeping. There was also a game at Johnny’s Central (United Center) which overwhelmed the parking through the neighborhood. This further delayed Liners’ team members from getting into the rink. Finally, outside temperatures reached 5-7 deg F which the players were forced to walk through from their distant parked cars. So the Liners displayed a team of cold, tired, and frustrated players when the puck was dropped against the Rusty Blades who were sporting new jerseys, a solid black item with outlined rotated Whalers logo and numbers. It was definitely not a memorable design. But the shoving on the ice was. And in the end, both teams would play to a draw.
Captain Toe scrambled his lines for the start of the game at Felicy was still dressing in the locker room. The two teams were feeling each other out from the start. Both had good scoring chances as well as great goalie saves and defensive plays. Toe picked up Fifty Spence’s floating clearing pass and beat the Blade’s netminder upstairs in a pile of snow. But seconds later, the Blades would tie it up after finding the backdoor on Bigfield. The second period had no scoring but tempers started to flare. Both teams were on powerplays but neither could take advantage of the extra man. This carried into the third period. It seemed like the Red Liners were on the PK for 1/2 the time in the third period. The Blades would take the lead about 1/2 way through the third period after crashing the Liners’ net. But Toe would get the tying goal a minutes later using B-hole and Double D attacking the net. The buzzer sounded with the teams tied 2-2. In OT for the Liners’ second attempt. Seefy rocketed a wrister past the stunned Blades’s goalie. The opponents answered in their third and final attempt with a similar inside post snap shot.
With the tie, the Liners remain tied for second in C2 North with JD Whale (14 GPs) and Hyannisport Presidents (16 GPs). The first place Preston Kendalls are 4 points ahead but have also played 2 more games than the Liners. They will now be making their way through the bottom half of the C2 South Division over the next four games and try to catch up to the Kendalls.