By David Dell
DANBURY Connecticut- The Port Huron Prowlers traveled to the East Coast for their first meeting this season with the Danbury Hat Tricks. The ‘Tricks hold first place in the Empire Division of the Federal Prospects Hockey League while the Prowlers are fighting to move from third in the Continental Division. Tonight didn’t help Port Huron.
Skating with two new forwards fresh from Western New England University, Danbury would get the first power play at 3:53 when Jason Diamond picked up his first-ever pro penalty for an Interference minor. The penalty led to Danbury striking first at 5:01 when Lucas DeBenedet beat Danick Rodrique, who got the start tonight. The goal fired up Port Huron who then got 10 of their 12 shots in the frame but Hat Trick Brian Wilson was perfect turning them all away. Daniel Amesbury gave Port Huron their first power play at 18:49 with a Goalie Interference minor but they were unable to capitalize on the opportunity.
With half of the second stanza used up by lots of skating and the Prowlers doubling up the ‘Tricks in shots Austin Fetterly picked up a mishandled puck at center ice and skating in hard, got turned around in the crease as he went to the backhand, and was whistled for Interference at 10:12. The game was delayed for close to 8 minutes while the officials sorted out what was going on and when it was all said and done, Port Huron’s Matt Stoia and Danbury’s Xavier Abdella both picked up Unsportsmanlike Conduct minors, while Danbury’s Assistant Coach was assessed a minor for Abuse of Officials while Head Coach Billy McCreary picked up an Abuse of Officials minor, an Abuse of Officials Game Misconduct and an Ejection. The end result was a power play and goal by Joe Deveny (20th of the season) with assists from Dan Chartrand and Alex Johnson. Johnson passed through traffic from the far right wing where Chartrand shoveled it through to Deveny on the left wing, beating Wilson on the short side to tie the game at one. Hat Trick Zachary Pamaylaon put the Prowlers on another power play with a minor Roughing call but they were unable to get any shots. The Prowlers turned right around giving Danbury another power play opportunity when Bryan Parsons picked up a questionable Interference minor and Chartrand went for Roughing along with Hat Tricks’ Jarod Yau at 14:48. John McDonald put the home team back in front at 16:47 with their second power-play goal. 33 seconds after his goal he presented Port Huron with a power play opportunity with his Tripping minor but that was short-lived with Port Huron’s Deveny’s minor for Slashing at 18:13. Danbury would lead 22-19 in shots on goal and 2-1 in goals after 20 minutes.
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Period three produced very little offense by either team, and Port Huron would be stymied on a Daniel Amesbury minor for Roughing at 10:09 failing to pick up another power-play goal and then paid the price when Michael Falanga picked up a short-handed goal at 12:01. With the Prowlers in the offensive zone, a Hat Trick player just trying to interrupt the power play, knocked the puck out of the zone on a cross-ice pass from Fetterly to Diamond. Flananga in the clear, was able to chase the rolling puck down, gaining control at the red line and skating in all alone, lifted it over Rodrique’s shoulder on the stick side, to go a bit further ahead, 3-1. At 16:59 Jacob Ratcliffe put the game away when a back-checking Matt Stoia lost his edge, falling on his face, giving Ratcliffe a perfect one on one with Rodrigue who couldn’t stop the top-shelf wrister. Â
Port Huron dropped the opener 4-1 but held on to third in the division just one point ahead of Fraser’s Motor City Rockers, who blew out the Elmira Mammoth 8-2 in Fraser. Port Huron concludes this series tomorrow night in Danbury.
