By David Dell
PORT HURON- Game two of the home series against the Binghamton Black Bears, Blake Anderson (1st of the season) who came up from Monroe, Louisiana and the Moccasins, started November off with a bang. Just 1:14 into the game, he threaded a needle in the upper corner of the net to get his first Prowlers goal.
Lukas Lacney fed Anderson on a break into the offensive zone, to the right-wing point and he wasted no time in letting the arrow fly. Reggie Millette and the Black Bears Emerson Emery both picked up Unsportmanlike Conduct minors after words following the goal. Kim Joowoon gave the Bears a tying goal at 8:58, that would end the scoring for the period, but the fireworks were still to come. Joowoon and Bryan Parsons would fight at 12:02, Emerson Emery and Luke James would fight at 13:05 with James also drawing a Cross-Checking minor, Mac Jensen and Connor Bizal both picked up Unsportsmanlike Conducts at 13:05. A half minute later CJ Stubbs was called for Cross Checking and Roughing with Austin Fetterly getting a Roughing call as well. At the end of 20 minutes shots were even at 10 and the score at 1.
Nine infractions in the first half of the middle frame, before Port Huron took the lead again at 12:48. Arrtu Heikkila (5th of the season) on a delayed penalty coming to Binghamton, was fed from the far wall by Reggie Millette, and Heikkila went in, left of Connor McAnanama to find the back of the net. Dan Wieber was assessed a Misconduct along with the initial Hooking call that gave Port Huron the powerplay. The Prowlers dropped one shot on goal 10-9 but picked up the important score 2-1.
The final had Port Huron pad their lead with a pair of empty net goals at 18:20 by Reggie Millette (2nd of the season) and at 18:35 but Captain Austin Fetterly (2nd of the season) to shut down the Black Bears 4-1. The Prowlers had their most potent offensive effort with 17 shots and most efficient defence allowing only 7 for the visitors.
As the Guenther Graphics player of the game, Reggie Millette had this to say in his post-game interview, “We played a full 60 minutes of Prowlers hockey.”
Associate Head Coach in his presser stated “We don’t have the biggest team, but everyone plays for each other and stands up for each other. They’re gritty, they play hard and, as you saw tonight, [Binghamton] can’t play that style of hockey.”
The Prowlers dealt Binghampton their first loss of the season while earning the split. They go on the road next weekend to face off against the Blue Ridge Bobcats in Wytheville, Virginia before coming home to host the Indiana Sentinels on the 14th and 15th of November.
Port Huron holds second place in the Empire Division with a 6-2-0 record.
The Port Huron Prowlers, now in their 11th consecutive season, are the longest tenured team in the FPHL.
