Stealth stay undefeated in hard-fought 12-11 win over Colorado Mammoth
Although the Mammoth dropped to 2-3 on the season over the weekend, they didn’t give the Washington Stealth another easy win.
In the season opener the Stealth handed the Mammoth a 17-8 loss. Washington also steamrolled the Edmonton Rush in week 2, following that with close games over the Buffalo Bandits and the Calgary Roughnecks last week.
Many thought the Stealth would decimate the Mammoth again. However, Colorado put in a strong showing against a strong team. Some kinks still need to be worked out, but Saturday’s Mammoth team was a completely different team than the one the Stealth faced earlier in the year.
Jed Prossner scored the first goal of the game a minute in, putting the Mammoth up 1-0. But after a very defensive back and forth, the Stealth were able to tie it up half way through the 1st quarter. With about three minutes left in the quarter, Cory Conway scored his first goal of the evening, giving the Mammoth the lead 2-1. Although Stealth Goalie Tyler Richards’ Goals Against Average of 10.11 compared favorably to Andrew Leyshon’s 13.32, it was Leyshon that had the stronger quarter. The Mammoth goaltender only let in 1 goal on 12 shots while Colorado went 2 for 9 against Richards.
The 2nd quarter started off with a controversial goal by Jamie Shewchuck.
Initially it was ruled a crease violation negating the goal. New Mammoth head coach Steve Govett threw the challenge flag and upon review the goal was ruled good. Compared to the 1st quarter, the 2nd quarter was very high scoring with Tom Ethington, Prossner & Nick Carlson adding goals for the Mammoth. Meanwhile, Rhys Duch, Jeff Zywicki x 2, Tom Johnson & Luke Wiles notched scores for the Stealth, ending the half tied at 7.
The 2nd half remained very defensive, but many of the Mammoth’s weaknesses became more evident as the game progressed. A lot of the Mammoth passes went wide, and so did a number of their shots. Ilija Gajic, who has been very strong on offense the past few games, went 0 for 12 with only 1 assist.
In the 4th quarter, the Mammoth had 18 shots on goal compared to the Stealth’s 8, but both teams scored 3 each. The first couple of games, a lack of hustle and transition game seemed to be problematic for Colorado. That didn’t seem to be the case as the Mammoth played a very aggressive game, especially in the 4th quarter. Some might say the Mammoth played too aggressively in the 4th, failing to set up plays and forcing shots. Some might also try to pin the game on the inconsistent reffing. (While there were some questionable calls and inconsistencies, both teams were on the receiving end.)
In the end, the Power Play was the Mammoth’s killer.
Although they had five opportunities, the Mammoth’s Power Play definitely struggled against the Stealth, who are ranked number 1 in the league on the PK at 84%. The Mammoth’s Penalty Kill, ranked 9th in the league, was able to kill 4 of the Stealth’s 6 power plays. Penalties really hurt the Mammoth in their first matchup against the Stealth, with four players being ejected for fighting. The Mammoth played a much cleaner game without their tempers besting them, keeping the game within reach to the end.
Friday, the 3-2 Orlando Titans come to Denver to face a Mammoth team that, despite their third loss, is starting to find their groove.
Attendance – 15,242
Around the League:
Rochester Knighthawks 8, Orlando Titans 13
Calgary Roughnecks 11, Edmonton Rush 14
Minnesota Swarm 7, Buffalo Bandits 11
Philadelphia Wings 9, Boston Blazers 11
Toronto Rock 8, Rochester Knighthawks 16
