League play swung back into action this past weekend in dramatic fashion. Elmira continued its domination of Utica with a 5-1 victory. The Soaring Eagles jumped out to a four-goal lead in the first 31:18 of the game, including a pair of goals by Darcy Vaillancourt.
Utica coach Gary Heenan called his timeout at that point and switched goaltenders, substituting Evan Smith for Nick Therrien. It was Therrien who spelled Smith in a similar situation back in November when Elmira drubbed the Pioneers 6-0.
The ploy worked slightly better this time around, as Mike Slowikowski scored for Utica less than two minutes later to make the score 4-1. However, Elmira’s Dylan Herold reestablished the Soaring Eagles’ lead before the end of the second stanza to seal the victory.
Neumann also continued to frustrate Manhattanville with a 5-2 win. The Valiants held a 2-1 lead at the end of the first period thanks to late-period goals by Brian Elser and Adam Young. , but Neumann chipped in three unanswered goals in the second period and rolled to the victory. Five different players scored for the Knights.
Playing with a sense of desperation, Manhattanville turned the tables on Neumann Saturday. The Valiants again built a 2-1 lead, this time midway through the second period, and were able to hang on for a 3-1 win with a third period goal by Brett Skalksi.
Also on Saturday, Hobart clawed its way to a 3-2 win over Morrisville, despite being outshot 45-28. Nick Broadwater made 43 saves in the victory. Tommy Capalbo scored just 59 seconds into the game from in-close to stake Hobart to a 1-0 lead. Tom Rush added his first goal of the season midway through the period, tipping in a shot from Brad Richard.
Morrisville chipped away at Hobart’s two-goal lead early in the second period, but Frank Salituro answered back for Hobart to make the score 3-1. Morrisville scored a five-on-three power-play goal with 49 seconds remaining in the game, but it was too late and the Statesmen held on to win 3-2.
With this weekend’s action, Elmira and Hobart have created a bit of distance between themselves and the rest of the league. Both teams have eight points, but Elmira has a game in hand on the Knights. Hobart, Utica, and Manhattanville are all tied for third place with four points and between one and three games in hand on the leaders.
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