The last time the Brooklyn Aces faced off with the Danbury Mad Hatters, the Aces skated away with a 1-0 win on the back of a 41-save effort of their goaltender, Eddie Neville. It was a game where Aces head coach Chris Firriolo was happy with the fact that his team come out with a victory, but upset that his team couldn’t come up with more offense.
This time around however, Firriolo shouldn’t have that problem.
Having Tony Resendes back in the lineup for the first time since Dec. 18 was a huge shot in the arm and it paid quick dividends, as the feisty forward scored the game-winning goal in overtime last night.
Offensive defenseman Andrew Scampoli, who arrived from Holland last night too late to play, will also be in the lineup tonight and will give the Aces’ defense a totally different look. When he originally left the team in November, Scampoli was tied for the league lead in points by a defenseman with eight and considering that alone, he should also provide the Aces offense and powerplay with a huge spark.
If that wasn’t enough, it seems like the Aces have struck gold with new addition Brent Ozarowski, who had three points last night on a line with the team’s top scoring duo of C.J. Tozzo and Kyle McCullough. Looking for chemistry with another player since James Brannigan left for Utah at the end of December, Ozarowski, a guy with over 200 ECHL games and time in Europe under his belt, may be just what the team is looking for.
However, with center Mike Christensen due back anytime, someone will have to go.
The Aces aren’t ready to make a decision on anyone’s status though and instead want to ride the effort the team is putting out and prefer to think about personnel changes later.
“We don’t know how long we’re going to have him, but it was great to see that Tozzo and McCullough were able to play with a guy like that,” said Firriolo. “He’s got a great shot and great vision out there and he definitely helped our boys out there. It was fun to watch.”
Also noticeable last night was the Aces team-wide grit. Mike Thomson and Chris Holmes especially played with a chip on their shoulders, something that has been relatively absent since the loss of enforcer Chad Wilcox.
If the Aces offense can continue to build off of last night’s effort and get the toughness and goaltending they need, Danbury is going to have their hands full.
Photos by Patrick Hickey Jr.
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