The Brooklyn Aces may have a point when they say referee Mike Geoffrion made several crucial mistakes in his officiating of the game last night, but let’s face it: referees do not play goaltender and defense.
After the game got sorted out last night, the Aces were a different club and weren’t forechecking the way they were earlier in the game. Jersey’s fourth goal, scored by Matt Tyree, was a weak wrister that seemed to have changed direction, but compared to the other goals Jersey has scored in the series, it was by far the weakest one. The Brooklyn defense also allowed Tyree to get a decent enough shot on Eddie Neville and possibly even got in his line of sight, something that wasn’t happening through the game’s first 40 minutes.
If the Aces are to come out today and forget about what happened last night, they’ll have to get on the board early and establish their game. They have to get the “Red Line” of B.J. Kuper, Jesse Felten and Andrew Scampoli involved in the offensive end, so they can pester the Jersey defense and get them off their game. As far as the way the team’s two top lines compare, they pretty much cancel each other out and are both extremely talented. The Aces last line of Kuper, Felten and Scampoli however have been an X-factor of sorts for Brooklyn and will play a huge role in tonight’s game.
In addition, the team will have to find a way to keep their three snipers, C.J. Tozzo, Kyle McCullough and Mike Christensen involved. If they can get these guys to take shots, the offense will come. Tozzo has 15 shots in the series thus far and has been the best player for the Aces aside from Felten. After both Christensen and McCullough were silent in game one, they played much better last night, a huge reason why the team got the game to overtime. If the Aces can find a way to get all three lines going, they’ll be able to tire out a Jersey team that doesn’t have the speed or depth they do.
However, the biggest factor in the game is the powerplay. Last night, the Aces powerplay was void of the cycling, smart shot selection and poise it had in game one and over the last week of the season. Forwards were taking shots from weird angles, forcing the puck hard around the boards to the point where it left the zone. It’s simply a case of some players trying to do too much, rather than depend on each other and play smart, like they were earlier in the season. If that doesn’t stop, things will be that much harder for the Aces tonight.
The trophy is there and waiting for both teams and in the end, it’ll come down to who wants it more.
After last night’s win the Rockhoppers have the momentum in their favor and will be the team to beat early on.
Expect the first period to be an extremely exciting one as both team’s will try to establish their dominance early on.
That is unless the Aces decide to pull a Twisted Sister and decide that they aren’t going to take it anymore.
Photos by Patrick Hickey Jr.
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