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 Huntsville Havoc

Havoc Topple Ice Bears 3-2 in OT, Take Game One of SPHL Semifinal

April 19, 2019 - SPHL (SPHL)
Huntsville Havoc News Release


HUNTSVILLE - At the end of the regular season, the Huntsville Havoc and Knoxville Ice Bears finished third and fourth in the SPHL standings.

The clubs played like a pair of evenly matched teams Thursday night in the Rocket City, but Huntsville prevailed in overtime to beat the Ice Bears 3-2 and take game one of the SPHL semifinal best-of-three series.

"We got off to a bit of a slow start," said Havoc Head Coach Glenn Detulleo. "Thankfully we improved as the game went on. I feel like we shot ourselves in the foot in the second period to fall behind, but I'm proud of how the guys responded. The last 30 minutes we played our best hockey of the playoffs and earned that win."

Both squads came out hot and energetic, scrambling for loose pucks and playing fast and physical. Neither could break through in the opening period and the teams went to intermission scoreless.

The Havoc finally got past Ice Bear goalie Hayden Stewart while on the powerplay at 3:26 in to the second period. Ryan Salkeld was making a crossing pass from the left circle that was blocked into the air by a Knoxville defender. The puck fluttered toward the net where Trevor Gerling redirected it out of the air and over Stewart's glove to give Huntsville the lead.

Knoxville regained their composure and scored two goals in a two-minute span later in the second period to take a 2-1 lead in to the second break. The box score after two shows just how close these teams are. Shots on goal were 27 for Huntsville and 26 for Knoxville. Both teams had committed four penalties and served eight minutes.

In the third period, the Havoc exploded for 25 shots on goal to Knoxville's four. Thankfully, Huntsville only needed one to get through to knot things up. At 5:28 of the third, Derek Perl's shot from the right circle was stopped short by an Ice Bear defender, but the follow through delivered the puck to Tyler Piacentini in the slot. He sent the one-timer in to the back of the net to tie the game at two, where it stayed for the rest of regulation.

In the bonus frame, both keepers continued to make spectacular saves and the Ice Bears even had a golden opportunity with a powerplay early in overtime. Huntsville killed the penalty and kept momentum and possession of the puck for long stretches.

With a third of the overtime period gone, the Ice Bears made a crucial mistake - turning the puck over deep in their zone. Piacentini was there to pick it up right in front of the crease and backhand a shot under the Knoxville keeper's blocker to give Huntsville the win.

Huntsville goalie Max Milosek stopped 32 of the 34 shots he faced on the night and has a 94.9 save percentage over four playoff games.

Gerling's goal was his fifth point of the post season (2g, 3a) and Salkeld's assist was his sixth point (1g, 5a).

Next Game

The series now shifts to the Knoxville Civic Coliseum on Saturday, April 20. The puck drops at 6:35 p.m. CT and, if you can't make the trip, you can catch all the action with Steve Moulton on 97.7 The Zone.

If a game three is needed to determine which team moves on to the SPHL Championship series, it will be Monday, April 22, on Pharmacy First Ice at the VBC. Puck will drop at 7 p.m. Be sure to follow the Havoc on social media for ticket information.


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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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