Plum Mustangs - 1989 A

Special Report to Pa Hockey by Joe Carson of the Shady Rest Chronicle CORAOPOLIS -- For the second night in a row, a great playoff game in AA was decided in overtime. After Thomas Jefferson topped Kittanning in the extra frame Thursday night, it was Chartiers Valley and Montour that needed extra time to decide a winner on Friday night at the Island Sport Center. Like the game in Belmont, it was once again the visiting team that found the back of the net last as Chartiers Valley shocked Montour, 5-4. Chartiers Valley came out flying from the drop of the puck and went straight down the ice for a scoring opportunity. Nick Gialloreto made the save to keep the Colts faithful from erupting. Back came the Spartans, as the Montour offense took control of the game. Montour produced great chances of their own, but both opportunities clanged off the post. On a night when the Colts dominated in face-offs, a draw in the Montour zone led to the game’s first score when Tommy Miller stuffed home a loose puck off a Derek Kelly face-off win at 11:32. Chartiers Valley extended their lead to 2-0 when Ryan Woodall found a loose puck from the side of the net and somehow got it to slide across the goal line at 7:54. Down by 2 goals, Montour knew they needed the next goal or it could be curtains for them. They hit another post at 5:35 and escaped a crippling blow when Woodall barely missed wide on a backhander at 4:23. Montour pressed on and finally broke through. After Eddie Olczyk blocked a shot from the point, Joey Clarke got the loose puck to Aaron Siegel at the left point. Siegel sent a wrist shot on goal that found the upper left corner at 1:37 to make it 2-1. Montour kept coming, and CV goaltender Dan Padgelek had to make a key save on Zack Perry with 44 seconds remaining in the period. Montour clearly had gained some momentum going in to period #2, despite still being down by a goal on the scoreboard. That deficit didn’t last much longer, though. Adam Rizza worked the puck free to PJ Ciotti, who walked across the slot from the left wing circle and fired a wrist shot back to the blocker side to tie the game at 2. The goal came at 11:54 and started an action-packed period of hockey. Montour felt relieved to have battled back, but Chartiers Valley caught them exhaling a little too long. Just after the ensuing face-off, the Colts broke in to the Spartan zone on a two-on-one with Olczyk controlling the puck. After looking off the defender, Olczky fired a wrist shot from the left wing circle that was stopped by Gialloreto, but the rebound came right back to Eddie O, who had an open net to restore the 2-goal lead. Joe Michelucci assisted on the goal, which came at 11:33. CV went for the kill this time, but Brian Dugan made a great play to break up a 3-on-1 at the 9-minute mark. The teams exchanged rushes, and sustained pressure around the CV net yielded a power play for the Spartans at 6:04. A dislodged net nullified a great scoring chance for Montour at 5:00, but the Colts were penalized for knocking the net loose on the play. With 56 seconds of 5-on-3, the Spartans raised their level of play. Mario Panucci slipped through a check in the corner and moved the puck to Perry behind the goal. Perry quickly dished the puck in front to Ross Polk, but his shot to the short side was stopped by Padgelek. But Polk followed his rebound and this time used the far side to tally the power play goal and tie the game once again. The goal came at 4:47, leaving 1:47 remaining of 5-on-4 play. With Montour determined to take their first lead of the night, Padgelek stood tall to make a big save on Panucci at 4:33 and another save on Perry at 4:19. The Spartan power play kept coming, though, and at 3:30, Danny Shiwarski redirected home a sharp pass from Kevin Bishop off the left wing boards. Montour had their first lead of the night, and many thought the tide had turned on the Colts. Dugan made perhaps the biggest defensive play of the night when he broke up a 2-on-1 without a stick to keep the score 4-3 after two. On to the third period, and a determined Colts team got a boost when Montour took a holding penalty just 1:29 in to the period. CV couldn’t take advantage, though, as their only chance sailed wide from the slot. Joey Clarke nearly scored on a bouncing puck at 11:06, but he couldn’t get it settled enough to put it on net. CV had a close miss of their own when Woodall nearly scored at 9:47, but Montour was whistled for cross-checking on the play. Once again the Montour penalty kill looked strong to keep the Colts from generating any scoring opportunities. Olczyk created a great chance for the Colts a few minutes later when he danced out of the corner and set up a chance in front, but the Spartans played tackle football in front to deny the chance in favor of a penalty. With only 6:07 remaining, CV knew they had to get their power play in gear if they hoped to find the tying goal. It only took them 3 seconds to get the equalizer, and it once again came off a face-off. Ryan Kelly won the draw to Drew Paolicelli, who wasted no time burying the puck in the back of the Spartan goal. Tensions grew as the crowd came to its feet many times over the final 6 minutes. Padgelek used the blocker to stop Panucci on a break to the net at 5:21. Montour was able to stall a few quick rushes by CV with physical play at the blue line. With 2:34 to play, CV took a tripping call that gave the Spartans a huge chance to get the lead. Montour struggled to get the power play in motion, and Chad Talotta just missed on the only good chance they got with 4 seconds left on the man advantage. With the crowd going wild, the final seconds ticked away, and the game was headed to overtime. Perry got the first quality chance of the 10-minute OT off a nice feed from Panucci, but his shot just missed at 9:11. Padgelek made another big save on Panucci at 7:50 as Montour dictated the play at the start of the extra period. Talotta almost snuck a shot in from the side of the net at 6:11, but it hit the post next to Padgelek’s skate and the CV defense cleared the rebound. After Shiwarski sailed a shot high from the slot at 4:12, it seemed like only a matter of time before the Montour snipers tickled the twine. CV finally got their first shot on goal in the overtime at 2:19, and the Colts were able to create a few more chances from there. Montour couldn’t convert a 2-on-1 at the end of the first OT period, so it was off to the locker rooms for an ice cut and a much needed breather. Chartiers Valley returned to the ice with a spring in their step and a look of determination. Woodall nearly ended it at 9:12, but Gialloreto was just able to get the edge of his pad on the shot. The Colts kept coming, though, as the momentum had swung back in their favor. CV saw that this was their time to capitalize, and that they did. Woodall gathered the puck to the left of the Spartan goal and slid a pass across the crease. Tom Miller went hard to the net and, from his knees, pushed the puck back to the far post, under a sprawling Gialloreto, and in to the net for the game-winning goal at 7:18. The Colts bench and fans went wild as the Montour faithful stood in shock. One of the best games of the high school season had finally ended after 62:42 of intense hockey. A tremendous season had come to an end for a dejected and exhausted Montour team. An exuberant Chartiers Valley squad advances to the second-round of the AA playoffs to face #1 Canon-McMillan. That game will be Monday night at the Iceoplex, starting at 7 PM.