Feb 25, 2019 | RNyenhuis | 565 views
Aces in a Hole as Playoffs March On
The Heat Burn the Aces in LLFHL First Round, Take First Bite of Local Play Down
The Rod Smith Novice B Aces find themselves in a rut finding difficulty moving past the Huron Heat in LLFHL playoffs. After a promising first game 3-0 win on the road the Aces hosted the Heat for game two. Both teams were to come out of the gate sluggishly in both games as the Ace bench staff worked to continue to juggle lines to contain the Heat's offence. The containment worked defensively as both teams were unable to find the net or generate much of any offense. Down 2-0 in the second, the twin tower line got to work as Emerie Smith buried a beautiful feed from Niahm Appel after a goal attempt from Charlie MacFarlane. The Heat however prevailed 4-1 on a late empty netter against the Aces.
With the series now tied at 1-1, the Aces headed back into Huron County to the Clinton Arena to try to solve the series once and for all. Again both teams limped out of the gates, finding difficulty making connections. The Aces could not penetrate the Heat D finding the net only a few times while the Heat broke through the Ace D to get to Flanny twice and defeating the Aces 2-0 and eliminating the Aces from league playoff contention.
The only road left for the Rod Smith Financial Stratford Novice B Aces is the road to the Provincial Final in Mississauga in April. Again the Aces find that they must detour backwards through both the North and South of Huron County to get there. Game one, again was the Huron Heat, and the Aces would host them for game one of a home and home. The momentum the of the Heat's two previous wins translated into a good start for the Heat as they pushed their offense to the Aces pushing forward high in their own defensive zone to be ready to carry the puck at the Ace net. The heat hit early and often putting the girls on their heels in a 5-0 loss. The loss compounds the Ace's difficulty to the Provincial final as they must now use all they have to win all they can to keep their playing season alive.
When reached for comment the Ace coaching staff said that the Aces may have to try to regroup by doing what they do best, throw away the team's curfew again and bring the Ace family together on the eve of the next match to lift everyone's spirits and bring it to the Stephen township Arena Sunday.