Vipers beat ‘stupid’ Rockets

Vipers power play ‘trick a treat

by Rob Benneian

A trio of power play goals propelled the LaSalle Vipers to a 3-1 win over the visiting Strathroy Rockets Oct. 31 at the Vollmer Complex.

After falling behind on a goal by Rockets captain Tyler Duarte the Vipers answered back with a goal of their own from captain Eric Noel.

The 20-year-old forward is a veteran of five Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League seasons, all spent in LaSalle. He notched his seventh goal of the year during a five-on-three advantage in the second period and added another power play marker early in the third. A recent change in strategy seemed to pay dividends.

“We were trying to work more of an umbrella at the top, work more down low and try and look for that cross-ice pass,” Noel said. “Once we move it around a little, cycle, get them to pressure us, then we look for that side-door pass and it worked in the third.”

The momentum had swayed in LaSalle’s favour just minutes prior to Noel’s first goal when Vipers assistant captain Dylan Seguin leveled Rockets forward Chase Thornton. The hit sent the bloodied Thornton skating towards his bench. After Seguin decked another Rockets skater seconds later, Strathroy defenceman Dylan Wilson-Foote tried to exact some revenge but was whistled for cross-checking.

“I think if you look at the actual turning point of the game, it was the hit Dylan Seguin threw,” said Vipers coach Ryan Donally. “(Strathroy) just lost their minds after that.”

They lost their minds to the tune of 17 minutes in timed penalties in the second period, plus two misconducts. The Vipers scored all three of their goals on the power play during a 10 minute stretch from just past the middle of the second period into the beginning of the third.

At least one man at the Vollmer wasn’t convinced the penalty calling deserved to be so lopsided.

“You’ll have to ask the referees on that,” Rockets coach Jeff VanVliet said of what went wrong with his team in the second period. “I’ve never seen a game where it’s been 17 minutes in a 20 minute span against one team and nothing on the other side.”

Chiefly responsible for that inflated total was Michael Woolley. The 18-year-old Sarnia Sting draftee was slapped with a minor, a major and a game misconduct after first hauling down Vipers assistant captain Dylan Denomme and then delivering a vicious cross-check to the LaSalle forward’s upper chest.

“We took advantage of their stupidity on the power play,” Denomme said. “I got hooked down for the penalty and I was just standing there. If he wants to be a goon, I’m not gonna do anything about it.”

The Vipers finished 3-for-11 on the power play while their penalty kill was a perfect 4-for-4.

LaSalle (9-7-2) will next face the Midwestern Conference’s bottom-dwelling Guelph Hurricanes (2-15-0) Nov. 7 at the Vollmer.