Left Panther: January

 

2012 started as 2011 had ended, with a game against Hull Stingrays. After a 9-3 victory in Hull on December 29, Panthers entered the game full of confidence, and it showed. A large bank holiday Monday home crowd of over 4,200 were treated to a dominant performance from the home side, who skated away with an easy 5-0 victory. Goals came from Brandon Benedict (2), Brit David Clarke (2), and Jeff Heerema, while netminder Craig Kowalski enjoyed his sixth shut-out of the season.

 

The following night Panthers travelled up to Scotland to take on Braehead Clan, who would be their Challenge Cup semi-final opponents later in the month. Braehead has proved to be a difficult place to pick up points for the top clubs this season and this game was no different. The visitors got off to a dreadful start, finding themselves 2-0 down in the first six minutes after hitting penalty trouble. Things didn’t get any better for Panthers in the second period, finding themselves trailing 5-0 by the 34th minute with Kowalski having been replaced by his British back-up Dan Green. Although Panthers did get on the scoreboard through Robert Lachowicz before the end of the second period, they couldn’t pull it back, eventually losing 6-3 with further goals from Matthew Myers and Clarke. It was Panthers’ first regular time loss since Bonfire Night and one that put a huge dent in their title aspirations.  

 

Saturday January 7 saw the Panthers back at the NIC where Cardiff Devils would be the visitors. The Devils were struggling with injuries, so brought a weakened line-up, while Panthers were at full strength as returning forward Sean McAslan made his third Panthers debut after re-signing for the team before Christmas. Due to their lack of bodies, Cardiff came into the game with a defensive game plan, hoping to stifle the game and catch Panthers on the break, which they succeeded in doing in taking the lead after just 3 minutes. They remained ahead until the first minute of the second period, when McAslan re-found his scoring touch to equalise. However, the Welshmen soon regained the ascendancy, Phil Hill taking advantage of some sloppy Panthers defence to fire past Kowalski. Early in the third period Panthers equalised once again, top scorer David Beauregard beating two defencemen and firing low into the net, and the home side really should have gone on to win against tiring Devils, but it was they who scored next through Jeff Pierce to leave the 5,000+ home crowd stunned. The visitors secured victory just 4 minutes from time as Hill grabbed his second to take a deserved 4-2 victory against a poor Panthers side whose league chances were quickly slipping away.  

 

Panthers had the chance of instant revenge as they travelled to Cardiff the following night. This time tiredness did start to take its toll on the home side. Benedict opened the scoring early for Panthers, but Hill levelled late in the opening session. After a scoreless second period, Panthers finally started to make their extra bodies tell in the final period, scoring three unanswered goals from Beauregard and Myers (2) to come away with a 4-1 victory, some consolation for the previous evening’s disappointment. 

 

 

The following Saturday, Panthers again travelled to Braehead in a game which would double up as the Challenge Cup Semi Final first leg and also a league game, so victory was absolutely essential for the visiting Panthers. Things didn’t start well: forward Jeff Heerema was hit flush in the face with the puck, which broke his nose for the second time this season. The forward was taken straight to hospital but despite being discharged and travelling back with the team, he hasn’t featured for the Panthers since. Anyway, Clan took the lead towards the end of the first period, former Panther Jade Galbraith scoring the goal, but early in the second Panthers equalised trough David Clarke, then took the lead just over a minute later through Matt Francis. The visitors held on until well into the final period, but Clan eventually hit back. First their player/coach Drew Banister equalised, then Brock McPherson scored the winner with just over six minutes remaining. All in all, a very disappointing night for the Panthers: down on aggregate in the cup and also losing valuable league points.  

 

The second leg of the cup took place the very next day at the NIC, a stand-alone cup game with no league points on offer. Still hurting from their loss the previous night, Panthers came out with purpose, taking the lead after just 72 seconds through Jordan Fox. The second arrived in the ninth minutes as Fox grabbed his second goal to give his team an aggregate lead. That became 3-0 on the night when Brandon Benedict broke clear while Panthers were killing a penalty and scored short-handed (due to the penalty, Panthers had four skaters on the ice compared to Braehead’s five). No further scoring meant Panthers were through to their third Challenge Cup Final in successive seasons and with a great chance of becoming the first Elite League team pull off a ‘threepeat’.

 

The following Saturday saw Panthers travel to league leaders Belfast Giants for a huge game which they had to win to stay in the league title race. The match was also special for 16-year-old Oliver Betteridge, a product of the Nottingham junior system, who travelled to Belfast to make his senior debut. Panthers again started well, scoring after just 66 seconds through Finn Sami Ryhanen, but the lead lasted just two minutes as Giants equalised after a rare mistake by Kowalski. With just 3 seconds of the first period remaining Panthers converted on the power-play (Giants had a player off), David Clarke finding the net. Things got better in the second period, captain Danny Meyers picked up his own rebound off Giants’ British netminder Stephen Murphy to make it 3-1 to the visitors. The final nine minutes became increasingly nervous for Panthers as they allowed Giants to reduce the deficit to 3-2. However, they held on and secured a huge two points. After the game it was revealed that Panthers had signed former Sheffield Steelers winger Rhett Gordon from the ECHL in North America. Now 35, Gordon has a wealth of experience and will bolster a forward line missing both the injured Jeff Heerema and Sean McAslan who has returned to Canada on personal business.  

 

 

It was back to the NIC the following evening to take on Fife Flyers, where Panthers once again found the Fife netminder, Garrett Zemlak, in sparkling form. It wasn’t until 48 seconds from the end of the first period that Panthers took the lead, top scorer Beauregard on target. Zemlak continued to perform heroics in the second period, allowing himself to be beaten just once, Ryhanen scoring his second goal of the weekend. Into the third and the home side went 3-0 in front as Jordan Fox scored, and after Fran Bakrlik had pulled a goal back, the points were made safe in the 51st minute as Benedict completed the scoring for a 4-1 victory and two more much needed league points.

 

The month finished with two games against Midlands rivals, Coventry Blaze. The first at the NIC attracted a crowd in excess of 5,300, the majority no doubt desperate to see Panthers beat the Blaze for the first time in the league this season, and a goal after 77 seconds through Benedict was a good way to start. A bout of fisticuffs then ensued between Guillaume Lepine and Blaze’s Brian Jurynec, Lepine emerging victorious in what was, truth be told, a very one-sided scrap. In the eighth minute, Panthers doubled the lead through Matt Francis to make it 2-0 at the first interval.

 

Shortly into the second period it became 3-0 as Francis found the net once again. Controversy followed though as Jurynec stuck out his knee at Panthers captain Meyers who went down in a heap, this being the cue for Lepine to give him another beating, after which he was sent off by referee Moray Hanson for the kneeing offence. Not a good night for Jurynec all round! Panthers started to turn the screw with two goals in 19 seconds, the first a rocket of a shot from David Clarke and the second from Myers which took a deflection on the way in. With a 5-0 lead, Panthers took it easy in the third period but in the 56th minute Blaze broke Kowalski’s shutout with young defender James Griffin scoring. Nottingham did have the final say, however, as Fox and Beauregard broke away, the former passing to the latter for a nice finish to make it 6-1 and end a very satisfying evening for the Panthers faithful.  

 

 

The next night it was off to Coventry and the intimidating Skydome. Blaze took the lead in this one in the ninth minute, but they would not trouble the scoreboard again as goals from Beauregard, Levers, Fox, Myers, Clarke and Neilson gave Panthers another resounding 6-1 victory. Controversy reigned once more in the 48th minute with the score at 3-1. A tangle in front of the net saw Levers and Blaze’s Russ Cowley come together whereupon Blaze netminder Hirsch took it upon himself to punch Levers in the face with his blocker (a type of glove) whilst holding his stick. As Levers lay prone on the ice, several scuffles took place, the main one involving Panthers’ Brock Wilson giving Blaze’s young British forward Robert Farmer a bit of a beating! Hirsch was sent to the dressing room and further discipline may be likely due to the severity of the offence. Levers did recover and continued to play in the game.

 

So the month ended on a high for Panthers, winning their final five games and securing a place in the Challenge Cup Final. However, with Belfast 5 points clear at the top and Sheffield 2 points behind with 6 games in hand, a first league title since 1956 will be a very big ask.

 

 

The Cat’s Whiskers