Whitley Warriors started their 2022-23 season with a win against Nottingham Lions at Hillheads on Sunday evening.
But they were made to work hard for a slender 2-1 success that counts towards both the NIHL 1 North and NIHL Cup campaigns.
Going into the game the Warriors were without several experienced players. Captain Dean Holland, utility player Steven Chalmers and exciting right wing Callum Watson were all unavailable, as was goaltender Josh Crane, while Jordan Barnes was also missing due to a long-time injury.
With Canadian forward Phil Edgar and Latvian defenceman Rihards Grigors named as the two imports, it meant Czech student Matěj Valíček had to sit this game out.
A surprise inclusion on the game sheet was that of 16-year-old Ukrainian defenceman Musa Musaiev who, as a Whitley Junior, made his debut and put in a man-of-the-match display on the blue line that belied his age.
Nottingham arrived with several of their under-18 players missing due to a league game of their own but were still able to ice three forward lines and four defensive pairings, in what was one of the more experienced Lions sides to have visited Whitley Bay in many years.
Both sides exchanged early chances in the opening period, with Jamie Ord looking particularly lively cutting in off the Right Wing and creating a couple of shooting opportunities.
Luca Sheldon in the Lions net, who is on a two-way contract with the Nottingham Panthers, was certainly the busier of the two goalies, but in Jordan Boyle, the Warriors welcomed back someone who hadn’t played in two and a half years, yet showed no sign of rust as he remained alert and sharp throughout.
With few real clear-cut chances in the opening 20 minutes, it was of little surprise when the sides went into the break goalless. However, the second period exploded into life just three minutes in when Shaun Kippin finished a move that involved Thomas Fraser and Dylan Hehir to notch his 150th goal for the Warriors.
Just 90 seconds after opening the scoring, Kippin had to serve a harsh two-minute tripping penalty. That gave Nottingham a great opportunity to level the scores but 16 seconds into their man advantage, the Warriors had doubled their lead.
A defensive zone faceoff win saw Adam Finlinson look up to thread an excellent pass forward that an NFL quarterback would have been proud of, and straight into the path of an onrushing Kyle Ross. The pass was slightly ahead of Ross, but he was able to stretch his stick and gather the puck in before getting it under control and holding off the challenge of a defenceman before stabbing home inside the right post and past a bemused looking Sheldon.
The Warriors drew much more confidence from that goal and were able to kill off the remainder of the penalty.
The Lions though were not going to just roll over. They took the game to the Warriors and even struck the base of the post after Boyle had made an initial save but was stranded to react quick enough to stop the rebound. It was a warning to the home-side not to switch off concentration for a split second, but they were unable to prevent the Lions from getting a goal back before the period was out.
With just 22 seconds left on the clock, Zach Yokoyama carried the puck down the right-side boards before finding Toby Fisher with a slick pass at the near post. Fisher in turn then found Jack Crowston at the back post with a pass that went through the top of the crease, with the latter finding the back of the net to make it a one goal game heading into the third period.
Surprisingly there were no further goals in the contest, despite the Warriors creating plenty of chances. However, with a stifling Lions defence intent on blocking every shot the Warriors took, it meant there was little in the way of goal-scoring opportunities. The Lions limited the Warriors to just 10 shots on goal during the final 20 minutes of the game and even then, an inspired Sheldon stopped the ones that came through to him.
With a thick mist descending above the ice surface throughout, it made conditions difficult at times and whilst the Warriors were left frustrated by the lack of goals, what matters most was securing the win in a game they were made to work hard for.
Stats
Shots against
Warriors: 26
Lions: 44
Points
Warriors: Shaun Kippin (1+0), Kyle Ross (1+0), Thomas Fraser (0+1), Dylan Hehir (0+1), Adam Finlinson (0+1)
Lions: Jack Crowston (1+0), Toby Fisher (0+1), Zach Yokohama (0+1)
Penalty minutes
Warriors: 2
Lions: 2
Man of the Match
Warriors: Musa Musaiev
Lions: Luca Sheldon