Solway Sharks 7 Peterborough Phantoms 2
Solway Sharks returned to winning ways, claiming a dominant 7-2 victory over the Peterborough Phantoms in the Shark Tank on Saturday evening, courtesy of a Nolan Gardiner hat-trick, following a disappointing previous weekend.
The Sharks, sponsored by Dynamic Property Services, lined up with the addition of Bailey Thomson who made his first official league debut, however, Owen Rae and Kieran Hair remained on the injury list. Solway opted for Jordan Marr between the pipes once again, who was set to face his former team for the first time, backed up by Calum Hepburn. Meanwhile Canadian import Hayden Lavigne was given the start for Peterborough, accompanied by Luke Clark on the bench.
The Sharks got off to a flying start and immediately applied offensive pressure on Lavigne through the first line of Robertson, Dunbar and Gardiner. Solway maintained puck possession, allowing Alderson to open the scoring at 7.23 after firing from point, assisted by Young.
The Phantoms defence then put in a strong shift to keep the Sharks at bay, who had controlled the pace of play for the majority of the period.
Despite efforts from Bowering and Mitchell-King for the visitors, Solway overturned the puck and doubled their lead through Coulter who claimed his first goal since returning north, assisted by Carruth and Anderson at 17.49. The Sharks upheld their momentum, seeing Gardiner fire over Lavigne’s shoulder at 18.37 after the feed from Dunbar, securing a 3-0 lead to the hosts after the opening 20 minutes.
Marr was put to work early in the middle frame, but he made the stops to prevent the Phantoms forwards. Solway captain Stenton was handed the first penalty of the game at 26.53 for hooking, which saw Mitchell-King capitalise on the advantage to reduce the deficit at 27.40. Peterborough then returned the favour at 30.33 as Hunt sat for roughing, however, the Sharks failed to answer.
Peterborough clinched back another marker at 35.22 through Palmer, via Kynaston and Norton, despite a sliding block by Solway skipper Stenton. Moments later, Robertson picked up a slashing penalty at 35.53, giving the visitors a chance to equalise but they returned to full strength still ahead. After a strong passage of play, Young flicked the puck backhand through Lavigne’s five-hole assisted by Alderson and Arseneau at 39.50 posting the score at 4-2 heading into the final frame.
Sharks were eager to re-claim their initial three-goal lead and were hungry for the puck, resulting in Dunbar claiming possession behind the Phantoms goal to slot the puck past Lavigne at 44.10. Solway’s first line proved the most threatening and added another to the Sharks tally at 46.51 as Gardiner grabbed his second of the game, flicking the puck top-shelf on the backhand. Phantoms then opted to switch out Lavigne for Clark following a sixth goal for the hosts.
Solway’s Anderson was brought down in the neutral zone at 48.40, resulting in Carruth stepping up for his linemate. Both Carruth and Hough sat for fighting, whilst Kyle picked up an added five minutes for instigation. The break in play posed no threat for Gardiner who claimed his hat-trick at 48.17 extending the lead to five goals for Solway.
The Sharks controlled play and cycled the puck around the zone, firing several shots on Clark in the closing 10 minutes of the game, however, he made the stops to allow Phantoms a chance offensively. Peterborough worked multiple chances through captain Ferrara, yet Marr denied his former teammate, securing a dominant 7-2 victory for his new side.
MVPs were awarded to Solway’s hat-trick hero, Nolan Gardiner for the hosts following his continuous pressure on the Phantoms net. Meanwhile, Austin Mitchell-king claimed the title for the Peterborough Phantoms after opening the scoring for his side.
Sheffield Steeldogs 5 Solway Sharks 2
The Sharks travelled south on Sunday afternoon to take on the Sheffield Steeldogs and despite opening the scoring, the Sharks faced a 5-2 loss to the hosts after 60 minutes.
The Sharks travelled with 15+2, missing forwards Henderson and Thomson from the previous evening, whilst Rae and Hair remained on the injury list. Solway opted for regular starter Marr, backed up by Hepburn.
The Sharks won the opening face-off and immediately tested Norton through Gardiner who reacted quickly with a catcher save, however, Solway were forced on the defensive shift after Carruth was handed a tripping penalty at 3.03.
The Steeldogs came close as Phillips pinged the pipes, but Marr denied any further opportunities before the Sharks returned to full strength.
Solway claimed the first goal of the afternoon at 7.44 as Coulter clinched his second strike in as many games.
The Sharks controlled the puck in the first frame as the Steeldogs gained a feel for the tempo of the game. The visitors third line of Coulter, Carruth and Anderson proved the most threatening but Norton matched their efforts to reduce the Sharks to a single goal lead after 20 minutes.
Solway maintained the offensive pressure early in the middle frame but once again Norton covered to deny an extension to the scoreline for the Sharks. Tensions rose between Beattie and Hällfors, seeing them both sit two minutes for roughing at 23.54. Steeldogs then equalised after both sides returned to full strength courtesy of a one-timer by Tremblay at 27.25, assisted by Hällfors and Ripley.
The Steeldogs capitalised moments later at 28.37 after Clarke-Pizzo tucked away a breakaway opportunity for the hosts, giving them the lead for the first time. Sharks landed themselves a player short at 32.37 as Shevlin was called for boarding in the Solway zone, but after a strong defensive display, the visitors remained only a single goal behind.
Solway were eager to level the score, which resulted in Beattie sitting for holding at 39.13. With just two seconds left on the clock, Tremblay clinched his second strike, firing over Marr’s shoulder assisted by Björkly-Nordström to give Sheffield a two-goal lead heading into the final frame.
The Sharks were hungry to claw a goal back early in the third period as Arseneau fired a series of snipes in the Sheffield crease but they were all covered by Norton. Meanwhile, Sheffield created opportunities of their own, yet Marr guarded the pipes successfully for the visitors.
Solway D-man Kerr reduced the deficit after a top-corner strike through Carruth and Anderson.
Solway set up multiple chances but failed to send the puck across the line and earn the equalising goal as the game approached the final five minutes of play. After winning a face-off to the right of Marr, Hällfors restored the two-goal lead for Sheffield, slotting the puck bottom corner on the backhand at 56.30. Although, Sharks were given a chance to answer back just 12 seconds later as Phillips headed to the box for tripping.
Despite being a player short, Hällfors scored the final goal of the game exactly 60 seconds after his initial marker at 57.30 to post the score at 5-2 to the Steeldogs. Both Carruth and Anderson generated offensive pressure in the final moments but their efforts were swallowed by Norton to secure a victory for Sheffield.
MVPs were awarded to Solway’s netminder Marr after posting some huge saves against the Sheffield offence and Hällfors picked up the title for Sheffield.
The Sharks will look to return to winning ways as they are set to take on the Romford Raiders for the first time in the 24/25 season campaign on Saturday evening in the Shark Tank. Face off 7pm. Tickets from the club’s website https://sharksihc.com/tickets/.