Viking vs. Cremona

Both of these games were great, and both were nail-biters to the end! Here are a few highlights.

Game 1 - At the Sutterdome - Thatcher Demko v Anton Forsberg

Period 1 - Forsberg Stands on His Head
Anton Lundell opened the scoring for the visitors around the midway mark of the period, and in response, the Flying Sutters absolutely dogpiled David Pasternak causing him to play hurt for the rest of the game. Buoyed by this shameless show of goonery, the Flying Sutters got two quick goals from Huberdeau and Laughton to put the home team in the lead. The biggest story of this period, however, was Cremona's utter domination of the play putting up a total of 28 shots in the period, 10 of which were high quality scoring chances. It was only by the herculean effort of Forsberg that the home side was in this game at all (it honestly should have been 5-0 Cremona).

Period 2 - A Return to the Mean
Cremona's offensive domination continued in the second, only this time Forsberg was more of a sieve. Cremona got tallies from Vesey, Dahlin (PP), York (PP) and Matthews, while the lone bright spot for Viking was a powerplay goal from Tuch. 

Period 3 - A Comeback, A Blocked Shot, and the Revenge of Pasternak!
Whatever speech the coach made at intermission seemed to work for the Flying Sutters as they seemed to actually want to play offense in the third, but then Matthews did Matthews things to make it 6-3 Cremona midway through the period. However, the momentum shifted when Laughton scored shorthanded with under 7 minutes to go, which was followed by a tally from Tuch to put Viking within one. With less than 2 minutes remaining, Huberdeau scored with the goalie pulled to tie it. The comeback was all for naught as Pasternak got the last laugh scoring on the next possession. Viking had one last chance to tie the game, only to be stymied by a blocked hard shot just as the buzzer sounded. 

Final Score: 7 Cremona - 6 Viking 
Shots: Cremona - 56 (20 Hard), Viking - 41 (10 Hard)


Game 2 - In Cremona - Spencer Knight v Linus Ullmark


Period 1 - Goalies Fell Asleep
This game started with bang with each team putting up 3 goals: Hathaway, Huberdeau, Palmieri for Viking, Eichel, Dunn, and Vesey (SH) for Cremona. Very back-and-forth, and very fun.

Period 2 - Who the Heck Brought Back the Trap?!
Compared to the first, the second period was a snore fest. The only exciting part was Morgan Reilly scoring on the powerplay near the end of the period.

Period 3/OT - 4v4 & 3v3
A bit more exciting than the second period. About midway, Viking and Cremona traded 4v4 goals from Scheifele and Rantanen. Troy Terry tied it up with under 5 minutes to go, and despite late pushes from both sides, this game was headed into OT (Viking's first OT). Cremona won the faceoff and came in for a shot, which was saved and sent to Scheifele who buried it for the OT winner, and his second of the game.

Final Score: 6 Viking - 5 Cremona (OT)
Shots: Cremona - 44 (13 Hard), Viking 41 (9 Hard)