The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Slow start doesn’t stall Shoremen at The Q
Avon Lake breaks game open with six goals in the second period
After a close opening 15 minutes of play, Avon Lake used a second-period barrage of goals to coast past Westlake, 10-1, in a Greater Cleveland High School Hockey League contest at the Quicken Loans Arena on Dec. 28.
Avon Lake (9-6) led 1-0 heading into the second period, but erupted for six goals in the period
on the Cleveland Monsters’ home ice, including a pair from Nick Ospelt and Timothy Lubertozzi as it took a commanding lead while continuing to stymie the Westlake (7-5) offense throughout the afternoon.
The six-goal offensive explosion changed the complexity of the matchup, and breathed a sigh of relief into Avon Lake coach Steve Burns.
“We had a lot more chances than 1-0 showed in that first period,” Burns said. “We held the puck too long, and missed the net a couple times, but those things, it seemed in the second period, we didn’t miss the net and we didn’t hold the puck too long. We found it quite a bit. Then we started changing the lines a little bit and tried to get some more ice time for some of the other guys.”
Ospelt’s two second period goals in the span of a minute and a half earned him a hat trick on the afternoon as he notched a nifty strike earlier in the first period right past Westlake goaltender Max Novak.
The special feat on the big ice was just another memorable moment in a special season for Avon Lake’s go-to guy.
“I have played here when I was like 10, I think,” Ospelt, a junior, said. “It’s been a while, but it was fun to come out here and get a good win today.”
The sluggish start followed by a barrage of goals has seemed to be a reoccurring trend for the Shoremen.
“We just woke up,” Ospelt said. “We have been doing that a lot this year, just not coming out in the first period and not doing what we need to do. It’s good to see us be
able to flip the switch, but I’d like us to do it a little earlier in the game.”
Avon Lake began the second period avalanche with a goal in the opening seconds from Lubertozzi to boost the Shoremen lead to 2-0. Thomas Kacmarcik added another goal just a minute later as the rout was on. Ospelt’s double-whammy and a sneak shot from Murphy Mohar blew the match open at 6-1.
That’s when Lubertozzi tacked on another goal with just 42 seconds to play.
He was glad to breakthrough in the goal column.
“Yeah, for sure,” Lubertozzi said. “I’m not a big goal scorer, so it’s nice to get it when it matters.”
Lubertozzi revealed a fiery speech from coach Burns in between the first and second period to light a fire under the Shoremen.
“Our coach brought us into the locker room, and kind of let us have it,” Lubertozzi said. “He let us know that this
is not acceptable. He wanted us to step it up, and we did.”
Coach Burns chalked up some of the first period jitters to a star-struck scene inside Quicken Loans Arena.
“Since I have been around the team the last couple of years, this is our first game on the big ice at the Quicken Loans Arena, and I know that a lot of them had a very jittery feeling at the beginning. They might not want to admit it, but I definitely think there was a little slow start,” Burns said.
Lubertozzi and Mohar finished with two goals for the Shoremen.
It was a tough afternoon for Westlake, who already came in knowing they were up against a tough matchup in Avon Lake. The Demons mustered only six shots on goal while spending the afternoon fending off the high-powered attack of Ospelt and Co.
“They are obviously in second place in the division above us (White South) for a reason,” Demons coach John
Duke said. “They are a good hockey club. They came out, and once they popped a couple in, the flood gates kind of opened. It’s tough sometimes for teams, and you know, we just lost our edge and they took advantage of it.”
The Demons got on the board with 7:38 left in the second period off a quick shot from Austin Loosli, cutting the lead to 5-1. The score proved to be the only breakthrough of the night as the rest of Westlake’s highlights came from a gutsy 35-save performance from Novak in goal.
“Max is the heart and soul of our team,” Duke said. “He is our captain, and he has come a long way. It’s only his third year of playing goalie, and he just makes a lot of big saves. He kept us in the game for a while, we just didn’t take advantage of our opportunities. We will learn from the experience and get better.”
Avon Lake’s Brady Starck added two assists and a goal in the third period.