Ice Breakers protect lead in third, top Watertown

The Ice Breakers took a 4-2 lead into the third period in their game with Watertown on March 3, and this time they protected it like a priceless jewel.

The Ice Breakers did not sit back with their lead, but they protected their blue line well in the final 20 minutes and saluted the home crowd in Mentor Civic Ice Arena after finishing off the Wolves, 6-3. Mentor visits Danville on March 8.

The bounce-back win partially erased a crushing, 6-5 overtime loss to Watertown a night earlier. In that one, the Ice Breakers led, 5-4, with less than eight minutes remaining. But a lapse allowed the Wolves to get behind the Mentor defense and tie the score in regulation. That goal March 2 upset Coach Iain Duncan more than the game winner the Wolves scored with 1:06 left in overtime.

“In between the second and third period (March 3), I said we were in the same situation last night and we failed to follow through and win the game,” Duncan said. “They played hard tonight and learned from our mistakes. I said, ‘Here’s a perfect test for us. Last night we failed, but I know tonight we’re not going to fail because we learned from our mistakes,’ and we did that in the third period.”

The Ice Breakers beat the Wolves in Watertown on March 1. They picked up seven points in the FHL standings over the weekend and now with 42 sit one point behind fifth place Danville. They are 15 points behind the fourth-place Port Huron Prowlers, who own the final playoff spot.

Mark Essery and Steven Fowler each scored twice for Mentor. Thomas Devesre and Matthew Kadolph each added a goal.

Kadolph’s goal, scored in a scrum in front Watertown goalie Jared Rutledge, made it a 5-2 Ice Breakers lead 6:57 into the third period. Fowler put a “Made in Mentor” finishing stamp on the game on an unassisted short-handed goal with 2:20 remaining for the 6-3 final.

Parker Moskal, acquired recently in a trade with Elmira, assisted on three of the Mentor goals.

“We played well offensively last night,” said Ice Breakers forward Patrick Porkka, who hails from Rauma, Finland. “The difference tonight was we transitioned that by playing good defensively. We didn’t give up many shots and the shots we did give up were from the outside.”

John Sellie-Hanson, the winner in goal for the Ice Breakers on March 1, stopped 26 shots. The Ice Breakers outshot their visitors, 43-29.