BIG FINISH
Three-goal third period powers Birmingham Unified past Bloomfield Hills
BLOOMFIELD HILLS » The Birmingham Unified Kings skated to a 4-1 victory over their rivals, the Bloomfield Hills Black Hawks, with a three-goal third period.
Ben Catlin scored what proved to be the game winner, breaking a 1-1 tie with 12:02 remaining when he pounced on a loose puck in the slot and flicked in a quick wrist shot for a 2-1 Birmingham Unified lead.
That goal seemed to permanently tilt the ice as the Kings took over territorially and held the Black Hawks without a shot for more than six minutes.
“That was a momentum changer for sure. We did a pretty good job on that five-minute penalty kill, and really coming out of the third period it kind of sparked us just giving up the one (goal), and then that second goal really sparked us. It really just made it seem that everything was alright for us and propelled us to the end of the third period there.
Birmingham Unified added to its lead when R.J. Carrel banged in a rebound from point-blank range on a power play to make it 3-1.
A short while later, the Black Hawks got a power play when the Kings were assessed a bench minor. But Bloomfield Hills could do nothing with the power play, and Leo Kepler came out of the box to join a rush as the penalty expired. Kepler would end up sealing the game when he rammed home the rebound on a two-on-one break with 3:38 remaining to provide the final 4-1 margin.
“We know on the Olympic ice, seeing other OAA teams out here, that it’s tougher to get to the middle of the ice because you naturally want to fan out. But once we started getting to the middle, it really improved, and that kind of drove us into the team that we have been,” Kings assistant coach Matt Stirling said. “The first two periods we started really slow.”
Bloomfield Hills had chances, especially in the first two periods when the Black Hawks outshot the Kings. But a strong defensive effort from the Kings and very good goaltending from the Kings’ Henry Ellenbogen, who finished with 30 saves, kept the Black Hawks off the board for the first two periods.
“It’s always an emotional game. We had our chances early. We had to capitalize early,” McAlister said. “We had our opportunities. It just wasn’t our night. We weren’t as effective as we should have been.”
Bloomfield Hills was also solid defensively in those periods, anchored by the play of Nathan Rumptz and Aiden Kelly. The Black Hawks held the Kings to just 15 shots over the first two periods and got good goaltending from Brandon Yaker all night. Yaker finished with 26 saves on the evening.
“I thought that the best players in the game tonight were the goaltenders. I thought that our Brendan Yaker played very well. We didn’t support him in the third period like we should have,” McAlister said.
The Kings entered the third period leading 1-0 after getting a power play goal from Charlie Penoza with 6:05 remaining in the second period. Penoza’s shot went in exactly as a five-on-three advantage ended for the Kings.
Bloomfield Hills had over four minutes left on a major power play to start the third period, and the Black Hawks tied it less than two minutes into the period when Kyle Lucia, who was anchored just outside the goal crease redirected a shot from the top of the left circle to make it 1-1.
The game was a crossover Oakland Activities Association game and did not count in the standings, but it is a traditional rivalry that both teams tend to look forward to.
“For our guys, it’s a motivating game, a big OAA rivalry and so close to home. Our
guys enjoyed it, and we battled,” Stirling said.
“It’s always a really fun game to play. The kids get up for it from both schools,” McAlister said. “I thought it was a pretty good game all around. I thought they (Birmingham Unified) played better in the third period. But we had our chances.
It’s always a fun game,” he added.
With the win, Birmingham Unified improves to 103-1 on the year. The Kings have over a week off before hosting Plymouth next Friday and then taking on Lake Orion in an OAA Red showdown next Saturday.
Bloomfield Hills (7-5) also has a long stretch off. The Black Hawks next game is Thursday when they host Lakes Area in an OAA White game.