Flames gain single league point

Photograph of Sheffield Scimitars Mark Stewart scoring the winning goal against the Guildford Flames courtsey of Alan Bone.

 

Looking to work their way out of a recent rough stretch, the Flames were 6 minutes from their first win in 4 league starts, but 2 Sheffield Scimitars goals in 30 seconds during the dying minutes, including the equalizer by Mark Stewart and then later the winner by the same skater 74 seconds into overtime, ultimately capped off the late rally to secure a 4-3 overtime defeat of Surrey’s outfit.  24 hours earlier, a trip to Swindon ended in a 3-2 defeat. 

 

The Flames got a good start on Sunday with the opening goal by Adrian Saul who picked up a loose Nathan Rempel rebound and fired it high into the net at 15:47. The road team got their first of the night at 26:42 thanks to an Aaran Strawson levelling strike.  Spectrum’s team nosed out in front again in the 31^st minute when Lubomir Hurtaj sunk a short putt into an open net to finish off a user friendly Milos Melicherik cross ice pass that was the second of a nice 3 way passing play starting with Rick Plant from behind the opposition goal line.  At 51:19, Andrew Melachrino scored his first goal in Flames colours to open what looked to be a comfortable 3-1 lead, but the travellers had a word on that in the 55^th minute with the 2 goal blitz.  Matthew Haywood got the first one on a delayed penalty while the Flames were already shortstaffed at 54:17 while Stewart bagged the equalizer on the continuing powerplay at 54:37 to force overtime and his late stage heroics that secured the extra league table point. 

 

In Swindon the night prior, Wildcat forward Matt Foord commenced the scoring on the powerplay just over the midway mark of the 1^st period to give the home favourites an early 1 goal lead.  Rick Plant levelled in the 17^th minute and the clubs skated to the break on a 1-1 tie.  The Wildcats had the only goal of the second at 34:13, again on the powerplay, through Jan Krajicek to secure an advantage heading to the final set.  Lukas Smital scored a shorthanded goal just over 5 minutes into the stanza to pull the Flames back on even terms but a Jozef Kohut strike at 52:59 against no reply stood up as the game winner.   

 

Flames Head Coach, Paul Dixon, expressed his team’s frustration at a difficult stretch:

 

“This is definitely the most difficult period we have experienced this season and it does strip the club’s confidence.   It is a horribly frustrating situation for everyone in our room.  They all want to do well and have success, but it is just not happening at the moment.  We will find our way out of it, but it is taking that first step to make it happen that is proving so difficult.  Against Sheffield I thought we had done that by taking what should have been a commanding lead with fewer than 9 minutes to play, but when they got their 2^nd, we just drooped as though we knew what was coming next and like a self fulfilling prophecy, sure enough they tied it up and we were on our back foot from there.  That is the obstacle we need to clear.  Sports are a test; you have ups and downs and the only thing that separates teams is how well a group can absorb the down times and find a way to make something happen to pull you back up.  We have a cup Final in Wednesday and we need to get back up immediately.  A quick turnaround under adverse circumstances is the situation we find ourselves in so that is the challenge we face ahead of an exciting 2 game series with Milton Keynes for the first trophy of the season.”

• EL
• PL
• NL1N
• NL1S
• NL2N
• NL2S

• Flames solidify summit position with pair of wins
• Flames win top of table EPL clash
• Flames pick up three points against Telford
• Flames and Manchester in Cup semi final
• Split weekend keeps Flames ahead

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