The leadership of the Upper Montgomery Lightning hockey program knew Monday’s game versus Washington County was going to be a difficult game. The game was scheduled looking forward to the upcoming Montgomery Hockey Conference Division One and Division Two playoffs where Upper Montgomery was very likely to be facing off against very good opponents and some of the top tier teams in Montgomery County. Taking the young Lightning roster on the road to Hagerstown to face off against the second ranked, highly skilled and older Northstars is expected to pay dividends down the road. Washington County was never threatened in their 10-2 victory.
There were a few bright spots for the Lightning. Landon Bernard played very well in net. The score does not represent how well he played, making several highlight reel saves. The Lightning scored two powerplay goals in the game. Upper Montgomery also went long stretches of the game without conceding a goal, more than nine minutes to open the game, the first 12:30 of the second period, and the first ten minutes of the third period.
It was an avalanche of goals scored in bunches by the Northstars that did in the Lightning. The Northstars scored four goals in the final six minutes of the first period while outshooting the Lightning 21-4. In the second period it was three goals in the final three and a half minutes. Washington County closed out the game with three goals in the final five minutes of the game. Lucas Karlsson led the way with three goals and an assist, Ville Schoneborg had two goals and an assist, as did Tyler Bjerklie. Lochlan Joyce and Scott Blanchard were the other Northstars skaters with multiple points as each had a goal and an assist.
Upper Montgomery’s goals were both scored on the powerplay and from directly in front of the net. Bradley Cupples centered the puck from behind the net to Brandon Bernard at the right post. Bernard lifted the puck over Bryce Zeoli-Luisi’s shoulder to cut the Northstars lead to 4-1 mid-way through the second period. Chris Hassett finished out the scoring with 44 seconds remaining in the game. He received a nice centering pass from Hunter Cameron in the low slot near the right post. He also fired the puck over Zeoli-Luisi’s shoulder short side.
Game Notes:
- The Lightning were badly outshot by Washington County 40-13 for the game.
- The Lightning did not have to kill any penalties during the game.
- The Lightning powerplay finished the game 2-6.
- The Lightning are next in action on Senior Night on Friday, January 28th at 7:00 pm when they host St. John’s at Rockville Ice Arena. James Botti, Adarsh Nair, and Joshua Miller will be celebrated for their contributions to the Upper Montgomery hockey program during the team’s final regular season game.
Three Stars of the Game:
First Star—Lucas Karlsson—Washington County Defense—3 Goals, 1 Assist
Second Star—Ville Schoenborg—–Washington County Defense–2 Goals, 1 Assist
Third Star—Landon Bernard—Upper Montgomery Goalie—30 Saves