For the second week in a row, Clarkston faced must-win league games. And for the second Saturday in a row, Garrett Knappe and the Wolves stepped up and got the win, this time a 3-0 smothering of Royal Oak at John Lindell Ice Arena.
Knappe only had to stop 13 Ravens? shots in the shutout victory, his third win of the season for the Wolves (4-9-3). Clarkston picked up its second win in the Oakland Activities Association, moving to 2-5-2 in conference, while the Ravens (2-9-2) fell back to 1-4-2 in the OAA.
‘The power-play is starting to click for us, we’re moving the puck better and we’re getting some shots on net,? Clarkston Coach Bryan Krygier said
The progress report is no understatement as Clarkston out-shot the Ravens 33-13 and scored a power-play goal for the second straight game.
The game belonged to the Wolves from the onset, but the Ravens had their fair share of power-play opportunities in a game where Clarkston was hit with 12 penalties.
‘I’m glad we weathered the storm and we came up big on our penalty kill,? Krygier said.
In a 3-0 hole with less than 10 minutes remaining, the Ravens had a 5-on-3 while Dan Smith and Steve Wyman were away in the penalty box, but Knappe came up big with five of his 13 saves in that 1:33 of play to keep Clarkston well in command.
Rick Hennard was again forced to make many saves to keep the Ravens in the game, logging 30 saves in this meeting. When the teams met in December on Clarkston’s home ice at Detroit Skating Club, they finished deadlocked 1-1. Hennard single-handedly kept the Ravens afloat, making 35 saves in the tie.
‘When he plays well he holds us in there like he did at DSC,? Plaskey said.
‘We’re small in numbers and stature and we have a lot of young kids. If we can scratch and claw to keep it a one or two-goal game, we have a chance, but when we get into a shootout, we have problems.?
If the Wolves win-out the final part of their league schedule against Waterford Mott, North Farmington and Farmington next month and the cards fall in their favor, Clarkston could finish as high as second place in the OAA, after a slow start.
Krygier likes his team’s odds going into the home stretch of the league match-ups.
‘We’re not out of it yet,? he said.
Steve Wyman scored Clarkston’s first two goals, pushing his point total to five this season, in only his fourth game since joining the Wolves.
Taylor Turner, ever-present assist leader on the team, led Clarkston with three points on Saturday, all on helpers, giving him 11 assists on the year.
The first came early in the first period when he skated around the net past Hennard and fed Wyman for an easy slap-shot.
The duo repeated the formula in the second period on the power-play, where Wyman added his second of the night at 10:15 of the period.
Ryan Kenerson, playing in his first game since December due to a wrist injury, scored a goal at 3:51 of the third period, slamming home Turner’s rebound during four-on-four play. The goal was Kenerson’s 9th of the season.
Krygier has seen the team’s outlook change since employing a different defensive schematic, a 1-2-2 zone, two weeks ago.
‘I really think that’s helping a lot,? Krygier said.
‘It allows us a little bit more flexibility defensively. It creates more opportunities in the neutral zone with passes coming across. We’ve been pretty good about getting goals off of it,? he added.
Clarkston visits Orchard Lake St. Mary’s this Saturday at 8 p.m. and they get another crack at the Corsairs on Feb. 7 at Lakeland Ice Arena in Waterford Township at 7:20 p.m.
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The Wolves looked to start their first winning streak started against Grosse Pointe North on Jan. 24 at Mt. Clemens Ice Arena, but came up short in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Norsemen.
On the heels of their first win since mid-December, Clarkston (3-9-3, 1-5-2 OAA) was hoping to get the snowball rolling on the perfect winter evening. Clarkston’s power play was also firing and the Wolves got plenty of practice with the extra man against the Norsemen (7-8, 1-3 MIHL), who racked up 12 penalties.
The Wolves? most crucial power kill was artificial, as they trailed 3-2 with less than two minutes remaining in the game. Coach Bryan Krygier decided to pull net-minder Garrett Knappe in favor of an extra skater. The move paid off when Matt Campbell pounded home the rebound from Steve Wyman’s slap-shot less than a minute later, with only 52 seconds remaining.
The game went to sudden-death and after out-shooting Clarkston 50-16 in the contest, the Norsemen found the net with less than two minutes remaining in overtime.
Doug Rahaim hit Stephen Coates at mid-ice with a stylish between-the-legs backhanded pass. Coates raced into the Clarkston zone and beat Knappe backhand for the win.
‘We had some opportunities to win it and I’m glad we fought back to tie the game, that was very important that we didn’t give up,? Krygier said.
‘We played well, we out-played them a bit here and there. We should have put them away in overtime, we made a mistake and they came down and put the puck in the net.?
Knappe recorded 46 saves in the loss, including several key saves in the extra session.
‘It he didn’t play as well as he did, we wouldn’t have been in overtime. He made the difference, he played great,? Krygier said.
Norsemen coach Scott Lock also credited the Wolves? defense for some of Knappe’s success in goal.
‘He had vision of the puck every single time. We were on the sides instead of in front of him causing havoc,? Lock said.
‘Their team did a good job of clearing out in front of the net.?
The Wolves? power-play got them on the board with 1:04 left in the first period. In a five-on-three situation, Aaron Podbielski’s slap-shot beat Michael Rahaim glove side to tie the game at 1-1.
Jeff Rohrkemper scored backhanded on Knappe with his designated penalty shot at 6:49 of the second period. Rohrkemper got the shot because, in a bizarre situation, Knappe attempted to play the puck a great distance from the goal crease and inadvertently tripped Rohrkemper.
The Wolves added another power-play goal minutes later when Eric Salo redirected a shot by Jeremy Voelker, while Salo was trying to get up off the ice, making the game 2-2.
‘That’s one of the drills we do, you step out of the corner and set up a shot at the point and try to re-direct it toward the net and get the goalie off balance a little bit and it worked,? Krygier said.
Clarkston and Grosse Point North combined for 19 penalties on the night, trading back and forth, with the Norsemen responsible for 12.
‘It was more of a playoff-style hockey where you have some hits on both sides. It was an intense game,? Krygier said.
‘It was a physical game and when that happens, you’re going to see penalties on both sides,? he added.
Lock agreed with Krygier’s assessment, noting the game had the most hits he has seen in many games.
‘A lot of times you don’t get to see that much during the (regular) season,? he said.
‘I haven’t seen that many open-ice hits all season combined and there were a lot of them.?
The Wolves play at Orchard Lake St. Mary’s on Feb. 3. Clarkston gets a rematch against Waterford Mott on Feb. 7 at Lakeland Ice Arena in Waterford Township. The Corsairs (8-6-1, 5-3 OAA) spoiled Clarkston’s home opener, 4-2, in late November.