BY PAUL KAMPE
Clarkston News Staff Writer
Payback may have been on the mind for Clarkston as they took on Stoney Creek for the second time this season, but the result was the same on its home ice at Detroit Skate Club on Jan. 4.
The Cougars (8-0-1, 6-0 OAA) pulled ahead after Clarkston (2-7-2, 0-4-1 OAA) tied up the game on Blake Schmidt’s goal from Chris Salo at 8:38 of the second period. But, much like their first meeting, the Cougars broke the tie for good only minutes later.
Calin Spurlin scored twice in the same shift, once at 7:38 and the other at 5:53 in the second period to ensure Stoney Creek’s 4-2 victory.
‘We worked so hard to tie the game back up and we had a mental lapse that allowed them to get back in the game and go ahead,? Clarkston Coach Bryan Krygier said.
Inexperience led to the collapse, he said.
‘That should have never happened. We’ve got to be prepared mentally. When we tie a game up, we’ve got to go ahead and score goals and we have to keep the pressure on that allowed us to score that goal.?
The Cougars unleashed their firepower on Zack Lewy, who got the start for Clarkston after making 26 saves in the last meeting.
‘That’s why I played him tonight, because he did so well against Stoney Creek the last time,? Krygier said.
‘He gave us a chance to get back in it and defensively, we blew it.?
Stoney Creek out-shot Clarkston 34-13, with Lewy making 30 saves. The game also saw the return of forward Aaron Podbielski, who suffered a shoulder injury late in the first meeting.
Podbielski scored a power-play goal late in the second period to end the scoring for both teams, assisted by Nick Posawatz and Taylor Turner.
Scoring with the man-advantage is something Krygier is looking to see more of this season.
‘We need to put power-play goals in the net. There’s a lot of penalties being called and special teams is important so we need to focus on that,? he said.
Cougars? Coach Shawn Penn said the game was a decent showing coming off the holiday break, but he was disappointed with his team’s play in the second stanza.
‘The second period wasn’t our best. We gave up 10 shots (whereas) we only gave up one or two shots in the other periods,? Penn said.
‘We had two or three good shifts, but (it) wasn’t indicative of how our team has been playing.?
The line of Justin Defrancis, Spurlin and Andrew Reid played well.
‘They gave us a spark and got us back in it, they scored two goals quick on the same shift,? Penn said.
Clarkston gets another quick breather before its next game on Jan. 13 against Birmingham at 8 p.m. at DSC, located at 888 Denison Court in Bloomfield Hills. Clarkston dropped the first game of the season to Birmingham 4-1.