Devils edge past Storm, stay six points clear
Photo: James Assinder
Cardiff Devils continued their league form at the top of the standings with a narrow home win over Manchester Storm in a tight game at a sold-out Vindico Arena.
"We've started pretty well, I think it's been pretty good. Obviously there are things we need to get better at and work on, but if we play a solid game and everyone chips in, we'll be pretty good," said Josh MacDonald after the win, he himself scoring the goal that put the Devils 2-1 ahead in the second.
The Devils carried much of the play throughout the majority of period one, allowing for multiple breakaways and attacks. Despite this, an impressive performance from Evan Weninger allowed Storm to keep the score level 0-0. A huge hit from Riley Brandt in the clcosing stages saw the Devil ejected on a Check to the Head major, leaving the Devils shorthanded heading into the second period.
Period two was a little more chaotic. Grant Herbert put Storm ahead with the first goal of the game, at 25:50 - he shot the puck past Ben Bowns but then crashed through the Devils goalie with the help of a defenseman. The goal was upheld after review, with the puck long in the net before any contact.
Cardiff answered back quickly as Josh MacDonald struck with a goal of his own, levelling the score to 1-1. Tensions on the ice began to rise as Fawcett and Sanford both saw themselves receive penalties for roughing. During the powerplay, with Storm taking an additional minor on the play, Zach O’Brien found the back of Weninger’s net to put the Devils ahead.
"Whether it’s making hits, blocking shots or putting points on the board, you’ve got to do whatever you can to help the team. It was nice to capitalise on the goal and we know we have to work hard every shift" added goal-scorer MacDonald.
The Devils got the all-important next goal inside the final 10 minutes of the game. With Jake Durflinger in the box, Fournier found O'Brien who put the puck on the stick of Tyler Busch in front of the crease to fire high into Weninger's net and put the Devils two ahead with 7:45 to go.
Manchester were not done, however. They failed to score on two penalties taken by the hosts, but did pull themselves back to within one on a delayed penalty – Alexis D’Aoust the scorer in front with 1:17 left on the clock. Weninger was pulled twice inside the final minute but to no avail, and the Devils held on for the home win.
"When we're playing out best, we're hard to beat. Tomorrow we have Coventry who are playing really well at the moment, and they'll be a good test for us" concluded MacDonald.
