Storm stay in hunt for next round of Cup
Photo: Panthers Images
Manchester Storm kept their hopes of making the next round of the Challenge Cup very much alive with a 3-1 win in Nottingham over the Panthers.
Loren Ulett broke the deadlock early with a quick shot that beat Ryan Bednard five-hole that may have deflected on its way to the net. That was one of only three shots on target that Storm had in the opening period, - Evan Weninger kept them ahead at the other end as the hosts successfully killed off two penalties and absorbed a large amount of Panthers pressure. Tyler Hinam did hit a post inside the closing moments of the period as the Storm hit on the counter attack.
The home side started period two the better, and indeed were on top for 15 of the 20 second-period minutes. Kristoff Kontos took a Matt Spencer stretch pass and beat Weninger five-hole to level the game. The Panthers’ dominance earlier in the period, but failure to add to their tally, came back to haunt them in the final five minutes of the second. Stephan Johnson fed Hinam to score 2-on-1 shorthanded and put the Storm back ahead at 35:36, while 26 seconds before the buzzer Ulett wristed one past Bednard from the top of the circle to score on a powerplay and give Storm a 3-1 lead.
The closest Manchester came to extending their lead in the early stages of period three came via Bednard who almost fired the puck into his own net as he went to play it around the back boards. Weninger pulled off a good quick stop on a Reid Stefanson shot from close range as the Panthers tried to get one back inside the final five minutes.
Bednard was pulled with over three minutes to go as the Panthers played their final card to get back into things. Ulett blocked one of the Panthers’ best chances to fire a shot from the point, while Ryan Hughes almost found the empty net from his own goal line only for the puck to come back off the outside of the post.
Storm held out for the win and keep themselves in with a realistic shot of making the next round of the Cup.
