Monsters’ Late Stuffing Spoils Bears Night, Lose 5-4

Lake Erie celebrates their 5-4 win over Hershey Saturday night (All photos by Kyle Mace)

How do you start a recap after a game like this? After 76 penalty minutes, 9 goals, many mini line brawls, and a goal that you could argue should not have counted, the Lake Erie Monsters came out on top, 5-4, over the Hershey Bears.

The game looked very good for the Bears at the start as Graham Mink deflected a pass from Keith Aucoin and put the Bears up 1-0 only five minutes into the game.

Boyd Kane would then backhand one past Trevor Cann and gave Hershey a 2-0 lead.

Then a “What was the other guy thinking” moment happened. Christian Hanson dropped the gloves with Eric Hunter, and before Hunter could get his second glove off, Hanson already was pounding away and took down Hunter. Like father, like son.

After making an amazing save, Dany Sabourin would lose his shutout as Lake Erie would tie it up on a goal from Luke Walker, making it 2-1.

But that one goal lead was a little too close for the Bears. Patrick McNeill would get one past from the middle point and put Hershey up 3-1.

Then the train came off the tracks. Lake Erie would score 3 straight goals from Evan Brophey, Hugh Jessiman, and Justin Mercier, to take a 4-3 lead with about ten minutes left.

It wasn’t until there was 52.3 seconds left when Graham Mink deflected Keith Aucoin’s pass (sound familiar?) to tie the game up a four a piece.

With the game looking like it was going to head into OT, Sabourin tried cover it up, but the Monsters kept poking away and got it past and gave them the 5-4 win.

But the game didn’t end there. A mini line brawl broke out after the play which sent Boyd Kane to the locker room a bit early. Then Graham Mink would get to join him as he was given a ten minute misconduct with six seconds left. Both were given abuse of officials penalties (39.5 for Kane, 39.4 for Mink.)

I am a Level 1 referee for USA Hockey and I can tell you it’s hard to make some of these calls. Sometimes you think you see the puck and it’s just a stick, sometimes its a puck and you think it’s a stick. I can see where T.J. Luxmore can say that he saw the saw the puck the whole way in because there were all black sticks in the net. It’s not an easy job, we try to stay out of the game and just keep order, but the few times we get in, we hear about it.

More photos from tonight’s game:
Before tonight’s game, Tim Leone was honored for winning the James H. Ellery award. Congrats Tim!

Graham Mink’s first goal of the game

Christian Hanson pounding away on Eric Hunter

Bears celebrate Kane’s goal

Luke Walker’s uses his force to send one past Sabou (four people will get that joke)

Patrick McNeill and Zach Miskovic celebrate McNeill’s goal

Dany Sabourin with the save of the night

The Capitals’ Red Rockers and Slapshot were at tonight’s game for Washington Capitals night

Brophey scores the only goal of the second period

Lake Erie celebrates one of their three straight goals

Mercier goal to put the Monsters up 4-3

Graham Mink’s goal to tie the game up at 4-4

Aucoin and Mink celebrate Graham’s late goal

The puck under Dany Sabourin’s pads that would later be pushed into the net to give the Monsters a 5-4 lead

And the mini line brawl that ensueded after the Monsters’ late goal

Jacob Micflikier jumped by two Monsters at the end of game

Graham Mink says “See ya in a week, Hershey!!”