News Report

Cup Final Weekend

Chieftains put on a phenomenal display - but Invicta Dynamos get the win

• admin
• 27 March 2023

With the league being completed for the 22/23 season, it was now the weekend of the Cup Finals.

The home leg was away at Invicta, with some key players missing. It was always going to be a difficult task. Invictas rink was full to the brim, there was a huge turnout of travelling Chieftains fans, bringing numerous musical instruments with them, determined to bring the noise and get behind the team as only they know how. The team dug deep, and up until the second period, both teams were level at 2-2. The Chieftains were definitely bringing the fight, but a disallowed goal and some inconsistent refereeing decisions in the third period went against the Chieftains. The Dynamos were able to take advantage and the first leg ended 6-3 to the Invicta Dynamos.

It was yet another sell out at the Riverside for the final leg of the Cup Final, as the players made their way out onto the ice, the noise levels went through the roof, the crowd were fully behind the team.

The first period was extremely fast-paced. The Chieftains had a lot of control over the period. Invicta were definitely under pressure, but their Netminder was pulling out some amazing saves and the Invicta Defence was holding strong. The Chieftains were doing all that they could to try and get the first goal, but the first period ended 0-0.

The second period was much of the same again. Due to accumulated penalties, Cameron Bartlett was unable to play. There was a void in the team, but this was being filled exceptionally well by Sasha Maltsev. We've seen bursts of his talent throughout the season when he's been able to play, but in this game he was on a different level. His play was phenomenal, linking up with other players, creating room and, most importantly, creating chances for the team. Unfortunately, Sasha got a tripping penalty, and almost immediately after, Invicta had scored the first goal. It was 1-0 to Invicta, but at least Sasha was back out on the ice. The Chieftains dug in. With some great saves from Luca and brilliant defending by the team, they were able to keep the counter attacks of Invicta at bay. Grant Bartlett had been working hard all night, hammering the Invicta goal whenever he could. Eventually, one of his shots made it through. The Chieftains were level again. The second period ended 1-1. The Chieftains had 18 shots on the Invicta goal, they had 13 shots on Luca.

It was now time for the final period. The Chieftains needed 3 goals to take the game to overtime, or 4 for the win, a huge ask, but the fans were definitely behind the team all the way. The play was end to end, our defence was holding strong. Richie Pickering definitely had Stan Lascek in his sights all night, as he had also done the night before, a well-timed body check from Richie was greeted with a loud cheer from the fans. Richie was having an amazing game. The Chieftains were really pushing for the next goal and at one point the fans thought they'd got it, the goal light went on, the fans cheered, only for the goal to be disallowed. Almost straight after this, Invicta got the puck down the Chieftains end and it was now 2-1 to Invicta. A cruel twist of fate, but the Chieftains never gave up. With only a couple of minutes left of the game, Invicta were on the counter attack again. This time, Harris, assisted by Lascek, was able to get Invictas third goal of the night.  Even at this point, the Chieftains still kept going, still attacking as hard as they could, they never gave up, the crowd were cheering them on. As the buzzer sounded the end of the game, Invicta had won, but the Chieftains had done themselves proud. They had all worked extremely hard. Considering how far the team have come this season, the future looks really bright with the talent that was on show for this game.

Sasha Maltsev was awarded Man of the Match, thoroughly deserved, a huge talent indeed!

A huge thank you to all of the Chieftains fans for bringing the noise to both games, and thank you to the team. You made it to the Cup Finals! You did us proud!

If you'd like to see the stats for the second leg of the Cup Final, just click here.

#WhatAWeekend #LetsGoChieftains #TheFutureIsBright #AlwaysBringTheNoise