News Report

Chieftains vs MK Thunder

A one sided game with a lot of shots on goal!

• admin
• 23 January 2024

MK's team has been bolstered of late, and their last two games have seen them lose by much smaller margins. How would the Chieftains fair against a team that appear to be on the up?

Before the puck had even dropped, the home fans could easily see that MK Thunder were incredibly short-benched for the match. They only had 12 players plus the netminder. It was going to be hard night for the away team.

The puck dropped, and the Chieftains immediately flew into action. The puck was being moved incredibly well, and it only took 72 seconds for the Chieftains to score their first goal of the night. The goal came courtesy of Cameron Bartlett, assisted by Grant Bartlett at 01:12. The Chieftains increased their attack on goal, but MK was limiting the amount of space on the ice. The Chieftains couldn't find a way through, the puck was moved from side to side, and the shots came raining down on the MK goal, but their netminder was performing great saves and the defence was holding. MK Thunder were really struggling to move the puck out of their own half, and the Chieftains kept piling on the pressure. At 09:39, assisted by Sasha Maltsev and Alan Lack, Keiran Raynor scored his first goal of the night (it was now 2-0). At this point, the flood gates seemed to open up. The shots continued to come piling in, sometimes from a distance from one of the Bartlett brothers, others via close skirmishes across the goal mouth. At 12:35, Damon Porter scored the first goal of his night, assisted by Oli Baldock and Hallden Barnes-Garner (it was now 3-0). The Riverside was rocking, but at times, it was also quieter than usual as the fans continued to watch the onslaught. This was turning out to be a very one-sided game. At 15:40, Keiran Raynor scored the second of his night, assisted by James Pentecost and Ben Russell, making it now 4-0. At 18:19, Grant Bartlett scored the last goal of the period, assisted by Leigh Jamieson and Alan Lack. At 18:59, MK Thunder made a late charge on goal and managed to stun the Chieftains by scoring. Cole McCluskey was their scorer, and the first period finished 5-1. The MK Thunder netminder faced an astonishing 36 shots, while Dominic Rae only faced 3.

The second period continued pretty much from where the first period ended. The onslaught towards the MK goal continued. It only took Cam Bartlett 29 seconds to find the back of the net in the second period, he was assisted by Grant Bartlett and Alan Lack. At 21:09, Grant Bartlett then scored, assisted by Ben Russell. Only 30 seconds had passed when the Chieftains scored again. At 21:41, Damon Porter scored, assisted by Oliver Baldock and Hallden Barnes-Garner. The MK Thunder called a timeout, and the home crowd cheered for the Chieftains. With just under two minutes played in the period, the score was now 8-1. The shots continued to rain down on the MK netminder, he was making incredible saves, but the defence in front of him just wasn't protecting him. He was the final stop, and he was playing astonishingly well considering the circumstances. The Chieftains were being incredibly clinical about their attacks. At 24:59, Hallden Barnes-Garner got himself on the scoresheet with a powerplay goal. He was assisted by Jay King and Oli Baldock to make it 9-1. At 26:03, MK again made a surprise charge on goal and were able to secure their second goal of the night courtesy of Mark Austen. It was now 9-2. At 32:25, Alan Lack got himself on the scoresheet, he was assisted by Cameron Bartlett and Ben Russell to make it 10-2. At 35:18, Damon Porter scored to make it 11-2, he was assisted by Ben Russell and Oli Baldock. The goals were coming from everywhere. At 36:26, Leigh Jamieson got a two minute penalty for stick holding. The Cheiftains were on a powerkill, but even this didn't stop the attack on the MK goal. At 36:37, Damon Porter showed his pure brilliance. At lightning pace, Porter weaved his way through the MK positions and placed the puck sweetly behind the MK netminder. It was now 12-2, an absolutely beautiful short-handed goal to witness. The second period finished 12-2. Dominic Rae faced 3 shots, and the MK netminder faced 34!

As the puck dropped for the third and final period, credit has to be given to the MK Thunder bench. With the onslaught they had faced so far, their heads weren't dropping, the netminder was still doing all that he could, and he'd already seen 70 shots before the third period had even started! The Chieftains were very much in control of this game, and the attacking play continued. The team was all synced up, their passes were sweet, and they were moving the puck around the ice well. This all culminated in another Chieftains goal at 42:47. The Chieftains were on a powerplay due to a slashing call against George Howe from MK. This time, the powerplay goal came courtesy of Hallden Barnes-Garner, assisted by Damon Porter and Leigh Jamieson. It was now 13-2. The Chieftains continued their attacks, but the MK netminder was playing out of his skin, he pretty much single-handedly kept the Chieftains from scoring for ten minutes - such a talent as we believe he's only 18! However, at 52:01, Oli Baldock was able to score, assisted by Damon Porter and Eden Rolfe, to make it 14-2. Only 18 seconds had passed before Damon Porter scored again at 52:19 to make it 15-2. He was assisted by Oli Baldock and Hallden Barnes-Garner. At 57:36, once more, Damon Porter scored, assisted by Oli Baldock and Hallden Barnes-Garner to make it 16-2. Those three players hook up so well and are already proving to be a force to be reckoned with this season! At this point, it really looked like the game would finish 16-2, but with just 43 seconds remaining of the final period, up stepped Sasha Maltsev to score a great unassisted goal at 59:17. The game finished 17-2. Dominic Rae faced 6 shots in the third period (12 in total), and the MK netminder faced 37 shots in the third, making it 107 in total. He'd managed to save 90 shots!

I know a lot of Chieftains fans were left very impressed by the MK netminders attitude, ability, and skill. He was rightly awarded MOTM for MK Thunder. For the Chieftains, the MOTM award went to Damon Porter, which was thoroughly deserved. Damon had scored six and also accumulated two assists! Well done, Damon!

We can't wait to see you back at the Riverside very soon!

If you'd like to see the stats for the game, just click here.

#LetsGoChieftains #AnotherClinicalDisplay