The Halifax Thunderbirds soared into Philadelphia and came out with a huge 14-10 win on Saturday evening at Wells Fargo Centre.
The game (which had a playoff vibe) was fast and physical. It came down to the little things that ended up making the difference in the game, including a controversial goal that wasn’t a goal – but then became a goal because the official didn’t blow the whistle in time.
Off a faceoff, with Halifax gaining possession, Jake Withers was called for goaltender interference, but the refs hand didn’t go up until a split-second before Clarke Petterson grabbed a loose ball and beat Zach Higgins.
To those watching, it looked like the goal should have been waved off if Halifax had a penalty coming… and that WAS the initial call, but the referees conferred immediately and reversed the call, saying that the whistle had not gone before the goal, therefore the goal should count. Wings’ head coach Paul Day challenged the call, but it changed nothing.
In the moment, Wings’ head coach Paul Day told ESPN’s Devan Kaney that “30 years in this game I don’t ever remember them ever waving it off no goal, giving them team a penalty and then I have to review it. It’s a bad call by the ref. He didn’t blow the whistle, they checked us in the crease, that’s how they got the ball.”
He expanded on the critical call that could have changed the game during a postgame media scrum.
“We really don’t know… I guess I’ve never really seen that happen before… The original referee called it off, no goal, so I’m not even sure that I have to challenge, to be honest with you. It’s no goal at the time and I don’t think I’ve ever seen it changed. But, obviously, they ended up with the ball, due to the penalty. So I think the league is trying to say that the referee needs to blow the whistle, but obviously we need to change that, if the goal results because of the penalty. It shouldn’t be a goal, as far as I am concerned. In any other league, I’ve never seen it happen, in any other league or in 30 years of this.”
Game video didn’t even show Withers anywhere near Higgins.
The Thunderbirds ended the first with a 4-1 lead that silenced an almost sold out crowd. Mitch Jones started the scoring off. Halifax soundly answered back, scoring three straight from Eric Fannell, Ryan Benesch and Clarke Petterson.
The game was quite physical from the start, with the bigger guys laying hard hits while Halifax moved the ball quickly. Trevor Baptiste struggled with faceoffs for the first time at home this season, battling against Jake Withers.
The second quarter saw Halifax score four more goals, while Philadelphia battled back by adding three. Seven different players scored in the quarter, including a stunning goal by Taite Cattoni.
Philadelphia fans collectively held their breaths at the start of the third quarter. This has been where the Wings struggled to keep themselves in the game, all season long, but the players shocked the fans by scoring outscoring Halifax 4-2. The stadium was rocking again.
Quarter four saw Halifax come together and hold the Wings off for the win.
Also unusual in this game was the struggle of Zach Higgins seeing the ball. He was pulled and replaced by Angus Goodleaf who was solid, making 32 saves.
Ben McIntosh reflected on Goodleaf’s play, saying “in the locker room, he is a leader, right? He may not see a lot of floor time, and fans may not see a ton of him, but he’s an absolute leader. He’s been around this game a long time. We know we have one of the best backups in the league, so we have full confidence in him coming in to set it up. I’m super proud of him. He played great tonight.”
Also playing well was McIntosh who had four goals. He was disappointed that the team couldn’t pull out the win. Mitch Jones also played well, contributing seven points. For Halifax, Eric Fannell had three goals while Cody Jamieson had six points.
The Wings next have their last home game on Sunday night at 6 p.m. against Rochester. Halifax will host Georgia earlier that afternoon at 1 p.m.
