Rogers Arena in Vancouver was the place to be Friday night, as the hometown Warriors welcomed in the Ottawa Black Bears. Both teams were in similar positions in the standings, so this one was crucial for a bit of jockeying.
The game as a whole was very low-scoring and featured two phenomenal performances from both netminders. Aden Walsh and the Warriors got the better of the Black Bears, winning 8-4. If you’re a fan of defense and goaltending, this was the game for you.
Ottawa jumped out to an early lead as Eric Fannell buried his first of the game. His marker would be the only one for the Black Bears in the frame, so it’s safe to say that Vancouver settled in very nicely after that. The Warriors rattled off three-in-a-row, courtesy of Adam Charalambides twice and Johnathan Peshko. 3-1 Vancouver after one.
The second quarter featured a lot of the same when it came to stifling defense and great goaltending. Vancouver continued their run, as Marcus Klarich notched his first. But just like Ottawa in the first quarter, that goal would be the only one Vancouver would score in the second. Ottawa scored back-to-back power play goals to make it much more interesting going into halftime. Those goals were scored by Fannell and Connor Kearnan. 4-3 Warriors at the break.
“Would have liked a few more from our offense there,” said Charalambides. “That stuff we’ll clean up at half, and we’ll keep going. He’s (Walsh) awesome, he’s given us a chance every single night, love that guy.”
Both goaltenders showed out in the first half. On one side, Zach Higgins kept Ottawa in it, stopping 18 of 22. Walsh was equally impressive, stopping 15 of 18.
Walsh and the rest of the Warriors completely shut this one down in the second half. Specifically, the third quarter was an exact replica of the first, with Vancouver scoring three goals to Ottawa’s one. The lone Black Bears goal was scored by Kearnan. The three for Vancouver were by Keegan Bal, Charalambides, and Jeff Cornwall. The power play marker by Kearnan was the last goal that Ottawa would score the rest of the way. Walsh and the Warriors’ defense was spectacular. 7-4 Vancouver after three.
The fourth quarter was very rudimentary. Sorry for the broken record speech, but Walsh was sensational. Vancouver’s gameplan to limit any and all scoring chances for Ottawa worked like a charm, all the while notching one more goal to solidify their win. That goal in the fourth was scored by Ryan Martel. Your final, 8-4 Warriors.
Players of the game for Vancouver were Charalambides (3+3), Bal (1+4), and Martel (1+3). There isn’t much more to say about Walsh, the dude balled out. He made 33 saves on 37 shots. For Ottawa, Fannell (2+2) and Kearnan (two goals) led the way. Higgins didn’t have a game to scoff at, just needed a little more help from the offense. He made 41 saves on 49 shots.
“We want to make Rogers a hard arena to come into and get a win,” said Walsh about the team’s seventh-straight home win. “The D really played insane, lots of blocked shots. It was a low shot game, so I had to make sure I was dialed for the ones I was getting.”
Vancouver (4-3) looks to keep the train rolling. Their next few weeks are busy, with their next matchup being on the road against Halifax (2-4). That game is this Friday at 6:30pm. Ottawa (4-3) has to light a match to ignite their offense. Their next crack at it is also this Friday at home against Calgary (3-3). Faceoff in that one is at 7 pm.
