Another tie and yet another agonizing league loss topped off the week for the Oxford Wildcat’s hockey team.
On Dec. 17, the Cats dropped a 7-3 contest to the Brandon Blackhawks, and had to settle for another tie against Lake Orion on Dec. 19, leaving the Wildcats with a 3-4-2 record heading into Christmas break.
The Wildcats came out Wed. against Brandon looking like a team that wanted to win. The first period was well played by the Cats, capitalizing on several chances to bring a 3-2 lead into the second period despite being badly outshot by the Blackhawks.
The second period, however, did not bring good fortune. Brandon came out fired up and scored two quick goals, including one on the powerplay to give them their first lead of the game. Then, just over five minutes into the second period, starting goaltender Mike Stechschulte went down with an injury and was replaced by sophomore Kyle Geiger for the remainder of the game. Brandon continued to press, scoring two more goals to make the score 6-3 Brandon at the end of two.
In the third period, Oxford was able to hold the Blackhawks to just one goal. Geiger managed to stop a Brandon penalty shot, the first faced by Oxford this season, but the Wildcats still lost the game, 7-3. Geiger got the start the game in goal on Friday against the Lake Orion Dragons as injuries kept Oxford’s other two goaltenders, Stechschulte and Beaupied, out of the lineup.
Against the Dragons, JT Anderson scored two goals in the first period. His first came just 49 seconds into the game, and his second at 8:37 off a nice pass by Cody Gould, who ended the game with two assists.
Lake Orion also added a goal in the first period and then again early in the second to knot the game at two apiece. Anderson then netted his third of the game for the hat trick at 2:35. Lake Orion, not to be denied, scored with just 9 seconds left in the second to tie the game again. The back and forth play by both teams did not stop, as sophomore Shaun Madson scored his first goal of the season 53 seconds into the third period.
For the remainder of time, the Wildcats seemed to shut down the Dragons offense, until a penalty shot was called against Oxford for covering the puck in the crease with just 24 seconds left in the game. Geiger’s second penalty shot in as many games was not successful, as Lake Orion scored to end the game with a 4-4 tie. It was the second time this season the Wildcats have tied Lake Orion.
Unlike last season, in which the Wildcats played in a holiday tournament, the team will not play for two weeks over Christmas break, and will resume play on January 7th against Saginaw Nouvel. The game will be played at the Lapeer Polar Palace, and puck drop will be at 7:15.
Mike Stechschulte is a junior at Oxford High School who plans to major in the field of journalism.