The Flyers hosted the Belfast Giants in their second of back to back home games to open the season. Both Giants and Flyers won their opening Challenge Cup games the previous evening. The Flyers went with an unchanged line up with Austin Farley and Martin Látal both scratched. The Giants who had Kyle Osterberg returning to the Auld Barn for the first time since leaving the Flyers in the summer scratched Scott Conway, Pierre-Olivier Morin and Cameron Pound and started Jackson Whistle who backed up Tom McCollum the previous night.

An early icing by the Flyers resulted in a face off in their defensive zone and 30 seconds in Shane Owen made the first save of a very busy night when he stopped Jordan Kawaguchi. Immediately the Flyers retaliated and they had a glorious chance to open the scoring when Madi Dikhanbek surged forward and went in all alone on Jackson Whistle but at the last moment let the puck roll off his stick and the netminder was able to smother the puck. Elijiah Barriga had a break down the right wing in the 2^nd minute and flashed a shot just wide of the post. Joe Cassetti hit the outside frame of the goal a minute later before Lucas Chiodo tested Whistle with a backhand effort. Olivier LeBlanc had a terrific shot from the bluelines that almost beat Whistle who was fortunate that he got a blocker on it and was then able to fall on the puck and freeze it. Giants were next to threaten in the 8^th minute when Owen let out a rebound but recovered to make a fine leg save from Mark Cooper. We then had a lengthy delay in the game as the officials went to video review for an incident that occurred around Owen’s net. Almost 5 minutes elapsed when the game was restarted with no call made. Giants went on the games first power play in the 11^th minute when Dikhanbek got the gate for interference with an attempted mid ice hip check. Owen made a save on Bobo Carpenter who was stationed at he top of his crease and the Fife netminder was busy again before the penalty expired as he made stops in quick succession from Cassetti and Barriga. Artur Gatiyatov and Nikolai Shulga almost combined in the 15^th minute before a long range shot by Ciaran Long sailed over Owen’s crossbar. Carpenter was denied by a glove save in the 16^th minute and with a minute remaining in the period the Giants went back on the man advantage when Noah Delmas was called for tripping.

The Flyers still had 60 seconds of the Delmas penalty to kill to start the second period and Owen went post to post to deny Kyle Osterberg as the Flyers survived. Cooper from distance saw his shot saved by the pads of Owen in the 22^nd minute and moments later Michael Cichy and Lucas Chiodo broke 2 on 1 but Whistle was alert and made a fine save. The deadlock was broken in the 23^rd minute when a play that was offside wasn’t blown and ex Flyer Kyle Osterberg went through on Owen and slid the puck five hole on the backhand.  Whistle took the puck off the chest a minute later from a Dikhanbek blast but the Flyers were level in the 29^th minute when Johnny Curran stripped the puck at centre ice and he sped through the Giants defence to beat Whistle on the glove side. The Flyers went on their first power play of the match in 30 minutes when Cassetti was called for elbows but it was the Giants who almost regained the lead with a short handed effort from Bo Hanson just going over the bar. Mike Lee then rang the puck off the inside of the post as the Giants were back at full strength and at this point the Giants were creating havoc with their down low cycling of the puck. Owen stood tall however and made numerous saves in a flurry of Giants chances. In 35 minutes Hanson was called for roughing and the Flyers best chance came when Chiodo skated down the gut but Whistle was equal to his shot. In the final minute of the period the Flyers suffered another bad bounce when an attempted cross crease pass by Carpenter hit Leblanc’s skate and went in behind Owen to give the Giants a crucial lead.

Owen had to be sharp in the opening minute of the final period to stop a deflected shot but the Giants doubled their advantage in the 42^nd minute when Carpenter picked up a loose puck around the crease and after some very nifty puck control he was able to lift the puck over Owen and into the net.  Phélix Martineau had a partial break away in the 44^th minute but Whistle dealt with his long range shot before Shulga danced through on the visiting netminder but lost the handle on the puck at the crucial time. In the 45^th minute Chiodo just couldn’t get a tip on a cross crease pass but he would be about to get the Flyers right back into the game as Mason Alderson was penalised for a high stick. The Flyers powerplay almost conceded a shorthanded goal as Long couldn’t finish a 2 on 0 with Owen sticking the puck away before the Flyers went straight down the ice with Curran driving the net, Whistle made the save but a bouncing puck was backhanded on the hop by Chiodo through the pads of Whistle. Cichy was chopped down in the 49th minute when going in on goal which resulted in a penalty shot. Cichy tried to go five hole on Whistle who kept his stick along the ice to deny him. The game was made safe by the Giants with five minutes to go when a speculative shot from out on the blueline found a way into the corner past an unsighted Owen. Cassetti chirped the Fife goalie who retaliated with a slash resulting in offsetting minors. The Flyers kept pushing and pulled Owen in the final minute but to no avail as the Giants held on for their win.

Pic Credits – Jillian McFarlane and Derek Young

The Flyers are next at home on  Saturday 14th September when they entertain the Manchester Storm – tickets can be bought online here:  Tickets – Fife Flyers or look out on social media channels for box office opening times.