The Flyers welcomed the Manchester Storm for their opening Elite League match of the season. The Storm who had opened the weekend the night before by being shutout at home against the Nottingham Panthers were looking to end a run of two consecutive defeats. The Storm scratches were Tyler Hinam and Stephen Johnson with the Flyers not icing Fynn Page who was on duty with the Bristol Pitbulls,  Martin Látal and Madi Dikhanbek. 80 seconds in and Storm’s Alexis D’Aoust gave Shane Owen his first work of the evening firing the puck into the chest of the netminder. Evan Weninger at the other end was soon in the action with an incredible save when Maxim Musorov looked certain to finish on a 2 on 1 break but the keeper somehow got something on the puck to deflect it off the bar. The Flyers looked dangerous and Michael Cichy fired high over the bar from close range in the 4^th minute but the Storm responded immediately when Jake Durflinger fanned on a cross ice pass with the Flyers net gaping. A minute later and Owen had to look sharp to deny Ryan Hughes on a rebound but it was the visitors who broke the deadlock in the 9^th minute after some set up play behind the goal by Durflinger saw the puck fed out into the slot and finished by Loren Ulett with a one timer. Within two minutes the Flyers  were level from a goal in similar circumstances with Artur Gatiyatov down behind the Storm blueline feeding the puck out front and Musorov buried it into the bottom corner.  The game was wide open with both sides looking to break quickly and leaving gaps at the back and Owen produced a fine toe save from Grant Hebert in the 15^th minute. In the 18^th minute the Flyers took the lead when Lucas Chiodo danced through the centre of the Storm defence to be denied by Weninger but the puck was recycled and Johnny Curran fired it under the visiting netminder. It could and perhaps should have been 3-1 a minute later but on a 2 on 1 breakaway Austin Farley lost control of the puck at the vital time with most of the net to aim at.

The open nature of the game continued into the second period and Curran tested Weninger in the opening minute who made a pad save. In the 22^nd minute Joe Morrow stickhandled his way towards the home goal but slid his shot wide of the net. The Storm went on the first and only power play of the match in the 23^rd minute when Musorov was called for delay of game after lifting the puck over the glass. Midway through the penalty kill Owen went post to post on Cam Critchlow who didn’t really have much of an angle to shoot at the net. With the Flyers returning to full strength Noah Delmas was up on the rush but shot high off target. The Flyers did extend their lead however in the 27^th minute when fine set up play and puck possession by Curran found Nikolai Shulga who buried it past Weninger. A minute later and Phélix Martineau was unlucky to see a wrist shot strike the iron and within a minute the Storm had cut the lead in half. Weninger made a heads up play to lift the puck up the ice to Durflinger who was hanging at the Flyers blueline as they changed and he simply walked in on Owen and went top shelf over the goalies blocker. Within a minute however the two goal lead was restored as Chiodo picked out Martineau with a cross ice pass and from the bottom of the circles he found the net. Incredibly just 33 seconds later and Ulett won a puck battle against Delmas in the slot to bag his second of the night and make it a one goal game again. Owen then had to scramble on his goal line to preserve the lead as Storm gained the momentum in the match. In the 35^th minute Gianluca Estevez almost connected at the back door with a wide open net following another Flyers turnover in their own defensive zone.

Going into the third period the next goal of the game felt crucial and just over a minute in the Flyers once again restored their two goal lead when the puck came loose along the boards and Cichy fed Chiodo who found the net from the high slot. There was another quick response however from the Storm as two minute slater Ulett completed his hat trick after a pretty tic tac toe play involving Hebert and Duflinger.  A minute later and Own made a fine toe save on Hebert and a few minutes later Chiodo snuck in to steal a loose puck but he couldn’t beat Wenninger’s glove. In the 48^th minute another breakdown in the Flyers zone saw Dallas Ehrhardt wide open in the slot but he fired the puck over the crossbar. Manchester appeared to have the better legs for most of the third period and their persistence was rewarded when a speculative shot from D’Aoust from just inside the blueline somehow squeaked through Owen’s glove. With time ticking down the Flyers were hanging on for what they hoped would be at least a point but with just 16 ticks remaining on the clock the visitors snatched both points when Durflinger and Hebert won puck battles to find an open Ulett to crash the puck into the net for his fourth goal of the night.

Pic Credits – Jillian McFarlane and Derek Young

The Flyers are next at home on  Sunday 22nd September when they entertain the Glasgow Clan – tickets can be bought online here:  Tickets – Fife Flyers or look out on social media channels for box office opening times.