With both teams chasing the Glasgow Clan for a possible Challenge Cup play-off position a defeat for either would effectively end their Cup campaign for this season. For the Flyers it was more important to arrest a run of six consecutive defeats, their longest winless streak so far as we closed out the second month of the season. The Stars were without Xavier Pouliot, Brogan O’Brien and the recently announced returnee Philippe Sanche. The Flyers made one change in their roster from the team that lost the previous night in Glasgow with Austin Farley joining Johnny Curran, Janis Voris and James Spence as the scratches as they welcomed back captain Olivier LeBlanc having missed the last six matches.
It was a fairly low key start to the game with Kris Inglis having a shot from the blueline sticked away by Shane Owen whilst at the other end Jarrett Fiske did likewise from a shot by Nikolai Shulga. In the 3rd minute the Flyers went on the first power play of the match when Craig Moore was called for interference. The Flyers almost cashed in on the man advantage with a wrister from Patrick Kyte striking iron and bouncing to safety. The Stars returned to full strength and in the 7th minute they were again under pressure when Drake Pilon and Phélix Martineau combined with the latter firing wide of the target. The Stars went the other way and Zach Tsekos just couldn’t get enough on the puck as he tried to redirect it past Owen who was scrambling in net. The Stars at that point called a timeout. Moments later the visitors took the lead when Jonathan McBean found himself in the slot in splendid isolation and he had two bites of the cherry to force the puck past Owen in the 7th minute. In the 9th minute Fiske had difficulty handling a shot from Martin Látal but covered up at the second attempt. Owen made a smart save in the 11th minute when he covered his nearside post as Jake Elmer tried to stuff the puck home. In the 12th minute Brett Gravelle tested Owen from the slot and moments later on an odd man rush the Stars missed another chance when Kameron Kielly fluffed his shot as he came down main street. The second Stars goal however was only delayed a few seconds as Alex Tonge stepped into the Flyers zone and drove the net before roofing the puck over Owen’s glove. Inglis was called for interference in the 15th minute and the Flyers made the Stars pay. Ryan Foss was in tight on Fiske who made the stop but Martineau followed up and poked home the rebound. In the 17th minute a close in tip by Maxim Musorov was stopped by an alert Fiske and from the ensuing scramble the puck could not find a Flyers stick as the Dundee netminder was left swimming in his crease. The Stars forced a couple of saves in quick succession from Owen before Daniel Krenželok saw his long range effort gloved by Fiske. With 30 seconds of the period remaining Musorov was called for a hold and McBean for a rough in offsetting penalties as the teams stayed at 5 on 5.
In the opening minute of the middle period Domenic Alberga had a shot that Owen couldn’t hold and a minute later the Fife keeper did well to get his pad on a redirected shot that then caused a scramble around his net but the Flyers survived. Stars went on their first power play of the match in the 24th minute when the Flyers were called for too many men. It was a solid kill by the home side and Látal used his speed to set up a short handed chance for Foss who saw Fiske make a save with his shoulder. The Stars best chance was by Tonge but Owen went post to post to make the save as Flyers returned to full strength. The visitors did however score again shortly after when Owen made an initial save on Kielly but could do nothing to prevent a rebound that McBean dispatched. The roof fell in on the Flyers over the next five minutes as the Stars scored three goals. Owen had to make a number of saves in quick succession from Elmer, Ben O’Connor and Brendan Harms whilst at the other end Fiske made a fine save with an outstretched pad to deny Lucas Chiodo who got his stick on a cross crease pass from Martineau. A fourth Stars goal arrived when Harms drove the net and Owen again made the initial save before Elmer put the rebound top corner. The Flyers went on the power play again a minute later as Tonge was called for hooking but the Flyers man advantage lasted only 11 seconds before Patrick Kyte hooked Kielly after he had blocked the blueliners shot and made a break up the ice. With the teams skating 4 on 4 Látal took advantage of the extra space and took the puck to the net but couldn’t force it home but the Flyers did get back into the game just seconds later when Foss picked up a giveaway by O’Connor and he beat Fiske with a neat shot. Within 45 seconds the Stars had doubled down on their lead with two quick fire goals. The first came when Harms set up Tsekos in the slot to give Owen little chance and then Gravelle picked the far bottom corner as the Stars pounced on a turnover in the neutral zone to transition quickly into the Flyers zone. With a four goal cushion the Stars went back on the power play in the 38th minute and were quick to stretch their lead as Elmer did all of the spade work as he burst down the right wing and fed the puck over to Tsekos who had an easy tap in at the top of Owen’s crease as the Flyers looked in complete disarray. In the final minute of the period Craig Garrigan got the gate for the Stars for a slash. The Flyers were unable to fashion any chances on the power play before the period ended.
Into the third period and the carry over penalty was killed by the Stars before Krenželok and Alberga were both binned on five minute fighting majors. Fiske made a blocker save in the 44th minute from a Martineau shot and another power play came the way of the Flyers in the 48th minute when Elmer was penalised for a trip. Inglis made a huge shot block from a Krenželok drive that hobbled him as he struggled to get back to the bench and the Stars were in no mood to give the Flyers any life as they completed the kill. It was Stars turn on the power play in the 52nd minute when Pilon was called for interference. Owen made a shoulder save midway through on an effort from Cole MacDonald as the Flyers killed the penalty. Pilon drove just wide of target in the 54th minute and a minute later a tip from the slot by Keanu Yamamoto clipped the top of the crossbar as the Stars comfortably saw out the remaining minutes of the match.
Pic Credits – Jillian McFarlane and Derek Young
Fife Flyers are next at home on Sunday 3rd November when they entertain the Nottingham Panthers – tickets can be bought online here: Tickets – Fife Flyers or look out on social media channels for box office opening times.