Match Report | 17th April 2008 » Sheffield Scimitars 2-4 Bracknell Bees

Face Off: 3.00pm, Saturday 12th April 2008

EPL Semi-final, Coventry. 12.4.08
Sheffield Scimitars 2 v 4 Bracknell Bees
Match Report by Andy Coupe

Neil Abel's reign over the Sheffield Scimitars finished on Saturday afternoon with a hard-fought four two defeat in the first semi-final of the EPL Finals weekend.

The game started with the Bracknell Bees attacking hard on an early penalty kill, with player coach Parrish hitting a shot straight at netminder Paul Jones, soon followed by a shorthanded goal by captain Adam Bicknell at 0.55. The puck went in off a Scimitar's D-man's skate, with an assist given to Michal Kanka.

Scimitars responded with attacks from Slamiar, Wallace, and Morgan, and solid defensive work by Haywood, Gibson, and Goodman. The Scimitars did not look as confident as usual and passes were tending to go astray in the first period.

James Goodman carried the puck forward as far as the Bees blue line, but was flattened by Peter Jasik, who received two minutes for kneeing at 9.37. Robert Dowd, an Elite league playoff winner last weekend, took the puck behind Rockman's net and passed out to Shudra, who spun round for a shot on goal.

Bees were penalised again at 11.27, with Carlon knocking away a dropped stick, but the Scimitars still couldn't take advantage. A number of passes were charged down, but a few shots made it as far as the netminder. The play flowed backwards and forwards evenly for the rest of the period, with Bracknell being out-shot 13 to 7, but hanging on to their single goal lead.

The Scimitars started the second period well, but three or four minutes in, things started to slip, with passes going wide again and an opening missed in front of goal.

Dowd skated well on the puck, settling the team a little, and had the first of a flurry of shots on goal. Wallace found the back of the net at 32.48, with Shudra setting him off clear from the halfway line. Wallace skated in fast, drew the goalie across, and shot past to score with a backhander.

With the score level, Jones made a pair of great saves to keep it all square, and Moberg tested Rockman with a powerplay shot before Dowd scored for the Scimitars at 35.27, still with the one man advantage. A cross from Wallace got stuck on the skates of Simon Butterworth and his marker, before being pushed across to the wing for Dowd to bury into the net.

Wallace tried to make it three for the Sheffield team, dancing through the zone and pinging a shot off the post, and at the other end Paul Jones made a string of athletic saves. Further shots were saved or hit the metal, and the middle period finished with the Scimitars a goal ahead after two great goals and looking good.

The decisive final period saw an early equalising goal from Michal Kanka, shorthanded at 42.18, with Parrish assisting. A charge by Lloyd Gibson was stopped dead by a collision behind the Bees net, leaving him bleeding from a cut eyebrow, and Butterworth was penalised at 43.38 when Kanka went down easily in front of the referee. A vicious bounce at 45.20 beat Jones for a powerplay goal, scored by Dwight Parrish.

The Scimitars struggled to clear their zone with the Bees pushing their advantage, and made a few unforced errors as they dropped down to two forward lines, trying to grind out a goal to get back in the game.

A pivotal moment came at 51.52, with Jones forced to skate almost to the blue line to clear a puck in the face of two unopposed attackers. Bracknell's Kurt Reynolds hit Jones after the clearance, knocking him to the ice and leaving the netminder's helmet spinning across the rink. A match penalty for Reynolds could not make up for the effects on Jones, and Bracknell dug deep to kill the five minute Sheffield powerplay, repeatedly launching the puck the full length of the ice.

Shots were saved at both ends, before Tom Carlon snapped the puck across the goalmouth to Peter Jasik on a 2 on 1 for the import to shoot home behind Jones at 58.58, sealing the game and a place in the final for the Bees.

Although, ultimately, the Scimitars couldn't manage the kind of team performance that saw them finish the season on such a high, three Coventry semi-finals in three EPL seasons and a team based around a core of young British players makes a strong legacy for any new coach to inherit and with the injuries sustained this year to key players the Scimitars run down the final stretch was a massive achievement.

The EPL Final on Sunday was between Bracknell Bees and Slough Jets, (who had beaten Guildford Flames in the 2nd semi-final), which Slough Jets won easily 4-1, to lift the Playoff Cup.

Game Details
Period Scores
Sheffield 0/2/0 = 3
Bracknell 1/0/3 = 4
Penalty Mins
Sheffield 4/0/4 = 8
Bracknell 8/2/29 = 39
SOG
Jones 7/16/9 = 32/4
Rockman 13/10/12 = 35/2
Scoring Details
Sheffield: Wallace 1+1, Dowd 1+0, Butterworth & Shudra 0+1. MOM. S. Wallace
Bracknell: Parrish & Kanka 1+1, Bicknell 1+0, Thompson, Carlon & Melichar 0+1. MOM. D. Parrish
Referee: Matt Thompson. Linesmen: Will Hewitt, Tom Stephenson

Previous Match Report: Guildford Flames 4-3 Sheffield Scimitars
11th April 2008

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