REPORT: MATCH WEEK 32

BILLINGHAM STARS racked up the goals once again in their National Ice Hockey League Moralee Division playoff semi-final series over the weekend, Deeside Dragons put to the sword as the top seeds made the Steel City Showdown comfortably with a 21-3 aggregate win.

Travelling to North Wales on Saturday missing Joe Dowdle and Joe Walls, the Stars added Tom Wakefield to the roster. The first period showed no signs of what was to come as the two sides battled out a single goal session, Rolands Gritāns tipping a Darren Stattersfield shot from the point through the five hole in the 16th minute.

Billingham moved up several gears in the second stanza and took the game – and the tie – away from their opponents as they ran riot. It was Gritāns again, following up a James Moss effort on one knee, who got the scoring underway with just 31 seconds on the clock. Iain Brown spun himself into the right position to force the puck home on the power play in the 23rd minute before Michael Elder went blocker side on the breakaway in the 26th minute. On the penalty kill in the 28th minute, Ben Greenhalgh took the puck out of the neutral zone and fired a rocket at Dragons netminder Phil Pearson that he could do little about. Wakefield was in the right place to tap home a Shaun Galloway rebound in the 32nd minute before Brown made it 0-7 and no way back for the home side on the power play in the 36th minute, Jace Gledhill replacing Pearson between the pipes at this point.

The contest effectively over, the Stars made sure of their progress when Callum Wilkinson found himself in the right spot as he has been for much of the season on the power play to lift over Gledhill in the 50th minute. Cade King broke Jacob Hammond’s shut out by beating him stick side in the 53rd minute, but a beautiful tic-tac-toe move was finished by Brown in the 58th minute for his hat trick and a dominant 1-9 performance.

Man-of-the-Match for Billingham was Callum Wilkinson.

Dragons Stats:

Cade King 1+0; Michael Clancy 0+1; Brodie Jesson 0+1

SOG: Phil Pearson 29 (13 / 16); Jace Gledhill 22 (4 / 18)

Stars Stats:

Iain Brown 3+1; Rolands Gritāns 2+0; Michael Elder 1+2; Callum Wilkinson 1+2; Ben Greenhalgh 1+0; Tom Wakefield 1+0; Chris Sykes 0+4; James Moss 0+1; Tommy Spraggon 0+1; Shaun Galloway 0+1; Darren Stattersfield 0+1

SOG: Jacob Hammond 41 (9 / 17 / 15)

Credit: Colin Edwards, CJE Photos

The Buccaneers also in playoff action, Billingham were without Lucas Dowdle and Tom Wakefield for Sunday’s game as they joined the Laidler side in Sheffield to face Sutton Sting, but were able to welcome back Joe Walls. A quieter start to the first period was eventually broken by Michael Elder whose laser from the high slot beat Gledhill in the 14th minute. The Dragons were determined to at least make the second leg more interesting and were level on the night when Daniels Fadejevs backhanded past Mark Turnbull between the Stars pipes in the 19th minute.

Credit: Colin Edwards, CJE Photos

The visitors moved ahead in the first minute of the middle session, Ross Kennedy pouncing on a loose puck and lifting it over Turnbull, but that was as good as it got for Deeside, the home side back level in the 26th minute when Elder broke with Chris Sykes, the Captain electing not to use his wing man and firing past Gledhill. A well-taken power play goal from Stattersfield saw the hosts back in front in the 34th minute, then two late goals from Gritāns and Brown spelled the end of the Dragons resistance and a long twenty minutes in prospect.

Credit: Colin Edwards, CJE Photos

And so it proved as Billingham rattled seven further goals past their beleaguered opponents. Conner McNulty finally got himself on the scoresheet when he took the puck in close and went round Gledhill with 32 seconds played. Just 31 seconds later, Brown found himself in on goal and he made no mistake. Another ‘from the knee’ power play one timer from Gritāns on the 49-minute mark made it 8-2 and the end of Gledhill’s stint as Pearson returned to the Dragons net. A minute later, Sykes stickhandled himself into space and past Pearson before a low one-timer from McNulty in the 53rd minute saw the Stars hit double figures. Sykes picked his spot in the 54th minute for his second of the night, and it was down to Walls to add the final flourish with a coast-to-coast effort in the dying seconds for a 12-2 result.

Man-of-the-Match for Billingham was Shaun Galloway.

Credit: Colin Edwards, CJE Photos

Stars Stats:

Chris Sykes 2+4; Conner McNulty 2+2; Michael Elder 2+2; Iain Brown 2+2; Rolands Gritāns 2+0; Darren Stattersfield 1+2; Joe Walls 1+0; James Moss 0+3; James Hellens 0+2; Callum Wilkinson 0+1

SOG: Mark Turnbull 35 (17 / 9 / 9)

Dragons Stats:

Ross Kennedy 1+0; Daniels Fadejevs 1+0; James Parsons 0+1; Cody Ogden 0+1; Jake Witkowski 0+1

SOG: Jace Gledhill 36 (10 / 14 / 12); Phil Pearson 8

In the other semi-final, Blackburn Hawks overcame a one goal deficit from the first leg to beat Solihull Barons 8-5 on aggregate, setting up a repeat of last year’s final.

Credit: Colin Edwards, CJE Photos

Weekend Results:

NIHL Moralee Playoff Semi-Finals:

💫 Billingham Stars 2️⃣1️⃣ - 3️⃣ Deeside Dragons 🐉

⚜️ Solihull Barons 5️⃣ - 8️⃣ Blackburn Hawks 🦅