JDHS hockey team plays Palmer tough across the ice
- Klas Stolpe
- 1 day ago
- 6 min read
Crimson Bears lose two, but win small battles against Moose
By Klas Stolpe
Juneau Independent
The Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé Crimson Bears hockey team played their best period of the weekend on Saturday as they exchanged shots with defending state champion Palmer before falling to the Moose 4-0 at Treadwell Arena. JDHS lost 7-2 Friday.
“I thought Palmer came out really fast tonight in the first period,” JDHS coach Matt Boline said. “They looked a lot different than they did last night…and then in the second and third periods we just really snuffed them out. They only had five shots between the two periods. We just snuffed them out.”
JDHS and Palmer, both Northern Lights Conference opponents, had seven shots apiece in the first period.
The Crimson Bears' front line of senior Paxton Mertl and juniors Caden Morris and Tricen Headings, and defensive line of seniors Isaac Phelps and Elliot Welch, were up to the challenge from the faceoff as both sides tested the opponent’s netminder.
JDHS freshman Paxton Willoughby had a close shot on his shift and Welch followed with a near score minutes later as Phelps disrupted a Moose attack, poking the puck away down ice.
JDHS outshot Palmer 6-3 in the second period and 9-2 in the third.
“This is the first series we have played all year,” Phelps said. “They were big time. Palmer is defending state champions. They are no joke. They’re good. We had a really fast floor check. We played great…In that third period, we had 9-2 in shots, we killed them. It is just a tough outcome: we couldn’t finish our shots, we couldn’t crash the net enough. Definitely stuff we can build off of here, but there is a lot of takeaways, too."
"In practice we have been amping up really hard, we are all working really hard…Our two goalies that played…they played lights out, it was great. That was Murphy’s (Sheehan) first start today and I couldn’t have asked for more from him. I would say I am proudest of our goalies this week.”
JDHS Phelps and classmate Elias Schane were noted for their reliable backstops that helped keep the puck out of the Crimson Bears' net and into the Palmer end. Seniors Emerson Newell, Zach Prather and Nolan Cruz; juniors Bryden Roberts, Ole Gifford, Brandon Cruz and Drew Cadigan-McAdoo; sophomores Ryker Nelson, Summit Bos and Dylan Miller; and freshman Manu Adams were also noted by coaches for their weekend play.
“I think we played really well as a team together,” Schane said. “Our team was very physical. That was one of my worries going into this game because in years past playing Palmer they are often a very physical team and that’s an area we struggled in, returning the physicality...I think we were definitely winning the physicality game, especially yesterday in the second period, we were absolutely dominating that front and knocked them off their game.”
A Palmer power play in the first and third periods Saturday resulted in no shots on goal as the Crimson Bears rallied around freshman goalie Murphy Sheehan by forechecking in the defensive zone.
“It's always nice to go on the road and get two wins,” Palmer coach Zack Richards said. “Juneau worked us hard and constantly put on pressure. It didn't make our job easy. We had a few good individual efforts by our leaders. It was nice to see them step up and take control of the game. They provided a spark when it was needed.”
Palmer goals for the game came from senior Zander Anderson with 8:03 remaining in the first period, assisted by senior Levi Goff and sophomore Eli Ringler. Palmer senior Chase Ringler scored with 25 seconds remaining in the second period, assisted by Goff.
The Moose had two goals in the third period. Anderson scored with 10:07 remaining, assisted by junior Dominik Maya, and junior Clayton Conrad scored with 7:45 remaining, assisted by C. Ringler.
JDHS had four power plays, but Palmer sophomore goalie Ryder Lawton earned a clean sheet.
JDHS had just two penalties — for elbowing and hooking. Palmer was whistled for elbowing, hooking, interference and unsportsmanlike conduct.
JDHS junior goalie Taylor Petrie and Sheehan were brilliant in stopping the first shots on goal during the weekend action and were credited for battling back into game mode when scored upon.
“Last night Taylor gave up seven goals, but after every single goal she battled right back, she never quit ever,” Boline said. “That is what we want to see. We had fewer goals scored against today, but Murphy never quit. There wasn’t like two or three goals really quick…He hung in there and fought back. Trying to break those periods up into short increments and focusing on short periods of time instead of the whole 15 minutes helps a lot...We all know that anytime a goal happens on the ice it is not any one person’s fault. It takes the whole team…If you don’t get it on the forecheck properly and you give up an odd-man rush, you can say part of the blame is right there, right? And in the neutral zone if we don’t push them wide and let them go up the middle there is another layer of blame there. Same thing once they cross the blue line…there are layers of blame that could go to any person on the ice for any one goal so I think everyone needs to wear it, coaches included. So anytime we have a goal scored against everybody is saying, it’s my fault, rather than pointing the finger and saying, it’s your fault.”
Sheehan received the third star of the game, Palmer’s Goff the second star and Palmer’s Anderson the first star for his two goals.
After the Thanksgiving break the Crimson Bears will play seven games in 10 days, with four of those conference clashes.
“We limited their shots,” Boline said of Palmer. “We just played one of, if not the best, team in the state in DII and we just held them to 12 shots. So that’s great. They have an outstanding goalie. We have to find a way to score. I think that is our biggest thing we need to work on. I take that as a positive. That is what we are going to focus on for the next two weeks. So we have a lot of work to do and we have some direction on where to go next week.”
JDHS plays at Soldotna and Kenai Dec. 3-6 and at the Houston/Big Lake Tournament Dec. 11-13. Their next home ice play is Dec. 18-19 against Kodiak.
The JDHS JV team of Joshua Monahan, Stahly Sheehan, Victoria Petrie, Austin Roberts, Isabella Martin, Jack Barrett, John Melancon, Sidney Boline, Mason Catrett, Hunter Lingle, Brook Taintor, Braxton Jenkins, Santiago Hoff, Adeline Janson and Winter Osterhout again warmed up the crowd in an early match, losing a tough skate to the Palmer JV.
• Contact Klas Stolpe at klas.stolpe@gmail.com.
