LAKE FOREST, Ill. — On Sunday night the Lake Forest Scouts varsity blue hockey team faced off against the Nazareth North Stars in hopes of improving their record to (3-1-1). Meanwhile, Nazareth came into Lake Forest struggling with an underwhelming record of (1-5-1). The North Stars were hoping for one little spark to help their season get back on track. The game started off in the Scouts’ favor, but as time went on, Nazareth was able to gain some confidence and mount a serious comeback.
After a slow beginning five minutes of the first period, the Scouts offense began to flow, leading to their first goal of the night. With 9:19 remaining, Jack Kaptrosky scored an unassisted, wrap-around goal to give Lake Forest an early 1-0 advantage over the North Stars. Just five minutes later, defensive specialist Stefan Riedel got in on the action with a goal from an awkward spot on the right side of the goal. The shot snuck in and the Scouts suddenly had a commanding 2-0 lead. Lake Forest refused to stop there, however, as Jack Kaptrosky once again scored another big goal with 2:17 remaining in the period, which tallied up to be his fifth goal of the season. Now, with a three goal lead over Nazareth, the Scouts’ main focus was their defense as the North Stars would have to redouble their offensive attack. The North Stars had other plans and with just over a minute left in the first, Nazareth forward Dominic Melone scored a clutch goal to give the North Stars some life entering the second period.
Just like in the first period of play, Lake Forest dominated possession of the puck, but this time they couldn’t seem to get it passed goaltender Ryan Schejbal. The freshman star made some eye-popping saves to keep the game at a manageable score for his team. The Nazareth North Stars’ big problem was still their lack of offensive possession and scoring opportunities. Lake Forest did very well in controlling the puck up until the third period when the North Stars took over.
You could sense a Nazareth comeback from the first five minutes of the 3rd period. The North Stars were doing a much better job with puck possession and created a few good scoring chances here and there. However, it wasn’t until just over three minutes in to the final period when the North Stars cut the lead to one. Senior Michael Maggos scored a diving goal making it a one score game with 3:05 remaining in regulation. Suddenly, Nazareth had momentum. In what would have likely been their final possession of the game, senior John Mangan stuffed the puck passed Scouts goaltender Jack Nemickas to tie the game at three. The Scouts had one final possession before the final horn sounded, but failed to score, which ultimately resulted in their second tie of the season.
After having an early lead over a one win hockey team, it doesn’t feel great to give the game up in the final minutes of play. It seemed as if the Nazareth North Stars kept getting increasingly better as the game went on, allowing them to get back in to the contest. The Scouts did a great job by getting out front early, but failed to close the game out, which is going to have to be a point emphasis in practice this week for the Scouts.
Luckily, the Scouts will have a chance to redeem themselves tomorrow night at 9:00 PM at Centennial arena against Highland Park. The Giants thus far have won three games along with one loss and three ties. It should be a very exciting matchup featuring two solid teams.
