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Eskymos Come Up Short Again In Keweenaw, 3-2
 Click thumbnails to see photos and videos, and to hear post-game comments from #2 star Owen LaBonte and Coach Andy Johnson. The Jets came into the game with a 13-1-0 record, ranked sixth in the state in Division Three, while the Eskymos, playing a brutal schedule of top-ranked teams, came in at 10-6-0 and ranked tenth. This game went to the wire, with the Jets taking advantage of their opportunities and the Eskymos getting a little bit of unlucky “puck-luck”.  Jeffers scored a pair of power play goals, while the Eskymos missed out on all five of their power play opportunities. And the Jets took advantage of a couple of Eskymo defensive breakdowns in the neutral zone to help them beat Escanaba for the fourth straight time over the past two seasons. Brit Heinonen scored two goals and Griffin Heinonen scored the other as the Jets continued to build on their best season in program history. Ben Sands scored a first period goal from an impossible angle in the left corner of the ice to give the Eskymos a 1-0 lead, which stood up for the entire first period, and for much of the second period. But the Eskymos got in the “sin bin” with Lincoln Bradfield going to the box, and Heinonen took advantage with a goal at the 12:09 mark. Escanaba had a power play chance when Jeffers was called for too many men on the ice in the final two minutes, but could not take advantage. Cale Carter was stopped on a breakaway as Jeffers goalie Kasen Helminen came way out to poke-check the puck (sending Carter flying into the net in the process). No penalty was called. Early in the third period, Sands went to the penalty box, and the Jets cashed in again. This time, it was Griffin Heinonen who skated right up the middle of the ice, untouched, and put one by Eskymo goaltender Cully Hayes, to give Jeffers a 2-1 lead.  Less than a minute later, another rush to the Eskymo net led to a 2-on-1 for the Jets. Hayes made the first save, but Brit Heinonen scored his second goal of the game, his 30th of the season, to give Jeffers a 3-1 lead. The Eskymos didn't quit. Owen LaBonte pinched in at the blue line and the gamble paid off as he skated up the left side and scored on a rebound goal to cut the deficit to 3-2, and there were still seven minutes left in the game. Escanaba's leading scorer, Graham Johnson, had two great chances to score the tying goal, but one clanked hard off the crossbar after he had Helminen beat up high, and the other, the goalie squeezed his pads together just in time to get enough of the puck, stopping a five-hole goal. Escanaba had another chance in the final two minutes when Ethan Anderson was called for hooking. It was Escanaba's fifth power play, and the Eskymos would eventually get a two-man advantage when Hayes was pulled for a sixth attacker, but the Eskymos could not score. Another difference was face-offs. The Eskymos have won the majority of draws this season, but not Friday night. The Jets routinely won the face-off at both ends of the ice, and senior Cody Turner led the way in that department with multiple wins. Hayes, the only goaltender the Eskymos have had for three straight seasons, stopped 26 of the 28 shots he faced in a losing effort. The loss left the Eskymos with an 0-5 record against teams from the Copper Country (Houghton, Hancock, Calumet, Jeffers). Escanaba (10-7-0) will take the next week off before hosting the Negaunee Miners on Jan. 28. That game will be broadcast live on FM-93.5, AM-600, and rrnsports.com.  |
