SAULT STE. MARIE---It was an empty trip for the Escanaba High School hockey team as the boys made the long ride to Sault Ste. Marie to face the red-hot Blue Devils.
Sault High scored a power play goal less than three minutes into the game and kept the pedal on the metal, routing the Eskymos, 7-1, at historic Pullar Stadium.
"We came out flat and they scored a couple of quick ones," Eskymo Hockey Coach Matt Hughes said. "We just couldn't gather the puck and make a play. We had some chances as the game went on, and we created some odd-man rushes, but we didn't take advantage of them. We'd put the puck into the goalie, or we'd shoot it wide of the net."
Will Gauthier scored three goals and added two assists to lead the Blue Devil attack.
Fellow senior Chris Skinner had two goals and two assists, and Chase Gamelin added a goal and three assists. Sault goaltender Nick McKenzie stopped 29 of 30 shots.
Nick LaCrosse also scored for the Blue Devils, who led the Eskymos, 3-0, after the first period, and 4-0 after the second period.
"They have very skilled players," Hughes said. "The one thing that they do that stuck out to me is their work ethic. They work hard. They're a big, fast, strong team, and they move the puck well. They worked harder than our guys for most of the night."
For the Eskymos, captain Derek Chaillier scored a power play goal off of a nice feed from Levi Wunder. Unfortunately, that happened with 3:22 left, with the score 6-0.
Escanaba goaltender Nick LeMire took the loss, making 31 saves on 38 shots.
With the win, Sault Ste. Marie improved to 15-2-2. The Blue Devils are ranked #4 in the state in Division Three, according to U.S. High School Hockey On-Line rankings.
Escanaba fell to 11-5-2 on the season, with four of those losses coming to #4 Sault and #2 Houghton. Escanaba is ranked eighth in the state in Division Two, despite the loss.
"After the game, I told the boys that this is gut-check time," Hughes said. "We really need to start working harder, especially against better teams.
"You can make mistakes against some of the weaker teams and get by. But when you play good teams that take advantage of our mistakes, this is what happens."
The Eskymos are off for the next week, when they travel to Chelsea to compete in the Michigan Public High School Hockey Showcase.
The Eskymo boys will face Farmington on Thursday, Feb. 8, in their first game. Escanaba will also take on Marysville on Feb. 9, and Berkley on Feb. 10. All three teams are from the suburban Detroit area. WCHT-AM (600) will broadcas the games live.
Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box to see photos taken by Todd Myrick, and listen to radio highlights and the player spotlight interview with Eskymo freshman Chris LeMire.
Sault High scored a power play goal less than three minutes into the game and kept the pedal on the metal, routing the Eskymos, 7-1, at historic Pullar Stadium.
Will Gauthier scored three goals and added two assists to lead the Blue Devil attack.
Fellow senior Chris Skinner had two goals and two assists, and Chase Gamelin added a goal and three assists. Sault goaltender Nick McKenzie stopped 29 of 30 shots.
Nick LaCrosse also scored for the Blue Devils, who led the Eskymos, 3-0, after the first period, and 4-0 after the second period.
"They have very skilled players," Hughes said. "The one thing that they do that stuck out to me is their work ethic. They work hard. They're a big, fast, strong team, and they move the puck well. They worked harder than our guys for most of the night."
Derek Chaillier scores for Escanaba.
Escanaba goaltender Nick LeMire took the loss, making 31 saves on 38 shots.
With the win, Sault Ste. Marie improved to 15-2-2. The Blue Devils are ranked #4 in the state in Division Three, according to U.S. High School Hockey On-Line rankings.
"After the game, I told the boys that this is gut-check time," Hughes said. "We really need to start working harder, especially against better teams.
"You can make mistakes against some of the weaker teams and get by. But when you play good teams that take advantage of our mistakes, this is what happens."
The Eskymos are off for the next week, when they travel to Chelsea to compete in the Michigan Public High School Hockey Showcase.
The Eskymo boys will face Farmington on Thursday, Feb. 8, in their first game. Escanaba will also take on Marysville on Feb. 9, and Berkley on Feb. 10. All three teams are from the suburban Detroit area. WCHT-AM (600) will broadcas the games live.
Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box to see photos taken by Todd Myrick, and listen to radio highlights and the player spotlight interview with Eskymo freshman Chris LeMire.
Eskymo goaltender Nick LeMire and defenseman TJ Myrick make sure of this save. (Todd Myrick photo)
