WELLS---The Escanaba High School hockey team improved to 5-0-1 on the season Monday with a 9-1 win over the Negaunee Miners at the Wells Sports Complex.
It was a game that was sloppy early, and then in the third period, with the Eskymos one shot away from ending the game on the mercy rule, things got chippy.
Numerous penalties were called and both teams had a player ejected from the game with major penalties. Escanaba will be without assistant captain Charlie Zuidema for the next two games because of his altercation with Negaunee's Josh Larson in the third period.
Larson ended up with his helmet being ripped off and he hit his head on the ice.
"Unfortunately, we couldn't put this thing to bed earlier," Escanaba Coach Matt Hughes said. "We tried to play all four lines, and five or six defensemen, and so we couldn't put it away quick enough and got ourselves into penalty trouble. That's what happens when a game gets out of hand, and you let the other team stick around a little too long."
The Eskymos played most of the final half of the third period down by five-on-three, with the penalty box overflowing with kids called for various infractions.
Moments later, Negaunee's Ethan Ledford was also given five minutes and a game DQ.
"It's great to be on the winning side," Hughes said. "But, it's difficult as a coach, even when you're winning. Because the discipline isn't where it should be because guys are trying to get that last goal.
"They're getting hit hard, and getting cheap-shotted. So, they want to give it back a little bit, and unfortunately, it kind of bit us."
Offensively, Levi Wunder led the way with another big game against Negaunee.
He scored six goals and two assists during a playoff game against the Miners in Negaunee during his sophomore season.
On Monday, Wunder scored five goals and added three assists to give himself 25 points (13 goals, 12 assists) in his team's first six games.
"He's a competitor every day," Hughes said of Wunder. "He makes plays out there. It doesn't matter who's out there with him. He's gonna make plays, and you're gonna find the puck on your stick. And you might not even know it!"
Escanaba led, 3-0, after a first period that saw very little energy and included numerous turnovers by both teams.
Dylan Gauthier opened the scoring 4;46 into the game, with youngsters Gavin Schwalbach and Blaine Borman assisting.
Later in the period, Negaunee's Eric Hurst was given a five-minute major penalty for checking from behind.
The Eskymos cashed in as Calvin Pinar shot one over the glove of Miners goaltender Anthony Moyle for a power play goal and a 2-0 lead.
Pinar scored another power play goal, set up beautifully by Wunder, with 35 seconds left in the first period to put the Eskymos in front, 3-0.
In the second period, Hayden Haslow was called for holding, giving Negaunee a power play. But Wunder scored an unassisted, top-shelf, shorthanded goal to make it 4-0.
Wunder scored an even-strength goal six minutes later to make it 5-0, then late in the period, Negaunee was called for delay of game as a Miner player desperately tried to freeze the puck in the goal crease. That gave Wunder a shot at a penalty shot goal.
The Eskymo captain cashed in by skating wide, and making a double move that got Moyle to open his legs in the goal crease. Wunder completed his hat trick, and celebrated by leaping into the glass in front of the Eskymo student section.
It looked like the period would end 6-0, but Pinar and Wunder collaborated on a very late goal. Rookie defenseman Josh Nelson let one go as the clock ticked under one second, and it beat Moyle to the glove side. It was Nelson's first Eskymo goal.
"I was just like 'heck with it' and I just wound up for a slapshot," Nelson said. "I didn't even look where it was going. I kind of whiffed on it. I was ready to head back to the bench and I heard the horn, and I heard everyone yelling my name."
"So, I turned around," Nelson continued. "I was so confused, but I saw Levi and Chris LeMire coming at me with their arms in the air and they said 'you just scored, you just scored'."
"I was totally in doubt! But I think it shows that I can get stuff done at this level."
The third period began with a 7-0 lead, and the Eskymos needed just one more goal to end the game on the mercy rule.
But that didn't happen, and what resulted was a period of play that included a lot of trash-talking, after-the-whistle hits, pushing and shoving, and a parade to the penalty box...mostly by the Eskymos.
Negaunee's Erik Voskuhl broke his team's shutout with a power play goal with 8:52 left in the game.
Wunder got that goal back 88 seconds later for the Eskymos to make it 8-1. Many more penalties happened, one by one, keeping Escanaba down by two men for most of the final few minutes.
But Brody Goddard, playing for the first time in the same goal that his dad, Pat, did, years ago, made nine big saves to keep Negaunee off the board. Goddard had no idea that he would be in the net for his first Eskymo appearance until the last minute.
"Right after the warm-ups, before we went on the ice for the game," Goddard said. "I was really excited when I found out. Very nervous, yeah."
Escanaba outshot Negaunee, 15-1, in the first period, making Goodard pretty lonely.
"It wasn't really a busy period," Goddard smiled. "You kind of get out of the game (when no shots come), but you keep talking to yourself to try to keep in the game. It was a very nice experience. I've always wanted to be an Eskymo. It was awesome."
Hughes was impressed with his young goalie's Eskymo debut.
"Brody played great tonight," Hughes said. "His positioning was good. They got the one power play goal on him, but he played well. He made some big second saves. Not just the first save, but he made some big second saves where we didn't clear the puck out."
Once the penalties were all over, Wunder ended the game by getting a loose puck at center ice, pushing past his defenseman, and scoring his fifth goal of the contest.
That happened with 33 seconds left in the third period, and the mercy rule took effect.
Escanaba (5-0-1) outshot Negaunee (3-4-0), 43-16, in the contest.
But the fact that the Eskymos couldn't end the game before all of the extracurricular activities happened irritated Hughes and the boys. And now they will be without Zuidema, an assistant captain, for tough road games at Hancock and Houghton.
Escanaba's first test will be in Hancock Saturday afternoon at the Houghton County Arena, a place that very few Eskymo teams have found success in recent years. The game is set for 1:00.
It will be broadcast live on WCHT-AM (600), and on-line at www.rrnsports.com. The pre-game show will start at 12:45 on Saturday afternoon.
Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box to see photos taken by Mary Gauthier, videos taken by Mike Dagenais, and listen to radio replays and interviews.
It was a game that was sloppy early, and then in the third period, with the Eskymos one shot away from ending the game on the mercy rule, things got chippy.
Third Period Melee leads to ejection
Larson ended up with his helmet being ripped off and he hit his head on the ice.
"Unfortunately, we couldn't put this thing to bed earlier," Escanaba Coach Matt Hughes said. "We tried to play all four lines, and five or six defensemen, and so we couldn't put it away quick enough and got ourselves into penalty trouble. That's what happens when a game gets out of hand, and you let the other team stick around a little too long."
Moments later, Negaunee's Ethan Ledford was also given five minutes and a game DQ.
"It's great to be on the winning side," Hughes said. "But, it's difficult as a coach, even when you're winning. Because the discipline isn't where it should be because guys are trying to get that last goal.
"They're getting hit hard, and getting cheap-shotted. So, they want to give it back a little bit, and unfortunately, it kind of bit us."
Offensively, Levi Wunder led the way with another big game against Negaunee.
He scored six goals and two assists during a playoff game against the Miners in Negaunee during his sophomore season.
On Monday, Wunder scored five goals and added three assists to give himself 25 points (13 goals, 12 assists) in his team's first six games.
Escanaba led, 3-0, after a first period that saw very little energy and included numerous turnovers by both teams.
Dylan Gauthier opened the scoring 4;46 into the game, with youngsters Gavin Schwalbach and Blaine Borman assisting.
Later in the period, Negaunee's Eric Hurst was given a five-minute major penalty for checking from behind.
The Eskymos cashed in as Calvin Pinar shot one over the glove of Miners goaltender Anthony Moyle for a power play goal and a 2-0 lead.
Calvin Pinar scores to make it 3-0.
In the second period, Hayden Haslow was called for holding, giving Negaunee a power play. But Wunder scored an unassisted, top-shelf, shorthanded goal to make it 4-0.
Wunder scored an even-strength goal six minutes later to make it 5-0, then late in the period, Negaunee was called for delay of game as a Miner player desperately tried to freeze the puck in the goal crease. That gave Wunder a shot at a penalty shot goal.
Levi Wunder penalty shot goal.
It looked like the period would end 6-0, but Pinar and Wunder collaborated on a very late goal. Rookie defenseman Josh Nelson let one go as the clock ticked under one second, and it beat Moyle to the glove side. It was Nelson's first Eskymo goal.
"So, I turned around," Nelson continued. "I was so confused, but I saw Levi and Chris LeMire coming at me with their arms in the air and they said 'you just scored, you just scored'."
"I was totally in doubt! But I think it shows that I can get stuff done at this level."
The third period began with a 7-0 lead, and the Eskymos needed just one more goal to end the game on the mercy rule.
But that didn't happen, and what resulted was a period of play that included a lot of trash-talking, after-the-whistle hits, pushing and shoving, and a parade to the penalty box...mostly by the Eskymos.
Josh Nelson scores buzzer-beater
Wunder got that goal back 88 seconds later for the Eskymos to make it 8-1. Many more penalties happened, one by one, keeping Escanaba down by two men for most of the final few minutes.
But Brody Goddard, playing for the first time in the same goal that his dad, Pat, did, years ago, made nine big saves to keep Negaunee off the board. Goddard had no idea that he would be in the net for his first Eskymo appearance until the last minute.
Brodie Goddard #2 star interview
Escanaba outshot Negaunee, 15-1, in the first period, making Goodard pretty lonely.
"It wasn't really a busy period," Goddard smiled. "You kind of get out of the game (when no shots come), but you keep talking to yourself to try to keep in the game. It was a very nice experience. I've always wanted to be an Eskymo. It was awesome."
"Brody played great tonight," Hughes said. "His positioning was good. They got the one power play goal on him, but he played well. He made some big second saves. Not just the first save, but he made some big second saves where we didn't clear the puck out."
Once the penalties were all over, Wunder ended the game by getting a loose puck at center ice, pushing past his defenseman, and scoring his fifth goal of the contest.
That happened with 33 seconds left in the third period, and the mercy rule took effect.
Escanaba (5-0-1) outshot Negaunee (3-4-0), 43-16, in the contest.
But the fact that the Eskymos couldn't end the game before all of the extracurricular activities happened irritated Hughes and the boys. And now they will be without Zuidema, an assistant captain, for tough road games at Hancock and Houghton.
Levi Wunder goal ends the game 9-1.
It will be broadcast live on WCHT-AM (600), and on-line at www.rrnsports.com. The pre-game show will start at 12:45 on Saturday afternoon.
Click the thumbnails in the ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS box to see photos taken by Mary Gauthier, videos taken by Mike Dagenais, and listen to radio replays and interviews.
