December 6, 2017 at 1:36 p.m.
Edge, Eagles skate to 2-2 tie in GNC opener
Edge, Eagles skate to 2-2 tie in GNC opener
Gwen Frederickson and Madi Losch scored for the Northern Edge, which rallied from an early two-goal deficit to skate to a 2-2 tie with defending GNC champion Northland Pines.
The Northern Edge (1-4-1, 0-0-0-1 Great Northern) found itself down a pair of goals less than nine minutes into the contest, but rallied in a building that has haunted them over the years. Only twice previously had the Edge skated out of Eagle River's historic dome with something other than a loss.
"It stinks walking out of here with a tie when you feel like you were the better team for at least the majority," Edge coach Kevin Sandstrom said. "Unfortunately that one part at the beginning where we clearly were not the better team cost us the win today."
McKenzie Ebert scored in front of the Northern Edge net just five seconds into a power play at the 6:30 mark of the first period. Allison Kieffer tacked on another goal from close range at the 8:56 mark to give the Eagles (0-6-1, 0-0-0-1 Great Northern) a two-goal lead.
"There's been an intimidation factor when it comes to this team and I think that was the case when we hit the ice," Sandstrom said. "Unfortunately, I don't think we realized immediately that we were more than capable of skating with and beating this team if we worked hard."
The Edge got a jolt early in the second when Frederickson scored her first goal in two seasons, banging home a Payton Bunnell pass from the corner 3:48 into the second period.
"I know that was an amazing feeling for No. 27," Sandstrom said, referring to Frederickson. "She's a captain this season. She earned it tonight. She hustled all over the ice."
The Edge tied the game with 7:25 remaining as Losch scored her team-leading fourth goal of the season on a slapshot from just inside the Northland Pines blue line.
Alicia Turunen made 28 saves for the Northern Edge, including two on a flurry with 39 seconds remaining following a turnover in the defensive zone, to force overtime. Pines outshot the Edge 8-6 in the extra session, and 30-19 overall, but neither team was able to score before the end of overtime.
"That's why we play this game for an overtime period like that," Sandstrom said. "Back and forth. Both teams had great chances. The roller coaster of emotions that took place (was incredible).
"We had some big chances on the doorstep. We were ready to go. Maybe a bounce or two in a different direction and we do finish it off."
Shootout snafu
A new GNC rule was not enforced at the end of overtime, denying the conference of its first shootout in girls' hockey history, at least temporally.
The conference constitution was changed prior to the start of the 2017-18 season to align the overtime procedures in girls' hockey with its boys' hockey counterparts. If teams are tied at the end of overtime during a conference game, it is considered a tie for the purposes of overall records, and a three-player shootout is supposed to be held for an extra conference point.
Instead the teams lined up, shook hands and left the ice.
Conference statistician Gregg Scott confirmed to the River News that a shootout should have occurred following overtime, but neither the coaches or officials were aware of the new rule until well after the teams had gone back to their dressing rooms.
"My understanding was that it was a proposal, something that wasn't going to change for this year, but something they were going to look at in the future," Sandstrom explained. "It's something we have to look at. If it is the case that we have to go to a shootout, it's extremely unfortunate that we weren't aware."
Sandstorm said, once aware of the correct procedures, he and Northland Pines coach Patrick Schmidt discussed the situation. Pending conference approval, the two teams will makeup the shootout prior to their second GNC meeting Dec. 21 in Eagle River.
Early timeout
First-period timeouts in hockey are extremely rare, but one the Northern Edge took Monday night may have righted their ship and allowed them to come back to earn the tie.
Sandstrom spent his timeout following Kieffer's goal to refocus his skaters.
"Something was off. Something was wrong. We needed a boost. We needed a change," he said. "It was the right call. It gave us a boost. It gave us a change. We started playing with more intensity."
Carrico injured
The Edge played much of the game with out senior Kourtney Carrico. The team's leading scorer from last year left the game midway through the second period with what Sandstrom described as an "upper body injury." She appeared to be favoring her lower arm or wrist before leaving the bench to be attended to by an on-site trainer.
"We hope its short," Sandstrom said, not immediately certain what Carrico's prognosis was or how much time she may miss. "We hope the recovery is quick and nothing but thoughts and prayers for her, especially a girl who missed her entire sophomore season (with a knee injury). I know the passion that she has for this sport. You really hate, you get a sick feeling in your stomach, watching a girl not be able to return to the ice like that."
Up next
The Edge will face Western Wisconsin Saturday afternoon at the Rhinelander Ice Arena. Faceoff is slated for 4 p.m.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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