Forget the lack of movement on the scoreboard in this instance, and just focus on the reasons why it stayed that way.
Skaneateles and Oswego played to an anything-but-boring 0-0 tie Friday night in a Division II boys’ hockey game in front of a big, enthusiastic crowd at Allyn Arena.
The top two teams in the league combined for 48 shots on goal, many coming from close range. Goaltenders Ethan Kupp (Skaneateles) and Chase Izyk (Oswego) worked hard for their shutouts.
“If you thought that game was boring you don’t know anything about hockey,” Lakers coach Mitch Major. “That was a highly anticipated event. Both teams showed up. A 0-0 game (between) the top two teams is very special.”
Buccaneers coach Andy Rozak didn’t mind returning home with one point instead of two.
“It was fun to be a part of,” Rozak said. “It was an amazing crowd. It was intense, two good teams going at it. I thought both teams played well.”
Rozak’s team had the better of it to start. Kupp had to be sharp in a first period that Oswego held both a territorial, and shots (6-4) edge. Kupp backboned a 43-second stretch when the Bucs had a five-on-three power play.
Skaneateles found a better stride in the middle stanza. The Lakers outshot the visitors, 9-5, but still neither team could get on the board.
The third period was all Skaneateles. The hosts held a 12-4 edge in shots, and one of them hit the post, but again Izyk turned everything away, including a circus stop of a Jake Cooney shot just before regulation time expired.
The five-minute overtime didn’t lack for excitement, either. Kupp was the first to stand out, as the Lakers senior stoned dangerous Oswego forward Justin Clark on a mini-breakaway. Clark was impressed, congratulating Kupp after the play.
Izyk had the post to thank a little later before twice turning aside close range shots.
“(Oswego) is such a hard team to finish off,” Major said. “We gave it our best shot. We almost had them.”
Kupp finished with 18 saves. It was his ninth shutout of the season. “Ethan has a come a long ways,” Major said. “Big-time goalies make the big save when you need it and he did that. That’s a big step for him.
Izyk stopped all 30 shots he faced. “He was on his game, too,” Major said.
When the final buzzer sounded, Skaneateles maintained its two-point edge over the Bucs. The Lakers are 10-1-2 and Oswego is 9-1-2, but the Bucs hold the tiebreaker edge over Skaneateles, having defeated the Lakers, 5-3 back in December.
Still, neither coach is paying much attention to the regular season title race.
“That’s not something we’re thinking about,” Rozak said. “We have a lot of work to do. We’re just thinking about our next game.”
“We just have to worry about our next game,” Major said. “Wherever we end up. (that’s where) we end up.”
Skaneateles (13-1-3 overall) returns to the ice Wednesday to host Clinton at 7:30, all while paying attention to what happens with Oswego as it takes on two other main contenders, New Hartford and Auburn, next week.
