Spiders win 2nd and 3rd periods; lose game 6-2

Dec. 6, 2015

The Battle Cats took quick advantage of inattentive defending by the Spiders on Sunday on the way to a 6-2 win.

The Battle Cats struck three times before the Spiders defense got in sync. First the puck found an unattended Battle Cat camped on the weak side post. Brian Dow saved the first few swats at the puck before the still undefended Battle Cat put the puck in the net. Seconds later a pass from behind the net found an undefended Battle Cat in front of the net for an easy one-timer. Minutes later a shot from the point found an unmarked skater at the far post for an easy re-direction. By the end of the period the Spiders were down 4-0.

Once the defense settled in the Spiders got the better of play through the last 2+ periods. Matt Adelmann got the Spiders on the board with a deflection of a Tim Stalpes shot from the blue line. Joe Long added a short-handed breakaway off a back-handed flip out of the zone by Joel Benson.

Unfortunately strong Battle Cat goaltending proved the Spiders had dug themselves too deep a hole. The Battle Cats added two more goals when the Spiders desperation fore-checking resulted in odd man rushes.

Final shots were 38-30 in favor of the Spiders; additional evidence the Spiders got the better of play for the majority of the night. Goaltender Brian Dow, in his last game of the season for the Spiders, played much better than his save total would indicate as he was left high and dry by his defense at times.

One area of concern for the Spiders is an apparent upper-body injury to Aaron Bedessem. Bedessem went hard into the end boards due to contact from a Battle Cat player late in the 1st period. Bedessem skated one shift in the 2nd period before heading to the locker room. Sources close to the team indicate he will be sidelined for at least a week.

The loss drops the Spiders to 3-3-0-0 on the season, though the Spiders are only 1-1/2 games behind the division leading Chaos (4-1-1-0). The Spiders defeated the Chaos 6-2 in the season opener. The Spiders take on the 2nd place Taz Devils (4-2-0-0) at St. Louis Park at 9:30pm on Sunday, December 13th.