Spiders hold on against Ak Bars to win 4–2 at last-ever Coliseum game for team

Jan. 5, 2014

The storied Lee & Rose Warner Coliseum at the Minnesota State Fair has seen some legendary hockey in its day. Sunday’s Spiders/Ak Bars tilt did not disappoint.

Built in 1951 on the site of the old St. Paul Hippodrome, the Coliseum, considered one of Minnesota’s “most hallowed hockey grounds,” has witnessed the place of the best — and worst — of Spider hockey over the last decade. As reported last week, the low point came in the 2007–08 season with a three-game stand, and three consecutive drubbings. But an upset of the first-place Moose to get back in the playoff hunt showed the best of Spider hockey.

In December, the State Fair announced it would be ceasing its ice rink operations due, in part, to “lack of use.” Apparently a jab at the Spiders’ lack of skating ability.

The Spiders, having put together a three-game winning streak in December, wanted to use its last game in the Coliseum to go out in Pronto-Pup style.

Gametime temperatures Sunday were slightly lower than the usual Labor Day weekend humidity in Falcon Heights. But that didn’t stop at least six people (including one with the obligatory Ak Bar cowbell) from braving the governor-mandated state shutdown to come watch the Spiders and Ak Bars for their first 2014 game.

The temps and team bus flu did seem to keep a lot of Spiders away, as the bench — at 12, to start the game — was the shortest yet of the 2013–14 season.

The Spiders started out on the right skate though, as d-man Rick Fritz ignored the pass requests of his forwards, and instead, carried in, had his shot blocked, picked up his own rebound and put it away from the right faceoff dot.

Later in the first, Andy Schwinn made it 2–0 for the Spiders after a scramble by Freed and Schuster, who got the assists.

In the second, the cowbell made its first appearance, as the Ak Bars cut the lead in half, after the Spiders got a puck out of their zone, only to have a neutral zone turnover come back to split the Fritz/Litton defensive pairing, to end up in the back of the net. 2–1 Spiders.

Schroeder’s tripping call.

Six minutes later, D Litton dug a puck out the corner and sent it errantly up the boards, somehow getting to Schwinn, who brought it all the way down and beat the goalie. Spiders up 3–1.

To close out the second, Schroeder went to the box for tripping. And just a minute into the third, after a spectacular over the net save by McCormick, the Ak Bar power play capitalized just one Vesall pass later from Gretzky’s office to the near faceoff dot, that the Ak Bars’ Hartmann deflected off Lavigne’s skate and past McCormick. Again the lead was just one. 3–2 Spiders.

McCormick’ incredible over-the-net save.

As the third continued, like a Midway sideshow, the incredibly shrinking Spider bench took the spotlight, as the line of Pappone/Schuster/Freed was down to just Freed for a few shifts, as Pappone (“Upper-Body” injury) and Schuster (“Upper-Body” and “Lower Body” injury) left for repairs.

But the five skaters on the ice held off onslaught after onslaught by the Ak Bars, thanks in part to tired legs handing the puck over in the neutral zone a few too many times. But McCormick was good for all of them, keep the Spiders in the game.

With 3:20 to go, Lavigne, desperately wanting that Bauer goal back, found Berman in the high slot, who snapped home the Spiders’ fourth of the night to regain the dreaded two-goal lead.

The Ak Bars pulled their goalie with over a minute to go, but could never gain solid possession. And as the seconds ticked away, the Spiders earned their fourth consecutive victory.

Final 4–2.

The Spiders outshot the Ak Bars 31 (8, 13, 10) to 25 (3, 13, 9). Both goalies made spectacular, stand-on-their-head, saves to keep the game close.

The victory gives the Spiders a 6–3 record, good enough for a tie for second place. The Ak Bars fall to 3–5–1, in 8th place.

Lifetime vs. the Ak Bars: 4–3–1–1, dating back to 2005.

This game was also the end of the first run through all the teams in C3 East. Looking back, the 2013–14 Spiders may now have a good sense of what kind of competition they’ll face as they try to make their sixth consecutive winter season playoff appearance. The three losses (ShameOnIce, Gold Rush, Fighting Piranhas) were all by one goal.

As for hockey on a stick, the Spiders close out their Coliseum record at an impressive 9–5 over 14 games dating back to 2005.

Next up

The schedule starts over, with the Spiders facing the ShameOnIce again, next weekend. The first game was a perfect 36 minutes of Spider hockey, not quite enough for the win. Since then, the Shame have just two more wins, the Ak Bars and winless Buccaneers, though they tied the first-place Fighting Piranhas early in the season. The Shame’s most shameful loss seems to be a game with no goalie, where they lost 14–2 to the Fighting Ice Fish. All goals against are empty netters, bookended by a couple Shame goals.

The Spiders won’t likely have such a house advantage next week, so expect some typical C3-level hockey, Sunday, 7:30 p.m. at New Hope N.