Spiders forget to spring forward, sliced from post-season picture by Blade Runners
March 13, 2023
Blade Runners vs. Spiders
Monday, March 13, 2023,
7:00 p.m. – New Hope N
Game 19 (AHA game 22032)
- Blade Runners final score:
- 4
- Spiders final score:
- 1
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blade Runners | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Spiders | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Dave Schuster watches second Spider game in exactly one year, in exactly the same spot (though the #5 Schuster banner has apparently been placed in storage).
The Spiders faced a daunting task after Friday night’s loss to the Fighting Walleye Blue to remain in the post-season race — win out while the two teams ahead lose out. So while the Spiders didn’t do their part Monday, it wasn’t going to matter anyway, as the Mallards the Les Nords both added W’s in their column, making the Spiders race to avoid April golf all for naught.
With Spider goalie Tucker unavailable due to illness, and 16 sub goalies all unavailable for Monday, one-time goalie Chris O’Connor was volunteered to fill the net. While Chris hasn’t officially played Spider goalie since 2009–10, he has manned the pipes on occasion while the Spiders await emergency call-ups.
Chris did his part to keep the Spiders in the game. It was the rest of the team that took a DST Snooze, failing to solve the cellar-dwelling Blade Runners (1–16–0–1, 3 pts., coming into tonight), eking out only one goal on their 5.73 GAA goaltender (though the goal was a beauty, H. Long from the corner to T. Johnson in front).
| Season | Game | Score | When | Res. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006–07 | 3/10/2007 | Spiders 8, Buccaneers 5 | (day before) | W |
| 2007–08 | 3/11/2008 | Spiders 1, Stars 3 | (2 days after) | L |
| 2008–09 | 3/8/2009 | Spiders 2, Lumberjacks 3 | (day of) | L |
| 2009–10 | 3/13/2010 | Spiders 5, Wingmen 5 | (day before) | T |
| 2010–11 | 3/13/2011 | Spiders 3, Gold Rush 2 | (day of) | W |
| 2011–12 | 3/10/2012 | Spiders 6, Fighting Saints 3 | (day before) | W |
| 2012–13 | 3/10/2013 | Spiders 2, Fighting Saints 6 | (day of) | L |
| 2013–14 | 3/8/2014 | Spiders 4, Buccaneers 3 | (day before) | W |
| 2014–15 | 3/8/2015 | Spiders 4, Wolfpack 1 | (day of) | W |
| 2015–16 | 3/13/2016 | Spiders 3, Fighting Loons 1 | (day of) | W |
| 2016–17 | 3/12/2017 | Spiders 2, Shame On Ice 1 | (day of) | W |
| 2017–18 | 3/11/2018 | –Bye– | ||
| 2018–19 | 3/8/2019 | Spiders 3, Arctic Wolves 6 | (2 days before) | L |
| 2019–20 | 3/8/2020 | Spiders 10, Flying Hellfish 3 | (day of) | W |
| 2020–21 | 3/14/2021 | –Bye– | ||
| 2021–22 | 3/13/2022 | Spiders 4, Black Ice 3 | (day of) | W |
| 2022–23 | 3/13/2023 | Spiders 1, Blade Runners 4 | (day after) | L |
The Spiders had plenty of chances though … pipes, missed corners, juicy rebounds, and five power plays (including four seconds of 5-on-3), that all added up to zilch.
After a timeout at 2:15 and then pulling the goalie, the Spiders even had a 6-on-4 opportunity, that they squandered into a shorthanded empty netter for the Blade Runners’ leading scorer Fricke.
Final score: 4–1
| Team | GP | W | L | T | OTL | P | GF | GA | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saints–y | 19 | 15 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 32 | 96 | 50 | 98 |
| Fighting Walleye Blue–x | 19 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 29 | 86 | 45 | 68 |
| Nordeasters–x | 19 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 23 | 72 | 59 | 87 |
| Minnesota Mallards | 19 | 11 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 79 | 64 | 88 |
| Les Etoiles du Nord | 19 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 88 | 62 | 80 |
| Spiders | 19 | 9 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 65 | 72 | 165 |
| Arctic Wolves | 19 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 18 | 45 | 70 | 80 |
| Fighting Loons | 19 | 6 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 16 | 65 | 64 | 88 |
| Spartans D1 | 19 | 3 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 50 | 103 | 56 |
| Blade Runners | 19 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 45 | 102 | 110 |
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And, the loss, combined with other teams in the crowded middle of C3 West winning, means the Spiders spent the post-game happy hour at Pub 42 making calls to Bushwood CC. (The Spiders did impressively hit closing time at the bar yet again … meaning the 2022–23 Spiders are just one post-game away from the Beer League Bar Time Cup.)
After this season’s three-game series, the lifetime record against the Blade Runners moves back to a draw, at 4–4–1–2.
Next up, a Sunday matinee to close out the season, vs. the eighth-place Fighting Loons (6–9–2–2), 5:30 p.m. at Eden Prairie (and Tavern 4&5 immediately after).
For details, see the box score and game summary.
