Goals aplenty as AWARE swamps Sukhumvit & Hooters Nana edges SC-Titanium

A record 28 goals were scored in Week 15 SHL action as two very different games played out with AWARE smothering the Sukhumvit Spitfires 12-3 in the first match (ending Sukhumvit’s record seven-game winning streak), and Hooters Nana edging Sport Corner Titanium 7-6 in a thrilling see-saw battle in the evening’s second contest.

In the opening game, Sukhumvit was Kerfoot-less and it showed from the opening face-off, while AWARE had all its players back from the Thai national team and their crisp passing had the Spitfires’ heads spinning. AWARE started strong, jumping into a 4-0 first period lead, increasing that to 7-1 at the end of the second stanza before scoring five more times in the third period as Sukhumvit scored two goals in the closing minutes to maintain a measure of respectability and a 12-3 final.

Devin Michael led the way with six points for AWARE (4Gs, 2As) earning Rolling Stone Pizza player-of-the-game award. Corry Day and Ryan Haynes each had two goals and two assists, while Chanokchon “Tan” Limpinphet had two goals as well. Tewin “Thor” Chartsuwan and Bill Bredesen each added a goal and an assist, while Brandon Vick’s three assists moved him into second place in the SHL scoring race.     

Scott Murray scored a rare hi-lite reel goal tallying three points for Sukhumvit on the night as not only were the Spitfires missing Kerfoot, their superstar, but also captain Brad Wilson, still recovering from a shoulder injury, and rugged winger Dave McBurney, out for the season with a pinched nerve. Lance Parker stopped 25 of the 37 shots he faced in a rare off-game for Lance, while Pirapong “Juiz” Lertitsiri, subbing for the injured Yves Gaboriault, stopped 22 of the 25 pucks fired his way, turning in a strong game for AWARE.    

In game two, Hooters jumped out to a 1-0 lead but SC-Titanium stormed back taking a 2-1 lead heading into the second period. Hooters then tied it at two before SC-Titanium scored three more goals to take a 5-2 lead. But Hooters would not be denied and scored twice before the second period ended so they trailed 5-4 heading into the third. SC-Titanium went up 6-4 early in the third, but Hooters Nana, who have lost so many one-goal games this year dug deep and scored three unanswered goals to earn a well-deserved 7-6 victory, breaking their SHL record six game losing streak.          

Jantaphong “Moo” Tengsakul scored a hat-trick for Hooters earning his second straight Rolling Stone Pizza player-of-the-game honour. Micheal White had a pair of goals for Hooters while captain Justin St. Denis and Stephen Sproule added singles.

John Schachnovsky and Zak Garofolo had two goals apiece for SC-Titanium as the reunited MSG line clicked again with Mike Wilson chipping in two assists. Joe Lamantia and Jouni Heinonen added singles for SC.  

When the final buzzer sounded, the scorecard saw SC Titanium’s Juiz stopping 16 of the 23 pucks he faced subbing for a traveling Gabor Toth, while Hooters Nana’s Pattarapol “Dream” Ungkulpattanasuk stopped 20 of the 26 rubber projectiles sent his way. Juiz must be commended as he is the only SHL goalie, besides Gabor Toth, to play two games in one night (Gabor did it twice).

SHL President John Schachnovsky is still the league’s leading scorer (18 goals and 11 assists); Brandon Vick sits in second spot with 13 goals & 11 assists; third place has Mike Wilson with 10 goals and 12 assists, while Donny Kerfoot sits in fourth place with 14 goals and 7 assists and Zak Garofolo rounds out the top five scorers with 7 goals and 12 assists. The MSG line has returned all its members to the top five scorer’s table.

With both SC-Titanium and Sukhumvit losing, the Spitfires still sit atop the standings with a 9-6-1 record and 19 points. SC-Titanium and AWARE are tied with 18 points each, but SC-Titanium gets the nudge in second spot with a 9-6 records, AWARE sits in third with a 7-8-4 record and Hooters Nana is still in last place with twelve points and a 5-9-2 record (the third number in sequence stands for overtime losses, where a point is gained by the losing team).  

Final regular season SHL games are on March 26th, the Sunday before the City of Angels tournament with the Sukhumvit Spitfires face off against Hooters Nana at 8:30 and SC-Titanium takes on AWARE at 9:30pm at “the Rink”, 7th floor, Central Grand Rama 9. Either Sukhumvit, SC-Titanium or AWARE could still finish first overall, so it should prove to be an exciting Sunday.  

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