Surviving a blizzard
KITTANNING — Freeport goalie Tim Zahumensky was on top of his game against Mars Thursday.
He had to be with all the opportunities the Planets were getting.
Zahumensky made 46 saves, stopping almost everything Mars could throw at him. It was just enough as the two squads battled to a 1-1 tie at the Belmont Complex.
"I figured this would be a defensive struggle," said Freeport coach Dave Hepler. "They have a good offense and we played a system on them. They had a lot of shots and Timmy did a great job.
"He's a solid goaltender and we rely on him. I would have liked to get a little more offense, but I didn't want to stretch it out too far,"Hepler added.
It was a sure sign Mars (14-0-1) would get off a lot of shots and Zahumensky would be forced to make a lot of saves when he recorded seven in the first 5:32 of play.
"I've been looking at the numbers and (Freeport) doesn't give up a lot of goals," said Mars coachTim Coleman. "Their goaltender is good.
"I thought we'd be more productive, but we missed a lot of chances. The five hole was open a lot. He's a big goalie and we got in too tight. We needed to make moves sooner than later,"Coleman added.
Freeport (9-4-1) scored the game's first goal with 2:19 left in the first period when John Reichenbaugh fired a shot from the faceoff circle that eluded Mars goalie Greg Lewis, who made 24 saves Thursday.
Mars scored the equalizer with 4:20 left in the second period when Mike Mazzotta threaded the puck in the top right corner of the net just above the pads of Zahumensky.
In overtime, Freeport took the offensive, firing seven shots to the Planets' one — thanks in part to a power-play opportunity — but neither team could break the tie.
The Planets were without four of their starters: Tyler Whiteford (illness), Ryan Magdenic (hockey tournament), Jake Takach (flu) and Andrew Santa (concussion), but were able to stay in the contest.
"We came in short-handed and it definitely showed,"said Coleman. "My defense did all right.
"I told the guys in the locker room anytime you can come into Kittanning and leave with a point, you should be pleased."
