The Genting Casino Coventry Blaze were left frustrated on Saturday night as the Guildford Flames skated out of Skydome Arena with a hard-fought 2-3 Elite League victory.
Coventry went into the contest without Danish forward William Boysen, while star netminder Mat Robson returned to the line-up, backed up by Dershahn Stewart.
The game opened at a high tempo with chances at both ends, but it was Guildford who struck first.
After successfully killing the game’s opening penalty, the Flames opened the scoring at 13.44. Matt Alvaro found Joshua Waller in space, who quickly laid the puck off to Charlie Curti. The defenceman fired past Robson from range to make it 0-1.
Guildford then survived a bench minor for too many men before the Blaze found themselves in penalty trouble. Mack Stewart and Connor Russell were whistled for consecutive infractions, giving the Flames a full two-minute 5-on-3 advantage.
The visitors capitalised with just 13 seconds remaining in the first period. Mathieu Gosselin curled into the slot and beat Robson to double the lead at 0-2.
Coventry responded strongly in the second period.
Cole Ully’s penalty cut short the remainder of Guildford’s powerplay momentum before Man of the Match Grant Mismash ignited the Blaze comeback with two goals in quick succession.
His first came at 27.05. After winning a battle along the blue line, Mismash received a pass from Adam Robbins and snapped a precise shot past Justin Fazio to cut the deficit to 1-2.
Just over two minutes later, at 29.46, Mismash produced a moment of individual brilliance. Collecting the puck deep in his own zone, he skated the length of the ice, used teammates as decoys, and finished unassisted to tie the game at 2-2.
Despite being outshot 14-5 in the middle frame, Guildford regained the lead at 33.13. Tyler Busch sent a slap pass toward the crease and Marcus Tesink redirected home to restore the Flames’ advantage at 2-3.
The Blaze entered the second intermission trailing by one despite their territorial dominance.
Coventry pushed hard in the third period in search of an equaliser. With 11.00 remaining, Jack Hopkins was left unmarked in the slot but was denied at close range by Fazio.
The Flames netminder came up big again at 51.00, stopping Artie Buzoverya’s backhand effort from point-blank range.
Elijiah Barriga had a golden chance with just over two minutes to play but could not convert in tight as tensions began to rise.
With 1.14 remaining, Connor Russell and Gosselin were involved in a late altercation, resulting in a Blaze powerplay. Robson was pulled for the extra skater, giving Coventry a 6-on-4 advantage in the closing stages.
Grayson Constable struck the post before Jere Vertanen’s powerful drive flashed agonisingly wide in the final second.
Despite a relentless late push, the Flames held firm to secure a 2-3 victory and leave the Blaze empty-handed on the weekend.
Photo credit: Scott Wiggins
