(Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
CENTENNIAL — One, two, three hacks weren’t enough. Neither was the fourth, but it did send the puck — ever so slowly — underneath Cherry Creek goalie Aaron Jatana and toward the goal-line.
Drew Wagner was there to clean up after the scrum in front of the net. The Monarch forward pushed home a tie-breaking goal early in the second period that ultimately proved to be back-breaking for Cherry Creek. Wagner’s goal held up as the winner as the No. 3 Coyotes topped No. 4 Cherry Creek at Family Sports Center on Friday night, 3-1.
“It was just a good line effort,” Wagner said after the game. “We all just kept pounding, and eventually it popped out. I buried it.”
“That second goal gave us a little momentum,” Monarch coach Jimmy Dexter said. “Finally poked it in. Got us going.”
The goal snapped a 1-1 tie just 3:27 into the second period, and Monarch never really relinquished momentum after that.
“I thought if we could’ve broken through that scrum, if we could’ve gotten out of that, we would’ve been alright,” Cherry Creek coach Jeff Mielnicki said. “They won the one-on-one war in front of the net there. Watching it from the other end, it was excruciating.”
Just one minute and 33 seconds later, Blake Bride tipped Justin White’s shot from the point in the slot and made it 3-1.
(Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)
A period later, Monarch had a signature win that will also go a long way in the Foothills Conference playoff picture. The Coyotes now sit in a tie with Regis Jesuit atop the conference standings with 18 points.
“We had our chance against Ralston (Valley) and blew it — didn’t really come out to play that game with them,” Monarch’s Walker Harris said, referencing a 4-1 loss to the top-ranked and defending champion Mustangs on Jan. 14. “(Tonight), against the No. 4 team in the state, we felt like we needed to come out and show this state what we can do.”
Monarch jumped all over Creek on Friday. The Coyotes hit the post twice in the game’s first two minutes. Then, a patient Cameron Taggart wheeled around in the left circle and scored on the power play to give his team a 1-0 lead 6:02 into the game.
But, while Monarch controlled the play in the first period, there was one major blemish: Cherry Creek captain Jackson Ross capitalized on a turnover along the boards in the offensive zone to bury a short-handed chance which tied the game just prior to intermission.
“We were excited,” Mielnicki said.
It could have been deflating for Monarch. It wasn’t.
“These guys are pretty resilient. We have a confident group,” Dexter said. “After that first period, they knew that they played well. Yeah, it was tied, but they all felt good going into the next period.”
“It was kind of a bummer, but I don’t think any of us were really that bummed out,” Wagner said. “We knew that that stuff happens and we can play through it.”
It was Wagner’s goal that provided the lift early in the next period, and Monarch took over from there on out. The Coyotes outshot Cherry Creek 36-16, and were magnificent on the penalty kill as the Bruins went 0-for-4.
Ian Oden made 15 saves for his third win this season. Cherry Creek’s Jatana made 33 saves, but dropped to 4-2-0.
Harris, and his 36 points, lead the Foothills Conference this season. In fact, Friday marked the first time all season he didn’t show up on the scoresheet. But that didn’t matter. The junior — who is also a member of Fairview’s baseball team — was a difference-maker all over the ice.
“He’s unbelievable for us. He’s so smart, he does everything right,” Dexter said of Harris. “He’s always in the right place. If it’s late in the game, he’s going to be the high guy and make sure we have three (defenders) and make sure they don’t get an odd man rush. And he’s obviously — I think he’s leading the league in scoring, too. It’s nice to have him on our club.”