As the holiday break nears the surrounding Omaha area, the Millard West hockey team faced off against the defending OHSHL state champions, Omaha Metro, on Dec. 10.
Although these teams never met in last year’s playoff bracket, the Wildcats dominated the three-game season series with two shutout wins in both the first and final meeting along with a closely matched 1-1 tie in the second meeting.
The first period would start with Millard West establishing their tempo but an early interference penalty by senior defenseman Easton Akins led to Metro getting an early power play only two minutes into the game.
In the faceoff circle, sophomore forward Blake Palmer would win the battle while senior defenseman Eddie Patchen collected the puck and attempted to throw the puck down ice. The Metro defender kept the puck in at the point and with a pass down low found the wide open Metro senior forward Patrick Beemer who toe-dragged around his defender and potted the rebound in the crease over Millard West senior netminder Seamus Bygrave.
The remainder of the first period would fly by with little action as both teams took only the best shot available which carried into the second period.
“We are practicing for what is coming up and working to get better,” senior forward Joey Joons said. “Good teamwork and the chance to move the puck quickly and get it in the back of the net will help us finish as a top team.”
The first few minutes of the second frame were spent in the Metro defensive zone as the Cats put on the pressure. With shots coming from several angles, this pressure caused Metro to take multiple penalties. The Cats would fail to execute even with the 5-on-3 advantage for a short period of time.
The struggles on offense continued for both sides as goaltending prevailed with both netminders stopping the few shots that came their way as the second period came to a conclusion.
Just over three minutes into the final period of play, Millard West would finally answer back. Senior forward Bryce Kriha carried the puck inside the offensive zone and battled his way down to the crease. With a loose puck in the blue paint, the Wildcat offense swarmed the crease and poked in the puck from the stick of senior forward Kerek Heithier for his first goal of the season, to tie the game.
“We clearly didn’t have it that game,” Heithier said. “We were trying hard to score more goals. Something that our coach was telling us is shoot low and the puck will go in but we were always shooting high; a few over the net. That’s what made it very competitive.”
Impeccable defense and goaltending would carry this game the rest of the way as both sides were unable to get any real chances until the last minute.
With 20 seconds left and the clock ticking down, Metro would carry the puck into the Cats defensive end. The pass to the middle was originally intercepted with the edge of Wildcat’s stick but found Beemer streaking down to the slot. On his backhand gliding down closer to Bygrave, Beemer shifted to his forehand at the last second but was denied by the huge windmill glove save of Bygrave as the game came to a close.
“I didn’t face many shots throughout the game,” Bygrave said. “Staying focused and ready for the next shot was really important, which helped make that glove save late in the game. I was frustrated we couldn’t score more, but their (Metro’s) goalie played well. I was glad we kept going and got the tying goal, and it’s nice to remain undefeated.
With the final score being a 1-1 tie, Millard West keeps the undefeated streak alive and gains a point in the standings making them 7-0-3 on the season sitting only two points behind Creighton Prep. The Cats hit the road and travel to West Lincoln to take on the Capitals at Breslow. Puck drop is set for 11:30 a.m.
