BOWLING GREEN, Ohio- Whenever the Falcons and the Bulldogs get together, it’s sure to be a hard fought series; this game was no different. Despite Bulldogs goaltender Darren Smith making 62 saves on the night, Falcon freshman Brandon Kruse proved to be the difference maker with what he described as the biggest goal of his life. The Falcons now continue their tradition of success against the Bulldogs, having beaten them 12 of the last 13 match-ups.
The first period belonged to the Falcons, putting heavy pressure on Smith from the start. After outshooting Ferris St. 14-9, Brandon Kruse netted his 7th of the season after a backhanded pass from behind the net from Mitch McLain. Falcons head coach Chris Bergeron praised Kruse’s play this season saying “He’s meant a bunch. We lost a lot of offense from last season and we believed he was going to get a great opportunity and be the guy to bring offense. We just weren’t sure if he was going to bring that this year. He’s had some great seniors around him and when Brandon’s comfortable, he’s a pretty good player and we need him.” No doubt about that, Kruse now has 8 goals and 25 assists for 33 pts on the season for the Orange and Brown. Thanks to Kruse and the rest of the first line, BG was skating downhill and it seemed like Ferris St. couldn’t buy a scoring opportunity. Thanks to the terrific poise from Smith, the Bulldogs were only down by 1 despite being outshot 21-11.
The Second period started much like the first with the Falcons compiling more quality chances, only to be stifled by the acrobatics of Smith. The Bulldogs finally started to gain momentum towards the end of the period when Falcon forward Cameron Wright was sent to the box for tripping. Ferris St. ended the drought when defenseman Joe Rutkowski fed Jason Tackett down low and to the right of Bednard’s crease. Tackett opted with a low shot that beat Bednard between the legs and silenced the frustrated crowd at the Slater Family Ice Arena. The Bulldogs would head to the locker room being outshot 45-18, just over 30 seconds of powerplay time and a tie game; on to the third.
The third period hit peak frustration for both teams, as nobody could capitalize on some big chances. The game turned into a goalie showcase with both Smith and Bednard making incredible saves and essentially standing on their heads through multiple penalty kills. Just like that the Madhouse on Mercer earned its nickname as the crowd was subjected to sudden death overtime.
After regulation, the shots were in favor of BG 54-28. Obviously when you have one goal after so many shots and opportunities, there is a tremendous amount of frustration seeing no reward from an offensive clinic. Coach Bergeron said his message to his team was to stay focused. “We had a bunch of chances tonight and they did too; we usually don’t give up north of 30 shots. I thought they did their best to fight thoughts of never scoring in this game.”
The Overtime period started off just as the third one had ended with back and forth chances again between both teams, both goaltenders showcasing their poise and skill. Coach Bergeron said, “Getting good goalie play is just as important as any other aspect in the game of hockey. I think goalies will look at the other end and say it’s me against you tonight. Ryan saw what was going on at the other end and he wasn’t going to be outplayed.” Bednard stopped a couple of key breakaways when finally the Falcons had a 2-on-1 break, crashing the net of Smith. McLain and Kruse were on opposite sides of the crease with McLain opting to shoot and create a rebound chance for Kruse, sending the hometown crowd in a roar of elation with the freshman forward fist pumping across the ice as he had secured the win. “It’s relief and a lot of excitement. Every single team is going to bring their top game. The guys are excited and it’s a lot of relief off our shoulders. We’re going to bring it again tomorrow and hopefully put more pucks in the net.”
Whether you’re a Falcon fan, Ferris St. alum or just a casual hockey fan, this one was just as memorable as any hockey game out there. The action was constant; the goaltending showcase was second to none between Smith and Bednard, and emotional juxtaposition of bliss and disappointment in the handshake line. Ferris St. will look to come back and tie this series up tomorrow with puck drop coming at 7:07 ET.
