Maineiacs goalie blanks Sags 2-0
LEWISTON – “Brandon Verge.”
Chicoutimi coach Richard Martel had little else to say on Saturday night. “It was all Verge tonight,” said Martel, shrugging his shoulders. “Brandon Verge.”
Verge made 35 saves Saturday night, twice stopping breakaways, to lead the Lewiston Maineiacs to a 2-0 win over division rival Chicoutimi in front of 1,800 fans at the Central Maine Civic Center.
The shutout is Verge’s second of the season, and it ends the Maineiacs’ three-game losing skid. Lewiston and the rest of the league have the next six days off for a holiday break.
“It was good to play well before the break,” said Verge. “It would have been a long plane ride if we had lost four in a row going home. I don’t know that I was the difference tonight, though. They played well in front of me.”
The fans, however, thought differently, giving Verge a standing ovation when he was announced as the first star of the game.
“He played very well for us tonight,” said Maineiacs coach Ed Harding. “I don’t know of any words to really describe what he did. He understood what was going on and he rose to the occasion for us.”
Even as the horn sounded to end the game, a Chicoutimi forward fired the puck at Verge. The shot would never have counted, but for good measure, Verge descended into his butterfly and stopped the shot, eliciting cheers from fans near the net.
And Verge needed to play well, as the Maineiacs seemed to struggle getting the puck past Chicoutimi netminder Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers.
Defenseman Chad Denny took care of the offense early in the second period, ignoring his coach’s command to change up as he charged past the Lewiston bench. Just over the blue line, Denny caught the goaltender off guard with a blazing slap shot, giving the Maineiacs the 1-0 lead.
“That’s one of those situations where you’re saying ‘dump it, dump it, dump it, oh good,'” said Harding. “It was a great shot. We know he has a cannon.”
“I never even heard the coach,” said Denny, still grinning after scoring his first career goal. “I just wanted to get it on net so I could go and change. I was tired.”
Verge weathered several Chicoutimi power plays, including a 5-on-3 for a minute and a
half later in the second period, to preserve the precarious lead.
Just 19 seconds into the final period, Gabriel Balasescu tallied his 17th goal of the season on a wrap-around shot to give the Maineiacs some insurance. That was all Verge needed. Even with an extra skater in the final minute, and with a power play, Chicoutimi came close just once.
“It was a 2-on-1 late,” said Verge. “I saw the extra forward coming from the left, and the defense played it right. I knew the pass was going over, so I made a move to the left.”
Verge snared the puck out of mid-air, punctuating his best performance of the year.
With the win, the Maineiacs leapt into fourth place in the Eastern Division, just one point behind idle Quebec, and three back of Chicoutimi.
The Maineiacs next play at home on Saturday, playing host to the Baie-Comeau Drakkar at the Central Maine Civic Center.
jpelletier@sunjournal.com
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.