Northeast forward Mike Egan scored two goals, including one short-handed, to help lead the Generals to a 5 – 2 victory over the visiting Philadelphia Rebels last night in Attleboro, MA. It was the first time ever that the Generals had beaten the Rebels.
The Generals would open up the scoring just 5:45 into the first period. At the conclusion of a Rebels penalty kill the puck was dumped behind the visitors net where it came up along the near side boards and picked up by Joe Nagle. Nagle would bring the puck back towards the goal line and passed it to Egan to the right of Rebels goalie Ryan Keane. Keane went to pass the puck but it was intercepted by Matthew Wiesner at the top of the slot. Wiesner took a shot that went wide of the net but bounced off the boards directly to Egan. Egan was behind the net and bounced the puck off of a fallen Keane and it went into an open net to make it a 1 – 0 game.
The Rebels would tie it with 1:40 left in the period. Nagle was called for tripping with 3:20 remaining in the period to put the visitors on the power play. With the play deep inside the Generals zone, Ryan Patrick would pass the puck up along the far side boards to Dusan Kmac at the point. Kmac took a shot the hit Patrick in the high slot and carom directly to Andrew Bellent who wristed the puck past Marko Sturma for Bellant’s sixth goal on the season.
Pottstown, PA native Joseph Mancuso would give the Generals a 2 – 1 lead with 4:31 into the second period. A Northeast defenseman head manned the puck up to Justin Jallen at center ice who entered the Rebels zone on a partial breakaway. Jallen went to his backhand and lifted the puck but it was saved by Keane. However, the deep rebound came directly out to Mancuso who was following up on the play and he took a wrist shot the beat the Rebels netminder high glove side for his fifth goal on the season.
Playing on a 4 on 3, the Generals would take a two-goal lead with four minutes remaining in the middle period. Patrick blocked a shot at the top of the triangle by Colin McCabe. The puck would go to the near side boards but it was poked free by McCabe who then skated towards the Rebels net on a 2 on 1 with Brady Gaudette. McCabe was able to pass the puck by a fallen Bryant Gunn to Gaudette who put a backhander past Keane to make it a 3 – 1 game.
After outshooting the Rebels 21 – 14 going into the third, the Generals looked to add to their score. Mancuso brought the puck up along the near side boards and sent a cross-ice pass to Jallen at the Rebels blue line. As Jallen entered the offensive zone, he dropped passed the puck to defenseman Ryan Bogan. As Bogan skated towards the net he lost control of the puck and it was played by Keane who directed the puck to the far side corner where Bogan picked it up and sent it back to Matt Demelis behind the Rebels net. Demelis skated towards the bottom of the far side faceoff circle and passed it to Jallen in the slot and he one-timed it past Keane high glove side to a 4 – 1 game at 8:26 into the third period.
With 4:15 left in the game, Egan would score his second goal of the game, a short-handed goal. McCabe was called for cross-checking with 5:01 remaining in the third period to put the Rebels on the power play. Egan would bring the puck up along the near side boards and dumped it into the Rebels net where Keane went to play the puck by the left side of his net. Egan skated hard into the zone and stripped the puck off Keane and went around the net and deposited it into an empty net to make it a 5 – 1 game.
Gunn would score his first goal of the season with an assist from Patrick with two minutes remaining to make a 5 – 2 game.
Keane stopped 20 of 25 shots he faced while Sturma turned aside 26 of 28 shots. Click here for the box score.
The two teams are back at it today with the faceoff slated for 3:30pm.
