Author's note: I meant to publish this update a lot sooner, but a lot of stuff interrupted me along the way. Hopefully, this chapter was worth the (unintentional) wait.
Also, I'd like to send another thank you to those who find/read/review/enjoy my works. Your support goes a long way in terms of motivation.
Anyway, be sure to sit back, relax, and enjoy the reading!
Grinding Gears
(TV)
The TV screen fades back into an overview of the rink at SAP Center. Both teams were almost prepared for the faceoff within the Mighty Ducks' defensive zone; they're just waiting for the officials to come over with the puck so that they could precede with the faceoff. During the break, both Ben Sullivan and Sam Rivera discussed their strategy with their respective teams following Brodenson's big stop on Riley's breakaway; and also how to go about in certain situations following the upcoming faceoff.
"Welcome back to the 2018 Tri-County Youth League Finals." Emmet began. "For those out there that are just joining us, we have ourselves a 1-0 Foghorn lead and Marty Brodenson (The Mighty Ducks' goaltender) just came up with a huge glove save on a breakaway by Foghorns' Riley Andersen."
"Yeah, that glove save was something the Mighty Ducks needed right there." Joe replied. "They literally had no coverage in center ice as the Foghorns' penalty kill cleared it out and Riley just happened to get out from the penalty box at the time. If it weren't for their goalie right there, the Mighty Ducks could be staring at an 2-0 hole."
"Exactly." Emmet replied. "They also could be looking at worse if it weren't for their goalie's bailout following that misplay behind the net."
"Absolutely." Joe affirmed. "You gotta wonder what's going through Rivera's head right now…"
"No time to wonder about that now!" Emmet exclaimed. "They're about to drop the puck once more."
Down on the ice, everyone was just about in position for the upcoming faceoff. Within the faceoff circle, Sid Cosby and Andy Johnson were awaiting the referee to drop the vulcanized piece of rubber. Riley was paired up against Reese Elliott and the two of them were locked up together in anticipation of who's gonna win the faceoff; and the closer the ref got to dropping it, the more entwined they were. Before the puck was dropped though, one of the referees blew their whistle while pointing to the two. After that was cleared up, the referee turned his focus back to the faceoff circle. After taking a few seconds (to see if either Sid or Andy tried to jump early), the referee dropped the puck and the game resumed.
Sid Cosby won the draw and immediately made a quick pass to Corey while the Mighty Ducks started up ice. The Foghorns players stayed close while keeping eye on their opponent's formation; making sure that there aren't any gaps. Near center ice, Corey made a cut toward his right toward the outside while he and everyone else crossed into the offensive zone. Once in the zone, everyone spread out (some circling around) while Khan readied himself for a potential Mighty Ducks shot. Corey made a quick pass to Cosby who then made a couple moves with the puck while moving slightly to his left before dropping the puck off for a circling Reese Elliott. During the sequence, Kevin Murray crossed into the view of Ray Khan while Reese fired off a shot toward the Foghorns net.
(TV)
"-Elliott with the shot and that just wide of the Foghorns net." Emmet called into his mic.
"Pretty good setup there by the Mighty Ducks; but the puck was nowhere even close on that shot." Joe added. "Even with the screen on Khan."
"Tough luck there as the puck is secured by the stick of Andersen as the Foghorns make their way up ice." Emmet stated while watching the action from the booth.
Riley was making her way up ice with the puck while her teammates were close by. The Mighty Ducks' players went to use the same defensive trap that got Riley to dump the puck in the last time, but this time, the young lady was ready for this and passed the puck backward. Little did she know though that the intended recipient of her pass was interlocked with a Ducks player and the puck tapped one of their skates before coming to a rest near center ice. The one closest to it? Sid Cosby; and he wasted no time in collecting it and turning on the jets toward Ray Khan with everyone else suddenly changing course.
(TV)
"Oh Boy…" Joe said upon seeing what just happened.
"Turned over at center, Cosby takes it in and all alone…SAVE made by Khan!"
Ray Khan's pads deflected the puck toward the corner of the rink while the crowd roared with applause from the breakaway save. Since Cosby was the first one in to begin with, he regained possession of the puck and in a split second, he noticed a teammate slightly breaking open between two Foghorns players. So he made a quick dish toward him; but the Foghorns players caught up with him and tied him up. The Ducks player, who by the way was Corey Sanderson, was letting the referee have it (since he thought a penalty should've been called) while he scrambled with the rest to get the puck.
In that scramble, Conover McDavidson came away with the puck and began to make the trek out from the zone with 2 Ducks players behind him. One of them managed to catch up and tried to strip the puck away, thus resulting in another tieup. The actual result though? The puck coming loose and Riley Andersen swooping in to collect it. The minute she turned on the jets, everyone followed suit, especially the Ducks. Marty Brodenson was readying himself to make a play while the entire crowd in that section stood up in anticipation. Riley, after thinking about her options, decided to make a shot toward the net. The only thing that could be heard right after was a loud "TING!" from the puck striking the post.
(TV)
"HIT THE PIPE AGAIN!" Emmet exclaimed into his mic.
"Gotta hate when that happens, right?" Joe asked. "I mean…the Mighty Ducks did the same thing earlier and came up empty as a result."
"Yep. And I bet the young lass is mentally kick-"
He was interrupted by the crowd roaring by the sight of what just occurred; Reese Elliot getting freight trained at center ice by Michael Winston.
"MY GOODNESS, what a hit!" Emmet exclaimed.
"Nothing dirty about that at all." Joe replied with an excited tone. "Always want to separate the player from the puck, and that's one way of doing it."
"Loose puck as a result, collected by Andersen. Who turns around to head back into the offensive zone and-"
Riley found herself pinned against the boards by a Ducks defender with the puck coming loose as a result. After that, the defenseman eased up and both him and Riley scrambled for the puck along with the others. The puck ended up being collected by Sanderson while he and everyone else made their way into his team's offensive zone. While still on the move, Sanderson made the decision to make a quick pass to an open Sid Cosby who then fired the puck toward the net while Khan was sliding toward the opposite side while going downward. The result? Going wide yet again…and BOY he wished he could've done that one over.
As a result, the puck ricocheted toward the corner with high velocity. Andy Johnson was the first to get it, but he then found himself slammed against the boards by another Ducks defender; this time it was Clowney. The crowd immediately roared again upon seeing this while everyone else transitioned toward the neutral zone in pursuit of the puck. Back in the Foghorns' defensive zone, Andy Johnson took a bit to get back up on his feet because of the shock of the collision by Clowney. Following that, he rushed over to catch up with everyone else; who just happened to cross over into the Ducks' defensive zone. As soon as he got there, his teammates were already set up in their cycle and going to work.
From the Ducks' bench, Sam Rivera noticed the Foghorns captain skating in unnoticed and had to get the attention of his players over the noise of the crowd.
"WATCH THE TRAILER! WATCH THE TRAILER!" He exclaimed while having his hands cupped over his mouth.
Unfortunately for him, one of the Foghorns players caught word of this and the moment they noticed an opening, they made a quick pass toward Johnson who then immediately fired at the Ducks' net. The end result? The puck sailing above Brodenson (while he went down to the butterfly) and the crossbar while the crowd let out a huge relief. It ricocheted off the glass and back on the ice as it kept moving toward center ice; however, it was stopped by McDavidson before it exited the zone. He then quickly sent it toward a cycling Riley, who then made a couple of moves in an attempt to shake off a couple of Mighty Ducks players.
While that was going on, the PA addresser came over the intercom to announce the last minute of the 1st period.
"One minute remaining in the period!"
(TV)
"That's some slick moves right there by Andersen." McDug commented. "Making those Ducks players look silly."
"Indeed." Emmet replied. "And she's continuing to do so as we approach the final minute of the 1st."
"Looks like the crowd is loving it too!" McDug pointed out while hearing everyone get excited about Riley's skill set.
"Andersen cutting into the slot, fakes the shot and POKED AWAY by Brodenson!" Emmet called while exclaiming at the last part.
"Brodenson was ready for that one; she wasn't gonna fool him there." McDug said after seeing the play.
"Loose puck collected by Elliot who immediately flips it to center ice. Sanderson the first one on it for the Ducks and it's a 2 on 1 the other way!" Emmet exclaimed upon seeing this.
"Winston caught in the middle there…this ain't gonna be pretty." McDug added.
"Sanderson…to Cosby…RANG IT OFF THE PIPE!" Emmet exclaimed.
"The curse of striking the goalpost persists for them." McDug pointed out. "Tons of chances and they can't seem to find a way to beat Khan."
"Puck collected by Elliot and gives it to Sanderson." Emmet continued. "Examining his options while cycling…gives it to Cosby. Cosby looking for someone open while cycling himself but he's getting hounded!"
"Foghorns doing a great job taking away both Sanderson's & Cosby's options" McDug added. "Not only that, but also applying pressure as well."
McDug then noticed the game clock ticking away. "He's gotta do something here quick."
"Your right, Joe." Emmet replied. "And with 2 seconds and 1…he's not gonna have that opportunity."
And right on cue, the horn went off; signifying the end of the period.
Right after the horn sounded, both teams made it back to their respective benches and then proceeded to head down the tunnel off the ice and back to their respective locker rooms while the pipe organ was sounding off. Regarding the last sequence before the horn, Sid Cosby was a bit frustrated with how it turned out, but with the 1st period being over, he and the rest of his team can go and regroup for the next one. Although, the same can be said for Riley and her team; especially considering that there were some instances they need to address like reducing turnovers and getting more pucks on net.
Right after both teams left the ice, the arena crew came in to remove the nets off the ice and then opening a large set of doors behind one end of the rink to allow for the Zambonis to come in and do their job.
(TV)
"When we come back, we'll be bringing you the 1st intermission report presented by TripleDent." Emmet said while the screen changed to an overview of the rink.
"This should be fun." Joe replied while not being pleased upon hearing the sponsor. "On another note, both teams showed early on that they earned the right to be at this point."
"Indeed, they have." Emmet said. "So that's one period of hockey in the books; a bunch of action early on and some quality goaltending and puck luck on both sides. We'll be right back after this-"
"You're forgetting the score man!" Joe interrupted.
"Apologies." Emmet replied upon realizing this. "Score after 1 is…well, only 1. Foghorns up a goal going into the break."
"And we're clear!" The Camera operator shouted.
Both Emmet & McDug turned toward each other upon receiving the signal.
"That was a fun 1st, wasn't it?" Joe asked his partner.
"It was." Emmet replied. "But please don't interrupt on air again. Sounds unprofessional when you think about it."
"Right, apologies for that." Joe said upon realizing it.
"Ah, don't worry about it." Emmet replied. "Now though, we can take a bit of a break until we have to do the intermission report."
His broadcast partner nodded in agreement to that one.
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