Michael Buble

Tuesday June 4th Hunt Arena- It was a slow start to Tuesday night broomball as the Johnson Jerks faced off against the winless boys of AGR. Midway through the first half though the action picked up in what proved to be the most exciting game of the night. 2 goals by David Tollefson put AGR up 2 to 0 at half. 2 goals has historically been the worst lead to have because of a teams tendency to sit back and try to protect their lead instead of sticking to their game plan and pouring it on. The start of the second half stayed true to history as the Johnson Jerks put one in making the score 2-1 AGR. However AGR responded to the threat and scored on a goal by Nathaniel Weisenfield making the score 3-1. With the lead at 2 again could AGR hold off the Jerks?

That answer came in quickly as the Johnson Jerks answered back not once but twice dead locking the score at 3-3 with 7 minutes to play. As the end of the game drew near the physical play and intensity grew at a feverish pace. With 3 minutes to play the Jerks saw their chance to seal the deal. A shot from the slot trickled behind the goaltender before he fell backwards on it. Immediately both teams erupted in chaos arguing their case for judgment. The steady eyes and diligence to the game by Pete Kolpack and Kelly Snedeker agreed that the ball was on the line but had never completely crossed. I had a chance to talk with Pete after the game and he had this to say about the call, "I saw the ball the whole way and it never crossed the line it was the right call."

This type of pressure is something these refs see on a nightly basis but their calmness under pressure and their conviction to their calls makes these games what they are. With 2 minutes remaining and things heating up two players got a little out of hand along the boards at the AGR blue line. The officials determined not to let the game get out of hand assessed coincidental minors to Derek Husmoen of AGR and Justin Strehlan of the Johnson Jerks. Unfortunately for these two they would have to watch the end of this nail biter from the sin bin. Many scoring chances for both teams resulted in no goals and this game would have to be decided in overtime. Unfortunately the goalies who kept their teams in the games would have to leave the net as no goalies are allowed in overtime. Now every draw and every shot would be pivotal. AGR lost the opening draw but soon gained control and got a shot off that came up just short of the goal and the Johnson Jerks cleared it. Another attack by AGR yielded the same result, no goal and a clear by the Jerks. The third attack proved to be a charm as a shot from David Tollefson graced the back of the net for his third and final tally of the night. AGR got their first win and the Jerks got what was coming to them, a loss.

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