„I think we dominated the whole game,” Kennedy remarked. “Going into the final intermission, everyone thought we could still win the game. It was great to score the tying goal and keep pressing to score the winner. And it came through in the end with ten seconds to go.“
A shot total of 53-12 in favor of the Barons clearly underlines Munich’s domination. But Essen’s goaltender Jimmy Waite had a terrific evening, turning aside 49 shots and frustrating the Barons for over 30 minutes.
"I think Jimmy Waite just showed the best performance ever by an opposing goalie in Barons history,” Barons head coach Sean Simpson said. “His saves were mind-boggling.“
“If they hadn’t had Waite between the pipes tonight, we probably would have routed them 8-1,” captain Simon Wheeldon added.
Despite being clearly outshot by the hosts, Essen patiently waited for its opportunities and jumped out to a 3-0 lead after goals by Daniel Körber, Ralph Intranuovo and Terry Yake.
Especially Yake’s arrival sparked Essen’s game. The Canadian veteran, who has appeared in over 400 NHL games and won AHL and IHL Championships, was flown in yesterday. Despite the jet-lag, Yake recorded two points, setting up Körber’s 1-0 lead six minutes into the game and extending the lead to three midway through the second.
“It’s been a busy couple o’ days,” Yake remarked, “but it was nice to get back on the ice and start playing again. Unfortunately for us, it didn’t turn out the way we wanted.” Coach Mike Zettel was very pleased with his debut, though: “He played a great game. A terrific two-way player. I guess Terry demonstrated that he can be a leader on this team. And he can also be a sniper.”
Barons coach Simpson had a lot of praise for his guys, too: "I’m proud of them. They never gave up and kept fighting and believing to the very end. That’s why I think our win was ok, even if the game-winner was somewhat fortunate with only ten seconds to go.”
David Oliver got the Barons on the scoreboard with 5:12 to go in the second when he deflected a Mike Smazal blast on the 4-3-powerplay into the net.
Munich closed the gap to 2-3 when Derek King forced a turnover behind the Moskitos net and centered the puck to Peter Douris who knocked it past Waite. They managed to come up with the 3-3 equalizer when Mike Kennedy sped along the left boards and set up Andrew Schneider who blasted the puck into the net with just over four minutes to go.
Although Munich kept pressing, Waite turned them aside again and again. The game seemed overtime-bound when Kennedy came up with the fortunate game-winner.
Munich Barons - Moskitos Essen 4-3 (0-1, 1-2, 3-0)Goal: 0-1 (5:47) Daniel Körber (Terry Yake, Martin Sychra), 0-2 (26:47) Ralph Intranuovo (Marc Savard, Ted Crowley - 5:4), 0-3 (31:31) Terry Yake (Martin Sychra, Daniel Körber - 4:4), 1-3 (34:48) David Oliver (Mike Smazal, Andy Schneider - 4:3), 2-3 (44:28) Peter Douris (Derek King, Derek Plante), 3-3 (55:35) Andy Schneider (Christoph Schubert, Mike Kennedy), 4-3 (59:50) Mike Kennedy (Shane Peacock, Andy Schneider).
Penalties: Munich 16, Essen 24 plus 10-minute misconduct for Ted Crowley.
Attendance: 2,154.
