Special teams, goaltending leads Moose past Mariners

PALMER — Palmer continued its home ice defense of Kenai Peninsula teams with a 2-0 win over the Homer Mariners Friday night. A highly physical game from the start, the Moose racked up plenty of penalties, leaving room for the Mariners to make it interesting in the third period.

From the first puck drop, the boards and Homer players took a beating. Palmer’s big, strong core of defensemen drew a lot of reaction from the Friday night crowd. Palmer’s defensemen towered over the Homer lineup. Nick Reeves, Trey Garrod, Ivan Good and Brennan Harrison in particular delivered the punishment.

“Our defense likes to (play physical),” said Harrison, a junior.

The Moose struck first midway through the first period when Steven Acher bounced the puck off the goalie’s pads on the right side of the net, allowing Piers LaFrance to cash in using the open left side of the net.

Palmer’s legitimate shot opportunities didn’t come often, but the few chances they did get were mostly denied by goaltender Alex Sanarov’s acrobatic saves.

Homer threw everything they had at Palmer freshmen goalie Ashton Good. Good, and the solid Palmer defense, kept Homer from lighting the lamp all game.

Palmer came out slow in the second, but caught fire on the power play. Palmer forwards cut through the defense with ease and spent almost the entire power play on the Homer side of the ice.

Harrison would add another goal in the second. The imposing defensemen, who stands near 6-foot-8 on skates, took the puck right through the middle of the Homer defense on a power play. Harrison’s first shot attempt caromed off the goalie’s pads, but his second effort resulted in a goal.

With a 2-0 lead, the Moose were looking to coast to a victory.

Unfortunately, they gave Homer an excellent opportunity to score. Twice in the third period Homer skated with a 5-on-3 man advantage. Yet even with two extra players, the Homer offense was ineffective, recording no shots off during the first two-man advantage.

“We were skating well down in the defensive zone,” Harrison said.

Palmer would not score another goal, but it wasn’t for a lack of scoring opportunities.

“We had trouble converting,” said Harrison.

The Moose finished the game with the same 2-0 lead they had skated with for the second half of the game.

Palmer 2, Homer 0

Friday, MTA Palmer Ice Arena

First period — 1. Palmer- LaFrance (Acher) sh 10:20.

Second period — 2. Palmer- Harrison (unassisted) pp 4:58.

Third period — no scoring.

Shots on goal: Homer 10-5-1—16, Palmer 13-14-9—36; Saves: Homer- Saranov 12-13-9—34, Palmer- A. Good 10-5-1—16.