Third-period surge leads Hawks

JEREMIAH BARTZ/Sports Editor

WASILLA - Wade Williams admits his Houston Hawks aren't always at their best during the first period. Sometimes it takes time to warm the jets, but normally by the third period, the Hawks are in flight.

And that was the case Thursday as Houston scored two goals within a 16-second span early in the third period and defeated Valley rival Wasilla 4-2 at the Curtis C. Menard II Memorial Ice Arena.

"We try to light a fire in the locker room between periods. It always seems like you have to put a Nike in the rear end to get things going a little bit," Houston head coach Jamie Smith said jokingly. "Once things go, we get the emotion going. They're so emotional, it's like a wave."

In a game that included lethargic play early, Smith said it took time before Houston was able to capture the emotion and momentum.

"We just got off a road trip. I had half their team and half our team all on the same team," Smith said.

Smith took a youth competitive team comprised of Houston and Wasilla players to a tournament in Vancouver, British Columbia.

"It was good, but this wasn't a high emotional game," Smith said.

In a game that could have bounced either way, Houston was able to grab the momentum with a two-goal burst early in the third period. With the score deadlocked at 2-2, Jeremy Morlock and Aaron Burteson scored Houston goals 16 seconds apart to give the Hawks a 4-2 lead.

"Our team, we're never a first-period team," Williams said. "Third period is where we shine, big time."

Just less than two minutes into the third period, Larry Kincaid put a shot on goal and Morlock, standing just right of the Wasilla net, knocked in the rebound. On the ensuing shift, Burteson slipped the puck past Wasilla netminder Ronnie Walker within a mess of traffic in front of the Warrior net.

Williams scored a goal in each of the first two periods for the Knights. Midway through the first period, Williams put a wrist shot in the upper shelf of the Wasilla net on the power play to tie the score at 1-1. In the second, with the Hawks shorthanded, Williams took a pass from Devin Styers and put another wrist shot into the upper shelf of the net. Before Styers even intercepted the Wasilla pass, Williams was seen streaking up toward the blueline.

"Our forwards know, weak side guy seals and Wade cuts loose on the strong side and he's gone," Smith said. "You see how fast he is."

"I saw it coming," Williams said. "Devin had the jump on the puck and I just got my feet moving."

Joel Kenworthy gave Wasilla an early 1-0 lead with a quick first-period goal. Kenworthy picked up the puck and slipped it just inside the right post.

Tanner Dutcher gave the Warriors a 2-1 lead on the power play midway through the second period. With the man advantage, Wasilla pitched the puck toward Houston goaltender Paul Sutton-Jones in the Hawk crease. Wasilla captain Andrew Tumbleson took two swipes at the puck and Dutcher knocked the puck in.