CORNER BROOK They all had a hunch Scott Wayson was going glove side.
Until he scored on the blocker side, that is.
Wayson’s shootout winner lifted the S.S. Luxury Limos to a 4-3 victory over Sumptin’ Fishy at the Gate in Corner Brook Molson Men’s Ball Hockey League action Tuesday night at the Kinsmen Arena II.
“A lot of my buddies from the other team were chirping me, saying I was going glove side,” Wayson said of his game-winner. “I went blocker.”
Glen Staples, Steve Simms and Rob Greene struck in regulation for the victors.
Jeremy Bishop, Kirk Costello and Brandon Wall responded in the losing cause.
There were no regrets from the fishermen about maybe making Wayson’s mind up for him on where to shoot against their goalkeeper Adam Hicks.
“It’s just a toss-up at that point,” said Wall. “If we were saying he was going to go blocker, he could have still went blocker. I can’t really say that made a difference.”
Either way, it was a somewhat surprising victory, even this early in the season, since the fishermen may have the best roster on paper, at least offensively.
“They’re strong all three lines, but we match up well against them,” Wayson said. “We’ve got a few of the best D in the league.
“Both teams work hard, have good goaltending, good D and clutch scoring,” he added. “I think it’s almost like mirror-image teams.”
The familiarity between the players on the limos squad may have played a role as well. The team is mostly made up of South Shore players from the past two years, along with a few former Whelan’s Gate veterans.
“It will take a while to get used to each other, but it’s early in the season,” said Wall. “We should come around ... I think we have the talent to win every game we play.”
An extra attention to defence would also help, according to Wall.
“We got caught three men deep a lot,” he said. “We’ve got to backcheck more.”
The limos, meanwhile, will take the victory as a sign of where they stand so far.
“We proved tonight we could beat this team, maybe the best team on paper,” said Wayson. “So I think we can match up against anyone.”
The following is a summary of the other league game on Tuesday night:
Oceanex 4, Red Rock 0
Steve Brake, Ian Skinner, Steve Hobbs and Ryan Penney lit the lamp for the ocean crew.
Dave King recorded the shutout, while Ricky Lushman took the loss in net for the rockers.
