Last night, the Eagles of Nice hosted the Gamyo of Épinal in the 24th day of the Saxoprint Ligue Magnus.
The first period was marked by both teams going back and forth, although there was a clear dominance from Nice. In an attempt to put pressure on the opposing goalkeeper, the Eagles made numerous shots on goal but struggled to score.
Between shots going wide of the goal and shots against the goalie, the puck did not find the back of the net. It wasn’t until 7 minutes and 49 seconds in that we witnessed the first goal, scored by Épinal during a power play.
It was number 19 of Gamyo, Cacciotti, who managed, with the help of his two assistants, Gutierrez and Mario Scalzo, to outsmart the Nice goalkeeper. A hard blow for the Eagles, who managed to react and picked up the pace.
Nice’s first goal came 1 minute and 35 seconds before the end of the first period, thanks to Bajarus, who relieved his team and leveled the score to start the second period almost confidently.
The second period was calmer. Even though the Eagles tried to add aggression to their game, it wasn’t goals that came, but penalties. Kubus bore the brunt and joined the penalty box for two minutes for hooking (2:18). The rest of the team, particularly effective in defense this Friday, prevented Epinal from establishing their game.
Upon returning from the locker rooms, the Eagles seemed to have regained the upper hand. Not even two minutes into the third act, Epinal was penalized for a foul by Kloucek.
Nice pressed the opposing side with numerous counterattacks, to no avail.
The third period ended. The teams were unable to break the deadlock and would need to reserve energy for overtime.
The Eagles and Gamyo, now with four players on each side, gathered all their energy to win this long match. Nice had many opportunities and made several shots on the impenetrable goalie of Épinal.
It was in the 7th minute that the result was decided, with a final goal for Gamyo by Bouchard, assisted by Scalzo and Cacciotti.
For Nice’s coach, Stan Sutor, what matters is not the result of tonight’s game, but the way his team played, which “had a great match but, more importantly, made Épinal doubt.”
All is not lost, as the Eagles earned a point for the Ligue Magnus rankings tonight, which can boost Nice’s team for their next trip to Lyon on December 9th.
Vanessa Maurel.
