Nice Hockey was defeated 4-1 at home against Hormadi Anglet in game 1 of the playoff semi-finals, in a match controlled by the visitors. Game 2, this Saturday, on the ice in Anglet is already decisive for Aurélien Macon’s teammates. A dark point this evening, the end-of-match outbursts that could harm the Nice club.
Many regrets
From the very first seconds, the game offered by both teams is of high quality, with a lot of intensity. The players from Nice are the first to stand out, in vain. At the very end of the period, Anglet, with a power play, opens the score against the run of play. Luc Olivier Blain strikes, the puck is deflected by a Nice player into his own net, Sedlacek can do nothing. (0-1, 19th minute). “It was a very high-level game. We were unable to make a difference on the power play, unlike them. It should also be noted that they played with four lines, compared to our three lines,” explains the Eagles’ coach, Stan Sutor.
“Anglet, a notch above in the second period”
The Basques are present all over the rink and put immense pressure on the floundering Nice team. It’s a display of hockey by the second-place team from the regular season. Nice is under pressure, and Anglet capitalizes on a counterattack to secure their lead. Ladonne is on the finishing end (0-2, 26th minute). The rest of the period is controlled by Hormadi.
The hammer blow before saving face
Right at the start of the third and final period, Nice is on a power play but still concedes a goal thanks to a well-executed action by the visiting team. A double one-two between Olsson and Rubes, the latter concludes it (0-3, 41st minute). A chilling moment at Jean-Bouin. A few seconds later, Nice is drowning. Anglet is dominant, and their superiority is quite impressive, logically rewarded by another goal from Olsson (0-4, 42nd minute). For Nice, the only thing to note is a goal by Vladimir Kubus five minutes from the end of the match, which reassures the club from the Côte d’Azur and allows them to save face in front of their audience (1-4, 56th minute).
And a brawl to finish…
A few seconds before the final buzzer, Nice Hockey’s Canadian forward, Samuel Aquin, certainly frustrated by the result, starts a fight with Maxime Suzzarini, who is not blameless either. The referees are unable to intervene; they are powerless in front of the two enraged hockey players. They decide to let the fight continue.
Far from a “made in hockey” atmosphere
After these scuffles, a handful of supporters wants to get on the ice to confront the Anglet team. Tension keeps rising, especially since Suzzarini and his goalkeeper start provoking the supporters by challenging them with their looks and pointing at the scoreboard. The enraged supporters try to climb over the glass to fight, starting to throw cans onto the ice. Nothing resembled an ice hockey match anymore. Whether in the coming days or weeks, Nice Hockey could end up playing behind closed doors.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen this in Nice, what happens on the ice should stay on the ice. Samuel Aquin will be suspended for the next match, I’m sure of it. It’s a shame the supporters reacted this way,” regrets the Nice Hockey coach.
The situation is simple now; if they lose on Saturday, the season for Nice ends. To make it to the finals, likely against Bordeaux, they’ll have to win twice in Basque territory. Not an easy task.
Kevin Chifflet
