SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – The “Lake Show” is about to hit the road. The Lake Tahoe Lakers will head south to play three games against the Ventura Vikings in Southern California this weekend. The series will be a matchup between the top two teams in the NCDC Western Pacific Division.
The Lakers improved to an overall record of 7-1-1 after a successful six game homestand in which they went 5-0-1 at the Tahoe Ice Arena during the first half of October. The Lakers’ points percentage of 0.833 is fourth best of the 63 NCDC hockey teams that compete leaguewide across the United States and Canada.
Yet they still trail the Vikings who currently sit atop the Western Pacific with a record of 8-3-0-1 after sailing smoothly past the McCall Smokejumpers in a three game sweep last weekend while the Lakers were idle. Lake Tahoe will look to make the most of the three games in hand that they have against Ventura to regain the top spot in the division.
The Lakers have not played a game since their 3-1 win over the Fresno Monsters on October 18th. It was the one-hundredth game played as a Laker for defenseman Chayce Tuton. In typical fashion, the warrior from Whitehorse showed why he wears the “C” for the Lakers as team captain during his milestone game. Late in the second period, Tuton sprawled to block a shot in front of his own net and took the puck high off the ribs. Play was halted as Tuton coughed violently while struggling to regain his breath. He then went to the Lakers dressing room where he was reportedly coughing up blood. But not even that would keep Tuton out of the rest of the game entirely. He returned to the ice late in the third period to take one final shift during the dying seconds of the game to help secure the win.
A hundred games later and Chayce Tuton still gives the Lake Tahoe Lakers one-hundred percent of his effort, a hundred percent of the time.
The Fresno series was billed as a marquee matchup and a measuring stick opportunity for the Lakers. And it did not disappoint. In the series opener on October 16th, Lake Tahoe erased a one goal deficit four different times to send the game to overtime. But in the extra session, Monsters forward Hugo Ostberg made a nice pass around some traffic in front of the Lakers net during a goalmouth scramble to find fellow Swede Anton Danemar who put the puck into the open net to give Fresno a 5-4 overtime victory.
But just one night later it was the Lakers that emerged victorious in extra hockey… a lot of extra hockey. Five minutes of three-on-three overtime failed to produce a goal for either side so the game headed to a shootout. Unbelievably, both goaltenders – Aidan Finn of the Lakers and Viktor Pasztor of the Monsters – stopped ten shooters in a row to start the shootout. After Finn stopped Alex McIsaac in the top of the eleventh round, the Lakers once again had a chance to win the game with the puck on their stick.
Enter Lakers defenseman Nathan House from Lone Tree, Colorado. Known more for his bruising physical play than his scoring touch, House entered the game with just one goal scored in 18 career games played as a Laker; an unlikely candidate to be the hero.
But looking surprisingly comfortable in the moment, House picked up the puck at center ice, came in with speed, made a deceptive shoulder fake to his right at the hash marks, then cut sharply across the top of the crease to his backhand, and put it off the left post and into the net, sending Lakers fans into a frenzy.
Nate House brought the house down in the eleventh round of the shootout. Riley Misa had 2 goals and 2 assists in the 5-4 win.
Aidan Finn improved his record to 5-0, with a .960 save percentage, a 1.37 goals against average, and was named the NCDC Western Conference Standout Goalie of the Week for the second consecutive week in a row.
The Lakers’ next home game will take place at the Tahoe Blue Event Center on Thursday, November 12th against the two-time defending National Champion Vernal Oilers. The homestand continues at the Tahoe Blue Event Center on Friday the 13th and Saturday the 14th against the defending Pacific Division Champion Ontario Jr. Reign.
All home games start at 7 pm. For tickets, visit laketahoelakers.com.
