Romeoville, Ill.- In a heartbreaking turn of events at Canlan Ice Arena in Romeoville, the Chicago Crush Elite unit saw victory slip through their fingers in the dying seconds of Friday night's divisional clash against the Chicago Cougars Elite. The 4-3 loss leaves the Crush searching for answers as they fall to a 2-3-0-0 record on the young season.
The Crush found themselves on their heels early, surrendering the opening goal to the Cougars' Zachary Halling just 4:19 into the contest. Despite outshooting their opponents 11-9 in the second period, the boys in black and red couldn't capitalize on their chances, allowing the Cougars to extend their lead to 2-0 early in the frame.
However, the Crush showed true grit, battling back to knot the game at 2-2. Dominic DeMatteo got the ball rolling, notching his first of the season at 9:26 of the second, with Troy Naill and Alex Guida earning the helpers. The momentum continued as Mac King lit the lamp on the power play at 16:45, sending the Crush faithful into a frenzy. Johnny Augusta, between the pipes for the Crush, even got in on the action with an assist on King's tally.
Despite giving up a late second-period goal, the Crush refused to roll over. Niko Dougan played the hero midway through the third, potting the equalizer at 12:57 with assists from Grant Paullo and Troy Naill, who collected his second apple of the night.
With overtime looming and at least a point seemingly in hand, disaster struck. The Cougars' Caleb Lind broke Crush hearts everywhere, finding the back of the net with a mere four ticks left on the clock, leaving the home team stunned and the 462 fans in attendance in disbelief.
Between the pipes, Johnny Augusta put forth a valiant effort, turning aside 24 of 28 shots. The Crush's special teams showed promise, with the power play unit capitalizing once in five attempts, while the penalty kill successfully thwarted three Cougars' man-advantages.
Head Coach Phil Bushbacher will undoubtedly be looking for his squad to tighten up defensively in the dying minutes of games. This loss, while bitter, provides valuable lessons for a young Crush team still finding its identity in the competitive USPHL landscape.
As the Crush look to regroup, they'll need to channel the resilience they showed in battling back from a two-goal deficit. With the offense starting to click and players like DeMatteo and Dougan finding their scoring touch, there's reason for optimism despite the setback.
The road ahead doesn't get any easier for the Crush, but if they can build on the positives from this nailbiter, they'll be well-positioned to turn their fortunes around. As they say in hockey, it's not about how you start, but how you finish – and for the Chicago Crush, the season is still young.
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