09 Feb 2025, 18:00 | Regular season | Guildford Spectrum |
Guildford Flames | 1-3 | Cardiff Devils |
Periods: Shots: | 0-1 (4-16) | 1-0 (5-16) | 0-2 (10-3) | Total: 19-35 |
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Referees: #50 James Ions, #11 Matt Rose  |  Spectators: 1940 |
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Goals and assists
Cardiff Devils celebrated a game-winner with 156 seconds to play to
beat Guildford Flames at a sold-out Spectrum in Surrey on Sunday night.
The game was delayed starting by over an hour due to problems with the ice, but when it did get going was a tight throughout.
"It
was a big relief for our team, we've been battling for a few weeks to
find a win, I think we've been working really hard for it and it was a
relief for us to get it no matter who scored the winner," said Jarrod
Gourley, who hit the game-winning goal with under three minutes to play.
Cardiff
opened the scoring just five minutes into the period. A giveaway by the
Flames allowed the Devils to rush down the ice with Zach O'Brien
slotting past Jake Kupsky with 5:16 played. The Devils probably could
have ended the period further ahead, were it not for Kupsky, who kept
his side in it.
"Cardiff had been struggling lately, and our big
thing was to jump on them early. I think we came out slow in the first
period," admitted Flames' Daniel Catenacci. "It wasn't easy with the
delays, we found some energy in the locker room, but at the end of the
day it wasn't enough.
The Flames were quicker to start period two,
and more energetic. An excellent Ryan Tait pass from behind the net set
up Daniel Catenacci for a one-time finish at 25:37 to tie the game. The
teams traded chances at each end for the rest of the period, although
neither could take the lead - the Devils hitting the post of Kupsky's
net the closest either side came to going ahead.
Period three
remained relatively open, but the game looked set to change with 10:27
to play. Cardiff's Andrew MacWilliam was ejected for a hit to the head
on Sam Talbot, putting the Flames on a five-minute advantage. It didn't
click for the hosts, however, who failed to really trouble Mac Carruth
who was aided by some excellent blocks in front of him. With 2:36 to
play, a snipe from Jarrod Gourley as he entered the Flames zone flew
past Kupsky and into the top corner to put the Devils back ahead - and
leave the home fans stunned.
"It was going to come down to
character, honestly," added Gourley. "There were a lot of distractions
going on, they came in from Belfast, we were short, so I was really
proud of our group and I thought we showed a lot of character today."
Kupsky
went to the bench for the extra skater with just under 90 seconds to
play, but the Flames couldn't get much going. O'Brien wrapped up the
game with an empty-netter form his own end with 12 seconds to play,
ending the Devils' run of five straight defeats.
"Daniel Tedesco
and I played for Italy on Thursday, Friday and Saturday of this week, so
this was our fourth game in four nights, plus travel, which was
something new for me," added Catenacci. "Coming back today, we knew this
was a big game. We came up short tonight, which hurts, but we will get
back to it next week."