The Bethel-Brookfield-Danbury Icecats opened their 2011-2012 season this past Wednesday December 14th with a 4-3 win over the Horace Greeley Quakers.

The first win puts the Icecats in a good position for the rest of the season, providing them with the confidence to go up against some of the strongest teams in the league such as Amity.

The first period proved to be somewhat of a slow start for the BBD Icecats, falling into a 2-0 deficit at the end of the 20 minute time slot.

Finally, late in the second period forward Nick Melvin (’12) redeemed the ‘Cats scoring two goals in the last few minutes, and as the third and final period began forward Trevor Kurijiaka (’13) put away two more for the Icecats pulling them into a 4-2 lead over the Quakers.

However, a late burst from the opposing team pulled them into a close 1 point deficit behind the ‘Cats. As the third period came to a close, the Quakers had several goal mouth scrambles, but goalie Ryan Campbell (’12) remained strong in the net.

The intensity of the last few seconds of the game proved to get the best of the players. Tempers flew and words were exchanged resulting in a near fight. Although professional hockey is full of brawls and violence, it is strictly forbidden at the high school level. BBD Coach, Richard Granacker, punished the team for the close call with sets of
sprints and pushups.