Team White Claims Intersquad Victory

The Manitoba Moose held an intersquad game on Saturday night at Bell MTS Iceplex.  The teams, coached by assistants Eric Dubois (Blue) and Marty Johnston (White), featured rosters made up of 16 skaters and two goaltenders.  A two-goal second period helped Team White come away with the victory.

Team Blue cracked open the scoring midway through the opening period when Simon Bourque’s point shot was tipped to the back of the net by Matt Ustaski.  The tally held up as the only goal in the first, with Blue outshooting White by a 10-5 margin.

The middle period saw Team White get rolling with 12 shots to Blue’s four in the frame.  White tied the game up midway through the period courtesy of a Nic Kerdiles snapper from the slot after accepting a Kristian Reichel feed from behind the net.  The teams changed their goaltenders at the mid-point of the contest.  Eric Comrie (White) turned aside 12 of 13 shots, while Ken Appleby (Blue) stopped 11 of 12 attempts.  Mikhail Berdin entered the game for Team Blue, while Tanner Jaillet took over for Team White.  Seth Griffith, fresh off a four-assist preseason with the Winnipeg Jets, moved White in front when he slipped behind the defence and put together a slick finish on the breakaway.

A couple former Colorado Eagles (ECHL edition) hooked up early in the third to give Team White a two-goal edge.  Joey Ratelle slipped a feed ahead to send Cam Maclise in behind the defence.  Maclise picked the far top corner to move the score to 3-1.  Team Blue didn’t go away quietly, pulling back within one after Jansen Harkins set up Matt Marcinew with a cross-crease feed.  Blue continued to press in the late stages with the extra attacker, but White held on for the 3-2 victory.

Next up for the Moose is the regular season opener on Friday, Oct. 5 in Des Moines against the Iowa Wild.  The club returns to Bell MTS Place for the home opener, Friday, Oct. 12 against the Belleville Senators.  Tickets, which are going fast, are available at moosehockey.com/tickets.