Taylor Baker, who scored Canton's second goal, advances the puck against Plymouth's Kyle Bauer. (Ed Wright photo)

Huge crowd treated to entertaining 2-2
draw between Plymouth and Canton icers

  Rarely has so little been decided with so much excitement.

  With enough adrenaline flowing to nearly blow the roof off the Arctic Edge Ice Arena, the Canton and Plymouth hockey teams battled to an entertaining 2-2 draw Friday night in front of an energetic, packed-to-the-rafters crowd.

  The tie left Canton with a 5-1-1 mark. Plymouth remained unbeaten at 2-0-3.

  "I thought we played decent, but we could have played better," said Canton head coach Jeremy Majszak. "Plymouth is a very good hockey team, but I thought we left a lot of good opportunities and good chances out on the ice.

  "We're in a rut now, some kind of mental lapse. It seems like we're fighting the puck and trying to do too much."

  The Wildcats, who were outshot 21-19, turned the heat up late on the Chiefs when they gained a two-minute man advantage with 2:53 to play. But Canton goalie Spencer Craig rose to the occasion, turning away three solid threats by the 'Cats.

  Plymouth drew first blood mid-way through the first period when senior defenseman Justin Bauer lit the lamp from close range.

  Canton countered a short time later when Phil Baciak scored off a helper from AJ Rosales.

  Twenty-five seconds into period two, Bauer nearly seized the lead back for the 'Cats, however, Craig stoned a rising laser off the senior captain's stick.

  Two minutes later, Canton grabbed its lone lead of the night when Jordan Smith slid a perfect centering pass in front to Taylor Baker, who one-timed the puck past Plymouth goalie Mike Justus to make it 2-1 with 14:11 left in the second stanza.

  Plymouth's Joe Burke tested Craig in a big way 31 seconds later when he unleashed a bullet from the top of the left circle, but Craig snared it like a third baseman would a sharp line drive.

  The Wildcats' Tyler Sanders broke behind the Chiefs' defense with 12:54 left in the period, but he was hauled down from behind, drawing a Canton penalty.

  Plymouth senior captain Tyler Lazorka made Canton pay one minute later when he deposited a well-struck slap shot into the lower-left corner of the net to knot the game at 2-2.

  Both teams amped up the pressure in the third period, but Justus and Craig more than met the challenge.

  "We're still unbeaten in the KLAA, so I'm happy about that," said Majszak. "We have a couple big games coming up this week, so hopefully we can get our offense back on track."

  Ed Wright can be reached at (734) 453-1980 or info@plymouthcantonsports.com.

Plymouth's Tyler Sanders gets tanlged up with Canton's Jimmy LaFontaine during a second-period break-away. (Ed Wright photo)

Canton celebrates Taylor Baker's second-period goal. (Ed Wright photo)

Plymouth's Kyle Bauer digs the puck away from the boards. (Ed Wright photo)

Canton goalie Spencer Craig smothered this loose puck. (Ed Wright photo)