Edison gets back in win column
LAKEWOOD – Opinions about bye weeks vary.
The most recent free weekend for Edison’s hockey team could not have come at a better time.
Chargers coach David Walker had the opportunity to reset priorities, and after a two-week wait, a refocused Edison team got back to carrying the play on Saturday.
Trevor Arsenault had two goals and three assists, as Edison snapped its two-game losing streak with a 7-2 victory over Los Alamitos at Lakewood Ice.
The win keeps the Chargers (6-2-0-0, 18 points) in second place in the Coast View Conference standings.
Both losses had come at the hands of division leader Servite, which entered the day undefeated at 7-0-2-0 (25 points). The Friars played Saturday night versus Huntington Beach.
“We just had to keep working,” Arsenault said. “Against Servite, we didn’t play our best game. We had a lot of penalties, but today, we wanted to stay simple and put pucks on net.”
The Chargers were without the services of forward Jake Gealy and goaltender Savannah Gutierrez, who were traveling with their club teams. Riley Lord is also out with a high ankle sprain.
Edison returned to the win column behind a strong puck-possession effort, especially in the second period. The Chargers put 17 shots on goal in the middle frame.
Sephten Clevenger broke a 1-1 tie at the 10:43 mark of the second, snapping a shot that deflected off a stick in front to fool Griffins goalie Brandon Rex.
Rex made 29 saves in all (16 in the second period), but the flood gates opened up in the third.
A five-goal third period began when Tommy Logan’s slap shot hit the near post and bounced out the other side. Charley Lowe tucked the rebound in on his backhand to make it 3-1.
The Griffins did not lay down at that point, taking advantage of a rare power-play opportunity. Clevenger and Daniel Johnson took minor penalties 18 seconds apart, and the Griffins received an extended two-man advantage.
Los Alamitos capitalized, as Jacob Fisk sent James McGhee in alone off right wing. McGhee skated into the crease and his wrist shot beat Garrett Dato to make it 3-2.
The Chargers built the lead back up to two when James McGuire deposited a rebound off a shot from Lowe.
Arsenault, Nico Santoro, and Logan added goals late. Ryan Osterkamp had two assists.
Dato (12 saves) was playing in his fifth game, and he made his second consecutive start. He went long periods without seeing the puck, as the Griffins couldn’t get much going against the Chargers’ strong play in the neutral zone.
The Chargers’ goaltender said he tried a number of things to stay sharp while the puck was at the other end of the ice.
“I just try to warm up,” Dato said. “Moving around the crease a lot definitely helps. I just kept waiting for the shots. I just had to track the puck and just do what I do.”
When the Griffins managed to enter the offensive zone, they had to do so with their heads up. Logan found several chances to finish his checks, dislodging the puck in the process.
In CIF-sanctioned sports, Edison and Los Alamitos belong in the Sunset League. Logan downplayed that part of the rivalry, but he said that he was excited to play against some of his former youth hockey teammates.
“I definitely like playing Los Al,” he said. “I have a lot of homies on the team that I used to play with.”
“Usually, the teams are a lot more physical, so it was easier to get bigger hits today.”
Fisk led Los Alamitos with a goal and an assist. He opened the scoring by beating Dato stick-side off a cross-ice pass from Jack Cheetham.
