Season 25/26: Week 28 Report

BILLINGHAM STARS inflicted a surprise 3-5 defeat on in-form Solihull Barons as their National Ice Hockey League Moralee Division regular season campaign approaches its final weekend. 

Billingham travelled to hoodoo venue Hobs Moat Road having ripped up the previous game plan, going with new forward and defensive line combinations. It was clear from the start that the new partnerships had injected new energy into the squad as the Stars took the game to their opponents, themselves on a roll ever since they relieved Head Coach Phil Lee of his duties in January. It was the visitors on the board early, their industry and possession play rewarded when James Moss released Rolands Gritāns to go in on Barons netminder Graham Laverick all alone, the Latvian going high on the backhand in the seventh minute to put Billingham ahead. A missed call in the 19th minute put an end to Darren Stattersfield’s night, the imposing defenceman taking exception to a check to Ethan McLaughlin’s head by Louis Allen. Once the dust settled, the officials decided to retrospectively dish out a 5+game to Allen as well as Stattersfield, meaning an early shower for both men.

The Stars were off to the perfect start in the second session, Callum Wilkinson converting on the back stick in the 22nd minute. Some questionable officiating put Billingham on a 5-on-3 penalty kill just after the midpoint of the game, Solihull finally getting on the board in the 34th minute through Henry Adams just as the Stars returned to four men. Iain Brown restored the advantage just under three minutes later with a pinpoint low shot, before a mad final minute saw Moss go under Laverick from close range then Adams cut the deficit back to two with a power play effort right on the buzzer.

With a two-goal advantage to hang onto, Billingham faced another penalty kill in the very early stages of the third stanza. Clearly the Barons special team unit was clicking as Niklas Ottosson capitalised on a huge slice of luck to see his 42nd minute near post poke go in off Stars goaltender Jacob Hammond’s skate. A one-goal game might have set nerves jangling, but Billingham were resolute and - backstopped by an imperious Hammond - rarely looked troubled. They made the game safe in the 55th minute, Tom Wakefield breaking clear to make sure of the three points and bring Solihull’s recent good run to a juddering halt.

Man-of-the-Match for the Stars was Jacob Hammond. 

Barons Stats:

Henry Adams 2+1; Niklas Ottosson 1+2; Dan Mulcahy 0+3

SOG: Graham Laverick 36 (17 / 8 / 11)

Stars Stats:

James Moss 1+1; Callum Wilkinson 1+1; Iain Brown 1+1; Rolands Gritāns 1+0; Tom Wakefield 1+0; Chris Sykes 0+1; Shaun Galloway 0+1; Ethan McLaughlin 0+1; Lewis Baldwin 0+1; Lucas Dowdle 0+1

SOG: Jacob Hammond 47 (14 / 18 / 15)

Weekend Results

NIHL Moralee Saturday:

✈️ Hull Jets 5️⃣ - 0️⃣ Widnes Wild 🐾

🐯 Telford Tigers 2 6️⃣ - 9️⃣Deeside Dragons 🐉

🗡️ Sheffield Scimitars 2️⃣ - 1️⃣1️⃣ Solihull Barons ⚜️

NIHL Moralee Sunday:

⚜️ Solihull Barons 3️⃣ - 5️⃣ Billingham Stars 💫

⚔️ Leeds Knights 2 2️⃣ - 1️⃣3️⃣ Telford Tigers 2 🐯

🦁 Nottingham Lions 6️⃣ - 2️⃣ Sheffield Scimitars 🗡️