Wolves Are Commissioner's Cup Champions
By Jay Harris
Watertown, NY - The Watertown Wolves looked to take the championship in Game 4 of the Federal Hockey League Finals at Watertown Municipal Arena on Wednesday night. A competitive, heart-stopping game would see the Wolves defeat the Port Huron Prowlers by a score of 4-3, and hoist the Commissioner's Cup in front of their hometown fans. With the victory, the Wolves became the first team in FHL history to win the Cup twice.
The Wolves stumbled in the first game of the Commissioner's Cup Finals, with a 5-0 loss to the Prowlers in Michigan on Friday night. On Saturday night, Watertown rallied to come from behind and tie the series on the road with a 3-2 victory. The Wolves took the lead in the series at Watertown Municipal Arena on Tuesday night with a 7-4 victory.
Cameron Dimmitt put the Wolves on the board first with assists from Anton Lennartsson and Dallas Ingram two and a half minutes into the game. The Prowlers tied it up with a goal from Stepan Timofeyev two minutes later. In the final second of the period, Port Huron's Alex Johnson put them in the lead.
The Wolves tied up the game in the second period during Matt Robertson's boarding penalty. A pass from Troy Polino to Tyler Gjurich resulted in a deflected shot tipped in by Gavin Yates. Matt Coleman's hooking penalty gave the Wolves the opportunity to take the back the lead with a power play goal from Nicola Levesque via Yates and Polino.
After a scrum between Watertown's Matt Caranci and CJ Hayes with Port Huron's Paul Arnott, the Wolves extended their lead with a goal from Cameron Dimmitt on the assists of Paul Fregeau and Kyle Powell. Port Huron would close in on the lead with two minutes and thirty seconds left in the game. However, the Wolves held on to win the championship with a final score of 4-3.
Nicola Levesque's tie breaking goal earned him the 1st Star of the Game. Cody Karpinski's impressive netminding with 46 shots blocked earned him the 2nd Star of the Game. Gavin Yates' goal and assist earned him the 3rd Star of the Game.
Gavin Yates' impressive performance through the Federal Hockey League Playoffs earned him the Commissioner's Cup Most Valuable Player award for the season.