Posted on Thursday, September 24th, 2009 at 8:58 am
A first home win of the season for Giants as depleted Stingrays were blanked in this league game played at the Dundonald Ice Bowl. With suspensions and injuries resulting in Stingrays only being able to muster 12 skaters it was always going to be a difficult task for Sylvain Cloutier”’’s men and so it proved with Giants winning all three periods.
Stephen Murphy in the Giants net had a confidence boosting night as he turned away all 30 Stingrays shots for his shutout, while at the other end Colin Shields was top scorer with 2+1.
The home side got off to the perfect start when Craig Peacock fired them ahead on the powerplay at 5.32 but Stingrays dug in well and were only that single goal in arrears at the first interval.
The middle session saw some 32 shots shared between the teams but it was Giants who were sharper in front of the net and they added two goals, both by Shields, at 22.11 and 35.22 to skate to a 3-0 lead.
When Brandon Benedict added a fourth goal at 44.04 it was all over and Giants were professional as they assisted Murphy in his shutout and a comfortable two points.
Period Scores: 1-0, 2-0, 1-0
Penalty Mins: Bel 8 – Hul 4
Powerplay: Bel 1/2 – Hul 0/4
Shots On: Stephen Murphy 30 – Tommy Sandahl 39
Referee: Marco Coenen
© 2008 Belfast Giants Limited, unless otherwise stated. Imagery © Michael Cooper Photography.
