Whistle Hat-Trick Fires Giants to Valentine’s Win in Nottingham

First Period

The Giants had the first chance early in this one when a puck squirmed off the stick of Scott Conway and away before Alexis Gravel made a superb pair of saves from Mitchell Fossier and Matt Alfaro. Ross Armour then served the first of three penalties given against the hosts in the first but it passed with next to incident.

David Noel was the next to be binned for a boarding call and, while Nicolas Guay forced Kevin Carr into a save, that penalty was killed too. The Panthers came a post’s width away from taking the lead soon after they returned to full strength when Alfaro went on the breakaway and beat Gravel but not the upright.

The third man advantage for the Giants would bear fruit after Noel again took a seat, this time for cross-checking. David Goodwin and Whistle had quick-fire chances that Carr kept out before the latter of those two tipped home a Conway shot to open the scoring (0-1). JJ Piccinich and Alfaro traded chances with the Nottingham captain rippling the side netting with the goal at his mercy.

Second Period

Piccinich thought he had doubled the visitors’ lead early in the second when his shot beat Carr but not the post. That turned out to be a turning point for the hosts as they scored a well-worked equaliser. Bryan Lemos and Didrik Henbrant put in some good work at the boards with the latter’s lovely drop pass teeing up Nolan Volcan who beat Gravel with a powerful one-timer. (1-1)

That really brought the game to life and, with Gabe Bast in the penalty box for hooking, Zsombor Garat and Tim Doherty tested Gravel. Ultimately, the Giants killed the penalty and had a goal disallowed shortly after as the officials went to a video review following a chaotic net-front scramble.

The away fans were almost celebrating again when Ben Freeman came inches away from a first Belfast goal but his shot came off the crossbar and away. However, it was third-time lucky as Whistle got his and the Giants’ second of the game as he reacted quickly when Carr spilled Bast’s shot from the blue line. (1-2) Danny Stewart’s men went on the search of a second equaliser through Cooper Zech and Brendan Harris just before the intermission but it wouldn’t come.

Third Period

That goal did come just over four minutes after the restart when Alfaro, who had been chipping away all night, got his goal when he slid the puck over the line after Garat’s shot ricocheted off a couple of bodies in front of the net (2-2).

The away side did not wilt and went up the other end as they tried to re-establish their lead. Gaudet came close before Piccinich rifled a bullet of a one-timer past Carr off from Goodwin’s layoff and the Giants led for the third time in the game (2-3).

The uprights were being rattled yet again from both Garat and Matt Spencer as this enthralling end-to-end game oscillated again. The Giants goal was living a bit of a charmed life but they were digging in and killed two penalties in the period as well as getting bodies and sticks in the way of pucks. Zech’s shot was blocked and the ensuing net-front scramble didn’t yield a third leveller for the hosts.

At the other end, Nicolas Guay won a puck battle behind the net and teed up Ben Lake straight in front but Carr repelled him. However, the Nottingham goalie could only watch on from the bench as Whistle secured his hat-trick and sealed a big road victory with an empty-netter as the Panthers went for broke with the extra skater. (2-4)

Up Next

The Giants round off their four-game road trip with part two of the double-header with the Panthers tomorrow (Sunday). That game starts at 4pm before Adam Keefe’s men return to home ice on Wednesday night at 7pm. That will be a huge clash at The SSE Arena in the second leg of the Challenge Cup semi-final against Coventry Blaze. That game is selling fast but you can still purchase limited tickets here.