Bauer Christmas Classic -Day 1,Hanover 3 - Goffstown 0

Early on in this 2015-16 Marauder campaign a trend is emerging.  Solid blue-line play from a big, physical, experienced group of D-men is backstopped by excellent goaltending to keep the opposition at bay, and an opportunistic group up front finds a way to sneak a couple in to the net and earn a Hanover victory.

On Day 1 at the Bauer tournament, it was Gabe Loud's turn to shine in the net.  He turned away all 23 shots he faced and earned his first varsity shutout.  Calm, composed, and efficient in the crease, Loud was in control from start to finish.

On the offensive end, the Marauders controlled the puck and created some solid chances in the first period, with Acker putting one puck in the back of the net that counted for naught, and a Plottner shot over the goalies shoulder that somehow found iron instead of twine.  But, despite those efforts, the teams headed to the break tied at zeros.

The second period was a little bit more of a back and forth affair, and both teams tightened up defensively, leading to a scrum that seemed to take place mostly in the neutral zone.  No great chances for either team, and one worn out holiday reveler/hockey mom was even spotted taking a nap in the bleachers at one point in the period!

But, the third period started with renewed promise, and the Marauders were able to up the offensive pressure a notch.  Two consecutive Goffstown penalties led to 4 minutes of man-up advantage for Hanover, and they used all but 1 second of that time before Acker, with an assist from Logan finally broke the dam with a shot that pinballed in with 4:29 to play.

Less than 2 minutes later, Acker added an insurance goal when he scored on what might be quite possibly the shortest shot he will ever take.  Stadheim's shot from the slot got through the Goffstown goalie, and the puck was left sitting just inches from the red line for Acker to poke in.  David Lehman finished out the scoring with just under a minute to go, shooting his first career goal into the vacated Goffstown net from center ice, with the assist credited to Baker.

Chocolate milk, lots of sleep, and another quick ride back down 89 is in store as the Marauders get the early game on Day 2 of the tourney, facing perennial powerhouse Central at noon.  Central was on the short end of a 4-0 score against Bedford in their opening game on Saturday.

A nice recap of the rest of the day 1 action can be found in the Union Leader here:

http://www.unionleader.com/article/20151227/SPORTS21/151229412