Adelaide Adrenaline Canada Day Game Recap VS Newcastle Northstars

The Adelaide Adrenaline were seen rocking up to the Ice ArenA in their best denim jackets and plaid shirts on Saturday afternoon before changing into exclusively made black and red jerseys to celebrate Canada Day in front of a sold out crowd.

 
The Adrenaline played a tight first period against the Newcastle Northstars with precious playoff points on the line. Starting goalie Rylan Toth kept his opponents off the board by making a number of quick glove saves and safely clearing the puck from behind the net.
 
Fan favourite Daniel Chen opened the scoring with less than three minutes to go in the first, setting himself up perfectly for a rebound from Josh Adkins and Kaden Elder.
 
“Elder and Adkins are really skilled players so it can open up a lot more space out there and give me a little extra time,” Chen says.
 
Ty Wright and Zack Boyle worked together consistently to create more scoring opportunities for the Adrenaline in the second period, but the Northstars were able to bring the puck back each time and take advantage of a number of two-on-one plays in front of the crease. Toth continued to dive in front of the puck but relentless pressure from Daniel Berno saw the Northstars even the score midway through the second.
 
Steve Best flipped the score in favour of the Adrenaline soon after with his first goal of the season, an impressive backhanded goal with an assist from Nate Benson.
 
Kaden Elder gave the Adrenaline a 3-1 lead by firing the puck in over the shoulder of Mitsuaki Inoue near the start of the third period but the control we saw from the team earlier in the game was beginning to slip away as the period wore on. Despite playing more aggressively on the defence the Adrenaline were unable to keep the Northstars from tying the game and going into overtime.
 
“We were trying to put the pressure on a little bit more,” Best says. “But I think we let our foot off the gas near the end.”
 
The three-on-three began with Adkins, Elder, and Dosanjh utilizing as much of the ice as possible to drive the puck into the offensive zone. Daniel Chen came close to putting the winning goal on the board but was denied by Inoue, and Beau Taylor would capture the 4-3 win for the Northstars with 90 seconds left of play.
 
“The first period I thought was the best period of hockey we played this year,” Toth says. “We played predictable and got pucks deep and got rewarded for it. In the second and third we got away from it a little bit and it cost us.”
 
Despite the final score not being in favour of the Adrenaline, several import players reflected on how wonderful it felt to see the maple leaf on their jerseys and begin the game with the playing of the Canadian national anthem.
 
“I took a minute to just enjoy that,” Toth says. “Australia feels a lot like home, but just hearing the anthem was a nice touch and it felt like being back home a little bit.”
 
The Adrenaline still earn a point and are keen for a rematch against the Northstars on Sunday afternoon. Puck drop is at 4:15pm with limited tickets still remaining.
 
- Joanna Gruenberg