Facing one of the top teams in the New Mexico Interscholastic Ice Hockey League, the Durango Devils had to dig deep on enemy ice.
It was senior weekend for the Taos Ice Tigers, and the Durango-based team had the tough task of looking to maintain first place in the league standings with only a few games to play before the postseason.
But the Devils rallied when it mattered most to secure a pair of one-goal wins, 4-3 and 3-2. That improved the team’s record to 14-2 overall and secured the Devils’ place as the top seed going into the playoffs, which start March 2 in El Paso, Texas.
After going down 1-0 in the opening 80 seconds and 2-0 after the first period in Game 1, the Devils were on their heels, and the Durango fans were silenced.
But Landen Sill, the league leader in goals this season, got momentum going when he got his stick on a rebound off the Taos goalie and sent the puck in for a goal. The rebound came off a slapshot from Sam Kidd.
Kidd then knotted the game at 2-all when a slapshot found the net thanks to strong screening in front of the Taos goalkeeper by the Devils attack. One minute later, Taos reclaimed the lead at 3-2. Eno Ulshafer then delivered an equalizer for Durango, as he weaved through the Tigers and beat the goalie.
The third period was tight the rest of the way, and it appeared overtime might be in order. But Sill found the puck at the top of the blue line and looked up to see the Taos back line out of position. He skated up ice and fired a wrister top shelf to give Durango a 4-3 lead with 8 seconds to play in regulation.
Stunned on senior night, the Tigers took the defeat despite controlling most of the game.
The Devils wouldn’t let the Tigers get redemption in the second game of the weekend. Durango again went down 1-0, but Sill refused to let the team go down 2-0 again. Passes from Nick Piccaro and Wyatt Killinen set Sill up in neutral ice behind the defense, and he finished to tie the game at 1-all.
Durango’s defense stepped it up from there, while the attack controlled the puck and applied pressure. Jake Beekman earned a power-play goal with an assist from Sill to give Durango a 2-1 lead.
Taos answered early in the third period, but Durango again had some heroics late, as Joe Lawton stormed up the ice and drew the Taos defense. Lawton fed a perfect pass directly in front of goal, and Sill again was there to redirect it past the Taos goalie for the game-winner.
Durango goalie Robby Grogan leads the league in goals against, and Sill has now scored 28 goals to take a commanding lead in that category.
The Devils will play non-league games this weekend and then prepare for a run in the playoffs.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
