On a night celebrating the Durango High School hockey team’s 10 seniors, two juniors made the difference between Durango and Aspen inside Chapman Hill Ice Rink in Durango.
Junior forward Wynn Daniels scored two goals and junior forward Sawyer Jones had the other as Durango pulled away in the third period for a 3-1 victory on Friday night
The Demons bounced back after two losses at Glenwood Springs last weekend. Durango improved to 5-4-1 overall and 4-3 in the 4A Mountain League with it’s win over Aspen. Sophomore forward Baker Blount had an assist on Daniels’ second goal.
“They did what we asked them to,” Durango hockey interim head coach Will Daniels said. “It definitely took a little bit; we dominated, especially in the second period and the end of the first even. Finally, we got a couple to drop from our top lines and that's what we're kind of expecting and looking for them to set the tone. It took a little longer than we wanted, but we'll take it. They all continue to battle.”
Aspen fell to 0-5 overall and 0-3 in the 4A Mountain League after the loss. Kit Kershow scored the lone goal for the Skiers.
Durango kept the pressure on the Aspen defense early and often. Daniels had a one-on-one chance with the keep with 13 minutes left in the first period but couldn’t find the back of the net.
Daniels continued to create chances for the Demons. He had a beautiful array of moves through the neutral zone and skated down the left side. He passed the puck to his teammate but the Aspen goaltender came up with another big save with 11 minutes left in the first period.
Durango continued to pressure the Aspen goaltender with plenty of shots and lots of pressure in Durango’s offensive zone. A substitution mishap led to a Blount breakaway down the right side with about 6:30 left but he failed to finish.
“They're definitely moving the puck like we want,” Will Daniels said about his team. “There's a couple little tweaks we're trying to make to give us better shot opportunities. We were getting shots off, and that's what we asked of them. Their goalie had a great game. He's a big part of their team and we have to find the holes.”
Aspen struck first with about 4:20 left in the first period. Sophomore Kit Kershow made a nice move down the left side and found the upper right corner for a 1-0 lead.
The Demons pressure finally resulted in a score. At Durango’s defensive blue line, Aspen turned it over and Daniels was ready to convert. He skated in from the right side and finished with 24 seconds left in the period to tie the game at 1-1.
Between the first and second periods, Durango’s 10 seniors were honored on the rink with a nice ceremony with their parents and coaches.
Durango continued its pressure with the puck to start the second period but failed to create any super clean looks or breakaways early on.
Aspen’s first good chance of the second period came off another counterattack with about eight minutes to go but senior goaltender Luka Remec was strong and made the stop.
The Demons kept an extended possession in the second half of the period but could not get a shot around the Aspen goaltender. He spread out to make some great saves as Durango kept possession in its offensive zone and peppered him with shots.
Durango couldn’t find the late-period magic to end the second period and the game remained 1-1 after the second period.
Aspen almost opened up the third period with its second goal. Durango had a sloppy turnover in its defensive zone and an Aspen forward had a great look at the goal. Remec made the save less than a minute into the period.
here were a few scrums in front of the net and Aspen had multiple shots on Remec. But the senior stretched out and kept the game level.
Durango took the lead with 12:14 to go. Blount skated through the neutral zone and toward the left side. He passed it across goal to Daniels who finished for the lead.
“That line in particular, they know that they're expected to produce points,” Will Daniels said about his first line. “They're doing a great job. On Wynn’s second goal, Baker had an unbelievable assist; it’s textbook stuff we’ve been practicing.”
The Demons didn’t do themselves any favors after the goal as Aspen went on the power play for two minutes after senior forward Dylan Morrissey was called for a penalty. Durango killed the penalty successfully.
Shortly after, Durango capitalized again. Sawyer Jones found the back of the net to put Durango up 3-1 from close range with about eight minutes left.
Aspen was on its back heels after that. Durango had a few close calls with some good passing after its third goal but couldn’t convert.
The Skiers had another power play with about four minutes left and then Aspen went up two men with 2:34 left for 52 seconds. The Demons killed both penalties and cruised to victory.
“Our penalty-killing ability seems to be really good,” Will Daniels said. “It's not something I want to find myself in that frequently. This season unfortunately we’ve been killing off penalties and we have the skill and the ability to do that.”
Durango and Aspen return to Chapman Hill on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
