Excitement was in the air in Melbourne with over 70 travelling Northstars fans chanting loud to support their team as the semi-final got underway.
Melbourne Ice would score first, and Northstars responded with three unanswered goals from Daniel Berno, Riley Klugerman and Wehebe Darge over the first two periods. Heading into the break before the final third, excitement levels were building. But, as always with hockey, things can change to be crushing in a third. A 3-1 lead going into the second wasn’t enough, with Melbourne Ice responding in the final third and defeating Newcastle 3-4.
Head Coach Kevin Noble reflected on the performance of the team, including a crucial assist from Hunter Ellen, stating, “That’s hockey this time of year; you’ve got to get production from the whole of your line-up. The shot from Hunter was really good, and all the guys have been really good for us this year, but we’ve just come up a little bit short tonight.”
“It’s a small world, and you play with a lot of buddies, and you make a lot of friends and then the way the business works, you end up competing against your brothers,” shared Noble on facing friend and Melbourne Ice Coach Kerry Goulet in the semi-final.
“We have the best fans in the league. They travel well to support us, and we love our fan base. We’re disappointed we couldn’t get it done for them tonight. It’s going to hurt for a while; it was a tough night for Newcastle.”
“It’s massive,” shared Francis Drolet, speaking of the crowd. “It’s like playing with an extra player; having the fans travel is like playing with an extra player. We wanted to give them something to celebrate, but it wasn’t the way tonight.”
Melbourne Ice will face the Canberra Brave in the Goodall Cup Final on Sunday, August 25th, and Newcastle is looking ahead to the 2025 season.
THUNDER
MUSTANGS
ADRENALINE
ICE
LIGHTNING
NORTHSTARS
RHINOS
BRAVE
