From the very first shift, the Bullets came flying Sunday, and the Squirrels had a hard time keeping pace. And though the Bullets beat the Squirrels, 8-5, the game turned out much differently than what it seemed in the opening minutes.
The Bullets scored two quick goals, while Squirrels goalie Dave Tran also made plenty of saves. They scored again early in the second period to go up 3-0. The turning point for the Squirrels came after coincidental minors were handed out to Squirrels defenseman Tim Platte and another guy, seemingly putting the Squirrels at a disadvantage as they lost a defenseman for two minutes. But that’s when the Squirrels started buzzing. Dave Shaman knocked home his first goal as a Squirrels after a pinball game in front of the net. The Squirrels had more chances, and toward the end of a shift, Nate Groves, taking the puck into the zone 1-on-4, knuckled in a shot to cut the Bullets lead to 3-2. The Squirrels still had more chances, but the Bullets answered with three straight, and another to start the third period.
The Squirrels were down 7-2, but they never gave up. Mario Constantinou scored with a hard shot a few feet from the net, and Tony Richelsen scored one of his more impressive goals in years. Taking the puck in but being forced to one side, he kept his feet moving and hit the opposite-side top corner before crashing into the boards, making the score 7-4.
A bad pass by the Squirrels gave the Bullets a late gift before Constantinou scored his second of the game.
The Bullets were credited with 72 shots while the Squirrels were credited with 68. Though those numbers were likely exaggerated, each team did have more than usual, especially on the rebounds.
Date: Sunday, November 8, 2026 | Time: 10:00 PM | Rink: Logsdon