Storm Open League Campaign at Home with 2-1 Victory Over Clan

Following their double-header road trip against the Devils and Blaze, the Storm returned home to begin a demanding three-game week. The schedule got underway on Wednesday evening at the AO Arena with their first Elite League meeting of the season against the Glasgow Clan.

A scrappy opening five minutes saw no real chances at either end as the two sides struggled to find their feet. The power-play unit came close in the sixth minute, working the puck around well but failing to find the back of the net. It took until the tenth minute for the deadlock to be broken when Karlsson, with a cutting pass through centre ice, found Cutler, who skilfully rounded the sprawling netminder and coolly slid the puck home. Gilmour had a chance to double the lead in the latter stages of the first period but was denied by Tirronen, who pulled off a highlight-reel save to keep the score at 1-0 heading into the interval.

The ice had barely dried when the Storm added a second goal, just two minutes in. It was Nardi who lasered a shot past Tirronen, who had no chance as the puck rippled the twine, with Lee providing the accurate and crucial pass. Glasgow sparked into life at that point and upped their tempo, creating sustained offensive pressure. Their reward eventually came when Neilson's cross-crease backhand pass found new signing Tarzwell, who finished confidently from close range. With no further scoring, the score remained 2-1 to the home side heading into the final third.

An early powerplay opportunity was squandered by the Clan, with just one shot on DeRidder. Storm's own powerplay unit continued to impress at this early stage of the season, with some crisp and pinpoint passing. A free flowing period ensued with both sides creating chances, but with two in form netminders scoring was a real problem. Glasgow elected to go all out in the remaining three minutes, pulling Tirronen in favour of the extra forward. Storm held on however to record a 2-1 victory.

By: Kristian Stokwisz