'Cats keep rolling

Plymouth icers upend Patriots, 8-0

BY ED WRIGHT
Jan. 9, 2010, 11:10 p.m.

   Plymouth's hockey team continued to march through its January schedule like an amped-up bulldozer Saturday afternoon at Compuware Arena.

  The Wildcats' march to a possible KLAA South Division title picked up more momentum thanks to an 8-0 triumph over a gutsy yet overmatched Livonia Franklin contingent.

  The game was stopped with 1:08 left in the third period due to the MHSAA's eight-goal mercy rule.

  Plymouth improved to 10-2-1 overall and 4-0 in the division while the Patriots slipped to 0-9.

  The Wildcats led 3-0 after one period and 5-0 after two.

  Pat Smiatacz, Justin Bauer and Ryan Renault got the ball rolling for the victors with first-period goals.

  The 'Cats kept the heat on in the second period, scoring seven seconds in when Tyler Lazorka banged the puck home after securing a pass from Renault.

  Franklin back-up goalie Matthew Slinder was the story for most of the rest of the second period as he turned away a barrage of Wildcat scoring attempts until Taylor Currier lit the lamp with a low ice-scraper from Sean Smiatacz with 2:20 left in the stanza.

  Slinder's best stop came mid-way through the period when he re-directed a laser that was launched by the stick of Plymouth defenseman Dean Gunther.

  While Slinder was stellar, Plymouth net-minder Zach Vojcek was impeccable. The Patriots didn't mount numerous scoring opportunities, but when they did -- like at the 3:51 mark when Conner Jelonek ripped a rising slapshot that had top-shelf written all over it -- Vojcek was more than ready to respond.

  Vojcek's most-impressive shutout-preserving stop came with 28 seconds before the second intermission when he denied Tyler Hewitt on a break-away.

  Plymouth upped its lead to 6-0 less than three minutes into the third on Colin Wright's goal from Bauer. The cushion rose to 7-0 moments later when Currier controlled a rebound off his own shot and snapped the puck through Slinder's five-hole.

  Nick Schultz capped Plymouth's productive afternoon when he scored from Renault and Bauer with 68 seconds on the clock.

  Despite their record, the Patriots are making gradual strides this season, asserted coach Scott Wirgau.

  "We started so far behind the bell curve last year with a young and inexperienced team and we've come such a long way since then," he said. "We still have a lot farther to go; we just have some fundamental mistakes that we have to correct. Once we correct those mistakes, we'll be able to compete with teams like Plymouth.

 "Plymouth is an awesome team, but they weren't a few years ago. They are now -- after a lot of hard work, drawing the right kids and doing things the right way. That's what we're striving for."