1st Period
At 10:52 the Whalers opened the scoring: a point shot by Brandon Chiasson caromed to the near corner where Logan Caffrey poked it to Cavan Benjamin. Benjamin fed Caffrey down low, got it back going to the net, and beat Carlson top corner glove side for 1–0.
At 6:55, Jason “Yee-Haw” Yehle stripped a puck at the blue line and sprung Dan “The Fenom” Fenton, who turned his defender, went in alone, and went backhand-to-forehand upstairs for 2–0.
At 5:06, a smooth regroup led to a Whalers blue line love story: Gour reversed it to Kelly Park, Park hit Rusty Teller in stride, Teller bulldozed through three Tuckies, then found Park arriving late. Park snapped it bar-down blocker side for 3–0, then celebrated by riding his stick at center ice like a five-year-old who just discovered joy.
With 0:30 left in the period, Yehle picked off a clearing attempt at the blue line, carved into the slot, split a pair of defenders, and tucked one under Carlson’s arm for 4–0. The Whalers finished the period with a casual 19 shots. Tuck had 1. (Yes, one. Not “one good chance.” One shot.)
End of 1: Tuck 0, Whalers 4 • Shots: Tuck 1, Whalers 19
2nd Period
At 14:17 it became 5–0 after a faceoff win led to a full-ice breakout: Park rimmed it to Teller, Teller drove through the neutral zone, dropped to VeNard, got it back alone in the slot, and scored on the rebound after Carlson stopped the first attempt. (Somewhere, a marriage counselor took notes. Yes, they’re related.)
Tuck finally got on the board with 0:15 left: a poke check by Bryce Kuhn plus a bad pinch by Scotty “Too Hotty” Christian created a 2-on-1. Bomes fired, Condon made the save… and then donated a rebound straight into the slot. Plonsker tapped it in to make it 5–1. Condon immediately apologized to his defense, his parents, and the concept of “shutouts.”
End of 2: Tuck 1, Whalers 5 • Shots: Tuck 8, Whalers 29
3rd Period
At 13:03, another clean regroup ended with McCormick taking a feed up the near boards, beating the defender at the blue line, and sniping blocker side for 6–1. Park hit the crossbar at 10:30 (the puck is still orbiting), Carlson made multiple robbery-grade saves on Fenton later, and Condon slammed the door on a Plonsker breakaway with a huge glove save.
Teller had two more quality looks against his brother-in-law late — including a breakaway — but Carlson stood tall, likely powered by family group-text pressure and pure spite.
Final: Whalers 6, Tuck 1 • Shots: Whalers 42, Tuck 12