Macon Mayhem rally before falling in overtime to Columbus

A big rally while shutting out visiting Columbus for two periods was enough to force overtime for the Macon Mayhem on Friday night at the Macon Coliseum. But the visiting Cottonmouths gained the final measure of satisfaction, winning the game 4-3 in overtime on a goal by Jonathan Turk.

The Mayhem stormed back after trailing 3-0 after a period, notching a trio of second-period goals as goalie Garrett Bartus and the Macon defensive pairings kept Columbus scoreless for the remainder of regulation.

Jake Trask scored twice for Macon in the second, and Dennis Sicard also came up with a goal to swing momentum in favor of the Mayhem to cap two wild periods on both ends of the ice. But the early scores by Columbus, two set up by turning the puck over, ended up being costly in the end.

Five who mattered

Turk: The SPHL’s 4-on-4 overtime format lends itself to individual efforts, and Turk feasted on the opportunity Friday, skating in from the left and pushing the puck past Bartus for the win.

Trask: The Mayhem were in bad need of a jolt after falling behind 3-0 at the end of the first period. Trask provided it. He first punched a loose puck into the back of the back of the net to get Macon on the board 2:24 into the second period with assists by Vadim Guskov and JP Larmoyeux setting up the play. Trask then tied the game by taking a pass from the boards, crossing in front of Columbus goalie Brandon Jaeger to beat him on the opposite side for the equalizer.

Sicard: He has an earned reputation around the SPHL for being both a strong scorer and bringing a physical presence to the table. He lived up to both Friday. He knocked a loose puck in for Macon’s second goal of the game, and his aggressive play led to two trips to the penalty box. The second of those came after a minor scrum with Craig Simchuk of Columbus, eliciting cheers from the home crowd as he skated off the ice.

Bartus: He handled the pressure of being the SPHL’s MVP last year well, holding Columbus scoreless and coming up with much-needed stops in goal to ensure Macon had a chance to win the game in overtime and at a minimum, pick up a point in the standings.

Andy Bathgate: He was a big reason for the fast start by Columbus, notching two goals in the first period.

Observations

Staying level-headed: The way Friday’s game began, it had the looks of a nightmarish start for Macon. The same Columbus team scored three late goals during last weekend’s exhibition game against the Mayhem, and a mental edge would have been understandable to a degree. But Macon hung in there after trailing 3-0, showing resilience in fighting back to tie it.

Macon impact: While the energy and intensity of right winger Travis Howe seen last season was not part of the game Friday him now being with the ECHL’s Utah Grizzlies, there wasn’t a drop-off thanks to Sicard, who was not afraid to mix it up with the Cottonmouths when needed. And similar to Howe, he provoked cheers from fans as he went off the ice to serve a roughing penalty after getting into a minor scrape with the Cottonmouths.

Turned over: Not taking care of the puck bit the Mayhem hard in the first period. Two of the three goals by Columbus in the first period were sparked by turnovers, and the Cottonmouths took advantage. Macon cut down on turnovers in the second and coincidentally, made a comeback. The second Columbus goal of the game came when Bathgate got possession of the puck in the neutral zone just after Macon missed on a crossing pass and skated in for the score. The final goal of the third came off a faceoff in the Columbus zone with less than 15 seconds to go, but Columbus got possession of the puck and got it down the ice to Bathgate for the goal with just 3.9 seconds left.

Enhanced entry: The Mayhem came onto the ice by way of an addition to pregame activities Friday, skating through smoke from a fog machine and an inflatable team-branded Mayhem tunnel with a portrayal of the team’s mascot, Mac, on the top of it.

They said it

Mayhem head coach Kevin Kerr on the second-period play: “Obviously, the way we played in the second period is how we want to play, we were a different team. We were getting around pucks and finishing plays. It’ll take us time as a group to gel together. We’ve got a lot of returning guys, but we also have a lot of new guys who haven’t played together. But I thought we battled and had our chances. We’ve got a lot of areas we need to clean up, but we’re a lot further along than we were last year.”

Kerr on the scoring output from the Mayhem’s top scoring line led by Trask: “That line, it’s a good line but I think we have a lot of depth on our team. We have a lot of guys who can make plays. (John) Siemer’s a good one (Guskov) is another one, obviously, we have great leadership with Matt Summers and (Stephen) Pierog. We have a lot of weapons, we just have to put it together.”

What’s next?

The Mayhem and Cottonmouths face off again Saturday in Columbus. Macon plays again at home Friday against Peoria.

This story was originally published October 21, 2016 at 11:52 PM with the headline "Macon Mayhem rally before falling in overtime to Columbus."