In Tahoe's first-ever game Thursday night, the club fell to Jacksonville in a tough overtime loss.
Lake Tahoe had long been without a professional sports team until the Knight Monsters played their inaugural game in the ECHL Thursday against the Jacksonville Icemen at the Tahoe Blue Event Center.
While the result didn't end up in a win, the sellout crowd of over 4,200 was entertained by exciting hockey and even some overtime before the Icemen prevailed, 4-3.
It didn't take long for the Knight Monsters to score their first-ever goal in franchise history, and it came from a rookie. Defenseman Artur Cholak scored from the top of the slot for a 1-0 Tahoe lead early in the first period.
The Icemen would even the contest later in the period on a power-play goal from Logan Cockerill. Jacksonville goaltender Matt Vernon made some nice saves to keep the score tied 1-1 heading into the second despite his team being outshot 14-6.
Brendan Harris gave the Icemen a 2-1 advantage eight minutes into the second frame on the power play. Zach Jordan followed with a shot off a rebound two minutes later for a 3-1 Jacksonville lead.
The Knight Monsters refused to go down, however. Another blueliner chipped in with a goal, as Brennan Kapcheck slipped one in to narrow the margin to 3-2 with 6:30 left in the third.
Just two minutes later, Kapcheck fed a beautiful stretch pass to forward Simon Pinard, who tied the score 3-3.
Both teams had several opportunities to end the game early in overtime, and the Icemen ended the night after a mix-up between Knight Monsters netminder Jesper Vikman and forward Jake McGrew, allowing the puck to trickle in for the 4-3 victory. Harris was credited with the game-winning goal.
Vernon stopped 36 of the 39 shots he faced for Jacksonville, while Vikman saved 20 of the 24 shots fired at him.
It was a great effort for the Knight Monsters, who face Jacksonville once again Friday at Tahoe Blue Event Center in the two-game finale. Puck drop is set for 7:30 Pm.