Dec 9, 2014 4 min read

CANONSBURG – Peters Township head coach Rick Tingle was searching for a jolt of energy for his hockey team. The Indians were split into two teams over the weekend so they could compete in a tournament in Jamestown, Va., and a showcase in Minnesota. Some players competed in as many as five games in three days.

Tingle saw the effects of that workload.

His answer Tuesday night came in the form of his top line – Brady Cochrane, Ryan Madore and Matt Amelio.

The trio combined for three goals and two assists to lead Peters Township to a 7-1 victory over Canon-McMillan at the Iceoplex.

The victory improved Peters Township’s record to 9-1-1 and elevated the Indians into first place in PIHL Class AAA, while the Big Macs’ fell to 7-3-1.

The most important goal came 20 seconds into the game, when defenseman Max Boss’s wrist shot went off C-M goaltender Conor Hartnett’s leg pad. The rebound went back to Madore, who fired it back at Hartnett and Cochrane knocked the rebound in for the early 1-0 lead.

“The first shift was big. That is a new line we put together,” Tingle said. “We experimented with them a little bit the other day against Bethel, and they helped spark us tonight. They had three goals so that’s a big contribution out of that line.”

Cochrane added his second goal less than four minutes into the third period with Peters Township shorthanded. Boss found Cochrane on an outlet pass in the neutral zone to give Cochrane a breakaway. The forward faked right before going left and his shot went over the goalie’s blocker for a 5-0 lead.

The Indians scored three first-period goals with Madore and Carter Ekberg finding the net against rival Canon-McMillan.

The game became more physical as it went on. The two teams combined for 10 penalties in the second and third periods, but Peters Township’s physicality prevailed.

“It’s definitely super-heated,” Cochrane said of the rivalry. “Canon-Mac is a big rival. Everyone gets really pumped up for the game – a lot more than regular games. Everyone was hyper and just wanted to get out there to do the best we could.”

The Indians won the battle in the neutral zone and limited the Big Macs’ chances. Peters Township outshot Canon-McMillan, 30-23, with the majority of C-M’s chances coming from the top of the circle.

“I don’t think them being older or experienced has much to do with it,” Canon-McMillan head coach Terry Virtue said. “They were bigger and stronger than us. They had a strong game plan and stuck to it. We weren’t prepared.”

The Indians scored again in the second period, when Sam Barnes capitalized off a rebound. Cochrane added his second goal in the third before Giovanni Carbonara added two late, third-period goals.

“I think there was a lot of emotion in the game,” Tingle said. “A lot of folks were doing what we wanted: really picking it up and really pushing. It just turned out well today. Sometimes you do those things and it doesn’t go your way. It did tonight.”

Canon-McMillan’s lone goal came on the power play with less than three minutes remaining. Josh Miller’s slap shot from the blue line snuck past Peters Township goalie Kyle Madore, who made two key glove saves during the second period.

From the first shift to the final buzzer, the Indians controlled the pace of play. It all began with Tingle’s experiment.

“A game like that with two big crowds, you want to get your team sparked immediately and it built from there,” Cochrane said. “Us scoring that first goal on the first shift was a big momentum builder and I think it led to us winning.”