Although missing out on postseason qualification, the Crested Butte hockey team finished the season with statement victories against Woodland Park and Aspen, proving the program has a bright future ahead.
The Titans finished with a 6-13 overall record, and sit sixth in the stacked, 4A Mountain League with a record of 5-9.
“The leadership of my seniors Carson Zummach, Marshall Spann and Matej Voldan had a lot to do with keeping the locker room fresh and as steady as possible,” said Head Coach Joey Otsuka. “They had a lot to do with our success in the last three weeks. We were finally able to have identities for different lines, and the players on those lines were buying into their roles.”
The boys put together a barnburning, 7-0 shutout over the Woodland Park Panthers in the final home game of the season on Feb. 7. Spann dazzled the senior-night crowd with a hattrick in his final outing on the Jorgensen ice. The senior captain scored two in the first period, assisted by Mason Weitman and Luke Hartigan, and added a third in the second period. Hartigan, Tanner Maltby, Zander Zacher and Ethan Suazo joined him on the scoresheet in the 7-0 thumping.
The Titans maintained their blistering offense the following day, away against the Aspen Skiers on Feb. 8. Hartigan and Suazo hushed the home crowd within minutes, each beating the goaltender in the first period. Armed with a 2-0 lead, the Titans continued to pepper the Skiers net into the second period. Max Dukeman and Jake White scored and assisted back-to-back goals in the period, and senior Voldan put the icing on the cake with a Suazo-assisted goal to lead 5-0.
The Skiers pulled one back minutes before the second intermission, but Charlie Reamer and Suazo added two more for good measure. The Titans finished their season with a 7-1 battering over their northern rivals.
Amidst the offensive revival, Otsuka said he was most impressed with the boys’ defensive workrate.
“Players often focus on offense, because it's the sparkly thing that makes you look cool,” Otsuka said. “But no one cheers Tanner Maltby when he’s absolutely hounding the offense on the other team. It’s guys like Cobin O’Connor that understand the defensive nature of the game. Those are the lessons you learn when you start on line three or line four. Finally, at the end of the season, the players started to understand that.”
(Alex McCrindle can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or alex@gunnisontimes.com.)
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