'Stangs slip twice to Angels
Both setbacks in conference.
LITTLETON – The rough stretch for Mullen continued into the weekend.
In dropping consecutive games to Denver East, the Mustangs are on a 0-3-1 slide. They fell 4-0 to the Angels on Friday night at Big Bear and followed with a 4-2 setback on Saturday at The Edge.
Now 8-6-1, Mullen still has time to regroup and solidify a spot in the 24-team playoff bracket, but it also needs what head coach Devon Brady calls a signature win ... or two.
Both losses came in the Highlands Conference. Denver East continues at the top at 7-0-1 and the Mustangs are 2-5-1.
“We’re close,” Brady said on Saturday.
In Friday’s loss, the Mustangs again handled being outshot against a bigger, stronger and more-experienced team, as a couple of mistakes probably mushroomed to allowing a four-goal third period.
As for Saturday, Mullen opened the game by perhaps playing its “worst period of the year,” Brady said, in falling behind 3-0 before rallying in the second. Goals by Utah Bryant and Aidan Cashman kept it tight and the Mustangs missed on two good chances to tie it.
In addition, Robby Witwer had opportunities on a penalty shot and breakaway only to come up short. The Angels added an empty-net goal in the closing seconds to seal it and the Mustangs were outshot 19-5 in the third.
Once again, despite giving up the three first-period scores, Mustangs junior goalie Connor Mahon was big, stopping 29 Angels shots over the final 34 minutes.
Mullen still has conference games to play, beginning on Friday, Feb. 8, vs. Kent Denver at the University of Denver, 7 p.m., and is looking for a late-season surge.
“We got behind early,” center Riley Watters said. “We just need to keep going.”
Brady had hoped for a couple of points this weekend, but knows the Angels lead the conference for a reason. And they have a matchup against Heritage, which is behind Denver East by a point in the conference. The Mustangs also dropped two one-goal games to third-place Columbine.
“That’s a good team,” he said of the Angels. “We’re right there. We have to be ready for the next one.”
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