Rebel stumbles, loses at Montreal, 20-15
Five each from Konopliff, Evans not enough for Ottawa
lax28 (Outsider's Guide Game Correspondent)

Despite five goals each from Chris Konopliff and Stephan Evans, the Ottawa Rebel could not overcome the Montreal Express' hot offense, falling by a 20-15 score Friday night at Molson Centre.

Curtis Palidwor started in net for the Express, while Andrew Leyshon took his place between the pipes for the Rebel in what would be an exciting game of lacrosse. Montreal started with the first goal six minutes into the game by Jason Crosbie. Ottawa got their first of the game roughly four minutes later when a bobbing ball made its way past Palidwor from Evans. After goals four and five for Montreal within seconds of each other, Leyshon couldn't hold on by himself. With a few more fantastic saves, and one more goal, Leyshon's night ended, replaced by Matt Disher with 1:43 remaining in the first. Montreal left the first quarter feeling pretty confident with a 7-3 lead on their shoulders, while Ottawa was still trying to get the ball in the net instead of on the boards.

The second quarter saw a more agressive Ottawa team. Save after save by Disher brought Ottawa closer to Montreal, with only Ted Dowling scoring once and Tracey Kelusky twice. Palidwor kept Montreal in the game as much as he could, but two goals each by Ryan Painter and Konopliff, along with one by Mike Benedict, brought Ottawa within two of Montreal heading into intermission. This period, like the first, was filled with penalties, hard hits and the occasional scuffle between players. Good lacrosse filled the first half, after a slow start by Ottawa. Montreal dominated though with better shots and a much better defense.

Ottawa came out quick in the third with two goals in less than two minutes to tie things at ten, which brought a battle to stay on top. Giles, Crosbie and Bendig all scored once for the Express, while Painter shot in one and Evans got two goals for the Rebel. The period ended with the score tied at thirteen and Montreal fans nervous about what would come in the fourth quarter.

Evans opened the scoring in the final period with a goal roughly six minutes in, for Ottawa's first lead of the night, followed by a two-on-one goal by Aime Caines to bring the score to fourteen-all. Peter Lough was left open in front of the crease and scored Montreal's 15th, which led to the Express' 16th by Todd Richard three minutes later. Evans managed to place one more ball behind Palidwor for Ottawa's fifteenth goal, but two penalties by Rory Graham led to two Express power play goals by Dean Harrison. Kelusky tossed in an empty-netter with two minutes left, and Dowling sealed the score on a goal with 1:04 remaining.

Palidwor played an excellent game for the Express, letting in only a few easy shots but keeping Montreal intact thoughout the entire game. Disher played well, but like his defense, could not keep up with Montreal's strength at the end of the game. Penalities played a major factor in the game, with eleven power play goals.

Standout performances were provided by Konopliff (five goals), Painter (three goals) and Evans (five goals) for Ottawa; for Montreal, Dowling (four goals), Tracey Kelusky (four goals) and Harrison (three goals) kept the fans entertained with amazing shots, including a beautiful backhander by Kelusky.

Also of note: this was the first time in league history that brothers coached against each other in a game. Lindsay Sanderson led the visiting Rebel, while Terry Sanderson skippered the Express.

These teams meet again Sunday afternoon at the Corel Centre in Ottawa.

Game Report reprinted with permission from The Outsider's Guide to the NLL. (Original text is here.)