Denver, Colo. -- Usually being a little rusty is a bad thing for a sports team. But for the Colorado Climax Evolution hockey team, being a little rusty can be just what the doctor ordered. In this case, it was little Rusty Messick, the diminutive yet feisty forward, that made all the difference in the Evolution’s 6-0 win over Fortrust on Feb. 9 in Westminster.
“Rusty really exemplifies the grit and spirit of this team,” said teammate Adam Bowen, who had two game points with a goal and an assist. “He’s not at all intimidated by players who are a lot bigger than him, and he doesn’t hesitate to get into the thick of it.”
Messick scored two goals and added an assist as the Evolution produced their second largest offensive output of the season.
“Sometimes you have to send a message to the other team that size doesn’t always matter,” Messick said. “This is not a sport for the timid. I try to compensate for my lack of height and weight by playing aggressively.”
The win allowed the Evolution to hold on to third place in the division. Despite having three more wins that the second place Copperheads II, the Evolution has yet to participate in any 3-point games.
Messick opened the scoring with a wrist shot off of a rebound at 4:55 of the first period. After failing to score on the power play following an interference call on Fortrust’s Michael Husson, the Evolution’s Justin Kuczynski tipped a slap shot from the point by Bryan Pyles at 12:47 to make it a 2-0 lead at the end of the period.
Messick struck again at 7:02 of the second period. Tom Puckett passed the puck up the boards to Kuczynski at the goal line, who saw Messick steaming down the slot. Messick one-timed the pass by the Fortrust goalie for a 3-0 lead.
“Great teamwork on that one,” Puckett said. “Great play making. It was a pretty goal for sure.”
Kuczynski scored his second goal when Geoffry Kaatz dished him the puck from the edge of the red circle for a nifty backhander at 9:21 of the period, and the shut out held going into the third period.
Bowen upped the score to 5-0 at 3:34 after he came out the winner of a loose puck scramble in front of the Fortrust net.
Daniel Zale added a goal at 11:26 to cap the scoring for the Evolution.
Although the Evolution went 0-3 on the power play, they were superb at snuffing out all six of Fortrust’s man advantages.
Meanwhile, the Colorado Climax Too scored the first four goals of the game and held on to defeat the Geezers 5-3 on Feb. 8. Matt Durbahn scored a hat trick, while Rebecca Godsill added a goal and two assists, and Carl Goolsby tallied three assists.