 Kansas City goaltender Jack LaFontaine greets fans as he leaves the ice after being named the No. 1 star in Saturday night's 2-1 victory over the Allen Americans. LaFontaine stopped 26 of 27 shots on goal as the Mavericks won their 10th consecutive game at Cable Dahmer Arena. He was named the Warrior ECHL Goaltender of the Week last week. Photo credit: Bill Althaus by Bill Althaus Jack LaFontaine continues to etch his name in the Kansas City Comets book of lore as he turned in a performance for the ages in a dramatic 2-1 victory over the Allen Americans Saturday night at Cable Dahmer Arena in front of an enthusiastic crowd of 5,798. While LaFontaine was rock steady all night, his brilliance in the final 1:34 of third quarter was all anyone was talking about after the game. The Americans pulled goaltender Luke Richardson, setting up a series of close-range shot on goals for Allen. Not only did he survive the scrum in front of the net, he somehow stopped a point-blank shot with just :11 left in regulation. "I'll be honest with you, I was preparing for an overtime period because Allen swarmed our net with a sixth attacker - but Jack kept coming up with big save, after big save," coach Tad O'Had said, after the Mavericks improved to 34-12-4-1 on the season. "And that last save in the final seconds? UNBELIEVABLE! As good a save as I have ever seen from one of the players I have coached, or any players I have coached against. He continues to be one of the premier goaltenders in the league. And the same can be said of (Victor) Ostman. There is not a better goaltending combo in the ECHL." At the end of our conversation, O'Had let fans in on a little secret. "Jack has been sick for more than a week," the coach said. "I don't know how he's done what he's done. Just unbelievable - but that could be said for a lot of our guys. We've battled through illness, suspensions, travel - and we always come ready to play." The Mavericks have won 10 in a row at Cable Dahmer Arena and are 14-5-3 at home this season. With the win, O’Had is now two wins away from becoming the Mavericks’ all-time winningest coach. Scott Hillman holds the top spot with 186 career wins, while O'Had has 185. "I never think about that stuff, and never really know about it until you ask me a question about it," O'Had said. "I just hope we keep playing like we have been, and that everyone gets healthy." The Mavericks wasted no time getting on the board, striking early with Damien Giroux scoring at 4:40, assisted by David Cotton and Landon McCallum. Two minutes later, Max Andreev doubled the lead at 6:55, finishing a feed from Casey Carreau to give Kansas City a 2-0 advantage. "That was a great pass and a great goal," O'Had said. "Max just came back from a (2-game) suspension and contributed right away and Carreau continues to play winning hockey for our team." After a scoreless second period, Allen cut the deficit in half at 8:04 of the third, when Mark Duarte found the back of the net.. The Americans ramped up the pressure in the closing minutes, outshooting the Mavericks 17-9 in the final frame, but LaFontaine sealed the victory with that eye-popping save in the dying seconds. "It's great to have a big team win like this one at home," LaFontaine said, as he was given a standing ovation during the postgame announcement that he was the No. 1 Star of the game. The night was particularly special for David Cotton, who played in his 200th professional game, marking a milestone moment in his career. LaFontaine was stellar in net, stopping 26 of 27 shots, while Luke Richardson made 36 saves on 38 shots in goal for Allen.
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