AIHL Week 5 Wrap: Ice Surge to the Summit

James Lane

Week 5 of the AIHL saw a reshuffling at the top and some eye-opening scorelines across the country, with Melbourne Ice claiming first place on the back of a dominant double-header. Meanwhile, the Central Coast Rhinos pulled off a thrilling overtime win against Adelaide.

Ice Stamp Their Authority

In a commanding double-header weekend, the Ice skated past both their Melbourne rivals and the struggling Canberra Brave to notch back-to-back wins and leapfrog Perth Thunder into first place. Friday night’s 5–2 win over the Mustangs was impressive enough, but it was Saturday’s 10–2 demolition of Canberra that truly turned heads. In a show of depth and attacking flair, the Ice had nine different scorers on the night, sending a clear warning shot to the rest of the league.

Perth, idle this week, drop to second on the ladder, now five points adrift of the Ice. The Mustangs, who came into the weekend with momentum, couldn’t capitalise on their Friday derby, but managed to hammer the Brave 10–2 on Sunday, with Mac Roy netting a hat trick in the process. The Mustangs remain third, now just one point behind Perth.

Rhinos and Adrenaline Play Out Thriller

Elsewhere, the Central Coast Rhinos edged out Adelaide 5–4 in overtime on Saturday in what was arguably the game of the round. The Adrenaline, still winless after eight games, looked to be in with a shot of breaking their duck before the Rhinos broke their hearts late. Sunday was more of the same for Adelaide, who were thoroughly outclassed 6–1 by the Newcastle Northstars. The result gives Newcastle their third win of the year, lifting them to sixth but still behind the Rhinos on points.

Double Embarrasment for Brave

After showing promising signs last week, Canberra experienced a rough return to earth. After being embarrassed 10-2 by the Ice on Saturday, they backed it up with another loss of the same scoreline to the Mustangs. The Brave sit equal on points with Brisbane, though the Lightning had the weekend off.