Grind beats Glitz as Bantam IceCats defeat Rangers in Barnburner

(11/2/25)

The IceCats Bantams proved again that grit beats glitz, grinding out a 7–5 thriller over the Rye Rangers on Sunday to notch their third straight win. It wasn’t always pretty — in fact, the first period was downright rough — but the Cats found their game when it mattered most.

Rye jumped out early. Their speed forced two quick penalties, and they cashed in on a 5-on-3 to make it 1–0 before the IceCats could even settle in.

The Rangers kept pressing, but a spark came from the penalty kill — Ariel Tantleff turned on the jets for a short-handed breakaway. His shot was stopped, but Artie Cabasso was there to bury the rebound. Tie game, 1–1, and a much-needed jolt. Rye answered late to take a 2–1 lead, but Cabasso pounced on a Rangers pizza to square things after one.

The second period saw the teams trading goals like heavyweight fighters. Marc “Sutty” Sutton backhanded a roof job for a 3-2 IceCats lead. Rye briefly went ahead, but their momentum was short-lived as Tantleff and Sutton went to work. Tantleff off the ensuing faceoff went Bardownski! Then ten seconds later Tantleff AGAIN On the cycle, backhander through traffic, and Sutton slammed home the rebound for a 5–4 IceCats advantage.

Rye tied it 5–5 early on a broken play, but the IceCats held strong. Goalie Ronnie Levy came up huge, stoning a Rangers chance point-blank to preserve the tie.

Then, with 8:23 left, Zachary Gomberg made the play of the night — a monster backcheck to kill a Rye rush, then turned it up ice to start a 3-on-1. Max Rosenthal finished it top shelf to make it 6–5 IceCats. 

Moments later, Tantleff kept a puck in at the blue line and fed Marc “Sutty” Sutton, who buried it to complete the hat trick and make it 7–5.

From there, the Cats locked it down spearheaded by coach Joe Sutton smart clears, hard hits, no panic. Third straight win, and a statement one at that. 

As associate coach Marvin Azrak put it:

“The boys had to grind for that one. It feels good we beat a quality team at this early November stage and I don’t think we’ve played nearly our best hockey yet, especially defensively and physically.”