Mar 25, 2012 | John Barr | 999 views
2012 New Hamburg Optimist Novice Champions
Home Hardware Novice LL 1 captured the 2012 New Hamburg Optimist Tournament A Championship March 24th.
Home Hardware LL1 Huskies came to play this past weekend at the annual Novice Peewee Optimist tournament. Game one saw Home Hardware Huskies (HHH) play Port Dover in a fast skating game that remained scoreless until the third period due to strong defensive play from Jack Wheeler, Matt Eddy, Shaun Zwosta and Liam Buck. Josh Felder brought his A game with him to frustrate Port Dover. Zwosta's strong blue line presence paid off with a pass to Ben Herrle who put the dogs on the scoreboard first. HHH then came into penalty trouble but the determination to keep Port Dover away from our end saw Kyle Barr and Keith Hunter both hustle for short handed goals to give HHH a 3-0 lead. Griffin Wiens's defensive corner digging fed a pass for Thomas Gaille's shot on net with Hunter banging in the rebound for the Huskies fourth and final 4-0 victory.
Game two placed Home Hardware Huskies against the game three winners South Huron Sabres. Wheeler's stellar defensive play exited the puck to Ayden Norley who setup Hunter for HHH's first goal. Simon Van Rooyen turned up the dial to rush end to end for HHH's second goal to make it 2-0. The Sabres fast skating Mitchell Kenney posted their first goal to make the game 2-1 at the end of the first period. Second period play saw continued rushing and shots with many close opportunities for Josh Carey, Jesse Fay and Connor Needham. Barr's faceoff shot on net was banged in by Van Rooyen for the Huskies third making it 3-1. Sabres Kenney showed his speed and abilities again in the 3rd with a pass from teammate Boston Drouillard thus making the score 3-2. Presley Schaub initiated the play for a pass to Ben Baptie who in turn fed Tanner Snyder for Huskies fourth goal. Sabres pushed hard in the remaining minutes of the third trying to close the gap with another goal from Kenney but time and Josh Felder had other plans. Final score Huskies 4, Sabres 3.
Game three pitted the Home Hardware Huskies LL 1 against a strong Woolwich (Wildcats) team that had previously defeated New Hamburg LL 4 and season undefeated LL 3. The boys knew that the winning team would be decided based on "Heart and Hunger" for the A Championship game. This was going to be a fast tempo game with both teams aiming for the scoreboard first. Barr's faceoff strategy provided Van Rooyen with the breakout and shot that Herrle slammed home for Huskies first in less than a minute of play. The pedal was down and the boys were determined to keep the charge going. Norley's breakout pass fed Schaub for the Huskies second which was followed up by Herrle's pass to Van Rooyen's for a top shelf third goal making the score 3-0 in under two minutes of play. The Wildcats continued to tear at the Huskies with Felder sending them away empty handed. Strong blueline defence from Buck, Needham, Eddy and Zwosta shortened the Wildcats lives with repeated attacks from the Huskies forwards. Hunter's back checking paid off with a turnover in the dogs end that set him up for a lone rush and goal. Wiens's aggressive pinching provided Herrle with a pass who scored the Huskies final goal in the second making it 5-0 for the pack. The boys never looked back pushing the pedal through the floor in the third period to ensure the Wildcats would go away empty handed. This team approach by each and every player provided them with a commanding 5-0 championship victory! Game MVP honour went to Ayden Norley for his "never give up" defensive approach. The coaching staff congratulates this group of true gentlemen and parents on their victory and sportsmanship displayed not only in this tournament but the entire season. A sincere thank you to Scott Strickland and his fellow members of the New Hamburg Optimists for once again providing a great annual tournament.
The league final A Championship game will see Home Hardware LL 1 play square off against Riverside Lanes LL 3 March 29th at 7:15pm.