Peewee Rep Huskies capture Thorold tournament championship, News, PeeWee Rep, U13, 2011-2012 (New Hamburg Hockey Association)

Written by Jana Miller

After splitting a pair of regular season games earlier in the week, the New Hamburg Legion Rep Peewee Huskies went undefeated in five straight games over the weekend to capture the Thorold Beaverloch Tournament championship.

The Huskies got off to a strong start taking the wind out of the sails of the St. Catherines Hurricanes in the first match with a 4-1 win. Rhett Miller opened the scoring early with a backhander to the top corner on a pass from Ben Reinhart. Less than two minutes later, Austin Benko’s handy work, with an assist by Mitch Roth, put the Huskies up by two. 



A pass from Roth enabled defensive partner Ben Reinhart to rifle a great shot from the point which was tipped in by Miller for a 3-0 lead by the end of the second frame. Cooper Honderich potted the Huskies’ final tally of the game midway through the third period with Roth and Reinhart collecting helpers. Ty Brenner made some key saves in net but the Hurricanes managed to spoil his shutout with just under two minutes left to play.

The Huskies dominated game two against the Pelham Panthers, skating to a 7-2 win. Greg Yeoman potted his first tally of the season less than a minute into the first frame assisted by linemates Josh Blier and Wyatt Rempel. A minute later, Benko found the mark unassisted while Ayden Nafziger’s tally sent the Huskies into the second period with a 3-0 lead.

Pelham got on the scoreboard three minutes into the second but Benko retaliated for the Huskies with his second unassisted tally. A minute later, defenseman Ben Reinhart went offensive, walking in and roofing it for a comfortable 5-1 lead. Pelham capitalized on an opportunity near the top of the third to make it 5-2 but the Huskies were relentless. A goal-mouth scramble mid-way through the frame saw Miller poke in goal number six while linemate Josh Beach set Cooper Honderich up for the final tally of the game. Jonathan Heise backed the Huskies up between the pipes for the win.

The Huskies met their stiffest competition in game three against the hometown Thorold Blackhawks. Tired from the morning’s physical, penalty-ridden match with Pelham, the Huskies managed to hang on for a 1-1 tie. After two scoreless periods, Thorold found the mark first inspiring the Huskies to step it up and reply less than 30 seconds later. Honderich dug the puck out of the corner and sent Miller into the centre of the Blackhawks’ defensive zone where he left a drop pass for Josh Beach who promptly buried it.

In the semi-finals early Sunday morning, Heise collected a shutout as the Huskies dominated the Pelham Panthers for a second time, blanking them 5-0. The Huskies were slow to get going but by the second period they were back on their game, scoring three goals in four minutes of that frame. Roth, Benko and Tyler Wyszynski collected tallies while assists went to Matt Harrington with a pair and Reinhart, Honderich and Wyszynski with single helpers.

Ayden Nafziger capitalized on the efforts of Honderich and Wyszynski and potted his second goal of the tournament to give the Huskies a four-goal spread. In the category of “here’s-something-you-don’t-see-very-often,” the fifth goal was credited to Miller who broke free of the crowd and shot wide at an empty net. He was awarded the goal because a Pelham player threw his stick in an effort to stop him.

The win propelled the Huskies to the finals where they expected to meet the hometown Thorold Blackhawks.. Instead, they met St. Catherines who had pulled out an upset win overThorold in the semi-finals.The Huskies wasted no time, pouncing early and often to emerge with a decisive 8-1 victory and the tournament championship.

Benko turned in a stellar three-goal performance while linemate Harrington added to the scoreboard with a pair of tallies. Nafziger, Honderich and Roth rounded out the scoring with singles while assists went to Nafziger with a pair and Lucas Bast, Evan Rolleman, Harrington, Beach, Honderich and Roth with single helpers.

The coaching staff is very proud of the boys. They stuck to the plan and came home Champions.