John Bear Bantam AE Huskies Compete in Grimsby Fall Classic Tournament 21-23 Oct 2011
John
Bear Bantam AE Huskies
Compete in Grimsby Fall
Classic Tournament 21-23 Oct 2011
John Bear Bantam AE Huskies
Compete in Grimsby Fall Classic Tournament 21-23 Oct 2011
The John Bear Bantam AE Huskies were on the road the weekend of 21-23 October competing in the Grimsby Fall Classic Tournament with 6 other teams. It was a profitable venture given that they arrived home with some hardware and bragging rights to go with. The story began Friday morning when they squared off against the hometown favourite, the Grimsby Peach Kings. The Pack tallied first on an effort from Austin Dale with Jayden Marion collecting the assist. Grimsby answered with one of their own to close the frame out but the Dogs struck again on a power-play half-way through the second. Josh Jewitt wired one from the point with Connor Popham and Marion getting the helpers. Once again, the Peach Kings answered taking the tie into the third. The Huskies caught a break when the opposition was cited for two infractions leaving the door open for the power-play once again. Dale tallied with Filip Telescu and Brady Finn assisting followed by a shallow-angle marker from Matt Schmidt with Marcus Roth riding shotgun. Tanner Green who was solid throughout, kept the door shut to help his team take the 4 - 2 win. Game two went Saturday morning against the South Point Capitals and it was clear from the start the Huskies were the better club. Telescu quickly notched a pair with Dale assisting on the first and Nolan Forster with Roth helping on the second. The Caps suffered another Husky goal in the second, this time it was team captain Brady Finn doing the damage with Telescu assisting. The final marker came in the third when Finn plugged one in with team mates Danny Martin and Connor Popham assisting. Goalie Matt Santos secured the 4 - 0 shutout win by denying the few chances the Caps were able to mount. The win gave the Dogs a 9 point total in the round-robin portion, just 1/2 point behind the Innisfil Winterhawks. The 2nd place showing meant the Dogs would face the weakest team for the quarter final elimination round that afternoon. As fate would have it, that team was the South Point Capitals. Tanner Green was back between the pipes and without having to work very hard, he secured an even bigger shutout victory for his team. When the buzzer sounded at the end of the third, the Huskies had a very convincing 6 - 0 win. The goal getters were: Forster with a pair, Alex Normandeau, Robbie Mason, Telescu and Finn. Assisting credits went to Jewitt, Dale, Mason, Schmidt and Telescu. If the Capitals were easy prey for the Dogs, the team they faced early Sunday morning in the semi-finals were not. The Ancaster Avalanche lived up their billing as a hard-hitting team but the Huskies were playing with determination. A tripping call against the Dogs seemed to open the door for the opposition but Forster capitalized on a mid-ice turnover and scored short-handed to tally first. Both sides were taking penalties in this fast-flowing contest but the Husky penalty killers, Connor Ross, Normandeau, Jewitt, Marion, and Mike Glauser frustrated the Avalanche efforts. Santos was looking good between the pipes as the Huskies returned to the offensive in the second. Taylor Von Hausen's upstairs shot connected to double the Husky score with Jewitt and Dale collecting the helpers. Then a nice feed from Forster saw Telescu breaking away up the middle to beat the goalie and make it a 3 - 0 match. It looked all but over as the third frame got under way but the Avalanche proved resilient and fought back. With only 48 seconds left in regulation time, the Dogs were staring at a 3 - 3 tie when a time-out was called. Coach Chris Lacroix settled his troops and sent them back out with some clear instructions. It paid off as Telescu found a hole in the defines and tallied on an unassisted effort with only seconds remaining. The 4 - 3 win propelled the Dogs into the finals set to go late that afternoon against the Innisfil Winterhawks in what promised to be another tough match. This was one tough, fast and disciplined team and the Huskies were down by two after the first frame. A third goal in the second saw coach Lacroix make some changes to shore up the defences and hopefully turn the game around. Once again, it was Telescu on a break-away up the middle after a feed from Finn that put the Huskies on the scoreboard. Then the wheels came off. Finn was side-lined with a shoulder injury that was keenly felt by the Husky offensive line and the Pack was forced to endure another pair of unanswered Hawk points as the time wound down. The 5 - 1 loss meant the Huskies were allotted a second-place finish in what was undeniably the toughest contest they'd ever been in. However, they can rightfully be proud of their finalist position in a well-played tournament. Congratulations Huskies.