Jan 10, 2016 | Albert Ross | 761 views
Midget LLs Finalists in Wasaga
The New Hamburg Huskies Midget LL2s took a break
from their regular hockey routine and travelled to Wasaga Beach on January 8 to
take in some tournament action. The Dogs faced the Waterford Wildcats that
night in what started out as a very evenly matched contest.
It was scoreless after one but the Huskies went to the power in the second when the opposition took two undisciplined penalties. The pack made the Wildcats pay dearly for their infractions, tallying 3 quick goals that started with a screened point shot from Owen Ross. Wyatt Rempel bagged the next one from the slot getting help from Mike Thrush and Mason Wagner. Wagner added his own unassisted point seconds later to make it a 3-goal game. The frustrated opponents took another undisciplined penalty when Cole Hutchison was heavily checked in front of the Wildcat Goalie. The Husky defense went into overdrive on the power play when Dale Jurica fed the puck cross-ice to Colin Shannon who teed it up. The pad rebound was scooped up by Connor Ross and delivered to the back of the net, upping the Husky tally. The reeling Wildcats failed to get the message and took another two penalties that the Dogs once again capitalized on. Brandon Wagler added the fifth Husky goal with Dan O’Connell and Jurica assisting. With a comfortable 5-point lead, the Huskies took to the ice in the third with a man short, having taken a hooking call late in the previous frame. Playing deep and forcing a play, Josh Potts made the most of a turnover and scored shorthanded to round out the Husky total. The Wildcats could not recover and ceded the 6 – 0 shutout win. It was a good first showing the Dogs hoped to repeat on Saturday morning when they faced the Port Stanley Sailors. The new opponent was clearly stronger and Colton Holba was kept busy in net, turning aside 4 credible chances to keep the game a scoreless deadlock after one. It was the Husky power play that again proved decisive when the Sailors took back-to-back minors. Moving the puck well, Wagner found Matt Somerville open who made no mistake to open the scoring. The Sailors attempted to rebound but Holba stymied another 3 solid chances. A high-sticking call against the Dogs seemed to be the opportunity the opposition was looking for but some aggressive play by Connor Ross quickly ended those aspirations. Forcing a turnover in the neutral zone, he raced in and beat the goalie to make it a 2-goal game. It was rough, physical action in the third with the Huskies penalty-killing for much of the frame. It was Holba’s outstanding performance in net and sterling service by the Husky defense that delivered the 2 – 0 shutout win at the end of regulation. The back-to-back wins were enough to propel the team to the A-Gold finals against the hometown favourites, the Wasaga Beach Stars, later that day. The Huskies were the underdogs as they faced off against a strong, experienced first place team. Play had hardly started when the Stars logged their first point on a defensive zone breakdown. The Dogs were struggling as the Stars pressed their physical brand of hockey. Both sides paraded to the box in this test of wills but the Stars clearly controlled the play. A bad turnover cost the Huskies another goal as the period ended and Coach O’Connell had to settle his troops at the break. It seemed to have some affect as the Huskies took the fight to the opponent in the second. Connor Ross drilled one in from the slot with less than a minute in to set the tone for the frame. More chances followed from Wagner, Jurica and Wagler as the Stars fought to stay alive. It was incredible that the Stars goalie survived the onslaught but it was enough as his team rebounded in the third. Penalties were again the Husky nemesis that diminished their chances and the Stars upped the ante at the half. A desperate and frustrated Husky bench could not regain balance and Holba was pulled as the time bled away. It was a failed gambit and the Stars bagged an empty-netter to seal the 4 – 1 loss for the Huskies. In spite of the loss, the Huskies can be proud of their second place A-Gold Finalist standing in a field of 10 participating teams.