2007 Cambridge Friendship Tournament
Sarnia's Second in the
Standings Seals Silver in Friendship Tourney"
Game One
Sarnia in the
home whites faced off against the Colts from Barrie, decked out
in the navy blue uniforms for the first game of the 2007
Cambridge Friendship Tournament.
Marcus Dusseault
danced around the defence to get to the slot area for a good
shot on goal, the rebound picked up by Scott Ferguson. The
backhand try caromed of a skate and hit the post, Ferguson on
the left wing in place of James Pavey as train traffic delayed
his arrival.
Calvin Hughson in
the bin for tripping as Christian Kerrigan cleared the puck the
length of the ice to finish the kill.
Sam Sweazey got
off a high hard slap shot, snagged and held for the whistle by
the glove of Scott Gray.
Michael Cox in
the slot, a feed from behind the net, the one timer can’t best
Gray as he stretched the leg and held tight to the post to stop
the low shot. Barrie in over the line, a drive from big number
8, Trevor Holliday missed the net and banked out the other side
to be swept away by a diving Hughson to prevent the shot on an
open goal!
Eric Roy, a hard
low shot from the point redirected on its path to the net by
Connor Gillanders saved and kicked to the corner by the right
toe of Gray to start period number two.
Hughson, the long
cross ice pass to Nicholas VanBilsen, a dip of the shoulder to
fake the shot. Kevin Arnaud tool the bait and dropped to cover
the shot as VanBilsen reloaded and whistled it high over the
shoulder and into the cord, Sarnia in the lead, 1-0.
End to end rush
by Kevin Dann Stopped at the half boards as he checked into the
wall, Dean MacEachern carried on with the pass out to Leeam
Ridley who fired from the slot, high and hard into Arnaud’s
glove to stop the play.
Better late than
never, Pavey, back in his wing position, from the blue line, a
tricky shot that bounced as Arnaud knelt on it. Not sure where
it was, he slapped his glove behind his skates as the whistle
blew. The referee lost sight of the puck as it was mere inces
from crossing the goal line.
Pavey finished
off the pretty three way passing effort with his first of the
tourney at 5:52 of the second. Chris Maitland cleared the zone
to Pavey who passed it cross ice to Dusseault who sent it on
with a deft little touch pass to Mitch Hodgins. Hodgie threw it
out of the corner to Pavey at the side of the net up the ante,
2-0 Sting.
Sweazey had Gray
at his mercy the big centre for the Colts flicked the puck but
Gray was stretched out and got his big goal stick in the way to
deflect Sweazey’s stick sending the puck high over the bar and
out of harm’s way. Cox on a coast-to-coast journey as Barrie
started to carry the play. He barged right through the crease,
the puck dribbled out the other side as he was met by Gray.
Right on to the stick of Holliday, the flick to the net taken in
the bread basket by Maitland. Puck dropped between his skates
and he swiped at it to clear the zone to prevent any more
damage. Ridley, the shot and a save, the rebound taken around
the net by MacEachern for the backhand try. Arnaud sprawled out
spread-eagle, managed to get his arm on it to foil the smart
move by MacEachern.
Bingo-bango, the
pass out from behind the net from Brayden Longstaffe on the tape
of Sweazey, but not for long as he hammered it home. No chance
for Gray on the goal to cut the lead to 2-1 Sarnia with 45
seconds left in the period.
Stick handling in
the Sting zone Eric Cunningham beat the first Colt to find a
speeding Curtis Lindsay with the pass up the left wing. Right
along the ice, coaches tell you it is the hardest shot to stop
and this was true as Lindsay blinked the light in behind Arnaud.
Sarnia back in the lead 3-1.
Hughson heads up
pass from deep in Sing territory out to “Big Mac” toe centre dot
to spring the centre on the breakaway, shot, save Arnaud.
“Can’t be done,
its impossible,” the cat call from the Barrie hopeful as #18
Dustin Bortoluzzi is shown the gate, two minutes for a check to
the head. “He’s three feet nothing, he can’t hit any one in the
head” as Cunningham the aggrieved, stands up to tower a good
quarter centimetre taller than his assailant.
Low shot and a
pad save, Holliday in to pick up his own rebound to slip it by
Gray, tightening the score to 3-2, with seven and a half to
play. Sting guilty of giving the puck away too many times and
Hugh McLaren made them pay, tying the score at threes with three
minutes left in the third. Hard shot from MacEachern from thirty
feet out. Arnaud played it with the paddle down save and the
glove to smother. Ridley raced in for the rebound as the puck
lay just outside the glove, Arnaud thought he had it but no,
Ridley alertly scooped in to give Sarnia the lead with 2:33 left
on the clock.
Holliday muscled
out from behind the goal. Gray hugged the post and would not
allow any room to make the short side save look easy as Sarnia
went on to victory at 4-3.
“Classic case of
our goalie out playing their goalie and we get the win,” was the
comment from goalie coach Adam Ridley. “ It happens in this game
all the time especially when you have a goalie play as well as
Scotty did today.”
Cambridge
Tournament – Game Two
Kitchener Rangers
the opposition for the second game of the tourney, in the home
white uniforms, and quickly to the box, number six Tyler Yirka,
hooking the call just 22 seconds into the contest. The first
line out on the power play of Tyler Groulx and Curtis Lindsay
centred by Eric Cunningham along with Scott Ferguson and Kevin
Dann on the points came close with a shot from Lindsay on the
left wing and the rebound chance for Cunningham, just wide!
A slicky tricky
“Dicky” play by Dann, the arms moving fast and the feet not so,
to allow for the icing call, Grandpa Robinson had the right to
be proud on that play to move the face-off some 150 feet from
the Sarnia net.
Rangers #9
Dalton, Clifford with the spinarama wrist shot, low along the
ice, taken on the paddle and covered by road Mackay to stop the
play.
A lost art, the
hip check by Kerrigan, freed the puck for Tyler Groulx to carry
out of the zone and hit the speedy Curtis Lindsay with the
cross-ice pass. The shot, high and hard over the glove of Tyler
Majaury into the back of the cage. Good shot Curty and Nice pass
Mr. Groulx.
Calvin Hughson
skated the puck around the net, two Rangers attack and a whistle
stopped the play. Roughing to Kitchener’s Luc Larochelle, Sarnia
to the power play again.
A point shot from
Chris Maitland, saved, another try from the blue line but the
Maitland drive blocked on the shin pad and away on a one hundred
and seventy five foot breakaway was Isaac white.
Show ‘em five
hole and close the door in the classic Tony Esposito style, Roan
Mackay came up with the best save of the contest!
Scott Ferguson
angled Larochelle toward the wall and swiped the puck away with
a strong poke check to prevent a break-away attempt in the final
minute of play of the first period.
Period came to a
close with a Ferguson point shot tipped by Majaury, a sprawling
save with 0.1 seconds on the clock.
Disaster struck
when Christian Kerrigan had the point blast blocked, Rangers
clear the length of the ice; Mackay with the back hand attempt
to direct to the corner failed and White snagged the puck at the
icing line and threw it to the Sarnia goal to tie the game at
one a piece.
Calvin Hughson
shown the gate for the interference infraction, a penalty the
coaches can live with; Hughson with a strong presence in front
after the point shot.
Puck in the
glove, no problem after a Ranger point blast from Grisold,
Mackay strong in the cage. Same penalty kill by the Sting
witness three saves off a scramble in front; Mackay again a
strong penalty killer as the Rangers carried the bulk of the
play.
Konnor Harris, a
point shot as play back to five on five, the rebound just out of
the reach of Groulx. Kerrigan, a drive from the other point
resulted in a paddle down save, the rebound for Groulx again
with a strong effort as the puck went through the crease and out
the other side.
Groulx up-ended
hard into the boards, Sarnia again to the power play with four
minutes to play in the period. Hughson with the point blast, the
puck deflected off, shoulder high in the air and landed on
Hodgins. He did not know it was there, a close call for the
Sting forward.
A shot and
rebound back hand goal. Rangers into the lead, 2-1. Shot save,
and a face-off, shot, save again and another try as the Sting
close out the period with three tries, but no cigar.
The Ranges scored
again late in the third on the power play but not before
Dusseault hit the post in an effort to tie the score. Kitchener
on to win the battle. Sarnia was able to gain only a half point
in the points per period format.
CAMBRIDGE
TOURNAMENT GAME THREE
Third game,
versus the Waterloo Timberwolves, set to start after a major
controversy was resolved, Scott is taller than Connor. Jill’s
eyesight called into question for the second time of the
weekend. Apparently during the Friday night parent meeting she
viewed the Kielbasa as a little thin!
Start of the
contest delayed for a mask repair at the bench as trainer Adam
Ridley takes the beard off the mask of Roan Mackay and ties to
the helmet of Scott Gray. A couple of Bobby Hull imitations
during the warm up compliments of James Pavey and Nicholas
VanBilsen, split the polypropylene into two pieces!
First shift a
pass Christian Kerrigan to Tyler Groulx tipped onto Curtis
Lindsay for a break away try, the shot over the bar and off the
back glass.
Waterloo right
back down the ice with a shot off the mask of Gray.
Following a Pavey
wrist shot and a glove save Calvin Hughson skated down and over
the blue only to be tripped up by # 88, Brett Campbell, Sting to
the power play. The point shot from Dann, stopped with the right
pad, rebound lay there just out of the reach of VanBilsen.
Another power play try, Eric Cunningham flipped it over the bar,
Waterloo able to clear. One on one Joshua Totzke against Konnor
Harris and a beautifully timed hip check, up and over into the
boards he goes. End of the rush, end of the threat, as #66
Totzke was upended by Harris!
Waterloo’s Jesse
Giannakopoulos high shot over the bar with a shot, close call
but officially not even a shot on goal.
Kerrigan around
the back of his own goal and out the other side, just able to
side step a hit from Waterloo’s #4, Huston Meyer, the stock
price of the A-5,3-5, company stable for the time being.
Great effort on
the back check from Leeam Ridley to strip the puck away to the
boards for Dean MacEachern. Dean the quick cross ice feed to
VanBilsen to set up the one on one, the move to the outside, the
blast; great save with the right toe!
Justin Strauss to
the bin for tripping and the Sarnia power play answered the
call; Kerrigan cleared the zone, skated passed the blue line and
passed to Lindsay, tipped ahead to Cunningham near the centre
dot. Eric skates to the right, refused to throw the puck away,
skated wide around the defence man, in too deep for a shot, no;
he flipped the puck right up and in under the bar! A window of
opportunity no bigger than a bread basket and Cunningham nailed
it. The goal came with a minute left in the period to gain the
precious point per period for the Sting.
Second period
action; the wrap around attempt from MacEachern stopped by the
keeper Liam Aikens-Armbruster, #31.
Sarnia on the
board again at 3:21 of the period, the pass from VanBilsen to
Ridley and the hot shot from the slot, stopped with a pad save
but the rebound grabbed and finished off by MacEachern.
Sarnia added to
the lead again as Tyler Groulx around the net with a wrap around
attempt that sailed through the blue paint and on to the stick
of VanBilsen. Hard wrist shot, low, right through the wickets,
to make it 3-0.
Giannakopoulos,
of the Timberwolves, down the ice on a rush. Scott Ferguson and
Harris team up to force him wide to the right wing wall and
Fergie the well timed sweep of the stick to jar the puck loose.
Harris in the box
to serve two for roughing, the P.K. unit MacEachern, VanBilsen,
Hughson along with Chris Maitland pressed into service.
Waterloo’s Cole McCaughan took a run at Hughson, but Calvin able
to clear the puck the length of the ice, take the late hit and
walk away from the extra curricular activity, smart play Cal.
A diving save
fifteen feet in front of the crease and held for the whistle,
delay of the game the call on the Waterloo goalkeeper, 2:43 left
in the second period.
Kerrigan the blue
line to blue line pass on the tape of MacEachern, the wrist shot
snagged from the air by the gloved hand Aikens-Armbruster.
Later same power
play Kevin Dann on the rush, hit at the blue line but able to
carry through before the puck found its way back to the left
point for Hughson for the big one time slapshot.
VanBilsen a
blast, blocked but regained for another try, rebound on the door
step barely out of the reach of MacEachern.
Well-timed body
check from Hughson, on McCaughan, as he wound up for he slapper
he got checked off the puck and off his feet!
A pair of
excellent saves, Gray, the first a glove save off Totzke as
Giannakopoulos hovered for a rebound that never materialized,
the other a point blast from #77 gloved and held for the face
off.
Wolves on the
board just two minutes and eighteen seconds left in the game a
high shot from the slot Scott Habel, #2 Waterloo.
Fear struck in
the hearts of the Sting hopeful as the extra point for the shut
was lost and the point for the third period in jeopardy.
Waterloo pulled
the goalie in an attempt to tie the score but VanBilsen raced by
the defence and tapped it into the empty net to make the final
score 4-1.
Sarnia finished
the round robin play with 10 points and awaited the outcome of
the Barrie versus Kitchener game that followed. A mere half a
point was all Kitchener would need to send the Sting packing.
Not to be deterred the youngsters gathered on the bleachers to
join in with the Colt’s parent brigade.
“This is the
biggest and most enthusiastic group of supporters we’ve ever
had”, offered one Barrie father as he was keenly aware of the
standings.
What followed was
more stressful and nerve racking than watching your own sons
play. Barrie needed to win the game but not by a shut out and
prevent Kitchener, who at this point were the strongest team in
the division, from gaining a single point.
Kitchener scored
first and as some did not understand the full ramifications
declared our weekend over.
“Just what we
need, can’t have a shut out”, declared Scott Ferguson.
Barrie came back
with a goal to tie the period, 1-1.
Second period was
scoreless hence no points awarded.
Third period
Barrie broke it wide open, pulling ahead 5-1, game in the bag,
right. Not so fast; Kitchener came back in the dying minutes to
make it 5-4, with 1:08 on the clock.
Face off won by
the Rangers, a shot on goal, rebound to the side of Arnaud, play
around the net and out to centre; whistle, still 1:08 on the
clock!
They tick of
eight seconds to try to right the error and in the end Kitchener
had one more scoring chance that was stopped and Sarnia advanced
in the most unlikely fashion. Thank you Barrie Colts.
Cambridge
Tournament Game 4
Still playing
tournament hockey on a Sunday is always a good thing as the
Sarnia Sting Minor Peewee MD team takes the opening face-off
into the Waterloo Ice Wolves zone, a shot from Marcus Dusseault
forced the early glove save.
Nicholas
VanBilsen from the left wing corner to the slot but the shot
attempt from Leeam Ridley was prevented with a stick check from
Billy McLaren. VanBilsen put the Sting on the board with a
backhand shot, Dean MacEachern on the assist just 2:20 into the
contest.
Nice move by
James Pavey to shield the puck with his leg as he went wide on
Jacob Rawlinson and drove a hard wrist shot taken off the
blocker of keeper Jackson McIntosh.
Tristian Rea and
D.J. Mcllwraith broke down on a two on one, the pass across
intercepted by Scott Ferguson and cleared out of the zone.
A shot from the
corner by Riley Alvarez deflected off the shaft on the stick of
defence man Christian Kerrigan and into the net passed a
surprised Roan Mackay. The “own goal” tied the game at one each
at 5:35 of the first.
Great teams rally
in the face of adversity and this one is no exception as
Dusseault blocked a shot at the blue line, picked up the carom a
streaked down the right side. A pass across to James Pavey who
stretched to extend the stick enough to get a piece of the puck
deflected through the legs of McIntosh to regain the lead,
Kerrigan and company able to head to the bench with a zero now
in the plus/minus department, thank you James.
A tape to tape
pass, a fifty foot effort from Chris Maitland to free VanBilsen
down the wing passed Derek Grinyer but VanBilsen driven to the
end wall unable to get the shot off.
Pavey on the back
check was able to intercept the pass and alertly ragged the puck
in our end, refusing to throw it away blindly. He curled back
and flipped the backhand pass out to Mitch Hodgins to clear the
zone. It may seem like an insignificant point but it is not; we
were able to pressure the Ice Wolves for the next minute with
the puck in their zone, which eventually led to Michael Lynch
taking a roughing penalty. Sarnia able to finish the last two
and a half minutes of the period in Waterloo territory, and
start the second stanza on the power play thanks to that one
simple play!
Eric Cunningham
on the power play checked Grinyer against the end boards to take
the much bigger skater off the puck, Curtis Lindsay in to follow
up and finish the turn over.
Back to even
strength play as Pavey carried the puck coast to coast and tried
to split the Dee at the hash marks. Pavey hauled down by the
pair of blue liners as the puck dribbled into the corner.
Dusseault grabbed it and spun a pass to the slot to Hodgins all
alone at the side of the goal. Just like my dentist, Hodgie’s
got the patients; he waited ‘til the goalie dropped and flicked
the biscuit into the basket, top shelf, a pretty play to make
the score 3-1 in the Sting’s favour.
Alvarez down the
left wing boards, stopped with a thunderous body check into the
boards compliments of Kerrigan that freed the puck for his
partner Konnor Harris to clear the zone with a cross-ice pass to
Ridley.
Waterloo had
pressure later in the period, the pass from behind the net to
the slot, tipped away by the Mackay goalie lumber, a simple
little play, not even a shot on goal, but prevented the best
scoring chance the Wolves had before it was able to develop
thanks to the proper positioning of the ever alert keeper of the
cord cottage for Sarnia.
Chris Martin the
speedy Wolves winger stopped and dropped by the shoulder of
Kevin Dann, a clean hit at the blue line to halt the rush.
Matthew Belzile
in to handle the net minding duties for Waterloo and he was
tested early with a high hard shot from Cunningham and forced to
make the glove save.
Sarnia took a
pair of roughing infractions first to MacEachern than to Pavey.
Defence pair of Calvin Hughson and Chris Maitland teamed up for
the first kill and so duly rewarded the additional time on the
P.K. The second stint highlighted by a Dusseault goal with 27
seconds to play in the second period.
The unassisted marker
was the result of a short handed break away, the shot followed
by Marcus taking his own rebound off the pads in the blue ice
and sliding it by the helpless Belzile, still down on the ice
from stopping the initial shot.
Harris with a pair of
stick checks on the same play to clear the zone, taking the puck
away from Grinyer both times to stymie the Wolves.
Hodgins the pass, taken
at the blue line by Dusseault in his feet and kicked ahead to
his stick to gain the zone; the second time in the contest
Dusseault displayed his soccer prowess. MacEachern from behind
the icing line fed it back to the point for a drive from Dann,
tipped by Ridley, the puck rolled just outside of the right
post.
Alvarez a shot taken in
the midsection by Mackay, he looked behind and swung his glove
the cover the hole between his skate blades, but no puck to be
found as the whistle sounded to freeze the play.
No quit in the Ice
Wolves as Grinyer on a late end to end rush cut to the net and
feathered the backhand into the cage with a scant 3 seconds left
to play to make the final score 4-2 for the Sting, who are now
heading to the final game.
Cambridge Game
5
Good start for
the Sting as Scott Ferguson went coast to coast and fired a low
shot that grazed off the outside of the post during a full shift
of play in the Rangers zone to commence the championship game.
Connor Nusselder
skated down the left wing and fired the shot, kicked out by
Scott Gray, the rebound swept away by Konnor Harris.
Kitchener on the
board first at 4:13 of the first period, Brayden Lane carried
over the line and dumped it deep into the corner. Dug out there
by Nick Sawatzky, on to the stick of Austin Kovrig in the slot
for the shot that beat Gray for the one nil lead.
Dean MacEachern
on a rush split the defence and was hooked to the ice, off to
the time out bench was Mitch Hardy.
Sarnia power play
unit failed to generate anything before the game was halted.
Referee’s noticed Micheal Grenci, the Ranger goalie, did not
have a protective beard for his neck and the training staff
quickly switched for the shield of back up Matt Yoworski and
play resumed.
Eric Cunningham
had a fine defensive effort to slide tackle the puck at the blue
line and keep the play onside.
Sweet back check
from Pavey, with his stick backhand in the passing lane, to
break up the Ranger break out.
Kovrig, another
rush off the wing and a backhand up and over the bar.
Kovrig was a
strong force in the game but his game was over with 12 seconds
left in the period. A check from behind for a two minute penalty
and a game misconduct.
Good pressure
this time on the power play with Mitch Hodgins down the right
wing, in deep and the pass across to James Pavey. Scramble
ensued in front and Marcus Dusseault got off a backhand, a close
call as the penalty expired.
Sting got another
chance to even the score, again with the man advantage, a point
shot form Konnor Harris tipped by Pavey on the way to the net
and Grenci just got a piece of it.
Micheal Holden a
dash passed Christian Kerrigan and into the Sting territory, big
open ice hip check delivered by Harris!
A feed from
behind the net from MacEachern to VanBilsen finished as Grenci
took it of the chest and covered for the draw.
Save of the game
as Gray came across with the pass and held the open glove for
Lane to fill with the puck. Ranger bench bosses could not
believe it as Gray held high the glove and flipped the puck to
the referee.
Kitchener scored again on a wraparound shot from Zachary Hogan.
Sarnia’s passes
seemed to be just out of the reach of there intended receiver as
Kitchener’s solid defence plugged the passing lanes and gained
confidence as the game progressed.
The Rangers
scored again as Lane lit the lamp half way through the third and
were able to play a one man press system to hamper the Sting
efforts to make a come back.
Unofficial shots
on goal total were 16 to 17 to verify the opinion of the game as
being a close on despite the scorecard.
Be proud of
yourselves boys, you had a great weekend and fell just a little
short to a very good team.
Next action will
be Monday night in London versus the LMHA Thunder. |
