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November 25, 2007
Sarnia vs Stratford
Stratford Warriors played host to the visiting Sarnia Sting
minor peewee M.D. hockey club Sunday afternoon in the new
Recreation Centre, Stratford, Ontario.
Early first period action saw the
Warrior’s Zach Pacheco with a shot through traffic, stopped by
Scott Gray, a scramble for the rebound in front, covered by Gray
and held for the whistle. Face off controlled by Stratford to
the point and a drive tipped on the way to the goal, off the
outside of the post by Joe Gioia.
A back hand pass feathered across
from Eric Cunningham to James Pavey for the backhand shot on
goal and a difficult save for Scott Herbert in the Warrior’s
cage. “Work on the backhand….it’s the toughest shot for
the goalie to stop”, a wise old man named Howe, long ago,
relayed to an eager young blonde haired boy from Brantford named
Wayne; still sage advice.
Dayton Cooper tried to squeeze along
the left wing wall but his forward progression came to a sudden
halt, compliments of a solid body check by Christian Kerrigan
and the puck rolled free for Konnor Harris to clear the zone.
Hard shot from Gioia, taken on the chest by Gray and held for
the face off. Draw won by Stratford centre Mitchell Harrett to
Cooper another drive stopped and held by Gray. Draw to the left
of Gray, won again by Harrett, this time to the point for a
blast by Curtis Hessey and the stop by Gray as the first period
drew to close with nothing on the score sheet.
Cunningham hit Curtis Lindsay at the centre dot with a pass to
clear the zone. Lindsay’s speed gave him a half step on the
defender and he drove the wrist shot just wide of the left post
to kick off the second period. Stratford opened the
scoring as Mark Schmidt and Gioia tagged teamed against Nicholas
VanBilsen on the boards to jar the puck free. Gioia corralled it
and flung it toward the crease. The puck was intercepted at the
side of the net as it hit Mark Childerly in the foot. He fired
quickly and blinked the light in behind Gray; the goal came two
minutes into the period. Kerrigan cleared up the middle to
Marcus Dusseault who skated through the centre zone and swept
wide to the left to avoid the defenceman. Pretty pass to the
front of the net and Mitch Hodgins tapped it home to even the
score at the half way mark of the period. Nice move just over
the centre red line as Tyler Groulx kicked the pass ahead to
Lindsay to gain the blue line, then smart pass back to Groulx
for the shot on goal as Groulx curls and headed to the bench for
the change while the puck was still deep in enemy territory.
Strong pressure near the end of the
second period as Groulx, Cunningham and Lindsay up front and
Harris and Kerrigan the rearguards, were able to cycle the puck
deep and play the full shift in Stratford’s end, forcing the
icing call as Jacob Kompf sent it the length of the ice. No let
up as Calvin Hughson held the line twice and Kevin Dann once as
they teamed up with the Dusseault, Pavey, Hodgins trio to finish
out the period on the Warrior’s side of the blue line.
Dann held the blue line and passed up to Pavey, who chipped it
over to Dusseault. A move to the right, wide around the
defenceman and the shot delivered low to the left side of the
net to beat Herbert. Sarnia took their first lead of the
contest, 2-1. Dusseault from Pavey and Dann at 2:23 of the third
period.
Childerly a high hard shot over the
cross bar and play was halted; Lindsay on the way to the sin bin
for interference. Pavey, a masterful job on the P.K., as he
first won the draw and ragged the puck to kill time; before he
sent it deep into Stratford ice. Warrior’s carried out of their
end and the pass ahead found Hessey in the slot seemingly all
alone, but quick on the back check, Pavey lifted the stick,
stole the puck and again cleared it 200 feet from danger. Ryan
Ridley from the right point with a drive that missed the net,
the carom off the end boards tipped out of the zone by Hughson,
on to the stick of Lindsay fresh out of the box and down the ice
for a shot on goal.
Cunningham lowered the shoulder and darted around the left side
of defence
and delivered the cross-ice pass right on the stick of Groulx at
the far side of the crease. A bang-bang play and the bonus for
going hard to the net with out the puck cashed in by Groulx to
put the Sting in command 3-1.
Dean MacEachern was unable to make
the road trip, out with flu like symptoms. VanBilsen filled in
at centre and Scott Ferguson covered the left wing spot usually
occupied by VanBilsen. Puck passed from the red line by Hughson
ahead to VanBilsen. He fed it over to the left wing and the slap
shot from Ferguson tickled the twine in behind Herbert, 1:44
left in regulation play.
Right off the centre ice face-off
Ferguson and VanBilsen hook up again, just ten seconds after the
previous goal. They skated right down the ice, this time
VanBilsen the goal scorer and Ferguson the assist, to finish the
scoring as Sarnia in the books with a 5-1 victory. |
