By DAN MCCAFFERY
Ryan Vendramin and Riley
Babkirk led the way Friday
as the Sarnia Legionnaires
defeated the St. Thomas
Stars 6-4 right in the Elgin
County city.
Vendramin had three assists
and Babkirk had two goals to
help the club win its second
game in two nights.
Sarnia, which is in second
place in the Western Jr. 'B'
hockey standings, now has a
19-7 won-lost record. The
Legionnaires are five points
ahead of third ranked
Chatham and four back of the
front running Leamington
Flyers.
"It was a tough Friday night
game for us after a big game
Thursday," head coach Dan
Rose said afterward. "The
guys expended a lot of
energy, both emotionally and
physically (in Thursday's
home win against the Chatham
Maroons)."
He added, "In the second
period we were flat, but in
the third they showed they
wanted to win and they
played hard. They played the
way they're capable of. The
kids sucked it up and played
well in the third."
Babkirk got the winner in
the final stanza, beating
goalie Dan Black with a
seeing-eye tally.
The veteran forward came
flying down the wing on a
two-on-one break before
slamming on the brakes in
the faceoff circle. Then,
while standing still, he
picked the top corner with a
blistering wrist shot.
"I was originally looking to
pass but the goalie took
that option away so I had to
shoot. It went in high on
the stick side," Babkirk
said.
The veteran forward said the
Legionnaires are starting to
find the form that made them
a powerhouse earlier in the
season. "We're persevering,
I think we're starting to
get things together," he
said.
Defenceman Brad Campbell
got Sarnia on the board
first with a drive from the
point. The goal was his
ninth of the season.
Vendramin picked up his
first of three helpers on
the play. he now has 20
points in 15 games since
rejoining the team last
month.
Kyler Keating (with his
10th), Cody Trowell (with
his 21st) and Jordan Fogarty
(with his eighth) rounded
out the Legionnaires
scoring. Fogarty's tally was
into an empty net.
Zach Grzelewski had two
goals for the Stars, with
singles going to Dane
Johnstone and Wayne Russell.
Backup goalie Cornel Felder
was solid in the Sarnia
cage, kicking out 40 shots.
He also stood his ground
when facing a St. Thomas
penalty shot by Josh Stegers.
Felder refused to make the
first move, forcing Stegers
to shoot wide.
The Legionnaires had 32
shots on Black.
Sarnia returns to action next Wednesday when it travels to London
to face the Nationals. Their
next home game is next
Thursday, when they host the
Chatham Maroons. Game time
at the Brock Street barn is
set for 7:10 p.m.