Almaguin Minor Hockey: Novice match against Meaford worth trip for fans

by Debbie Rogers

Feb 27, 2008

Playoff action continued last week as teams battled to stay in the game. Exhibition games and house league continue to keep the local arenas filled with fans and players as the season starts to wind down for Almaguin Minor Hockey.

Novice: The Novice Ice Devils were on the road this weekend with a game against the Meaford Mustangs. After a long bus trip, the Devils were ready to play. This game did not disappoint the parents and grandparents who made the trip.

In the first period fans witnessed even, end to end play. The Devils defensive pairings were strong and focused. Andy Coleman, Braden May, Tyler Smith and Mitchell Grant worked very hard, evidenced by a scoreless end to the first period. In the second period, Connor Eastaugh led the Devils with two goals, the first assisted by Sam Pauley and Cody Smith. The second was assisted by Cody Smith and Cole Earl. Although the period ended in the Mustang’s favour, a win was definitely within the Devil’s reach with a 3-2 score going into the third.

The rest of the match was intense, exciting and full of drama for the fans. A rush to the net, a pass from Andy Coleman on the point to Sam Pauley to Owen Johnstone for the goal brought the score to a 3-3 tie early in the third. This was answered by Meaford, allowing them a brief edge but not for long as Mitchell Grant scored from the point, unassisted. The Devils could not answer back when the Mustang went ahead, ending the game at a 5-4 loss.

There’s no question the Devils will be looking to force the series to a fourth game on Saturday, March 1 at 12:30 p.m. in Sundridge. Come out and cheer on this young squad as they continue to battle for victory in the OMHA playdowns.

Atom: On Feb. 23 the Ice Devils travelled to Sunderland to continue their playoff series with Omemee. After a scoreless first period, both goalies made many key saves while taking away many good scoring opportunities. Omemee got on the scoreboard first early in the second period. The Devils battled back and got a goal of their own mid-way through the second period, scored by Dryden Sollman and assisted by Tyler Young and Dakota Grant.

Prior to the end of the second Omemee scored their second goal of the night, putting them back in front. This set the stage for a thrilling third period. Omemee continued to press and didn’t sit back on their lead while the Ice Devils attempted to battle through the strong Omemee fore-check. Although there was no further goal scoring, the Ice Devils battled to the final buzzer. The score remained 2-1 for Omemee.

The Atom Ice Devils would like to congratulate the Atom Omemee Sharks on the series win and wish them success in their OMHA semi-final round.

Up next for the Ice Devils is the start of the Muskoka-Parry Sound (MPS) playoff round. The Ice Devils will be playing the Haliburton Highland Storm. This series could start as early as next weekend.

The Ice Devils’ coaching staff, team executives, parents and fans would like to congratulate the Atom Ice Devils on their many successes during their OMHA playoff run.

For more exciting Atom Ice Devil action see you rink side.

Peewee: There were no stats available at press time.

Bantam: There were no stats available at press time.

Midget AE: There were no stats available at press time.

Midget: The Midget rep team travelled to Beaverton on Saturday, Feb. 23 for a 4 p.m. start time. Ryan Whitney took his place between the pipes for the third game in the series and made some really nice saves early in the game. Jon Dunn played a strong game and the team had some good scoring opportunities, but the Beaverton goaltender was sharp and didn’t allow anything to get through.

Calvin Jeffery made a nice move with a quick snapshot but was stoned, as was Greg Arnold on a blast from the point. Ryan stopped a hard shot while Almaguin was short-handed, giving the team the chance to stay in the game. It was scoreless going into the second period.

Almaguin was short-handed when Beaverton was first on the board as they continued to battle, not wanting to give an inch. The team was full strength when a harmless looking play gave the home team another goal making it a 2-0 game. Jason Chapman made no mistake and the game was now a close 2-1 match in the third.

With just under two minutes left in regulation time Almaguin pulled the goalie to get the extra attacker on the ice but with 29.3 seconds on the clock Beaverton put in an empty net goal and took the game 3-1.

It was back to Sundridge the following day for game five of this gruelling series. Shea Cooper was minding net for Almaguin and once again it was scoreless going into the second period as both teams knew this was the game to win. Almaguin came out a little flat and a lucky bounce up over the goalie stick made it a 1-0 game for the visitors.

Both teams had some chances in the second but Almaguin came up with a goal with only seconds on the clock when Darren Stack put one away with help from Greg Arnold and Brody Brimacombe. With both teams tied at 1-1 going into the third it was anyone’s game.

Halfway through the third period Beaverton went ahead by one and Almaguin struggled to get another one to tie the game. With 3:46 on the clock Beaverton put away the insurance and ended the game 3-1.

Monday, March 3 at 7 p.m. at the SSJ Arena in Sundridge is the date and time for the annual general meetings (AGM). All parents are encouraged to come and attend this very important meeting which will decide your executive for next year. Your participation in the election process would be more than welcome. It would be nice to see a good turnout and have as many parents/guardians as possible attend this meeting. Anyone interested in minor hockey is more than welcome to attend. See you there.