Jan 30, 2012 | stottle | 1102 views
Busy Weekend Sets the Stage For O.M.H.A. Playdowns
The Bantam Jr. Stars played three games in three nights against two quality AA opponents this past weekend in preparation for their upcoming O.M.H.A. Preliminary Round Tournament held at the Timken Centre in St. Thomas from February 3-5, 2012. Although the scores were not particularly impressive, the Stars did give their fans reason to be at least somewhat optimistic about their chances next weekend against some stiff competition that includes Amherstburgh and the top ranked Riverside Rangers.
The Jr. Stars started off the weekend slowly on Friday night at the Chedoke Arena in Hamilton. Some uncharacteristic Stars' miscues and an off-night for goaltender Greyson Tottle resulted in the Reps finding the back of the net early and often. Mercifully, Rogie was pulled with three minutes remaining in the second period and the Stars trailing 6-2. The Stars' play up to that point was not as bad as the score indicated, and they were able to regroup during the second period intermission.
To their credit, St. Thomas came out in the third period with renewed enthusiasm and determination. Despite outscoring the Reps 3-1 in the final stanza, the Stars came out on the wrong end of a 7-5 final. The loss overshadowed a superlative 4-point performance from Jesse Tottle, who enjoyed a two goal, two assist night. Dane Jacoletti, Dylan Newman and Andrew Baxter also scored for the Stars. Newman, Jacoletti and Tyson Durfy also earned assists.
A return match with Hamilton the following afternoon saw a return to form from the local officiating, after a brief one-game hiatus. The Stars were assessed seven minor penalties during the first period, albiet at least two were well earned, to Hamilton's one. Some strong penalty killing from Michael McArthur, T.J. Turley and Jesse Tottle resulted in the Stars only trailing 1-0 after the first period.
The Stars fell behind 2-0 early in the second period when the Reps second their second power play goal of the game. However, at 12:33, Derek Folkard cut the lead in half. Grabbing a loose puck and skating out of the corner to the left of Hamilton netminder Jarrett Moore, Folksy caught him leaning just enough to the far post to snipe a wrister top-shelf, short side. Michael McArthur was credited with an assist on the play.
Hamilton scored their third power play goal of the game with 3:31 to play in the second period to take a 3-1 lead. But two quick goals within a one minute span allowed the Stars to head into the intermission tied at 3-3. Josh Mallory celebrated his return to the line up after a long absence by sneaking another shot by Moore's short side to narrow the lead to 3-2. And then Derek Smith pounced on a loose puck in front of Moore and slammed it home for his second goal of the season.
The Stars took the lead midway through the third period on a rare power play opportunity of their own when Pierce Lawrence snapped a shot from the slot off a nice drop pass from Jesse Tottle. Pierce's blast found an opening just under the glove of Moore to give St. Thomas a 4-3 lead. Unfortunately, a late goal by Hamilton with their net empty and :43 seconds on the clock dampened the Stars' post game festivities. However, the effort, consistency and result were much improved from the night before, especially having regard to the seventeen minor penalties assessed to the Stars as opposed to seven for the Reps.
The Stars continued their strong play on Sunday afternoon in Cambridge. Playing with a full line-up for the first league game in recent memory, the Stars played a strong, patient and determined defensive game.
Dane Jacolietti opened the scoring for the Stars on a power play when his slap shot deflected off a Cambridge defender and between the legs of goaltender Blair Wickett (editorial note: author is refraining from using a pun far too obvious for this audience).
Cambridge tied the game at 1-1 in the first minute of the second period on a goal Rogie thought should have been waived off for goalie interference. Neither the officiating nor the Cambridge fans were sympathetic to the plea.
Josh Mallory, with his second goal in as many games since returning from a knee injury, finished off another Stars' highlight reel goal which has to be considered as a contender for Goal of the Year honours. With just over four minutes remaining in the second period and playing a man short, Jesse Tottle carried the puck into the Cambridge zone accompanied by Josh on a 2-on-1 break. As the Cambridge defender slid to take away the pass, Jesse slowed to create a passing lane. Josh broke wide and accepted the pass on his backhand. In one quick, fluid motion, Josh deked to his forehand before returning to his backhand and lifting the puck high up into the top right corner to cap off a brilliant play and give the Stars a 2-1 lead.
Some head-scratching officiating in the final few minutes of the game allowed the home team to capitalize on a two-man power play and tie the game at 2-2 with just under three minutes remaining in the game. Nonetheless, the tie marked another solid outing for the Stars against a quality AA opponent.
Weekend Notes: The weekend saw the Stars' goalies play the puck more often with far less panic. Greatly improved but still a work in progress....Knock on wood, but the Stars are healthy and playing well headed into the playdowns for the first time since Atom....Selfish penalties and mental toughness have been a hot talking point the last few games for the Stars. It will continue to be, emphasized by a video demonstration, right through the OMHA playdowns....Stars encourage all their fans to come out to the Timken Centre and cheer on their team this weekend in what should be a well-played and hard-fought tournament. Check your local STMHA website for game times. Until then...keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the Stars.