Nov 06, 2021 | Kevin Waddell | 475 views
Tear up the sheet coach, Tear up the sheet
With a week away from hockey, the U15 Rep team faced an away game in Drayton Friday night and a tilt at home vs TCDMHA in Paisley.
Maybe it was the Halloween candy, or maybe it was the hour long drive Friday to Drayton.... whatever it was, the coaching staff couldn't seem to shake the boys awake until the 3rd period in Drayton. A handful came to play but when the rest finally came too it was too late, and we all had a long ride home, dwelling on the fact we gave one away.
Drayton 5, Icedogs 1
For Saturday, we were hosting the TCDMHA Rebels, our closest opponent.
There were no pep talks, there was no strategy tactics. It was a sit down chat. The game hasn't changed, the physical aspects are just another tool. With coach Kevin having the stat sheet from Drayton in hand, it was unanimously decided by the boys to rip it up, put it behind us and hit the reset button.
It took some time to size up our opponents, and off the start we were working as a team to gauge the Rebels.
With team tactics coming together, we hemmed the Rebels in their end continuously. The Netted Cage has eluded George P, but a quick pick up off a point shot from Lucas W. allowed George to finally send one into the twine. We battled on still keeping the ice tilted in their end and with just under 3 minutes to play, the high flying, speedy and agile Spencer H., put us up by two. Heading into the second we had the dreaded 2 goal lead. The message was simple, keep working.
As the second period got underway, the 2 goal lead had our forwards leaving our zone a bit too early and TCDMHA did end up with a few chances. Strong defense and sharp goaltending kept the puck to the outside.
Wait, hold on....... I think Riley J might have scored..... no seriously...... scored...... like for reals!!! Bitten by some identification issues by the officials in previous games, Riley J picked up the puck from Anderson and Levi and dangled a nifty shot to record his first "OFFICIAL" goal of the season. (3rd for those keeping track)
The last 5 minutes were kept tight in the opponents end and we headed off for the flood up 3-0
With a few suggestions for some corrections the boys headed back out on the ice with the intention to finish strong.
With 6 minutes off the clock, a strong forecheck and good puck support down low allowed Riley J to put a quick pass out front to a wide open Chris P who made no mistake on hitting the target.
The odd rush did come our way as the period began to wind down, but great backchecking and some smart defensive plays by Tyler B, Avery D and Nick P kept Chatsworth off the board. If you looked closely, you could even see our towering goons, Owen M and Ryan P, throwing the body into the opponents.
With only 29 seconds left in the game and a decent control of the offensive zone, Riley J wanted to make sure there was no denying him his spot on the score sheet. Don't worry, we got it right this time!
Next up is Practice/Photo Night in Tara on Monday night. Instead of payment for our photo's a deal has been made that in exchange for pics, the boys have been challenged to fill Coach Kevin's Flex with food donations for our local Food Banks in Chesley, Tara and Paisley. What an awesome gesture, now lets fill that Ford!!!!