Dec 09, 2013 | cmckee | 2037 views
Reps are Finalists at the Bobby Orr Classic in Parry Sound
The Listowel Midget Rep team played inspired hockey this past weekend in Parry Sound going 5-1 in tournament play.
Game #1 on Friday Dec 6th had the Cyclones up against Ayr. The same team who had recently eliminated the Cyclones at the regional silver stick. The Cyclones attacked early and often and were rewarded with a 3-0 lead after 1 period, only to watch Ayr claw back and make it close scoring there 2nd goal with 45 seconds remaining in the 3rd. The Cyclones hung on for a 3-2 win.
Scoring for the Cyclones were Owen Bender from Cole McKee, Riley Conners from Tyler Hak, and Cole McKee from Hak.
Game #2 on Sat, Dec 7th was a nail biter against home town Parry Sound. The hometown crowd was out in full force to give the local squad a vocal presence. To add to the pressure, in the previous tournament game the zamboni had broken down. So the two teams had to play pond style hockey on a huge amount of snowy ice. It became very difficult to pass, let alone skate. The game went back and forth and was tied 2-2 with 22 seconds to go in the 3rd period and a face-off in Parry Sound’s end. Andrew Gooding set up the draw with his team-mates, after winning the draw Mike McMurren got a pass to Matthew Koch for a shot with Andrew Gooding putting away the rebound with 17 seconds left to play. This gave the cyclones a hard fought victory 3-2. Also scoring for the Cyclones was Tyler Hak from Cole McKee, Drew McKee from Andrew Gooding and Owen Bender.
Game #3 on Saturday had Listowel facing Oro. The Cyclones attacked hard and were rewarded with 2 goals in the 1st period two in the 2nd period and finished it off with one in the 3rd, for a 5-1 victory. Scoring for Listowel Tyler Hak unassisted, Matthew Koch from Riley Thompson, Cole McKee from Cole Fletcher and Riley Conners, Cole McKee with his second from Hak and Conners , finished off with a goal from Blake Buchanan from Tyler Hak and Brendan Hall.
Game #4 on Saturday saw Listowel up against Glanbrook, a BB centre. A win would assure the cyclones a spot in Sunday’s semi-finals. Again as in previous games the Cyclones pressed early and were rewarded with 2 goals in the first period. Scoring was Blake Buchanan from Drew McKee & Bryce Fletcher, and then Andrew Gooding from Mike McMurren and Reese Johnson. Glanbrook responded with a goal in the second period with 3:45 left. The Cyclones hit back a minute later with a goal of their own from Drew McKee assisted by Tyler Hak and Riley Conners. In the3rd period, the Cyclones played a great defensive system to win 3-1 and gain a berth in Sunday’s semi final.
St. Mary’s and Listowel both finished the round robin with 4-0 records, St. Mary’s took 1st place with a better goal differential , putting the cyclones in 2nd , Ayr 3rd and Parry Sound 4th.
The semi-final on Sunday, Dec 8th was a nail biter with our young Cyclones playing an aggressive style as well as a “never give up attitude”, the Reps were playing their best hockey of the year versus a great Ayr squad. Ayr had come into the tournament with only one loss all year. The cyclones pressed and scored early in the second period, a goal by Blake Buchanan assisted by Cole McKee and Ben Rothwell. After that it was back and forth, with Steve Gottfried playing spectacular in net. The game ended in a 1-0 win for the Cyclones, and a spot in the finals.
The Cyclones tried their best to get prepared, having a half hour rest before the final game.
Game #6, the championship game was against St. Mary’s, another BB centre with an incredible record of 25-1-1 going into Sunday’s game. St Mary’s had not allowed a goal in the 5 previous tournament games. Not to be shut out, the Cyclones game out of the gate flying , taking a quick 2-0 lead after 1 period. Experience, size and fatigue wore on our young Cyclone team and watched the lead slip away as St. Mary’s scored 3 unanswered goals in the second. For a 3-2 lead heading into the final frame. The Cyclones pressed trying to get the equalizer, and got caught out of position and with 2:43 left in the 3rd St. Mary’s scored. After a time out by the Cyclones and with the goalie pulled, pressed with all hands on board and almost netted them there 3rd goal. A loose puck race was won by St. Mary’s and they iced the game with an empty net goal at 1:06 left to play. Final score was 5-2 in favour of St, Mary’s. Scoring for the Cyclones was Tyler Hak from Drew McKee & Cole McKee and Andy Gooding unassisted.
The Midget Cyclones showed grit and determination this past weekend and continue to show great improvement, winning 7 out of the last 8 games. If you have a chance, come down to the rink and check out some great midget hockey. Future Cyclones games are Dec 15th vs BCH and the Dec 22nd vs 1st place South Bruce, both games are at 8:15 pm.