Falcons fly past Kilty B’s
Adam Pys appears to have found a home.
The 19-year-old defenceman has bounced around the last couple of seasons from Cambridge to Kitchener before landing with the St. Catharines Falcons this season.
The native of Ayr has been a fixture on the blueline for the Falcons, providing a combination of size, experience and toughness.
Pys turned in his usual steady performance Friday as the Falcons defeated the Hamilton Kilty B’s 7-2 in Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League, Golden Horseshoe Conference game at Jack Gatecliff Arena.
The Falcons improved to 14-3-0-1 with the win and have picked up at least one point in 14 straight games.
Pys, who also attended Ridley College for a year in 2015/16, hooked up with the Falcons this summer after being accepted at Brock, where he is majoring in physical eduction.
“All the guys on the team make it feel like a group and we’re brothers and we can play together through anything,” he said. “It’s made an easy transition.”
Pys admitted it has been tough to bounce from team to team.
“It kind of sucked,” he said. “I was really hoping to go back to Cambridge, but when they folded it just happened a lot of guys went to Kitchener.
“Coming here, it’s pretty easy with hockey guys.”
Pys wasn’t even sure he was going to play hockey this season after enrolling in university.
“It’s a bit difficult mixing school and hockey but I’m making it work,” he said.
Pys picked up an assist Friday and now has two goals and six points in 14 games, but it’s his work in the defensive end where he earns his keep.
“I’m more of a stay-at-home guy and we have some smaller guys on the team and it helps when we have someone else who is going to have their back for them,” he said.
St. Catharines coach/general manager Frank Girhiny knew what he was getting in Pys.
“His presence alone can settle things down when things go awry,” Girhiny said. “We’re not super big but we’re physical and we play hard, but with him (Pys) he’s a real good defenceman and he’s real good in the room for a guy who just came here.”
St. Catharines jumped out to a 3-1 lead after 20 minutes on goals by Carson Edwardson, Kyle West and Dawson McKinney. The Falcons held a 16-10 edge in shots.
The Falcons netted the lone goal of the second to take a 4-1 lead into the third.
St. Catharines, who also topped Hamilton 4-1 Monday, sit alone in second place with 29 points and are playing their best hockey of the season.
“I’m very happy we got four points (from Hamilton),” Girhiny said. “I thought we soundly beat them the last two games. It was a really good couple of wins and we’re not there yet, that’s the exciting thing.
“I think we have so much more to offer. We’re getting the buy-in from the players.”
Falcon facts: Dakota Miskolczi, Kristopher Black and Brannon Butler did not dress for the Falcons . . . Midget Jacob Anger was recalled to fill out the roster . . . The Falcons Jake Orr dropped the gloves with Hamilton’s Aiden McLeod for a brief tussle in the second period.
Canucks 4 Regals 2
The Niagara Falls Canucks improved to 17-2 with a win at home Friday over the Lockport Regals.
Ben Evans, Garrett Downie, Dillon Hill and Andrew Bruneau scored for the Canucks.
Erich Thur and Anthony Trigilio replied for the Regals, who fell to 3-15-1.
Stats Pack
Falcons 7 Kilty B’s 2
BPSN Star of the Game: St. Catharines forward Jacob Roach with three points.
For the St. Catharines Falcons: Roach (10); Carson Edwardson 2 (14, 15); Dawson McKinney 2 (5, 6); Kyle West (7); Xavier Drummond (5).
For the Hamilton Kilty B’s: T.J. Hughes (9); Ralph Taggart (1).
Game stats: Shots on goal: By St. Catharines on Marco Costantini (39), by Hamilton on Jack McGovern (26); Power plays: St. Catharines 3-for-6, Hamilton 1-for-6; Penalty minutes: St. Catharines 29, Hamilton 39.
Attendance: 400
Up next: At Welland Sunday and home to the Junior Canadians next Friday.
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