Weekend junior B roundup: Falcons take two; Mets win big; Panthers blank Kings
The St. Catharines Rankin Construction Falcons earned a pair of wins over the weekend. Photos: BRUCE IDESON.
The St. Catharines Rankin Construction Falcons came away with a pair of wins this weekend in Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League action.
The Falcons topped the Strathroy Rockets 2-1 in overtime at home Friday before edging the Komoka Kings 4-3 on the road Saturday to improve their record to 12-5.
“We’re happy with it,” St. Catharines president of hockey operations and head coach Tyler Bielby said. “After splitting the last couple of weekends, it was nice to get away with the four points.”
Nathan Duplessis, who has been on a roll of late, netted the winner versus Strathroy 1:55 into OT.
“We’re real happy with our resolve and just making sure we stuck to our game plan,” Bielby said. “We struggled to score but kept with it and in the end found a way.”
Treyson Dewar (10), Jordan Marconi (5), Marcus Harris (3) and Dillon Atkinson (1) scored in the win at Komoka.
“I really liked how we got off to a start coming off a big game at home,” Bielby said. “We’ve struggled on the bounce back away and I was happy with the way the team came out in the first period and found a way to grab a hold of the game and as a result finished with a win.”
Bielby enjoys the novelty of playing different teams.
“I think it’s in a different sense that for so long we’re used to playing so many games against the same amount of teams in the old conference set up and now we’re just getting different looks, different systems, different styles,” he said. “Of course there’s lots of video and things we can look at and make sure we’re prepared. This weekend, in particular. we were up against two good coaching staffs and it was great to get four points out of it.”
Hayden Jeffery earned both wins in goal for the Falcons. The 18-year-old backstop recently signed with the Niagara IceDogs and has acted as back-up on a couple of occasions of late.
“We support Hayden’s dreams and the journey that it takes to get there,” Bielby said. “But for the most part, he’ll be with us and he’ll be there to meet our goals. We’re excited to have him after a big year last year and when he gets called up, we’ll be as big as biggest supporter as we can be.”
The Falcons have a Thursday game in Hamilton and a Saturday game at Caledonia. They do not play at home Friday.
STATS PACK
Falcons 2 Rockets 1 OT
St. Catharines Falcons: Nathan Duplessis (10); Cameron Lowe (5).
Strathroy Rockets: Braedon Clark (5).
Game stats: Shots on goal: By St. Catharines on Hayden Duncan (39), by Strathroy on Hayden Jeffery (27); Power plays: St. Catharines 1/9, Strathroy 1/4; Penalty minutes: St. Catharines 18, Strathroy 28.
Attendance: 374.
SATURDAY
Fort Erie 10 Sarnia 2
Colton Radford scored three times and added an assist as the Fort Erie Meteors defeated the Sarnia Legionnaires 10-2 at the Leisureplex Saturday afternoon.
The three goals give Radford, a 16-year-old rookie, five on the season.
Derek Smythe added a goal and four assists while Eric Cunningham scored twice. Kyle Adamo, Caleb Bidgood, R.J. Schmidt and Hunter Coley added singles.
Finn Moffett made 18 saves for the win.
The Mets improved to 10-5-1.
Strathroy 4 Port Colborne 2
Strathroy Rockets: Brendan Gerber, Lucas Laprise, Josh Denes, Braedon Clark. W: Karsen Chartier (25 saves).
Port Colborne Sailors: Andrew Willis, Nathan DiPietro. L: J.J. Salajko (31 saves).
St. Thomas 5 Caledonia 4 OT
St. Thomas Stars: Matthew O’Sullivan 2; Lincoln Moore 2; Trenton Clinton. W: Erik Maki (36 saves).
Caledonia Corvairs: Sami Douglas-Najem, Ethan Quick, Ethan Brassard, Ryan Gardner-O’Keefe. L: Keegan Jackson (31 saves).
LaSalle 3 Hamilton 0
LaSalle Vipers: Joseph Gingras, Kyle Greene, Adriano Tonin. W: Jake Windbiel (28 saves).
Hamilton Kilty B’s: No scoring. L: Avery Alves (31 saves).
SUNDAY
Panthers 6 Kings 0
Antonio Pugliese had two goals as the Pelham Panthers blanked the visiting Komoka Kings Sunday afternoon.
Mason Goodfellow added two goals and three assists while Owen Hunks and Nick Gilby also scored.
Logan Snyder made 31 saves for the shutout.
Chatham 11 Hamilton 2
Chatham Maroons: Connor Hunt 3; Ian Lachance 2; Cameron Graham 2; Blain Bacik, Braeden Burkę, Brody Gillis, Liam Campbell. W: Sam DiBlasi (29 saves).
Hamilton Kilty B’s: Quinten Lisle, Lucas Kisil.
St. Marys 5 Welland 0
St. Marys Lincolns: Hayden Barch 2; Chase MacQueen-Spence 2; Ryan Hodkinson. W: Nico Armellin (24 saves).
Welland Junior Canadians: No scoring. L: Ivan Kastelan (39 saves).
THIS WEEK
TUESDAY
Ayr at Pelham, 7:15 p.m.
THURSDAY
St. Catharines at Hamilton, 7:07 p.m.
Caledonia at Ayr, 7 p.m.
Welland at Brantford, 7:30 p.m.
FRIDAY
Fort Erie at Port Colborne, 7 p.m.
SATURDAY
Hamilton at Port Colborne, 7 p.m.
Pelham at Fort Erie, 7 p.m.
St. Catharines at Caledonia, 7:30 p.m.
SUNDAY
Brantford at Pelham, 2:45 p.m.
Hamilton at Welland, 7 p.m.
Dear reader. If you liked this story or one of the 6,400 other stories found on our website, please consider hitting the Support Us button on the right-hand side of our home page and making a PayPal contribution to our website. Your support would be much appreciated. If you are a business owner, please consider advertising on our site. Our rates are reasonable and we provide plenty of exposure for your business. Contact bpotrecz@outlook.com for more information.
