TCS Tournament - Day 2 Recap
Action has wrapped up for the U16 Blues until January following the TCS Tournament.
Round Robin Game 3 - UCC vs. St. Peter Catholic Secondary School
The U16 Blues win with some 'old time hockey' against St. Peter from Peterborough.
The U16 Blues win with some 'old time hockey' against St. Peter from Peterborough.
If intensity is measured by bags of ice distributed in the dressing room afterwards, the morning's tilt versus St. Peter was our first 'old time hockey' game of the season. With a berth in the tournament final on the line, the game featured numerous big open ice hits and some edgy play on both sides of the puck. Despite the bumps and bruises, the physical element brought by St. Peter turned into a bonding experience for the UCC Blues.
The first period started well for UCC, with feisty winger Zain Assaf slapping home a one-timer in the low slot on a dish from Eddie Moskowitz on our very first shot. Our second shot also resulted in a goal. The oft-rushing Ryan Reyes walked in from the point on the power play and blasted home a perfectly placed slapper right above the goalie's left pad and into the net. The period ended 2-0 for the Blues and we felt very confident that the game was well in hand at this juncture.
This confidence was not well founded. St. Peter brought a physical brand of hockey to the second period that we had not seen in our previous games. Their tactics worked like a charm, and the Blues lost their focus with a constant parade to the penalty box. Through the tight checking, dominant defenceman Cameron Scott still managed to break through and score on beautiful backhand. 3-0 for the Blues. This is when the wheels started to come off the truck. The physical play went into another gear after this goal, eventually resulting in a goal-mouth scramble and St. Peter's first tally. The second period ended with the score sitting at 3-1.
The intensity ramped up even more in the 3rd, with both teams taking runs at each other and the ref with his whistle in his pocket. St. Peter made good use of the stretch pass and was able to manufacture a breakaway when their player came out of the penalty box and snuck behind our defence untouched. 3-2! St. Peter could smell opportunity and their big #8 ran UCC goalie Dylan Meanchos into the goal post. A "gathering" predictably took place. During the time out when the refs were trying to sort out the penalties, Coach Choptiany reminded the boys that we still held the lead and that we had the luxury of playing our game, while St. Peter would be forced to take chances to get the tying goal. Long story short, we settled down and got back to our game plan, and Luke Pitblado continued his sizzling scoring streak with a clutch goal to put the shenanigans on ice. 4-2 Blues, the game was ours.
Unsung heroes were goalie Dylan Meanchos, who made two stretch passes during the game, as well as Jack Hewitt and Christian Coffey for bravely blocking shots to perserve the lead.
The coaches were happy with the effort and thanked the boys for keeping their composure through some ups and downs. Next game, the tournament championship!
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U16 Blues defeats Nichols 4-2 to win TCS Invitational Tournament in an emotional affair.
Yes faithful readers, fairytales are real and dreams do come true! The UCC Blues U16 hockey team defeated Nichols School from Buffalo to win the TCS Tournament. The circumstances of this victory are "Mighty Duck-esque" in their dramatic quality.
After losing defensive specialist Christian Coffey to a blocked shot and crutches, UCC was down to 6 forwards and 5 defence for the tournament finale. In contrast, our opposition sported a full roster full of smooth skating and motivated players.
To make a long story short, despite dominating in shot attempts and chances, UCC fell behind 2-0 by the end of the second period. The boys could not buy a goal despite consistent goal-mouth efforts. An unfortunate turnover on a clearing attempt and a too-many-men on the ice penalty cost the Blues, which led to the 2-0 deficit. We went into the second period intermission with many doubts; but not Coach Chops. The team sensed an opportunity to agree on a gameplan in order to conserve mental and physical bandwidth with the acknowledgement that we were playing with a short roster, and that Nichols was playing an up tempo game with intentions to exhaust us. After a rousing pep talk was delivered and the game plan agreed on, UCC was ready for a third period for the ages.
The Blues worked hard and had many chances in the early third, but solving Nichols' goaltending was going to take something special. 3 minutes into the third period, the Blues were gifted a stroke of good forture. Cameron Scott provided the special sauce to get it done. Scoring with a seeing eye shot from the point that careened off of traffic in front, his timely marker brought the score to 2-1 and allowed a glimmer of hope to reach his teammates. Although undermanned, the Blues believed deep down that they had the more talented squad, and that 12 minutes would offer enough time to find the tying marker. Cue the epic music.
After this first goal for the Blues, the game got serious. Ryan Reyes was dealt a terrible blow to the head and was immobile on the ice and had to be taken away by ambulance. It was a scary and emotional moment for the team to process. The team was unsure if they could continue. Once medical professionals communicated that precautionary measures were being taken and that Ryan would be OK, both teams decided to continue with the final 8 minutes of the Champtionship match. Down another important player, the Blues could have folded - but they didn't. The Blues returned to the ice and and resolved to win the game for their friend and teammate Ryan.
The illegal head shot gave UCC a 5 minute power play. Franchise forward Edward Moskowitz used the man advantage to even the score on a beautiful fake and feed from slick playmaking defenceman Nathan Hannam. The score was knotted at 2's and the energy and belief of the bench was contagious. Shortly after, Moskowitz was at it again, beating Nichols' goalie with a marvellous hesitation move to the slot from the strong side corner. The Blues had taken the lead 3-2! Nichols pulled their goalie to try to find the equalizer, but Hannam had other ideas, lofting a backhanded flip shot that slowly but surely outpaced the frantic Nichols defenceman who tried in vain to stop it. 4-2! UCC wins!
The team was awarded medals and visited Ryan who was convalescing and doing well at Cobourg Hospital.
The coaches would like the thank Bob Ramsay, the organizer of the tournament who was very helpful in directing the ambulance into the rink. Congratulations UCC Blues on a well deserved win!
The U16 Blues are now off for the exam and holiday break. They will enter 2019 with an undefeated 6-0 record. The coaches feel very lucky to be working with such dedicated and passionate players who are enjoying every day at the rink together.
The U16 Blues are now off for the exam and holiday break. They will enter 2019 with an undefeated 6-0 record. The coaches feel very lucky to be working with such dedicated and passionate players who are enjoying every day at the rink together.
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