Submitted by Super-fan Todd Nickel
The Jeffrey Custom Masonry Minor Bantam MD’s travelled to Burlington last Saturday in search of their first win and delivered in style with a convincing 3-0 victory over the Bulldogs. From the onset, the Warriors dictated the pace with several quality scoring chances in the opening five minutes. A tough Burlington netminder was able to keep the Warrior attack at bay for the duration of the first frame with several key saves. In the second, the relentless Stratford pressure was too much for their opponent and at the 3 minute mark, Ethan Boersma found himself the recipient of a beautiful feed from Owen Duiker in the high slot. Boersma would make no mistake and the Warriors would take a 1-0 lead. Their spirited play continued and the Warriors would take a 2-0 lead when Colten Cowen was sprung on a breakaway by Brody Jeffrey late in the period. Cowen made a nice backhand deke on the Bulldog goalie to record his second goal in as many games. The league best Stratford penalty kill, anchored by goaltender Dailey Trainor was put on display in third period as the Warriors would have to kill off 5 minor penalties to keep their opponents off the board. Cowen iced the victory with an unassisted empty net goal with a minute remaining. With the help of great defensive efforts from James Koch and Alex Franke, the Warriors were able to preserve the well-deserved shutout for Trainor.
The Warriors ran their unbeaten streak to two against a tough Waterloo team Wednesday earning a 3-3 tie with the visiting Wolves. The Warriors offense was dormant through 2 periods, but goaltender Dailey Trainor held Waterloo in check with several highlight reel saves to keep the Warriors within striking distance. Stratford began the third period down 2-0, but found themselves on the powerplay and quickly connected on a gorgeous tic-tac-toe passing play on to pull within one. With Owen Duiker quarterbacking from the point, he found Jacob Bossence down low who made a nice cross-crease feed to Colten Cowan. Cowan found the back of the yawning cage to put the home squad on the board. Waterloo would go up 3-1 on a disputed goal moments later, but the Warriors would channel their frustration into some spirited play and were rewarded at the 4 minute mark when Carter Stock took a feed from Maddox Keller, stormed in on the right side and whistled a wrist shot over the glove of the Wolves netminder. A minute later, with the momentum in their favour, the Warriors would strike again on a nice individual effort from Keegan Riehl who fought off a Waterloo defender deep in the Wolves end and snapped a shot bar-down to pull the Stratford squad even. The Warriors would find themselves shorthanded for the last 2 minutes of the game, but key blocked shots by Jackson Nickel and Spencer Eidt would hold off the Wolves powerplay and help earned the squad a well-deserved tie.
Heading back out on the road, the Stratford travelled to Brantford to take on the 99er’s in a Saturday night prime time tilt which saw the Warriors put forth their best effort of the season only to come up on the wrong end of a 4-2 loss. The game remained scoreless after an entertaining first period which saw both goalies play well. Stratford found themselves in penalty trouble in the second period and host 99er’s made the Warriors pay, scoring 2 powerplay goals in the frame to take a 2-0 leading heading into the 3rd. Rocco Sigl got the Warriors on the board early in the third with a well-placed backhand over the shoulder of Brantford goalie. Keegan Riehl and Carter Stock drew assists on the play. A Brantford goal would find the Warriors facing another 2 goal deficit with 7 minutes to play, but the Warriors would again pull within one when Colten Cowan fed Stock, who fired a quick shot through the 5-hole of the 99er’s keeper. The Warriors would mount a strong surge to finish the period, but were unable find the back of the net despite some glorious chances. With their net empty, the Warriors fired a barrage of shots at the Brantford net, with Ethan Boersma hitting the post twice in the final minute. Brantford would ice the victory in the final seconds with an empty net goal. Zach Freeland was relentless on the forecheck once again, while Josh Rogers was a force down low all game.