The INSURANCE CENTRAL Minor PeeWee MD Warriors started the
2011 year off with a bang this week, picking up two solid wins.
On Monday, the team travelled to Sarnia, and convincingly defeated the Sarnia Jr. Sting 7-1. Anthony Gioia (Chase Windsor) opened the scoring just over2 minutes into the game, with the Warriors closing out the 1st period with a strong 3-0 lead on subsequent goals by Peter Williams (Cole McKay, Nathan Ferguson) and Liam Westman (Connor Franke). The period was up-tempo for the team, with all players skating well and moving the puck nicely
The game tightened up in the 2nd period however, the Warriors were able to end the 2nd frame up 5-1. A nice point shot by Steven Tuer (Williams, McKay) and a strong individual effort by Windsor accounted for the team’s 2nd period scoring. Sarnia broke Jeremy Wickenheiser’s chance for a shut-out just over half way through the period.
A good 3rd period resulted in 2 more goals, one by McKay (Ferguson, Williams) and Windsor’s (Joel Neizen) 2nd of the game. Overall, it was a great first game back for the team after the Christmas Break. Of note, Owen Brooks was welcomed back after missing 6 weeks recovering from a broken ankle. He picked up where he left off, playing a great game on defence.
On Tuesday, the Warriors hosted the as yet undefeated Oakridge Aeros. Hoping to pick up where they left off the night before against Sarnia, Stratford opened the scoring 18 seconds into the game when Niezen (Gioia, Windsor) popped a rebound into the net. The game settled down after that, with both team’s trading scoring opportunities. Oakridge tied the game just under 2 minutes into the 2nd period, and the game remained tied heading into the 3rd.
An early power-play was all Stratford need to reclaim the lead, with Ferguson scoring an unassisted goal off a breakaway 3 minutes into the period. With just under4minutes to play, Oakridge was able to net the equalizer with Stratford in the middle of a player change. It looked as though Oakridge would leave Stratford still undefeated however the Warriors had other ideas. With just under 40 seconds left to play, Niezen found himself in possession of the puck right in front of the Aeros net-minder and made no mistake burying his second of the game. Gioia and Brooks picked up the assists. Jacob Ford was strong in the Stratford goal.
The 2 wins set the team up nicely as they head to the SSE Wild Tournament in London this coming weekend. Games against the London Bandits, Erindale 62 and Oakville will await them in the round-robin.