Dec 31, 2014 | Colin Schmidt | 1271 views
Silver Stick Summary
The Stratford Holloway Automotive Minor Atom rep team competed in the Stratford Silver Stick Qualifier this past week, finishing with a 0-2-1 record in the round robin and failing to advance to the semi-finals.
In their first game, the Warriors played league opponents the London Jr. Knights White. After jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the first period, the Warriors surrendered two goals late in the period that allowed the Knights to knot the game at two headed into the second period. The Jr. Knights added one more in the second and 3 in the third to take the game 6-2.
In the second game, the Warriors faced the Niagara Falls Flyers. The Flyers scored early and often and won the game by a 6-1 margin, essentially eliminating the Warriors from advancing in the tournament.
In the final round robin game, the Warriors faced the Flamborough Sabres in what turned out to be an exciting and fast-paced match. The teams battled back and forth throughout the game, including the Warriors storming back late in the third to tie the game, making the final score 7-7.
The line of Jonas Schmidt, Jared Gould, and Dan Van Straaten paced the offensive attack. Wes Duiker contributed a great all-round game throughout the tournament, notably a tenacious checking game. Owen Holloway posted arguably his strongest overall game this season in the final game and fellow linemate Kaden Brame helped pace the penalty kill, saving several 'sure' goals throughout the tournament. The forwards cycled the puck well in the offensive zone, with the line of Cole Meadows, Ethan Martin, and Avery Thurston generating great offensive pressure off the cycle. Defensemen Colton Gibson, Haden Frayne, and Luke Zorgdrager anticipated opponent clearing attempts and were able to keep the puck in the offensive zone repeatedly. Thomas Sheldon, Ryan Middegaal and Sam Jeffery kept the opposition forwards to the outside of the ice, allowing goalies Liam Parsons and Noah Campbell to make the first save- which they both did regularly in each of the Warriors games.