Nes-Tech Warriors rolling in the playoffs, News, Minor Peewee MD, U12-U13 (PeeWee), 2014-2015 (Stratford Minor Hockey Association)

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Mar 10, 2015 | Jkeller | 1036 views
Nes-Tech Warriors rolling in the playoffs
The Nes-Tech Minor Peewee MD Warriors seem to be playing their best hockey of the year at the perfect time.  Two wins and a tie this past week is helping them achieve their goal of getting to the championship tournament in St. Catharines. 


Warriors 4, Bandits Orange 1

Tallyn Soper got the start in net for the Warriors in a rematch against the London Bandits, and played a strong game in net, leading the Warriors to another playoff victory.  The previous meeting with the Bandits saw the Warriors come out on top 3-0.  London was looking for revenge.  London came out strong and opened the scoring just 2 minutes left in the first period.  However, a talk from coach Soper between periods settled the team down and they went on to score 3 unanswered goals in the second and one in the third to take the convincing 4-1 win. 

Ethan Boersma started the scoring for the Warriors, with a great shot into the top corner of the net from above the hash marks.  Four minutes later Brody Jeffrey scored on a scramble in front of the net.  Less than one minute later, Nathan Cardoso scored on a rebound shot from Jacob Bossence.  Bossence then scored in the third to put the game out of London's reach.  Assists went to Corey VanNes (2), Bossene, Jeffrey, and Nicholas McCabe. 

Warriors 3, Kitchener 1

Brock Barclay got the start in net for the Warriors, playing very well to keep the momentum going for the Warriors.  Kitchener scored with 7 minutes left in the first to take a 1-0 lead.  However, the Warriors responded immediately, with a great single-handed effort from Spencer Eidt who went end-to-end and scored on his own rebound to put the Warriors on the scoreboard.  Owen Akey scored on a nice rebound shot with just one minute left in the first to give the Warriors a 2-1 lead.  Mid-way through the third, Ethan Boersma scored to give the Warriors the 3-1 lead.  Barclay and the great defensive play of Eidt, Gerber, Skinner, Koch, Trachsel and Hahn made sure Kitchener stayed off the board for the rest of the game.  The exhibition game was a good way to get ready for the toughest team in the playoff loop so far - the West London Hawks.

Warriors 2, West London 2

The Warriors were up against the London West Hawks, who were the only undefeated team in their playoff loop.  The pre-game speech was simple, play Warriors hockey.  The Warriors did just that, playing hard along the boards, playing smart, and focused on the job at hand. 

The Warriors took a 1-0 lead with 1 minute left in the first period on an great second-effort from Brody Jeffrey after a rebound from Sam Gerber at the point.  They went up 2-0 in the second on a great shot by Ethan Boersma, from his "office", the top of the hash marks.  Assists went to Nathan Cardoso and Gerber. 

The Warriors had to play tough against a surging London team late into the game.  Tallyn Soper made a few spectacular saves to keep the Warriors on top, but the barrage from the top team in the loop finally scored on a great shot late in the second period. 

With London shortening the bench and the goalie pulled, the Warriors scrambled to keep the 1 goal lead late into the third period.  However, London finally got the equalizer with 28 seconds left in the game. 

Defence and goal-tending were definitely the story of the game.  The Warriors played a solid game defensively. The Warriors forwards played hard along the boards with Jackson Nickel, Corey VanNes, Jacob Bossence and Owen Akey winning many puck battles. 

The Warriors defencemen, with help from centres Nick McCabe and Brody Jeffrey played very well, keeping the shots down and standing up to a tough West London offence.  James Koch, Cameron Hahn, Sam Gerber, Matthew Trachsel and Ethan Skinner all played a great game, considering that they were short one defenceman.  

​One of the best moments came after the game when the London coach walked over to shake hands with the Stratford staff.  "You guys should be very proud of this team.  They were great. They played hard and deserveds that point.  We were scrambling.  You guys have come a long way this season, keep it up and we hope to see you in the championship tournament in April."

"It has been a lot of hard work, every shift, from every player on this team, that has resulted in the success of late.  We have to keep this momentum going.  We have to keep playing hard and continue to do the little things that help us win these games", said Team Manager Jeff Keller. 

The Warriors can clinch second place in this first round of playoffs with a win against North London Northridge in Stratford on Tuesday, March 10th in Stratford.  Round two of the playoff series starts next week.