The Warriors were on the road again this past weekend at the
Waterloo Memorial Tournament looking to avenge a tough loss in the finals of
this event last season.
SSAC Cameron Homes from Edmonton were the opponents in the first tilt on Friday morning. A back and forth first period ended scoreless with the Warriors killing off three penalties and frustrating the Edmonton attack. The second period saw more chances for both teams and the Warrior power play looked to be clicking but couldn’t fire one home. SSAC had a late power play of their own and pushed one past netminder Henry Tuer to take a 1-0 lead after two. Stratford turned up the pressure in the third but couldn’t put one past the hot Edmonton goaltender. Another late PP goal from SSAC made the final 2-0.
The second game Friday the Warriors were looking to bounce back against the Windsor Jr. Spitfires. Despite dominating the first half of the period, the Spitfires were on the board first sliding one past netminder Brody Borszcz to take an early 1-0 lead. That goal sparked the Stratford shooters as they quickly tied the game on a point shot from Blake Hodgson (A – Ollson). A minute later the Warriors capitalized on a breakout pass from Borszcz and Ellis Schnurr to Ryan Gansevles who made a slippery move in front and made it 2-1 Stratford. Blair Stokes (A – Rylan Hall) snapped a power play marker and Rylan Hall slapped another past just before the end of the period to make it a 4-1 advantage after one. Stratford continued to dominate in the second period with a strong backcheck from Colin Schultz leading to a play that saw Zach Schultz score on a D to D pass from Schnurr to make it 5-1. Griffin McGregor (A – Stokes) flipped one past late in the period to make it 6-1 to end the second. Goals from Carter Petrie (A – Stokes) and Dylan Abel (A – Petrie, Stokes) bookended a Windsor goal in the third making the final 8-2 for the Warriors.
Saturday morning’s opponent was the Kingston Canadiens. Logan Hallock managed a few early chances but just couldn’t find the back of the net. Borszcz pushed aside a late odd man rush with help from D men Nathan Siebert and Austin Musselman to keep the slate clean after the first period. An early PP goal from Kingston in the second had the Stratford team looking down at a 1 goal deficit. A few posts and a crossbar kept the puck out of the Canadiens net and the period ended 1-0 Kingston. An early goal in the third off a neutral zone turnover from Gansevles evened the score at 1 goal apiece. A costly penalty and PP goal from Kingston put them up 2-1 and they’d hold off the Stratford pressure the rest of the way.
Needing a win, a clean sheet and some help, the Warriors had their work cut out for them against a pesky Kent Cobras team. Henry Tuer was tested early and held strong even after having his bucket fly off on an early Cobra rush. Carter Petrie got the boys on the board first off a quick exchange from Musselman and Ryan McGee, the lone goal in the first period for either team. Petrie nabbed another one halfway through the second on a quick snap from the slot. Stokes (A – McGee,Abel) fired a top shelf rocket and Liam Ollson scored on a tip out front (A – Hall, Hodgson) to put the Warriors up 4-0 heading into the second intermission. The third period the Warriors kept pucks deep in the Cobra’s nest, not allowing them to breakout and not allowing a shot the entire period. Final score Warriors 4, Cobras 0.
A 2-2 record wasn’t what the Warriors wanted after the round robin, but a goals percentage tiebreaker pushed them into fourth place past an Ottawa and Niagara Falls team with the same record. That set up a rematch with the Kingston Canadiens in the semifinal game Sunday morning. A costly turnover early in the first saw the Canadiens tuck one past Stratford keeper Borszcz. The Warriors were quick to respond as Dylan Abel picked off a clearing attempt and whipped a deflected puck past the line to even the score after one. Kingston pressed early in the second but the Stratford D and Borszcz turned everything away. A gutsy power play goal from Ryan Gansevles (A – Petrie, Hall) midway through the second put the Warriors in front 2-1 after two periods. Stratford put the clamps on their opponent again in the third, limiting play in their end and taking what the Canadiens would give them in their end. The Warriors held on and finally pushed their way into a tournament final with a 2-1 victory.
A victory over the SSAC Edmonton team by the Waterloo Wolves setup an all Alliance final and the Warriors were looking to play spoiler to the hometown team.
Stratford came out guns-a-blazing right off the opening draw. Carter Petrie (A – Stokes, Abel) banged one in three minutes in to get the Warriors on the board first. A minute later Dawson White (A – Petrie, Ollson) finally hit paydirt and put the team up 2-0. Not to be taken lightly, the Wolves quickly regrouped and tallied a pair of goals to re-energize the home crowd and leave the score tied at 2-2 at the break. Ryan McGee broke free a minute into the second and eased one over the line to give Stratford the lead once again. A few minutes later the Warriors would strike again, Schnurr sliding a pass down to Petrie who found White on the porch to put away his second of the game and his team up 4-2. Waterloo took advantage of a costly turnover and slid one past netminder Borszcz to narrow the margin to 4-3 after two periods. Determined to even it up, the Wolves threw a flurry of shots at the Stratford net on a power play. Stratford players laid it on the line, blocking shot after shot and Borszcz kicking anything that got through to the corners. Once back at full strength, the Warriors settled in and kept things simple to keep the Wolves far from the Stratford end. With the clock winding down and the Waterloo net empty, Carter Petrie (A-Siebert) and Blair Stokes (A – McGee, Siebert) sealed the deal with goals before time expired and the boys stormed the ice to celebrate.
Thanks to Waterloo Minor Hockey Association for hosting a fantastic tournament.
Next Action – Wednesday November 16, 2022 vs. Woodstock Jr. Navy Vets – Allman Arena – 8pm