Thursday, March 30th
U13AAA Male
*** I did not see the Hitmen game vs NS this morning – a 4-1 loss for the NL rep. Paradise native Roman Skinner was the lone goal scorer for the Hitmen.
*** Mid-Isle (PEI) and the Bulls (NB) locked horns in the suppertime game, which turned into a 4-2 win for the Bulls. #87 Fraser on the Bulls scored one of the nastiest goals I’ve seen in 2023, a superb individual effort culminated by a stick-between-the-legs roof job. The female goalie (Crozier) for Mid-Isle was spectacular in this match – if it wasn’t for her, this game would have been more lopsided. Crozier controlled the rebounds very well, especially in the first period.
*** In the late game, the Knights dropped a 7-3 decision to the Pictou Crushers. For the Knights, getting back to the drawing board defensively has to be the most urgent need. Despite the loss, the Knights had their chances to turn this game into a shootout; Damian Norris made some dynamite passes to Jaden Smith, sending him in all alone on two occasions but the Knights forward couldn’t find the handle.
U13AAA Female
*** The Metro West Force were… well, a Force… in their opener, dumping the PEI representative 6-zip. Brianna Payne led all Force point getters with 3 points, while Alexandra Sangster found the back of the net twice. Olivia Arsenault picked up the goose egg in the Force net.
*** The MW Fury scored midway through the 1st period, a goal which would stand for the next 40 minutes as the IceBreakers could not put one past Marika Leblanc. This type of game was definitely unfamiliar to either team; both teams combined for less than 5 losses this year, with most games in their respective leagues being high-scoring. Ava Russell was equally terrific in the ‘Breakers crease, earning POG honours.
*** The Central Storm rebounded to beat the host Quad County Whitecaps 4-1 tonight. I would imagine that Maddison Maceachern’s third period goal sent the Port Hawkesbury crowd into a frenzy; the Cape Breton town is well-known for raucous crowds!
U15AAA Male
*** Ryan Bessey’s Freddy Blues had a tough Thursday, dropping 2 games to both PEI clubs and giving up 14 goals in the process. Nice to see Evan Barker on the scoresheet for the Blues… hoping the young man can keep that up when he plays for us at the Beast of the East in May!
*** The Hitmen dropped a 5-0 decision to the Gulls today. I did not see the game, but based on the scoresheet, the Hitmen did not win the special teams battle on Thursday (2 PPG against, 1 SHG against). Chandler Bell picked up the shutout for the Gulls, with Nate Leonard taking the loss for the Hitmen. SOG 40-23 Gulls. The Hitmen will look to regroup tomorrow with 2 games – 1 against the Eastern Express, and the other against the winless Blues.
U15AAA Female
*** The Western Warriors are 0-2 to start the U15AAA Female Atlantic’s, falling to both New Brunswick instalments. Warriors forward Sophie Urquhart loves cooking in New Brunswick – the speedy forward scored in both games today, following up on a big U16 Female ACC back in October. Lily Barker also scored in both games for the Warriors, who will look to get back on track against the always tough Metro West Force.
U18AAA Male
*** The ‘Dawgs knocked off the perennial powerhouse Moncton Flyers 4-2 in the tournament opener on Thursday! The Growlers bread and butter is getting offensive contributions from everyone, and today was no different as Jack Chafe almost matched his goal output this season with a 2-goal outburst from the back end (atta boy Jack!!!!). Clay Ryan was spectacular in this game, especially in the first period until the Growlers got their footing.
*** The Weeks Majors won their opener against the Ch’town Knights 6-5. Halifax Mooseheads draft pick from yesteryear Ben Wallace scored in overtime to put the Majors into the win column at this tournament. Yarmouth Mariners prospect Dawson Sharkey picked up a goal and an assist in this one – the former Kensington Wild forward has played well for Coach Beck this season.
*** The Growlers lost to the host Fredericton Caps to cap off the day (no pun intended). Playing 2 games in a day at the U18 level is a tough ol’ grind, especially for a team who hasn’t played since March 11th. Darien Thomson had the hot hand for the Caps (2-1-3). Liam Hodder replied for the Growlers with apples from hard-working first-years Dan Kearley and Declan Kennedy.
U18AAA Female
*** In this division, the Subway Selects did things that the Subway Selects usually do (hang some goals on opponents). 5-1 over the Stars was the final there.
*** Hilary Stiles was the Tri-Pen Ice’s nemesis in this game, potting 2 goals (1 was the eventual winner). Allie Akerman – on the power play – and Chloe Pitts dented the twine for the Ice. Brooklyn Jefford with an apple for the Ice (yes Brooklyn) and an impressive Atlantic’s debut from Ice goaltender Olivia Taylor (38 saves). Taylor has the size and the moxy to play at this level, and is a great person to boot.
*** Death, taxes, and Cougars forward Skylar Maclean scoring goals for the home team. The win sends the Stars to 0-2, and the Lynx on a collision course with the Tri-Pen Ice tomorrow when the lunch bell rings.
Friday, March 31st
U13AAA Male
*** I did not see the Hitmen vs PEI this morning, however, the Hitmen came away with the win. The 2011 crowd had some hot sticks this morning, registering 6 goals amongst the bunch. This tournament is what I’d call a ‘bonus round’ for the Mid-Isle Matrix, a team which caught fire in the Provincials but were not presumed to be the favourite going into that event. No one will ever complain about playing with house money eh b’y!
*** I did not see the Knights vs NB this morning, but props to Ryder Mugford with the hat trick! A unique own-goal scenario occurred in this game too – you don’t often see a goal go in while your team has the goalie out on a delayed penalty, but it happened to the Northwest Bulls on this day.
*** Nova Scotia chopped the Mid-Isle Matrix down in the afternoon game. The Pictou team is very well-coached; even in a 12-0 game, the Crushers moved the puck vs becoming individual and have a very free-flowing offensive zone attack, much like the Buffalo Sabres @ the NHL level. The Crushers have a couple of bulls on the back end who will likely be seen playing for Team NS at the upcoming ACC in October.
*** In the evening match, the Knights knocked off the Hitmen 3-2. Sam Nolan played very well in the Hitmen cage and could have very well been the P.O.G for either side (the same could be said for Sam Williams). The Knights did all of their scoring in the first period, capitalizing on the Hitmen’s penalties which is critical for success in a short tournament like this one. Nathan Swain is a hard player not to like on the Knights back-end.
*** The Knights need to beat PEI tomorrow to punch their ticket to the Atlantic’s final vs NS. For the Hitmen, they will have to knock off the Bulls of New Brunswick to keep their slim Atlantic Championship hopes alive.
U13AAA Female
*** The Eastern Icebreakers cannot buy a goal at the most in-opportune of times. The Eastern club – which scored over 100 goals in Provincial play this season – has yet to find the mark in the U13AAA Female Atlantic’s, falling to the host team 1-0. If there’s a silver lining for the ‘Breakers, it’s the fact that their goals for-against margin is only -2. The downside is the ‘Breakers have to do battle with the Metro Force Warriors tomorrow, a team who has not given up a goal at this tournament. The ‘Breakers have to win out to have any chance at playing hockey at noon on Sunday.
*** Brianna Payne potted the lone marker for the Warriors, as they edged the MW Fury 1-0. These scores are more like English Premiership League scores than hockey scores!
*** the Central Storm felt the Fury today, losing 5-2 to the NB rep. NB are now 2-1 and have put themselves in the drivers seat to a playoff position along with NS.
U15AAA Male
*** The Eastern Hitmen got on the board this morning, dousing the Eastern Express 5-4 in overtime. Jordy Flynn was the OT hero, but it would not have gotten that far without Kaiden Sahajpal’s hat trick. Tuesday morning program familiar Liam Nash became an apple tree in this match, securing 4 assists in the overtime victory. It was nice to see rock solid first-year D Ryan Jewer get on the scoresheet today; his overall game is very good for an ’09 rearguard. Express’ Ryan Doyle had a 3 point night for the PEI representative, while Declan Maclaughlin fired home a pair of goals. Ransom observation here, but there might not be a better hockey name in this tournament than Dalton Glass… cool name. Anyhow.
*** The Gulls keep on keepin’ on, putting a whopper with double cheese on the host Prince County Warriors (11-2). Ethan Saulnier with 2 for the winners – bring that stick to the Beast of May me buddy! Aaron Chipp with 3. Tristan Turner with 3. Subtle flex.
*** The Hitmen – coming off their emotional win vs PEI – dropped a 7-3 decision to the Fredericton Blues this evening. Lucas Stevenson – and his Newfoundland genetics – had a 2 point night (father was a townie) for the Blues. Jordan Flynn picked up where he left off, potting 2 of the Hitmen’s 3 goals. Thursday morning familiar mugs Liam Dillon and Aaron Whitten combined for 3 points here.
*** The Gulls have the poll position in this division, but who finishes 2-3-4-5 is anyone’s guess at this point. The Hitmen need to win tomorrow vs the host club, and need to do it with some authority as their 4-goal loss tonight could hurt them down the line.
U15AAA Female
*** The Western Warriors are 0-3 as of this writing. The west coasters dropped a 7-4 decision to the NS representative today at the Carleton Civic Centre, and have 1 game remaining on their schedule (vs the PEI rep). Guess who – Sophie Urquhart – had a pair for Western again today while Katie Hancock picked up a pair herself (yes Katie)! As a matter of fact, Urquhart aka ‘Steve Urkel’ leads all players in scoring at the tournament (4-4-8 in 3 GP); higher level schools/programs make note…
*** Like the U15 Male division, there will be a logjam for that coveted second place position and a birth in the tournament finals. 3 teams sit 2-1 so far; I would not want to be a person with a calculator when all round robin games conclude on Saturday evening.
U18AAA Male
*** As predicted in our Atlantic’s primer, everybody beatin’ up everybody in this division so far. No one’s better than 2-1 (Weeks), no one’s worse than 1-2 (Growlers). Things will change after this evening, but there won’t be an 0-3 team in this division or a 3-0 team either.
*** There seems to be a Sim offspring scoring a goal in every nook and cranny of Eastern Canada this weekend! Lane Sim scored one today against the ‘dawgs, while younger brother Ewan had 4 goals (6 total points) vs PEI at around the same time… just in a different province.
U18AAA Female
*** The Subway Selects bullied their inter-provincial rival CB Lynx today, casting them aside by a score of 5-1. It’s pretty impressive what under-ager forward Kendall Doiron has been able to accomplish at the U18AAA level so far this year; the ’08 forward is showing no signs of slowing down this weekend with a 3-point showing in Membertou today. I am a big Bree Macpherson fan, and believe that the St. FX X-Women are getting a 4-year starter in her starting in September.
*** The Tri-Pen Ice were shut-out by the CB Lynx in an earlier game, with a usual suspect (Skylar Maclean) doing her scoring thing like always. Anna Macneil picked up the 28-save shutout for the Lynx, but in the portions of the game that I saw, the Ice took a lot of shots from the perimeter and couldn’t mount a lot of secondary/rebound opportunities today. The road does not get any easier tomorrow for the Ice, as they get set to lock horns with the Subway Selects and Eastern Stars of PEI. For the Ice to get in the win column, they must find the offence that they brought to Corner Brook a few weeks ago. Some of the heavy hitters for the Ice have yet to find the scoresheet in Membertou, but I have a feeling that will change on Saturday.
Saturday, April 1st
All NL teams lost today… April fools! We won some games this morning. Lets have a gander.
U13AAA Male
*** NB and NS duked it out on Saturday morning, with NS coming out with a 6-4 dub. NS took a commanding 3-0 lead and looked to run away with this one, but the resilient Bulls fought their way back thanks for Jaxon Fraser (2 goals). NB came back to tie things at 3, showing that the Pictou team is indeed mortal in this tournament; but 2 quick third period goals put the game out of reach.
*** The Eastern Knights will play for gold on Sunday, defeating the Mid-Isle Matrix. Damian Norris capped off a nice round robin with 4 snipes, and Jaden Smith’s late game goal could prove to be important. If the Knights want to have success against the Crushers tomorrow, they will need the offensive Smith to be involved. Griffin Seal improves his tournament record to 2-0 between the sticks for the Knights.
U13AAA Female
*** The ‘Breakers are on the board! Paityn Williams with her first of the tournament led to a 2-1 shootout win the the ‘Breakers. Ava Russell continues her hot tournament for the ‘Breakers, giving up only 1 goal in back-to-back starts. To no one’s surprise, this match was low-scoring and needed a shootout to decide a winner. Jorja Carpenter took the hard-luck loss for Team PEI, who fall to 1-2-1. The Breakers only gain 2 points with the Shootout win, essentially ending their Championship game hopes. A game against the Metro Force Warriors is on tap this afternoon, and is a game that could really change the complexion of this tournament if the ‘Breakers could pull out a win (especially in regulation). If the Breakers win tonight, the Central Storm would be going home early and a bronze medal date with the Fury would be on tap for the ‘Breakers.
U15AAA Male
*** The Eastern Hitmen rained on the host teams parade on Saturday, winning 4-1 which will put them into the Bronze Medal game on Sunday. The Hitmen finished the round robin with 5 points (1 regulation win + an OT win). If there’s a game that the Hitmen will be kicking themselves over, it’s the Freddy Blues game. A better showing last night would have put the NL squad into the final for sure. If’s and and’s are pot’s ‘n pans. The Eastern Express will be the Hitmen’s opponent tomorrow, while the host team will doll themselves up for a date with the Gulls.
U15AAA Female
*** Urquhart and Katie Hancock were goal scorers once again for the Western Warriors, but their offensive contributions were not enough on this day (3-2 L to PEI). Looking ahead to next season, this Warriors team has the makings of a solid club. 6 skaters are eligible to return to this U15 team, along with some nice players from their U13 instalment that will be coming up. The Warriors U18 team will also get a jolt with Urquhart, Shea, Hancock and co coming aboard.
*** Who plays in the finals will be decided this afternoon, as the Rockets and Storm will lock up. It’s a ‘win in regulation and you’re in’ scenario for both teams, but an OT win for the Rockets might complicate things.
U18AAA Male
*** The Growlers sung their swan song at the Willie O’Ree Complex this morning, losing 6-2 to the Knights of Charlottetown. The Knights relied heavily on their 2nd year stalwarts Dawson Sharkey and Evan Nicholson today, as the duo tagged up for 3 PP goals. The tipping point in this game may have been special teams, as the Knights converted 3 times on the man advantage while the Growlers converted only once (but did not capitalize on a 5 minute PP in the 2nd). The Growlers are in great shape for the 2023-24 season. Only 5 players from the current roster will graduate due to age, and the way recent drafts have gone for Pinnacle (plus affiliate Paddy Gillespie), Growlers brass would have to be excited for September already.
*** We will see a Flyers-Majors final in U18 Male. Sim (assuming he goes to the OHL) and Roop should be high major junior draft picks in June.
U18AAA Female
*** This division got real interesting this morning, with two lower-seeded teams beating two higher-seeded teams and leap-frogging them in the standings. The Tri-Pen Ice knocked the Eastern Stars out of the tournament, beating them 3-2 and assuring the silver and black an opportunity at (bare minimum) a bronze medal. Allie Akerman, Jordyn Piercey and Chloe Pitts were the goal scorers for the Ice (Akerman with the GWG).
*** The Flames beating the Lynx 5-4 in regulation (Michaud with a pair, nice ’07 player) makes the late game between NL and NS very important. A win for NS doesn’t do much for them, but a regulation win for NL puts the Ice in a 3-way tie with the Flames and Lynx @ 6 points apiece. A potato sack race may determine the 2nd place team in this division… April fools. No potato sack races.
Sunday, April 2nd
U13AAA Male Bronze Medal Game
*** The most important thing that the Hitmen had to do in this game was to keep the Jaxon Fraser line quiet. That did not happen today, as Fraser – who had an MVP-caliber tournament – was in on 3 of the Bulls 4 goals. The Bulls take home the Bronze medal, winning 4-3. Program familiar Joshua House led all Hitmen attackers in scoring today (1G + 1A) – super kid/family! Way to go Josh!
U13AAA Gold Medal Game
*** The two teams have traded goals so far in this game. Ryder Mugford the marksman for the Knights, and Eli Swain for the Crushers. E Swain is a smaller player but very smart, knows where to be on the ice in all zones.
*** Big Hank ‘Oh Henry!’ Collingwood picks up a pair of points for the Knights. ‘Atta boy Hank!
*** The Crushers capped off their remarkable season by eeking out a 4-3 Win. Final shots on goal were 27-17 for the Crushers. As predicted, the Knights were going to knock on the Atlantic Championship door and they definitely came close at this tournament.
U13AAA Female
*** With no NL teams playing hockey today, I didn’t pay as much attention to this division. The MW Fury (NB rep) won the Bronze medal, with Alexie Feeley doing the heavy lifting for the hub province (2G).
U15AAA Male
*** It will be Bronze for the Eastern Hitmen, as they break the hearts of the host crowd by a score of 3-2. Nash, Flynn and Sahajpal had tucks for the winners, with Ellsworth and Chaisson replying for the Warriors. The Hitmen fired only 18 shots on Warriors goaltender Coby Maund, but made their shots count in this match. The Hitmen had control over their island counterparts in this division, going 3-0 vs PEI teams.
U15AAA Female
*** Rockets, Force and Storm (first-second-third) in this division. Chanel Cormier – in the extra period – won the Atlantic Championships for the Rockets which is a tough, tough way to lose a tournament. I recall us losing the U15AAA Atlantic’s in similar fashion to none other than Sidney Crosby’s Cole Harbour Red Wings. Phones didn’t exist back then.
U18AAA Female Bronze Medal Game
*** Watching this Tri-Pen-CB Lynx match this morning. The Ice scored first on a goal by Marissa Dawson. The under-ager is playing great here in the first period. Piercey with the pass out front and Dawson converted on the door step. In time, Dawson will be a very good university-level hockey player (my opinion and I’m sticking to it).
*** The Lynx scored on a blast from the blue line to tie the game.
*** The aforementioned Dawson with a beautiful kick-‘n-drive to Bethany Pitcher, who fires one on goal and gets a gratuitous bounce. Pitcher’s first of the tournament.
*** Officials have let the players play here today, with 0 penalties called through 2 periods.
*** The teams traded goals in the second period; the Lynx converted a goalmouth scramble to tie things at 2, but Cassie Drover found Jordyn Piercey streaking down the right wing shortly thereafter for the Ice 3rd marker.
*** The start of the 3rd period saw a flurry of offensive action! 3 goals were scored in the first 6 minutes of the frame, 2 by the Lynx and 1 by the Ice. Bethany Pitcher picked up her second goal of the game off a hail mary pass from the corner to the slot which pinballed around and onto Pitcher’s blade. The Lynx captain (Morrison) has a hat trick and has very nifty hands/skills.
*** Ice centre Marissa Dawson is flying today – Dawson used her electric speed to pull away from a Lynx defender and fired a shot that landed just inside the left post. 5-4 Ice!
*** Cassie Drover had the game on her stick with about 2 minutes left in the third, but was stopped by Muise on a breakaway (coming in cold off the bench). What a great save by the Lynx goaltender to keep the score 5-4 in the dying minutes.
*** Jordyn Piercey into the empty net for a 6-4 Ice lead! U18 Female Development Program alum with her 2nd of the game! That might be all she wrote for the Lynx
U18AAA Male
*** No games played yet
Final Medal Counts (By Province)
Nova Scotia – – – At least 6 medals (3 gold, 1 silver, 0 bronze)
New Brunswick – – – At least 4 Medals (1 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze)
Newfoundland and Labrador – – – 3 Medals (0 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze)
Prince Edward Island – – – 2 Medals (0 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze)