Team NL Male
Roster/Schedule Link: https://cg2023.gems.pro/Result/ShowTeam.aspx?Team_GUID=3ff889f0-04a1-44fe-b565-9155dfce39a1&SetLanguage=en-CA
Where to Watch: https://www.canadagames.ca/watch (Free stream)
Number of Players to Attend VHG for at least 1 hour since inception: 16 of 20 (80%)
Articles/Multimedia Related to Team NL CWG
Puck Preps 5-Star Hockey Show – CWG Preview (Podcast, subscription required)
HockeyProspect.com Team NL Preview (Free article)
Game #1 vs Nunavut Review
** Team NL came out guns blazing in this contest, dominating the offensive zone time and shot clock. However, NL’s shots were from the outside with little traffic. I’m sure coaches Crickard and Lee will look to correct this in the second period.
** Jabez Seymour was skating and hitting off the hop, which does not bode well for the smaller Nunavut D corps.
** Nunavut’s jerseys are quite flashy, with NL going with a much more conservative approach.
** NL’s aggressive opening half of the first was negated by a couple of penalties later in the period – they will have to stay out of the box in this tournament if they wish to have success and get everyone into the flow of games.
** NL got on the board in the 2nd stanza, with Growlers Centre Declan Kennedy potting off a beautiful pass from below the goal line by Carter Bromley.
** The next shift, Bishop Kearney forward Ty Peddigrew got on the scoresheet which is a great sign for the NL squad. It took the high-octane star multiple games to get into rhythm at the ACC, but has come out of the gates fast here today.
** NL’s PK has been very aggressive so far, with lots of applied pressure from the forwards off zone clears. Bromley and Kennedy never stop moving their feet on the PK forecheck; they are quite pesky.
** Brody Harnum was the next man up for Team NL; Seymour cleared a passing lane with an aggressive net drive which opened up Kennedy to Harnum. A nice shot by the Champions Academy winger.
** Coaches Crickard an Lee have been deploying their players well so far in this match.
** I feel confident in saying that Credit Union Place in Summerside is the nicest rink in the Maritime Junior Hockey League. Honourable mentions to Pictou and Campbellton. This may lead to an article some day, who knows.
** NL added to their lead in the 3rd as Mason Strong rifled one past the Nunavut goaltender. The line of Strong, Peddigrew and Carroll has looked cohesive in this game.
** Peddigrew made it 5 zip NL – a deflection off a nice Jack Marnell point shot. Before I could finish typing, Noah Boland slipped around the defenders and made it 6-0 for the Rock.
** This was a confidence-building game for an NL team that can attack you with 4 lines.
** This game got chippy towards the end; it was nice to see that neither team succumbed to any injuries as a result.
** The shutout was split between Donald Hickey (2 periods) and Carter Arnold (1 period). An interesting way to split a game, but Hickey may have had an equipment issue OR they just wanted to get Arnold some action before some heavier hockey tomorrow.
** 13 on Nunavut (Gregory Wiseman) has JETS. That young man can close on the forecheck.
** Nunavut’s goaltenders played well in the first period, and could not be faulted in any way for the outcome of this game.
** It’s a tight turnaround for NL as they move over to Charlottetown to face the Northwest Territories @ 9 am. For Nunavut, they will look to regroup for their game against the Yukon tomorrow morning in Summerside.
Game 2 vs Northwest Territories
** Fun fact – Coach AP played the first ever shift in the first ever game at the Maclauchlan Arena in Charlottetown (now the Bell Aliant Centre I do believe).
** Looks to be Carter Arnold starting in goal for NL today. It will be interesting to see if the coaching staff goes 2 periods and 1 period again today; maybe the score will dictate that.
** NL back in their white’s today – I have been told their darks are real nice. We will wait until this evening to see.
** Jabez Seymour opened the scoring off a nice through pass by Brody Harnum. Seymour went shelf to the short side, showcasing his blend of size and skill. Also of note – Brody Harnum has been hot to start this turny.
** NL had excellent possession/opportunities on their first PP halfway through the first period; they just couldn’t bury. ‘Big E’ Elliot Wright with a great look from the slot, but denied by the keeper.
** The line of Bromley-Kennedy-Coish have been excellent below the offensive zone so far in this tournament. NL’s second goal was a direct result of great down-low play, which eventually found its way to Jack Marnell for a point shot. Marnell has had some great looks in this tournament, hitting the net regularly.
** Much like last night, Team NL were gripping the sticks a little tight in the first period. NL had numerous great looks – a couple got in behind the NWT netminder – but not across the goal line.
** Carter Bromley made it 3-love NL by keeping the play alive and filtering to the net front where he was discovered by Mason Strong. Minutes later, NL added to their cushion when Patty Lambe made a beautiful pass to a wide open Brody Harnum sitting on the back porch all alone.
** The NWT jerseys are dead ringers for the NHL’s Seattle Kraken. Nice tops I must say!
** NWT and NL traded goals within a minute of one another to end the second period – the Territories scored on a bang-bang play off the face-off to make it 4-1, but Mason Strong silenced (literally and with a cheeky celly) the NWT crowd with a patient tuck of his own.
** A couple of U15AAA Tri-Pen Ice alumni broke things wide open in the 3rd period, as Carter Bromley and Patty Lambe picked up goals.
** For NL, the goals of this period should be to change quickly, play a ‘no hitter’ and maybe get some guys goin’ (who haven’t been on the scoresheet yet).
** Rod Stewart once said ‘tonight’s the night’ and it is indeed for Team NL who face island rival PEI tonight. A hostile environment, coupled with a second game today (PEI’s first) was definitely a scheduling move by PEI Coach Luke Beck and co. When you’re the home team, you control the remote… until someone takes it from you. Cannot wait for tonight’s match.
** It looks like Donald Hickey will get the nod for Team NL tonight, as Arnold finished the game vs the Territories. Didn’t look like any injuries to report from the NL side, either.
** Mark Lee’s coaching style has traditionally been using 4 lines spread pretty evenly, and I think that you will see the same strategy tonight vs PEI. The thing with NL is they have the depth to follow this strategy this year; based on what I have seen so far, it’s a 1A-1D scenario depending on the period. All lines have chipped in offensively 5v5.
Game 3 vs PEI
** What a crowd in Summerside for this match. Summerside has always been a sports town, and the residents of Western PEI have filled the building for this one! This is a game where you can feel the atmosphere sitting a thousand miles away.
** Ty Peddigrew wasted no time getting the Rock on the board in this game. #17 took a cross-ice feed on the PP and went to the upper quadrant on QMJHL prospect Hudson Bradley (Bradley played great in the first period). If you give Peddigrew that good of a look in the scoring area with no one around, it is usually deposited into the cage.
** Jabez Seymour made the game 2-0 by converting on a delayed PEI penalty. Seymour found a loose puck 12 feet from the goalmouth and shovelled it past Bradley; time stood still on this goal, as it seemed PEI were waiting for the referee to blow the play down for the penalty to be called. Seymour played through the whistle though.
** PEI got one back at the end of the period, making the score 2-1 after 20 minutes.
** Credit to the DJ at the Credit Union Place – he/she is playing absolute bangers, even during the intermission. LOVED the Mike Tyson Punch Out! Knock out music at the end of the 2nd.
** Caylen Blake is a beautiful skater. That’s the take.
** NL’s mantra so far in this tournament has been drubbing teams in the 2nd period, and this game has been no different. 3 tallies off the sticks of Ben O’Brien, Jacob Coish and Mason Strong have Team NL up 5-1 (and me closer to winning a $20 bet from my friend who lives and works in PEI).
** Jabez Seymour has 2 tonight, for those of you scouts scoring at home. 6-1 after 2 frames for the Rock.
**Ty Peddigrew has 2 tonight; for those of you scouts scoring at home. The line of Peddigrew, Strong and Carroll have thrown the biscuit around this tournament.
** Make the final 7-1 for NL in the Battle of the Islands. I am $20 richer going to bed tonight. $20 doesn’t get as far as it used to, but it’s better than bein’ $20 lighter. Plus bragging rights.
** Ryan Dawe and Paddy Gillespie have played a lot of hockey together with the Hitmen U15AAA team, and they look to be in sync at this event. Since we love wrestling, the tag team stands at a combined height of 12 feet 5 inches tall and weighs about 390 lbs. From Parts Unknown.
** Pucks were sticking to Cornwall Colts netminder Donald Hickey in this one. Hickey had to make some key combination saves in the 3rd period to keep PEI from gaining momentum. A hard-working human being, nice to see Hickey pick up the win tonight.
Game 4 vs Yukon
** Elliot ‘Big E’ Wright with his first of the tournament – Wright’s family is from the red island, so nice to see him bury there. Wright almost had a second in the first period off a nice cross-ice pass but was denied by the Yukon ‘tendy
** McKenna (Yukon) has electric speed down the wing – an effortless skater with a nice shot/hands. Glide turns – from an edgework perspective – are excellent. A prospect to monitor as the years progress. Ryan Dawe did a great job defending him in a 1v1 situation mid-way through the first.
** Caylen Blake speed alert – dude’s got wheels. A very intriguing ’08 prospect! Nice goal to make it 2-0.
** Great effort by Will Carroll to draw a penalty via hard work while on the ‘kill.
** Carroll’s hard work led to an intriguing sequence. McKenna did the ‘McDavid’ to Seymour about 4 times back-to-back, and got a step on him. Seymour worked back to the puck, did not allow McKenna to shoot, and the puck was cleared. Ten seconds later, Seymour stripped a Yukon player (actually might have been McKenna), walked in on a 2v1 with Peddigrew, faked a shot and laid it back door for a tap-in goal. Needless to say, Seymour has played very well at this tournament.
** Everyone is talking about McKenna on the Yukon, but the D #6 is also a nice player. Some nice slip passes on the PP, moves pretty well, finds the spaces.
** Ty Peddigrew has 2 tonight for those of you scouts scoring at home; the memo needs to be out that Peddigrew cannot be left alone inside the home plate area under any circumstance, let alone for multiple seconds.
** The Yukon did manage to get one… scratch that, two.. by NL goaltender Carter Arnold in the late stages of the third, but there wasn’t much he could do on either goal. Arnold made a beautiful save on a rebound in the second period that I hope to get my hands on for blog posting purposes. I think both goalies have been sharp so far in this tournament, so it will be interesting to see who gets the call now that the round robin has wrapped up.
** NL finish 4-0 and win Pool C for the second CWG in a row. Good job lads!
Game 5 vs Nova Scotia
** NS came out with the pistols out of the holsters in this game, tilting the ice in the first period. To a man, NS moved their feet and created problems for Team NL in their own end. Donald Hickey saw a barrage of shots in the first 20, but held his ground and kept the score within reach when the first horn sounded.
** NL counter-punched in the first half of the 2nd period, taking the play to the Nova Scotian’s and looked poised to tie the contest up. One could say the turning point of the hockey game was the couple of PP’s/odd man rushes that NL did not capitalize on in the second period. When you play a team as strong as NS, you have to plunder when it’s there and NL did not have a killer instinct in these situations tonight.
** After a Jacob Rhyno goal in the 2nd period, NL could never re-gain the momentum that it had to start the second. There were spurts of pressure in the back half of the game, but the white and maroon club could not string together 3-4 shifts in a row of heavy pressure.
** The 3rd period was very sloppy for both teams, culminated by an NL PK breakdown that allowed the ever-dangerous Cole Chandler to walk around the circle and into the slot without being challenged.
** The goal at this event for a small province such as NL is to win Pool C and see where things go from there. Mission accomplished in that regard. However, it’s hard to walk away from the arena tonight without a bitter taste in the mouth. Donald Hickey played exceptionally well and there was an empty netter factored into the scoresheet, but this game – to me – felt more like a wide-margin loss than a 4-0 defeat with an empty netter. I’m proud of the coaches and all the players for representing NL well at this event, but with the same breath, can say that I think we can play better than that against that NS team (even though they are a strong club). That is not being critical of anyone of any group of people; I just know this group and know what they are capable of I suppose. Live and learn – on to the female portion of the tournament!