2013 OHL Cup Day 2 Recaps

Press Release

Day 2 of the OHL Cup Showcase Tournament presented by Visit Orlando and hosted by the Greater Toronto Hockey League wrapped up at the Hershey Centre in Mississauga, ON, Wednesday with 16 games played.
With all teams completing two games, just three remain with a perfect 2-0-0 record including the Barrie Jr. Colts, the Toronto Jr. Canadiens, and the Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs.  The Halton Hurricanes and York Simcoe Express also remain unbeaten with records of 1-0-1.
The Chiefs' Travis Konecny leads the tournament through two days with six points including a goal and five assists.
Round-robin action continues Thursday with eight games on the schedule.

Day 2 Results:
Game 20: Thunder Bay Kings 2 (1-1-0) vs. Huron Perth Lakers 0 (0-1-1)
By Rob Benneian
The Thunder Bay Kings recovered nicely from a 6-1 loss to the Toronto Jr. Canadiens this morning to shut out the Huron Perth Lakers 2-0 in Wednesday’s final game.

The Kings are competing in the 2013 OHL Cup representing Hockey Northwestern Ontario and their head coach feels their status as a relative unknown can play into their favour.

“We have an opportunity and we were letting it slip away because we weren’t skating,” Ian Swalucynski said. “Everybody in this tournament doesn’t think we belong and we need to prove them wrong.”

The Kings head coach said the team needs to play with a chip on their shoulder in order to find success in this tournament.

Justin Franklin had two assists, Tyler Minoletti and Zachary Grzelewski tallied and Bradley Hampton recorded the shutout.

Through two games the Lakers have one point, courtesy of a tie this morning against the OMHA champion Oakville Rangers.

Game Summary


Game 19: Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs 5 (2-0-0) vs. TPH Thunder 2 (1-1-0)
By Rob Benneian
The Elgin Middlesex Chiefs scored their second big victory of the day, defeating the TPH Thunder 5-2 after winning by a 6-1 margin over the Southern Tier Admirals this morning.

The Chiefs were able to rebound from an early one goal deficit with a five-goal outburst, led by captain Travis Konecny’s goal and three assists. Lawson Crouse scored twice for Elgin Middlesex and was named the first star of the match.

“The team is really confident. We don’t want to get full of ourselves but we’re feeling pretty good going into tomorrow’s game (against the Whitby Wildcats),” said Chiefs forward Carson Brookshaw.

The Thunder’s offence came entirely from forward Josh Wilkins, who scored twice. TPH is now 1-1-0 after defeating the Wildcats earlier in the day.

Game Summary


Game 18: Halton Hurricanes 2 (1-0-1) vs. York Simcoe Express 2 (1-0-1)
By Rob Benneian
The Halton Hurricanes and York Simcoe Express battled to a 2-2 tie in a highly entertaining contest.

Chris Klack opened the scoring for Hamilton when he undressed a defenceman and roofed the puck over goaltender Marcus Semaio. The Hurricanes increased their lead when Michael Andlauer scored for the third time on the day, after a two-goal effort against Ottawa this morning.

But the Express kick-started a late third period comeback when Sam Harding fought off a checker long enough to sweep the puck past Hurricanes goaltender Michael McNiven while falling to the ice. Minutes later, Maurizio Collela let off a wrist shot on goal that McNiven got a big chunk of, but squeezed past him into the net.

Overtime solved nothing despite both teams having quality scoring chances, including on a York Simcoe power play. Hurricanes forward Josh Dickinson beat Semaio after being sprung on a breakaway by Matthew Kreis just after time expired to end the extra session.

The tie left both teams feeling as if they had missed an opportunity.

“I’m happy we got the point but I’m not happy with the outcome of the game,” said Express head coach Thomas Milne. “Right now, we’re not matching the intensity of the other team and we’re not working hard enough. We’re struggling right now.”

Hurricanes head coach Kyle Russell said blowing the lead would provide a character-building opportunity for his squad and that his team would need to have a short memory to rebound for their match early tomorrow morning with the Waterloo Wolves.

The Express are set to take on the Ottawa Senators and will look to follow the Hurricanes lead and become the second OMHA invite to knock off the ODMHA champs.

Game Summary


Game 17: NOHA All-Stars 6 (1-1-0) vs. Elite Hockey 3 (0-1-1)
By Rob Benneian
The NOHA Stars put a hard fought loss to the Toronto Marlboros this morning behind them in time to beat Elite Hockey 6-3.

The Stars were unfazed by a first period goal by Elite’s Tiernan Seningen, responding with two of their own from Matthew Caruso and Brody Brunet. Jeremy Bracco scored his first of two in the game for Elite on a penalty shot to tie the game again, but goals by Cameron Lizotte and Scott Villeneuve gave NOHA a lead they would not surrender.

“We rebounded with a goal and got the two goal lead back. I liked that,” said Stars head coach Craig Duncanson. “The kids responded. They found a way to get it.”

Blake Speers and Jason Uhl rounded out the scoring for the Stars, who are back at it tomorrow morning against Eastern Ontario.

Elite Hockey will be searching for their first win of the tournament against the undefeated Barrie Jr. Colts.

Game Summary

Game 16: Ottawa Senators 3 (1-1-0) vs. Waterloo Wolves 1 (0-2-0)
By Rob Benneian
The Ottawa Senators knew they needed to beat the Waterloo Wolves after dropping their tournament opener against the Halton Hurricanes this morning.

“We had decided this morning that if we couldn’t win two games today we might be done for the whole week,” said Senators head coach Gregg Kennedy. “It’s been our Achilles heel all year, we’re terrible in game one of tournaments.”

Just as they did against the Hurricanes, the Senators jumped out to an early first period lead. This time, however, they managed to retake the lead when their opponent tied the score and were able to hang on for a 3-1 victory.

Senators forward Ian Johnston, who assisted on a late second period goal by Costa Georgitsos, has been Ottawa’s most consistent forward through two games according to Kennedy.

“Ian’s a kid who wants the puck all the time and when he has the puck everyone in the building knows he has the puck,” said Kennedy. “He can do some special things with it.”

Johnston and the Senators will put their skill back on display tomorrow when they take on the York Simcoe Express. Meanwhile, the Wolves will be looking to get back on track with a win over the Hurricanes.

Game Summary


Game 15: Barrie Jr. Colts 4 (2-0-0) vs. Eastern Ontario Wild 1 (0-1-1)
By Ryan Metivier
The Barrie Colts improved their round-robin record to 2-0-0 after a convincing 4-1 victory over the Eastern Ontario Wild.
The Colts were led by a strong performance in net by Bradley vanSchubert, and a two-goal effort by JD Falconer.

“Our goaltender was very solid for us when we needed him early in the game,” said Colts’ head coach John MacArthur. “Early in the game we gave up some odd man rushes and breakaways and he kept us in the game early.”

Despite that early pressure by the Wild, Barrie was able to capitalize on a first period power play goal by Rob Graham and another power play goal in the second by Falconer, to hold a 2-0 lead midway through the second. The Wild would answer back with a goal by Keegan Mulhearn to leave the Wild only a goal down going into the third.

The third period saw the Colts pull away though with Falconer’s second of the game and third of the tournament with a goal at 6:37.

“He has a great shot, a pro shot, with a quick release when he uses it,” said MacArthur. “It’s nice to see him using defenders as screens to put some of those goals in.”

Though MacArthur admitted his team was a bit sloppy to start the game, he said in the third they got back to playing their game.

“I told them if we started looking after our own end we’d get our opportunities to score,” he said. “In the third period we only gave up a couple shots and we created a lot of scoring chances from looking after our own end.”

The Eastern Ontario Wild didn’t give up though, and were applying some late pressure to try and mount a comeback, but an intercepted pass near the blueline by Matthew Baker of the Colts, led to a breakaway pass to Lucas Smilsky who sealed it for Barrie, making it 4-1.

“We don’t want to let our highs get too high,” said MacArthur. “We got the start we wanted in the tournament going 2-0. We want to take that to tomorrow and keep competing and show we want to keep winning in the round-robin and stay grounded so we can advance.”

Game Summary


Game 14: Southern Tier Admirals 6 (1-1-0) vs. Toronto Red Wings 2 (0-2-0)
By Rob Benneian
The Southern Tier Admirals defeated the Toronto Red Wings 6-2 on the strength of four Mike Davies goals.

The Admirals lost earlier in the day to the Elgin Middlesex Chiefs and needed a victory to stay competitive in a tough division. Davies scored the game’s first two goals before Toronto’s Kyle Clarke denied him a bid for a natural hat trick by beating Admirals goaltender Tymen Edelkoort III on an odd-man rush.

Davies could not be stopped in this one, however, as he picked up right where he left off 34 seconds after Clarke’s goal to complete the hat trick. He would add his fourth and final goal just under five minutes later.

“Even scoring four goals, I did all the little things right,” Davies said. “It’s what you do off the puck. Winning your battles in the corners and winning your shifts. It feels good to show you can put the puck in the net.”

The Red Wings countered with one of their own, but the Admirals closed out the scoring with two late third period goals, including a pretty deke-and-dish by Brady Cranwell to Jared Marino.

The victory means the Admirals are, for the moment, tied with the Jr. Canadiens, Chiefs and TPH Thunder for the division lead. The Chiefs and Thunder will square off later tonight.

Game Summary


Game 13: Central Ontario Wolves 2 (1-1-0) vs. Oakville Rangers 1 (0-1-1)
By Mark McKelvie
The Central Ontario Wolves knocked off the Oakville Rangers 2-1 in a game that stunned many in attendance.
The Wolves trailed the Rangers 1-0 after Jesse Barwell scored a powerplay goal 1:20 into the second period. The Wolves would tie things up in one of the strangest ways possible.
A delayed penalty was coming up to the Wolves with a little less than two minutes remaining in the second. The Rangers pulled their goaltender Adrian Clarke for an extra attacker. The Rangers were passing around in the Wolves zone when a pass back to the blue line missed its target and went down the ice into the empty net. The odd goal gave new life to the Wolves.
The two teams would go back and forth in the third with Clarke standing tall in the Rangers cage, while Brett Chandler made some outstanding saves for the Wolves.
With 3:07 seconds left, Nick Thomakos got a breakaway for the Wolves, Thomakos fired a shot over the crossbar but the puck rebounded back in front of the goal for Lucas Clark to fire home and give the Wolves a 2-1 lead.
Oakville came back with many chances in the last few minutes but Chandler was steady turning back the Rangers to hold on for the 2-1 victory.
“We knew we had to keep their forwards to the outside and we got great saves from Brett Chandler between the pipes.” said Wolves defencemen and player of the game Josh Allan. “We played them (Oakville) last weekend and tied them, so we felt comfortable going up against them.”
Oakville has yet to pick up a victory after two games. Jesse Barwell, the lone goal scorer for the Rangers, was named their player of the game.
Game Summary

Game 12: TPH Thunder 4 (1-0-0) vs. Whitby Wildcats 2 (1-1-0)
Mark McKelvie
The TPH Thunder scored three unanswered to defeat the Whitby Wildcats 4-2.
The Thunder were able to get on the board early thanks to Brendan Van Sweden who buried a powerplay marker 2:41 into the game.
William Scott answered back for Whitby to tie things up before the end of the first.
In the second period Whitby took the lead as Nathan Dion potted his first of the tournament, but TPH didn’t take long to respond. Austin Alger for the Thunder forced a turnover in the Whitby zone and walked in roofing a quick snapshot to tie things up only ten seconds after Whitby took the lead.
TPH then took the lead on a breakaway goal by Hayden Winch with less than two minutes remaining in the period.
The third started off the way the second ended with TPH picking up another goal. Matt Goodman scored the insurance marker that sealed the deal for a Thunder victory.
“We had a little bit of scouting report on them and who their go to guys were,” said TPH head coach Paul Flache following the victory. “The biggest point was to put pressure on them and that was our goal and it worked out well for us.”
TPH goaltender Joe Bable was in goal for the win and took home player of the game honours. For Whitby, Bryce Yetman was named player of the game.
Game Summary


Game 11: Toronto Jr. Canadiens 6 (2-0-0) vs. Thunder Bay Kings 1 (0-1-0)
By Rob Benneian
The Toronto Jr. Canadiens used a second period Thunder Bay Kings penalty spree to their advantage in a 6-1 victory.

The Kings took six minor penalties in the middle frame and the Canadiens cashed three times to build a 4-0 lead through two periods. In all, Toronto scored on four of their seven power plays in the game. Canadiens head coach Dave D’Ammizio said the team rolled the momentum of their come-from-behind victory over the Central Ontario Wolves last night into today’s contest.

“We’ve been working on the power play all year, in particular the last practice prior to the tournament,” said D’Ammizio. “If we’re working hard and drawing penalties with our speed we need to execute. We showed patience and puck movement on the power play which was nice to see for me.”

The Canadiens will look to carry their strong play from the first two games into a tough match with the OMHA champion Oakville Rangers, while the Thunder Bay Kings will need a short memory as they face the Huron Perth Lakers in tonight’s late game.

Game Summary


Game 10: York Simcoe Express 2 (1-0-0) vs. Mississauga Rebels 1 (1-1-0) OT
By Mark McKelvie
The York Simcoe Express pulled off a dramatic overtime win to get past the Mississauga Rebels 2-1.
The Rebels held the initial lead after Christian Rajic scored his second of the tournament midway through the second period. That lead would stand right until the final minute.
The Express got an offensive zone faceoff with less than 45 seconds to go. With an extra attacker on the ice, the Express won the draw and controlled the play. Maurizio Colella passed a puck into the slot that ended up at the point. The point shot caught Rebels goalie Dalton Ewing, the post and then finally sat behind Ewing for Colella to shovel into the back of the net with 26 seconds remaining.
The two teams then headed to overtime, where another Express forward stepped up in the clutch.
Sam Harding got control of the puck breaking out into the neutral zone and rushed down the right wing. Harding used his speed to cut around a Rebels defender and then pulled the puck across to his backhand to slide it past Ewing and give the Express a 2-1 overtime win.
“My teammate (Jonathan Yaremko) made a really good pass and I was just heading up with speed,” said Harding after his overtime winner. “I got around the defencemen and tucked it in.”
Harding says that his team had to dig deep to tie the game up in the third.
“We started off hard in the first but we kind of let off a little bit in the second. We came out in the third knowing it was going to be tough to get a goal but we worked really hard to get it.” said Harding.
Express goaltender Marcus Semiao made some key saves in the third to keep his team in the game. Semiao was named the Express’ player of the game while Ashur Elliot, who picked up an assist, was named the Rebels’ player of the game.
Game Summary

Game 9: Toronto Marlboros 3 (1-1-0) vs. NOHA All-Stars 1 (0-1-0)
By Rob Benneian
The Toronto Marlboros knew they needed their big stars to shine brightest in order to beat the NOHA All-Stars.

They did just that, as co-captains Dylan Strome , Mitchell Stephens and Ryan Hunt scored in a 3-1 win. Strome and Hunt also added assists giving the Marlboros big three a combined 5 points in the game.

“If we’re going to win, our big guys have to show up and play,” said Marlboros head coach Wayne Gagne.

The game was a must-win for the Marlboros, as they lost yesterday 4-3 to the Barrie Jr. Colts.

“It was like the hockey Gods just didn’t want us to score (yesterday against Barrie),” said Gagne. “You can’t lose (another) game. We have to go six straight wins. That’s the message and they know it. Lose and you’re out.”

NOHA had plenty of opportunities to try to even things up, including on a five minute power play in the third period after Mitchell Webb was given a major penalty and game misconduct for boarding.

The Marlboros are now off until Thursday morning when they will see Elite Hockey, while the Stars are scheduled to take on Elite this evening.
Game Summary

Game 8: Elite Hockey 2 (0-0-1) vs. Eastern Ontario Wild 2 (0-0-1)
By Mark McKelvie
Overtime couldn’t decide things between Eastern Ontario and the Elite Hockey Group as the teams played to a 2-2 tie.
The Elite Hockey Group, a team made up of various players from New Jersey and surrounding states, jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second period with both goals coming off the stick of forward Jeremy Bracco.
Bracco was able to take full advantage of having teammates from his regular team joining him on Elite Hockey.
“I play with the two guys who gave me both passes and we’ve played together for a while,” said Bracco.
The lack of chemistry, between the team just put together, became evident in the third period.
Eastern Ontario got their first goal of the game off the stick of Ethan Wensink at 3:07 and then Jeremy McFarlane put home a rebound only 18 seconds later to tie the game.
The two teams were unable to find the back of the net through the remainder of the third period and overtime.
Bracco said giving up the two goal lead in the third had a lot to do with the team having yet to establish chemistry together.
“We are from different teams all over and we are still trying to learn each other’s first names, but hopefully it gets better as the tournament goes on.” said Bracco.
Each team’s goaltender was named player of the game in the tie, Jean-Pascal Sabourin for Eastern Ontario and Josh Sarlo for Elite Hockey.
Game Summary

Game 7: Halton Hurricanes 4 (1-0-0) vs. Ottawa Senators 3 (0-1-0)
By Rob Benneian
The Halton Hurricanes rode a four-goal outburst to a 4-3 victory over the ODMHA champion Ottawa Senators.

After falling behind early on a goal by Costa Georgitsos, the Hurricanes replied when Michael Andlauer tallied on a second period odd-man rush. Chris Klack scored with a long wrist shot just minutes later. Andlauer tipped in his second goal of the game 1:55 into the third period and defenceman Mitchell Kreis slipped in from the point to slip one under Senators goaltender Connor Hicks for the eventual game-winner.

The up-tempo style of game played into the Hurricanes hands against a stingy defensive team like the Senators.

“We got the one (goal) and then the floodgates kinda opened from there,” said Hurricanes head coach Kyle Russell. “It’s tough for any team when a team plays defensively. It’s always hard to get the first one. Once we get the first one, I feel it’s easier with our team to get the second one, the third one.”

Ottawa made things interesting late when Brandon Zullo and Zach Senyshyn cashed in on rebounds.

They couldn’t complete the comeback, however, as Klack made a key shot block in the final minute to seal the win.

Both teams will wrap up double-headers later today with Ottawa facing the Waterloo Wolves, who lost yesterday to Mississauga, and Halton taking on the York Simcoe Express.
Game Summary

Game 6: Oakville Rangers 2 (0-0-1) vs. Huron Perth Lakers 2 (0-0-1)
By Mark McKelvie
The Huron Perth Lakers and Oakville Rangers skated to a 2-2 tie in OHL Cup action Wednesday morning.
The Oakville Rangers came into this year’s tournament as the top ranked team in the OHL Cup Rankings but the Huron Perth Lakers didn’t let that intimidate them one bit.
The Lakers came out with a very physical attack on the Rangers and had most of the chances in the first period. Cullen Mercer was able to convert in the final minute of the frame to get the Lakers on the board as he roofed a backhand from the top of the crease.
The Rangers were able to tie things up four minutes into the second when Andrew Burns scored from a bad angle. The Lakers would regain the lead almost two minutes into the third as Ted Nichol was able to poke the puck underneath Oakville goaltender Brendan McGlynn. Oakville would answer with 6:36 remaining when Zack Dybowski slapped home a rebound off a Jesse Barwell shot to tie the game 2-2.
Oakville captain Matt Spencer was assessed a checking from behind minor and game misconduct with 2:29 left in the third, however, the Lakers couldn’t convert on the powerplay and the game headed to overtime.
In overtime, both teams had a few chances but the extra period solved nothing.
After the game, Lakers head coach Dave Schlitt was pleased with the tie and said his team knew they had to be physical against the top ranked Rangers squad.
“They've got guys that can really move the puck, so we wanted to take away time and space and come out and be aggressive.” said Schlitt.
Huron Perth’s goaltender Ben Lander stood tall in the goal late in the game as the Rangers turned up the pressure.
“I was really pleased with Ben’s game,” said Schlitt. “He made some key saves especially late in the game and kept us in it.”
Lander’s counterpart Brendan McGlynn was awarded player of the game for the Rangers while Ted Nichol took home the honours for the Lakers.
Game Summary

Game 5: Elgin Middlesex Chiefs 6 (1-0-0) vs. Southern Tier Admirals 1 (0-1-0)
By Rob Benneian
The ALLIANCE champion Elgin Middlesex Chiefs opened their 2013 OHL Cup run with a convincing 6-1 victory over the OMHA’s Southern Tier Admirals.

The Admirals were able to stay within striking distance for most of the first two periods but a late second period goal by first star Drew Worrad pushed the Chiefs lead to three goals.

“The kids started rolling after the second and we came out and we took control from there,” said Chiefs head coach Darren Kelly.

Worrad opened the scoring just over a minute into the game and assisted on the last of three Chiefs third period goals. Elgin Middlesex captain Travis Konecny added two helpers and 10 Chiefs skaters hit the score sheet.

“Our depth and keeping it simple (were the difference),” Kelly said. “We have three solid forward lines. If they try and match our top line, the other two lines can do the damage.”

Admirals forward Colin Elder scored the lone Southern Tier goal and was named his club's Player of the Game.

Both teams next opponent is USA invite TPH Thunder, with the Chiefs completing their Wednesday double-header in tonight’s late game and the Admirals taking them on Thursday afternoon.
Game Summary


 (Nathan can be reached at nathanfournier@mainehockeyjournal.com)