It is a “Cardinal Rule” for a coach to never provide the opposition
billboard material or motivation. Everyone knows that. Well, maybe not everyone….
The Waterloo Wolves were fed all the motivation needed between
the second and third period and used it to fuel an amazing 6 on 3 penalty kill
enroute to a 3 to 1 win over the rival Kitchener Jr Rangers in game one.
At the heart of the controversy was Evan Wallace after he
set up the opening goal by Matthew Ball and the game’s second goal by Cole
Hunsberger. Evan Walsh earned an assist as well on the Hunsberger goal. On the power
play, Jack Mayne scored from Jack Thompson and Ben Morton.
Circling back to that 6 on 3 penalty kill. When you are
killing a penalty often you need the best player on the ice to be your goalie
and Drew Cribbin was just that for the Wolves. Cribbin played determined hockey
and battled all game for loose pucks and was a difference maker. He certainly
was not alone, however. Cole Ledgister, Ball and Morton were fantastic. Jackson
McNichol doesn’t get enough credit for his defensive play and chewed up a ton
of minutes on the kill. Jack Smith, Ethan Wasylyshyn and Walsh rose to the occasion
as well.
Player of the Game, Jake Patterson, was a beast all over the
ice. His intensity and worth ethic were contagious. Declan Uniac, Griffin
Beddis and Hunter McMurdo fed of the intensity and were instrumental in beating
the Rangers down low.
The Players will need to take it to another level in game
two. Each game gets more intense as they mean more, and the Wolves will see a
Rangers team that will be fighting for their playoff lives and are more than
capable of evening the series if the Wolves take them lightly.
Keep working hard Wolves!