London, Here We Come!: Round Robin Game #1 vs. Port Credit 52
Friday, January 18th was the first day of the Neil Barker Thunder Classic Memorial Tournament. Members of Waterloo’s ATOMc Blue Fireballs travelled to Stronach Arena in London, Ontario early that morning for their first game, which was to take place at 9:30am against Port Credit 52. When it was time for them to take to the ice, the Fireballs were “fired” up and ready to go!
Port Credit’s team colours were similar to the Fireballs’ blue jerseys, but as the home team, they were required to wear alternate sweaters, and so took to the ice in white. Despite the energy that existed in the Blue dressing room, their opposition hit the ice aggressively, and the Fireballs must have felt like they were in the middle of a snowstorm in the first few minutes of the game.
However, ATOMc Blue quickly responded to Port Credit’s strong positional play and turned up the heat themselves, with Jett S. nearly scoring with a well-placed backhand shot, and Josh R. contributing on defence by getting some good shots from the point to help keep the puck in the offensive zone.
On defence, the line of Carson A. and Mason D. had started the game, with Mason playing on the ATOMc Blue Fireballs’ blue line for the first time this season. These two adapted quickly to Port Credit’s effective breakout, refusing to allow the pass from a winger to a streaking player up the center of the ice to catch them off-guard. Carson used his strong poke-check to keep the team in White at bay, while Mason took advantage of his great stick-handling and offensive experience to turn the play around and make a few strong rushes up the ice.
As the second period came to an end, the line of Lucas B., Riley D. and Matthew M. faced some aggressive advances by the boys from Port Credit. They skated hard and back-checked effectively, and were a large part of the reason the first period concluded with the score still tied at zero.
The Fireballs came off the bench for the second ready to play. Michael R. and Josh R. started the period on defence, and they were responsible for keeping the puck in the offensive zone to give forwards more opportunities. Michael presented his stellar insight by extending his stick to block and breakout pass, preventing a Port Credit breakaway.
However, Sam Z. broke the scoreless tie with a breakaway of his own when, just over two minutes into the period, he skated hard up the center of the rink with a white defenceman chasing close behind. His first shot was saved by an effectively positioned Port Credit goalie, but nothing could stop Sam putting in his own rebound to give his Fireballs the lead.
Just over a minute later, Mason D. worked hard to get back in position to steal the puck from a Port Credit player before he set his sights on the opposition’s net. Mason wound effectively in and out and around Port Credit’s players from one end of the rink to the other, and, at the end of his lengthy trek, he put the puck into the net to put his team up 2-0.
As the period continued, Port Credit applied more pressure on Blue in an attempt to put some numbers on the scoreboard. However, Halen R. and Ryan S. took their shifts on the wing and checked hard to prevent their opposition from doing so. These two used their energy to back-check effectively and turn play in the Fireballs’ favour.
On defence, Carson A. helped out considerably by putting his body in front of the puck to block shots and keep the play away from Luke C. in net. A long stretch of time spent defending in the defensive zone required a great deal of hard work from each and every one of the Fireballs to prevent a goal from being scored.
Just past the halfway point in the period, ATOMc Blue found themselves shorthanded, and everyone worked hard in their defensive zone to keep the puck away from the front of the net, including James R. who used his powerful shot to dump the puck down the length of the ice to relieve some pressure. However, aggressive play by Port Credit earned them a powerplay goal when one of their players wrapped the puck around the net and in to make the score 2-1.
The back and forth play continued as the period rolled on, and a fantastic play by Jackson M. earned back the two goal lead eighteen seconds after Port Credit’s goal when he surprised one of their players by stealing the puck from him behind the net before turning around and feeding it to Jett S. in front. Jett’s one-timer made the score 3-1… but the period’s scoring was far from over!
In the one minute and ten seconds which followed Jett’s goal, Port Credit scored twice to even the score at three. The first of the two goals occurred when an opposition player in white missed the net, but the puck rebounded off the boards and out to a player on the other side who neatly put it in. Less than thirty seconds later, a Port Credit player performed a beautiful spin to evade Blue’s defence and, in the same motion, put a backhanded shot into the top corner to tie the game. A total of six goals had been scored in the second period, split evenly between the two teams, but a period remained to determine the winner!
Forty seconds into the third period, the Fireballs found themselves killing off a penalty for the second time in the game. However, Michael R. and Josh R. were up to the task, and they cleared the puck time and time again, giving the boys from Port Credit no opportunities to take the lead.
The ATOMc Blue players were busy at both ends of the ice, with all members of the team chipping in by playing their positions well. On defence, the line of Tony R. and Calder W. refused to give up on any play, and they were relentless in checking Port Credit’s forwards and refusing to quit until the puck had been cleared out of the defensive zone. In net, Luke C. was also busy, but he used his size and stature to effectively turn away any scoring opportunities Port Credit had in the period.
As regulation time wound down, the likelihood of the game ending in a tie seemed more and more possible. However, with just under four minutes remaining, James R. broke down the wing and, proving he had been listening to his coaches when they told the players to get lots of shots, took a shot from the goal line to the immediate left of the net. The puck hit the goalie on his right side and just slipped in an opening and dribbled across the goal line to give the Fireballs the lead.
The remaining minutes of the game were frantic, with Port Credit doing all they could to even the score, but all of the ATOMc Blue Fireballs worked well together to prevent that from happening. When the buzzer sounded, the Boys in Blue surrounded Luke C. and congratulated each other on a hard fought win. Port Credit had proven to be a fantastic team, and this would be a tough tournament if all of the squads were this strong!
In the change room, Josh R. was awarded the Player of the Game certificate as provided by the tournament organizers. His solid defensive efforts had helped his team on many occasions, as had the play of all the team’s members. Over the following four hours, most of the players’ families would check into their rooms at the London Hilton and get some rest before their 2:30 game back at Stronach Arena vs. the Meadowvale Hawks, another unknown team of undoubtedly great skill. Great game boys, let’s do it again this afternoon!