Welcome
to the playoffs!
Where
it no longer matters that you finished first or you snuck in by the skin of
your teeth. Where effort means everything, and the intensity is higher. If you
are not ready and engaged, things can be a lot more difficult than they need to
be.
The
Waterloo Wolves watched three one goal leads taken away before sealing the deal
against the London Jr Knights White 5 to 3 Saturday in a game that the Wolves left
feeling they could have done more.
Things
certainly started off well when Cole Hunsberger made a nice saucer pass to spring
Jake Patterson for a goal. Matthew Ball also drew an assist on the play. Matthew
Anderson made a slick redirection on a Yianni Peppas shot/pass with Ryan
Beckner also drawing an assist on the goal. Ball then added a goal from Cullen
Derry and Jacob Reid-Brant. Tyler O’Hearn scored the game winner from Carson
Bernhardt and then Bernhardt put the game away with an empty net goal.
The
Waterloo Rec Centre is not a goalie’s favourite barn. The lighting is off, and
the puck is lost in the air. That said, Ben Pendleton wasn’t making any excuses
and put in a solid performance. Pendleton was clutch down the stretch for the
Wolves making key saves as his team needed them.
There
were many positives in the game as well. Declan Uniac had some fantastic
forechecks and created opportunities. Caleb Cumming and Cole Ledgister did a
great job on the backcheck. Griffin Beddis had several good rushes. The defense
had help with the return of Tate Merritt and Merritt was a physical presence,
as was Jackson McNichol, laying several hits. Connor Palmer pushed plays up the
ice as well and was responsible in the Wolves zone.
Yet,
the Wolves have created high standards and the players and coaches feel they
have more to bring and will head to London Sunday night with a little bit of a
chip on their shoulders as they get set to try and eliminate the Jr Knights
from Constellation Playdowns!
Go Wolves!