Our first game of the season vs Barrie proved to be a challenge for the boys. Keeping Barrie to just 2 goals in the first 2 periods, the Highlanders battled hard and continually outworked their opponents....
However, Barrie's hot goalie frustrated our team by taking away many chances. The break between the 2nd and 3rd periods seemed to allow Barrie to regroup as they came out strong with 4 more unanswered goals to end the game at 6-0.
Game two of the tournament ended up being a see-saw battle that started with three quick Highlander goals in the 1st period. Scoring for Grey Bruce were Braeden Marshall (Dundalk) with 2 and Justin McCrae (Owen Sound). Assists came from Collin Zettler (Hanover), Tristan Rajendra (Port Elgin), Justin Donnelly (Pinkerton), Jesse Schmid (Owen Sound) and Brady Becker (Durham). The Highlanders comfortable 3-0 lead started to evaporate as the Brantford 99'ers scored twice late in the 1st to end the period at 3-2 Highlanders. Two more quick goals early in the second period saw the lead disappear and put the Biermans team back on their heels. Not about to give up, Matthew Giefert (Lions Head) netted one on a break, assisted by McCrae, which was quickly matched by the 99'ers. With more scoring still to come, Jasper Akiwenzie (Owen Sound) scored a power play goal on an assist from Alec Tiley (Shallow Lake) which was also matched by Brantford to set up the 3rd period at 6-5 for Brantford. The 3rd period saw exciting end-to-end action and at 5:20 remaining in the game Jordan Caskenette (Owen Sound) tied the score on a pass from Devin Perdue (Hanover). The Highlander squad would once again have to dig deep as they found themselves in penalty trouble with just 2:09 remaining in the game. With excellent penalty killing, Brantford could not take advantage of the extra player and with just one second remaining in the game, Jesse Schmid netted an unassisted goal in the top corner to win the game for Grey Bruce.
The 3rd game of the tournament was fraught with penalties and injuries as the boys tried to dig deep against the North York Rangers. However, the game would not be ours as we lost 2-0 on a penalty shot and a power play goal.
The 4th game saw the Biermans squad up against the Hamilton Huskies. The game only saw one goal by the end of the 2nd period as Brady Becker put one in off assists from Jesse Schmid and Matthew Giefert. Hamilton scored early in the 3rd to tie the game at 1-1. Devin Perdue then found the back of the net on a nice cross ice pass from Jordan Caskenette. The final Highlander goal came as Jordan Caskenette broke wide to beat the defence only to get tripped on the way to the net. On his knees and sliding past the goalie, Jordan waited to put the puck clearly in the net to score what turned out to be the game winner. Hamilton scored their final goal with only 32 seconds left in the game and kept the pressure on the Highlanders to the very end.
Overall, the team was 0.500 for the tournament with 2 wins and 2 losses. They played well and demonstrated that success can come from hard work. Keep it up Highlanders!
Biermans Bar & Grill is the proud sponsor of the Grey Bruce Highlanders Minor Midget team and support local sports! You can find Biermans at 100 1st Avenue on the main street in Chesley, Ontario. Join us for 60¢ wing Wednesdays or $7.00 burger Tuesdays! Biermans boasts a fun friendly family atmosphere with a touch of class! With live entertainment on weekends and a large banquet facility upstairs with a capacity of 80+, there’s always excitement in the air at Biermans Bar and Grill. Visit Biermans, it’s good for ya!
Biermans Bar and Grill web link!