Warriors back at the Old Barn Saturday
Warriors home to Thorold at Stoney Creek Arena
Published on
Feb 01, 2008
The Stoney Creek Warriors grabbed three of a possible four points in Golden Horseshoe League junior hockey action last week.
On Thursday, Jan. 24, the Warriors played host to the red hot Fort Erie Meteors, who came into the game riding a six-game winning streak.
The Meteors grabbed the only goal in the first period.
Adam Montgomery tied the game at the 5:53 mark of the second, cashing in on the power-play, assisted by Justin Ciprietti and Andrew Dovey.
However, the Warriors ran into some penalty trouble and the Meteors netted two power-play markers to take a 3-1 lead into the final period.
The teams battled hard in the third period, and at the 14:07 mark, Dovey inched the Warriors closer with a power-play goal. Mike Kavanagh and Greg Bryl earned the assists.
Two minutes later, Jason Popek tied the game at 3-3, assisted by Montgomery and Kavanagh.
In the last minute of play, the Warriors were assessed a two minute minor for tripping. This gave the Meteors a four-on-three advantage heading into the five minute overtime period.
Just 41 seconds into extra time, Fort Erie grabbed the winning goal.
Big win over Welland
On Saturday night, Jan. 26, the Warriors hosted the Welland Canadians at Valley Park Arena.
With the GHL standings neck-and-neck heading into the final few weeks, every victory is important.
It looked like it was going to be a long night for the Warriors, as they fell behind 3-1 after 20 minutes.
Scoring the lone Stoney Creek goal was Jake Lyons, from Jordan Poole.
However, the Warriors refused to fold up and came out with a renewed purpose in the second period.
Kavanagh kick-started the comeback when he scored just 38 seconds into the period. That goal was assisted by Ciprietti and Mike Gibson.
Welland went up 4-2 with a power-play marker at the 2:25 mark. The Warriors replied with two goals to close out the period with a 4-4 tie.
Poole scored his third of the season at the 17:08 mark, assisted by Kavanagh.
Jordan Gignac netted his 20th of the season just more than a minute later, assisted by Lyons.
The third period was all Stoney Creek, as the Canadians made a steady stream to the sin bin. The result of Welland's lack of discipline was a six-goal barrage by the Warriors, five of which were scored on the power-play.
Finding the back of the net were Mike Gibson, Montgomery, Kavanagh, Gignac with two and Marcus Ruberto. Picking up assists were Dovey, Riley Steeves, Ciprietti, Jordan Winger, Gignac and Lyons.
Dylan Ellis earned the win in net, turning aside 36 of 41 shots.
Montgomery, who has been a major contributor to the Warriors top line, said the team still has some work to do to get ready for the playoffs.
"We need to tighten up defensively and stop taking so many penalties," he said. "There's a lot of pride on our team and we want to win every game."
The 19-year-old native of Brampton has racked up 49 points in 42 games and five goals and three assists in the last five.
Although he got off to a slow start, Montgomery said he's happy with his play over the past two months.
"At the beginning of the year, I put a lot of pressure on myself and was too focused on stats. But I had a good talk with my dad and I decided to stop worrying and play hockey and work hard."
As the Warriors creep closer to the end of the season and playoff pairings, Montgomery said the team isn't concerned about who they play in the first round.
"Playoffs are a whole different world," he said. "It doesn't matter who we play. It will be a battle. We have the tools. We just need to bring the box."
The Warriors only have one game this weekend, as they play host to the Thorold Blackhawks Saturday, Feb. 2 at Stoney Creek Arena. Game time is 7:30 p.m.
Cheer for the home team
The remaining Stoney Creek Jr. B Warriors home games are;
Saturday, Feb. 2 vs. Thorold Blackhawks Stoney Creek Arena
Saturday, Feb. 16 vs. Thorold Blackhawks Valley Park Arena
Saturday, Feb. 23 vs. St. Catharines Falcons Stoney Creek Arena