Well, it wasn't the low-scoring affair I predicted, but the Cougars did indeed manage to beat the 2nd place Markham Waxers 5-4 in overtime last night. The offense was impressive, as scoring 5 goals against a team that came in ranked 5th in total goals allowed on the season is no mean feat.
The teams traded goals, in typical high-scoring Cougar fashion, making for a scintillating hockey game. The 250+ fans certainly got their money's worth last night - and a great Remembrance Day ceremony to boot! Hats off to the Cobourg Pipe and the Veterans who helped to give the ceremony a sense of sincerity and authenticity.
Adam Place continues to be a monster for the team, scoring two goals and assisting on the game winner with 0:44 left in OT. Foote had a great night for his fantasy owners (kidding..) with the game winning goal, two assists, four penalty minutes and a +1 rating. Finally, I need to mention Lawton McCracken's incredible work in overtime. While the Cougars were shorthanded he blocked three shots, one of which was a certain goal with Behling way out of position, and cleared the zone at least twice. If the Cougars continue to get big games like this from their big players they could start to make a serious push up the standings.
Recently, the club lost Branden Morris to the Kitchener Rangers of the OHL. Branden was easily one of their best players on the Cougars during their recent run of high-octane hockey. It's a big loss on the fragile back end but it's a fantastic sign for the CCHL as it is working to become a legitimate developmental league for players to go on to the OHL, College and maybe even the NHL. Stay tuned for a blog on this in a few days.
Showing posts with label McCracken. Show all posts
Showing posts with label McCracken. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Special Teams...
The first 44 minutes of last night's game between Cobourg and Lindsay were terrifically entertaining for the crowd. By middle of the second period four of the five goals up on the scoreboard had been scored by the shorthanded team and Adam Place would make the score 4-3 for Lindsay with more than 15 minutes to play in the third. But then the Muskies' Blake Sexton tallied a shorthanded goal at 9:21 of the third - Lindsay's fourth shorty of the night and his third! Giving up goals while on the power play is a sure way to deflate the energy on the bench, which happened to be much more energetic than usual last night. From then on the wheels had clearly fallen off with Lindsay scoring three more goals en route to an 8-3 romp over the Cougars.
It's tough to win when you have twelve (!) chances on the PP and your opponent scores four goals to your two. On the other hand the PK was clicking, shutting down Lindsay on seven of their eight chances and scoring a shorthanded goal of their own.
The chaos on special teams overshadowed some of the bigger game stories. One minute into the game Lindsay lost their leading scorer, Micha Calvecchia. He flew down the ice on a breakaway, fired the puck past backup Matt Kaludis, then crashed loudly into the end boards and had to be helped off the ice favouring his left knee. This was unquestionably a huge loss for the Muskies but their players responded with an impressive game at both ends of the rink. Sexton and George picked up the slack scoring 9 points between the two of them and were a huge factor in burying the Cougars during a disastrous third period.
Lawton McCracken was one of the best Cougars on the ice, displaying his excellent speed on a few rushes and making some smart passes out of the zone. The first pass haunted the Cougars all night as the Muskies were forechecking very aggressively in the neutral zone, ruining Cobourg's transition game all night. The line of Place, Thompson and Couto had some serious issues backchecking and covering the point while putting up a disgusting -9 rating as a unit. Matt Diminie missed the game with an injury and his presence on that line and on the entire team was sorely missed. If the Cougars want to break this ugly losing streak they'll need to work hard on their power play and the sooner Diminie returns the better.
Next game is in Pickering where they'll face the Pickering Panthers for the second time this season. The Panthers were routed by the Cougars in Cobourg on September 14th, the first game for both teams, and Pickering will be looking to avenge that ugly loss in their home barn on Wednesday night.
It's tough to win when you have twelve (!) chances on the PP and your opponent scores four goals to your two. On the other hand the PK was clicking, shutting down Lindsay on seven of their eight chances and scoring a shorthanded goal of their own.
The chaos on special teams overshadowed some of the bigger game stories. One minute into the game Lindsay lost their leading scorer, Micha Calvecchia. He flew down the ice on a breakaway, fired the puck past backup Matt Kaludis, then crashed loudly into the end boards and had to be helped off the ice favouring his left knee. This was unquestionably a huge loss for the Muskies but their players responded with an impressive game at both ends of the rink. Sexton and George picked up the slack scoring 9 points between the two of them and were a huge factor in burying the Cougars during a disastrous third period.
Lawton McCracken was one of the best Cougars on the ice, displaying his excellent speed on a few rushes and making some smart passes out of the zone. The first pass haunted the Cougars all night as the Muskies were forechecking very aggressively in the neutral zone, ruining Cobourg's transition game all night. The line of Place, Thompson and Couto had some serious issues backchecking and covering the point while putting up a disgusting -9 rating as a unit. Matt Diminie missed the game with an injury and his presence on that line and on the entire team was sorely missed. If the Cougars want to break this ugly losing streak they'll need to work hard on their power play and the sooner Diminie returns the better.
Next game is in Pickering where they'll face the Pickering Panthers for the second time this season. The Panthers were routed by the Cougars in Cobourg on September 14th, the first game for both teams, and Pickering will be looking to avenge that ugly loss in their home barn on Wednesday night.
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