The U9 Haliburton Hockey Haven Highland Storm had a good showing at last weekend’s Bernie Nicholls tournament. It didn’t take long for them to take control of the opening game, against the Brock Wild Black.
Nolan Carpenter opened the scoring just 20 seconds in on a stunning individual effort – first winning the faceoff and stickhandling through four players before firing past the goalie. Seconds after the restart Carpenter was at it again, stealing the puck from a Brock player, skating behind the net and beating the goalie on a wraparound. His leadership set the pace for the remainder of the game, which the Storm won 15-1.
Defencemen Griffin Hunt and Abby Stancati did a great job keeping the puck in the offensive zone throughout, and were instrumental as Carpenter fired in his hat-trick goal 3:41 into the first. Minutes later, Jackson Little went end-to-end, deking out several players before lifting the puck top shelf over the goalie’s outstretched glove, sending the Storm in 7-0 after the first buzzer.
Penelope Irvine and Isaiah Young – just back from injury – did an incredible job keeping the puck in the offensive zone to start the second, giving Bentley Wilson and Sebastian Dart scoring opportunities. C. Carpenter and Hunt added to the scoresheet, giving the Storm a 10-0 lead after two.
Tripp Meier and Gaelyn Mooney-Monster were phenomenal on the backend, helping goaltender Julian Mardus in keeping the Brock team at bay. The two Carpenters and Little added to the scoresheet in the third. Mardus lost his shutout in the final moments of the third, but it made no difference as the Storm recorded a resounding win. Fans were on their feet at the final whistle, showing the Storm how proud they were of their efforts. What an incredible way to start the tournament
