Taking a slender 2-1 series lead on the road to the St. Michael’s Buzzers in Toronto tonight (March 13), Haliburton County Huskies coach Ryan Ramsay said he’s been impressed with his team’s mindset through the first three games of the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL) playoffs.
The blue and white were quick out of the gates in games one and two, coming from behind to win 4-2 in front of a capacity crowd at S.G. Nesbitt Memorial Arena March 8 and following up with a ruthless 5-2 win in the city March 9.
The team dropped game three in Minden 4-1 on March 11.
“It’s better than being down 2-1, that’s for sure,” Ramsay said when asked how he’s feeling about the series. “It’s never nice to lose like we did Tuesday, but we knew we weren’t going to win four straight games. This is a serious hockey team. We knew it would be a good, competitive series.”
After finishing the regular season as one of the league’s top-scoring teams, the Huskies have carried that form into playoffs, with 14 different skaters having at least one point. Chase Lefebvre, a trade deadline acquisition from the OHL’s Brampton Steelheads, leads the way with three goals and two assists, while linemates Tai York and Ty Petrou have contributed four points each.
Goaltender Tyler Hodges has impressed, turning away 116 of 123 shots faced through three games – good enough for two wins, a 2.34 goals against average and .943 save percentage.
Early lead
In game one Saturday, with technical difficulties preventing the usual playing of O’Canada pre-game, the capacity crowd in Minden stepped up to perform a passionate rendition of the national anthem.
Both teams started strong, with the Huskies sticking to their possession-based brand of hockey and the Buzzers running a hard forecheck game. The visitors struck first through Ethan Nobes at 9:07, reducing the noise inside the rink.
The Huskies came out flying for the second. Declan Bowmaster tied things at 3:34, assisted by Stefan Forgione and Raine Nadeau, with Petrou helping himself to the go-ahead goal at 12:59, set up by Chase Del Colombo and Kaiden Thatcher. Alex Bradshaw added a powerplay marker at 18:39, which stood as the game-winner. He was assisted by Petrou and Cameron Hankai – this week nominated for OJHL defenceman of the year.
The Buzzers scored midway through the third, setting up a tense finale, but York came in clutch with a late empty-netter at 19:31, assisted by Lefebvre and Petrou, who had a three-point night.
Efficiency was the word of the day on Sunday as the Huskies withstood an offensive barrage from the Buzzers to claim a 5-2 win.
It looked like being a tough afternoon, with David Elmy scoring either side of a Lefebvre strike, to give St. Mike’s the lead heading into the second half of the game. But the Huskies’ stars stepped up – York tied the game at 8:01, Hankai had the go-ahead goal at 11:24, before Lefebvre and a second from York added some gloss to the score in the third.
Tough night
It was one-way traffic during the opening period of Tuesday’s 4-1 defeat in Minden, with the Huskies recording 25 shots on goal.
One of those snuck by Buzzers netminder Jacob Gorinsky, with Lefebvre getting his third goal of the post-season at 16:43, from Daniel Vasic and Deandres De Jesus.
That was as good as it got for the Huskies, who missed top line forward York through illness. Hudson Cummins scored on the powerplay seven minutes into the second, with David Elmy potting the game-winner shorthanded midway through the third.
“Those are always momentum shifters. Usually our powerplay makes the difference, but we were 0-6 through the game. That’s something we’ll address in practice today,” Ramsay said March 12.
There was controversy late in the third, with the Huskies believing they’d tied the game when Stefan Forgione drove the net and helped the puck in. The goal was ruled out after officials judged the net had come off before the puck crossed the line.
With the Huskies deflated, Willem Kerr added a quickfire pair to close out the game.
“We expected a response; they were playing for their lives. I think they just outworked us for parts of the game. I liked how we played – we outshot them, outchanced them, and were probably missing a bit of luck.
“We’re a good team, they’re a good team. The margins are pretty slim at this level. We’ve just got to do the little things right if we want to have success. There’s still a long way to go in this series,” Ramsay said.
Game four is in Toronto March 13 at 7 p.m., game five in Minden March 15 at 4 p.m., game six in Toronto March 16 at 2 p.m. if required, with game seven scheduled March 18 at 7 p.m. in Haliburton.
