A remarkable eight-goal third period blitz propelled the Haliburton County Huskies to a 9-2 win over one of its biggest rivals, the Cobourg Cougars, in a pulsating game in Minden Saturday afternoon (Nov. 29).
Alternate captain Isaac Larmand stole the show with a 14-minute hat-trick in the final frame, his second of the season following a three-goal performance against the St. Michael’s Buzzers Nov. 15. He’s now second for goals on the Huskies, with 11 in 23 games.
Head coach Jordan Bailey credited his team for the strong performance, saying they followed the game plan to a tee.
“We played a very good hockey game. I thought we had tons of chances to score in the first two periods, but the floodgates opened in the third,” Bailey said. “We talked during that second intermission about not changing anything, to keep doing what they were doing and the rewards would come.
“You don’t think eight goals is going to happen, but I felt we were the better team and that shone through in the third.”
The bench boss said the result was even sweeter given the rivalry with the Cougars, who have eliminated the Huskies from two of its four post-season runs since relocating north.
One of the highest volume shooting teams in the OJHL, the Huskies were at it again on Saturday, peppering Timothee Fengos in the Cobourg net with 52 shots. The visitors managed 22 in response.
Liam Oravsky, who joined Haliburton from the Cougars earlier this month, opened the scoring with 14:32 played in the first, tickling the twine on the powerplay for his 14th goal of the season (seven in Haliburton). He was assisted by Kieran Raynor and Chase Del Colombo.
Fengos made 20 saves in the middle frame to keep the Huskies at bay, but he was powerless during the third. Larmand got things going 2:09 into the period, scoring from Julius Da Silva and Christopher Brydges.
The home side then scored four times in as many minutes – Da Silva notching at 5:54 from Larmand and Ryan Gosse, Mike Mardula scoring at 6:33 from Lewis Hergaarden and Brydges, Raynor helped himself to his ninth of the year at 7:35 from Oravsky and Carson Durnin, and Josh Denes got the sixth at nine minutes, scoring on the powerplay from Brydges and Durnin.
Larmand completed his hat-trick with tallies either side of a Cobourg shorthanded goal, notching at 11:47 and 16:06, with Denes wrapping the scoring at 16:38, assisted by Mardula and Kaiden Thatcher.
The match saw two players making their Huskies debut – power forward Brody Coe had two shots and an interference minor during the game, with centreman Nate Taylor also chipping in with a couple of shots.
“They should see themselves near the top of the lineup – Brody gives us some more size, while Nate thinks the game very well and has good skills and a strong motor. I’m excited for both to join the team,” Bailey said.
After winning six of 10 games in November, and securing points in two more, Bailey said the team is buying into his methods, which he hopes will result in a lengthy playoff push come spring. He feels the Huskies have strong depth through its lineup.
“We’re very much trying to be a four-line team this year, let everyone get into the game. Our bottom six has been playing very well – Denes had two goals and an assist against Cobourg, Mardula also added a goal, so we’re still getting that secondary scoring, which is always huge,” Bailey said.
It was a one-game weekend for the Huskies, with Sunday’s tilt against the Newmarket Hurricanes cancelled due to inclement weather. Bailey said it will likely be rescheduled for 2026.
There’s an opportunity for the team to climb even higher in the standings this week – the Huskies visit the Wellington Dukes Dec. 5 and host the North York Rangers Dec. 6 (4 p.m. puck drop), with both teams below the hometown team in the league’s East Conference.
“We’ve got to bring our A-game – whenever you play Wellington, you know it’s going to be a tough task, especially in their barn, and North York has been playing much better lately. It’ll be two good games,” Bailey said.
