The Minor Atoms would travel to Cambridge Sunday to face off against the Hawks.
The Lakers would have to dig deep as they adjusted to a shake up of the lines and positions.
Evan Dowd showed great hussle, solid play and great leadership in his defensive debut.Just seconds into the game, the Hawks would take control of the puck and score at the 9:11 mark. The tide would quickly change in favour of the Lakers with Trevor Donaldson driving the puck deep into Hawk territory and wrapping the puck around the boards to the back of the net. Brady MacDonald would win the battle behind the net and slide the puck out to Kaleb Pearson who made no mistake finding the back of the twine.
The second period saw both teams battling for the lead. The Hawks would score first but with seconds left in the second, Owen Gilhula would carry the puck out of our zone and give the go ahead pass to Brady Hinz. Hinz would beat the defense and go top shelf.
Joshua McNaughton
The Lakers defense played a strong second period and kept the Hawks off the scoreboard. Defenseman Joshua McNaughton would stare down his opponents and continually clear the puck from in front of Lakers netminder Tanner Knechtel.
The Lakers would take the lead early in the third with Pearson passing the puck up to a stickless Donaldson. Trevor Donaldson would kick the puck forward and pick up his stick in time to pass to MacDonald. A scrabble for the puck beside the net would result in Donaldson shooting the puck from his back and past the Hawk goalie.
The Hawks would score two more goals early in the third period. Evan Dowd showed great hussle, solid play and great leadership in his defensive role. Evan Dowd would cap off his stellar debut on defense when he fired off a wrist shot from the point. Hinz would tip in the shot and score to tie the game once more. Both teams would trade scoring chances but the score would remain tied 4-4.
Saturday January 2, 2010
vs London Jr Knights Gold
The Minor Atoms would face off against the top ranked London Jr Knights Gold. London Gold dominated the match from the drop of the puck and would keep Lakers netminder Riley Deline busy throughout the game. The game was filled with penalties by both teams but it was London that capitalized with 3 short handed goals. The Lakers failed to gain any momentum and very little offence. The Minor Atoms had plenty of individual efforts but very little team play.
Kaleb Pearson
Kaleb Pearson would score both of the Lakers goals with assists going to Sam Tindall and Trent Buchanan. London would take the win 7-2.