The Huron Perth Laker Minor Midgets played in the Marlie Holiday Classic in Toronto over the Christmas Break. Twelve teams from the Alliance were represented in the Tournament. 58 Minor Midget Teams from across Ontario and the US attended the event.
The Lakers opened the tournament on December 27th against the Kingston Jr. Frontenac’s. Kingston drew first blood on a giveaway in the Laker zone resulting in a shot bar down that beat Laker goalie Evan Wigmore. The Lakers went down by two on a shot from the back of the net that deflected in off a Laker defenseman. The Lakers got on the board in the first period when Alex Peters pinched in front from the point and backhanded a shot that the Frontenac goalie stopped but Quinten Haddock was there to bury the rebound. Second assist on the goal went to Zach Goodhew. Kingston regained a two goal lead on the power play when a shot was deflected up and over Wigmore. The score at the end of the first period was 3 – 1 Kingston. Kingston scored the lone goal of the third period on another power play when a blast from the point was deflected in. The Lakers dominated play in the third period but could not beat the Kingston goalie. Final score Kingston 4, Lakers 1. The Lakers outshot Kingston 25 – 20.
The Lakers next opponent was the powerful Toronto Marlboros. The Marlies are the number one ranked team in Ontario and have Listowel’s Rolland McKeown on their club. McKeown is the captain of the team and is in his second year with the Marlies. A number of Listowel residents traveled to Toronto to see McKeown faceoff against two Laker players and Listowel residents, Carter Stewart and Daniel Dekoning. The Lakers would be out matched in this one with the Marlies winning 7 -1. McKeown did not disappoint scoring two goals for the Marlies. The lone goal for the Lakers was scored by Garrett James when he broke in on a breakaway and made a great move on the Marlie goalie scoring on a backhand. The Marlies are a pleasure to watch and though the game was lopsided, I’m sure every Laker player was thrilled to have the opportunity to face the Marlies. The Lakers were outshot 43 -10 in the game.
On December 28th, the Lakers faced the Copper Cliff Redman. This would be the second consecutive tournament that the Lakers would face the Redman. The first contest ended with a 2 – 1 loss for the Lakers. The Redman opened the scoring in the first period when a player walked in alone, made a nice move and buried the puck up high. The Lakers tied the game on the power play in the second period when Quinten Haddock deflected a shot by Nathan Templeman that beat the Redman goalie between the legs. Second assist on the goal going to Carter Stewart. Copper Cliff took the lead before the period ended when a shot from the point squeaked through Laker goalie Evan Wigmore. The Redman took a two goal lead in the third period when a blast from the point found the back of the Laker net. The Lakers responded by scoring two power plays goals to tie the game at three. The first goal saw Garrett James walk in from the corner and beat the Redman goalie. Assists going to Drew Gross and Carter Stewart. The second power play goal was buried by Taylor Moir on a nice passing play from Jake Lapointe and Alex Peters. With 22 seconds left, the Redman scored the game winner on a rebound after Wigmore stopped the first two shots. A good comeback by the Lakers but another one goal loss to the Copper Cliff Redman with the final score of 4 – 3. The Lakers were outshot in this one 25 – 17.
The Lakers played their final game of the tournament on December 28th against the Brampton Battalion. Brampton opened the scoring on a power play in the first period on a wrap around that slid under Daniel Dekoning’s pad. The Lakers tied the game when Nathan Templeman beat the defenseman and cut towards the net. The puck bounced up over the goalie tying the game at 1 -1. Assists going to Blake Pickering and Garrett James. The Lakers scored four straight goals in the second period to take the game over. James scored on a blast from the faceoff dot that beat the Battalion goalie. Assists going to Derek Elliott and Jake Lapointe. Pickering scored on a breakaway from his own blue line and deked the goalie burying the puck on the glove side. Assists going to Gross and Stewart on the goal. Garrett James scored his second goal of the period on a 2 on 1 when he held on to the puck and sniped, bar down on the blocker side. Assists going to Elliott and Jacob Middleton. The period ended with the Lakers on top 5 - 1. The Battalion scored their second goal of the game on a giveaway at the Laker blue line resulting in a 2 on 1. The Brampton player pulled Dekoning out of the net and slid a pass over for a tap in. The Lakers finished the score with two power play goals. The first by Drew Gross on a rebound that took two whacks to get by the goalie. Carter Stewart took the shot from the point with the second assist going to James. Gross netted his second of the game on a similar goal as his first where he banged home a rebound from a Carter Stewart point shot. Haddock recorded the second assist on the goal. The Lakers outshot the Battalion 34 -27 in the game.
Though it was not the result the Lakers were looking for heading in to the tournament, they finished on a good note and will resume league play against the Waterloo Wolves in Waterloo on January 2nd.