Guelph vs. Welland (12/13)

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Guelph Storm Cooperators vs. Welland Front Row Sports Tigers (Major Midget AAA)

Things quickly went from bad to worse this evening for the Welland Front Row Sports Tigers in their match against the visiting Guelph Storm.  While the Tigers started the game on even footing with the Storm, things quickly took a turn for the worst in the final two periods of play, as they fell by a 8-2 final in Major Midget AAA action tonight.

#11 Dustin Dominic staked the Tigers to a 1-0 lead at 9:45 of the first by burying a pass from #21 Dustin Gatt while in tight on Guelph netminder #35 Brandon Gorecki.  Miscommunication between the Welland defence and goaltender #33 Ryan Dundas saw Guelph tie the game at 12:51 of the period, as Dundas was caught out of the net and his attempt to dive back into the goalmouth and make a miraculous stop came up just short.

Thanks to a constant parade to the penalty box, the Tigers did not register a shot on net during the first 5:40 of action in the second period.  #66 Joe Wormald nearly put the home side ahead with 9:20 left in the period, as he fired their first shot on goal, but his blast rang loudly off the iron instead.  Guelph would counter by skating down the ice and crashing the net, allowing #16 Anthony Luis to be awarded with a powerplay goal on assists by #3 Tyler Zeggil and #7 Chris Pierog at 8:42.

Guelph would extend thier lead to 3-1 when Zeggil was left alone at the top of the blue ice and deflected a hard shot from the right wing past #33 Dundas.  #14 Mike Charbonneau and goaltender #35 Brandon Gorecki earned assists on the goal, which occurred at 10:40 of the second period.

Despite having very little in the way of defensive support this evening, #33 Ryan Dundas shone several times in the Welland crease.  Two such examples happened in the final minutes of the second stanza.  Dundas made a difficult save look easy as he snagged a shot out of mid-air that was tipped twice at close range on the way in from the blueline with 2:17 left to play in the period.  Then he flashed the leather to thwart #14 Charbonneau as he streaked in alone on the break with 1:14 remaining.  Unfortunately, the Storm’s sustained pressure was too much to handle, as Guelph would put up another marker before period’s end, with #3 Zeggil netting his second from #8 Tyson Keenan and #14 Charbonneau at 13:53.  Guelph completely dominated the second period, outshooting the Tigers by a 24-4 margin.

Guelph padded their lead at 2:23 when a point shot was inadvertently tipped by the stick of Welland’s #77 Brandon Daniel on its way in from the blueline.  #11 Ryan Vandermeer would receive credit for the tally, on helpers from #22 Kyle Blaney and #15 Sloan Stewart.

The Storm extended their dominance by notching three more goals in the span of two-and-a-half minutes.  #9 Jim Della Donne would light the lamp from #18 Michael Hasson and #19 Nicholas MacEachern at 7:33, and then #8 Tyson Keenan would follow up at 9:40 from #18 Hasson and #3 Zeggil.  #96 Jamie Tyminski would net a breakaway goal through the pads of #35 Gorecki at 9:57 to make it 7-2, but Guelph would come right back at 10:03 when #9 Della Donne connected from #19 MacEachern and #22 Blaney to finish off the scoring at 8-2.

Things turned ugly with less than seven minutes remaining, when a check-from-behind resulted in players and coaches being ejected from the game.  #66 Joe Wormald and coaches Eric Deegan and Herb Martin from Welland were each sent to the dressing room as a result of this incident, in addition to several other penalties being assessed to others on the play.  The full extent of the penalties was not announced to the crowd, however, it is possible that further suspensions may be forthcoming.  It should be noted that the official presiding over the game this evening had similar circumstances occur in the game he officiated last evening at the Major Midget A level.  Having attended both games personally, I can attest to the fact that the circumstances were eerily similar in both contests and it was personally disappointing to see things nearly get out of hand for the second time in as many nights.

Welland was short-handed nine times during the contest to Guelph’s five.  Guelph outshot the Tigers unofficially by a 50-20 margin during the fifty minutes of play.  The Tigers close out 2007 with two road contests against the St. Catharines Falcons and Guelph Storm before starting the new year at home against the Niagara Falls Thunder on Thursday January 3.  Game time for that home tilt is at 7:30pm.

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Filed under 2007-08 Front Row Sports Excellence Midget AAA Tigers, Sports Writing/Commentary

Tags: 2007-08 Front Row Sports Midget AAA Tigers, Guelph Jr. Storm Cooperators, Sports Writing/Commentary