Elora Mohawks vs. Welland Vesuvius Warlords
vs. 
Game One – Elora
The Welland Vesuvius Warlords fell just short in their quest to steal the opening game of the series on Saturday night, losing 11-8 (EN) to the Mohawks in Elora.
Welland fell behind early by allowing two goals less than thirty seconds apart in the opening three minutes before storming back to equalize the game just over eight minutes in. Elora jumped ahead with another pair of goals but once again the Warlords answered with two to tie the game at four after twenty minutes.
The second stanza would be the Warlords’ undoing as they struggled to secure loose balls and looked to be fighting the ball mightily, unable to catch passes they would normally make look routine. Throw in a couple defensive lapses where Mohawks were able to walk around set picks for open looks on Welland’s #39 Connor Danko and you have an explanation for the middle frame that saw the Mohawks take a 9-5 lead into the second intermission.
Welland refused to give in, however, and clawed back to within two goals. A pair of disallowed goals would have evened the score, however, Elora escaped with the victory by adding an insurance empty-netter in the waning moments.
#35 Brennor Jacobs came into the game mid-way to relieve #39 Connor Danko and played phenomenally for the Warlords, allowing a lone goal. The Mohawks also saw action from both their goalies in the game, pulling their starter #30 Tom Watkins after four goals allowed, just as Welland had done with Danko.
Powering the Warlords’ offensive charge was #14 Josh Eldridge with a hat-trick performance to go along with a single assist. #23 Tyler Warren chipped in a pair before being ejected in the second period, and #11 James McCready, #18 Tyler Tanguay and #27 Kevin Floris each deposited singles. Grabbing assists on the night were Floris, #5 Ira Sowden, #10 Andrew Tober each with two; and Danko, Eldridge, McCready and Warren with one each.
Recording two each for Elora were #22 Kyle Goss and #19 Jarrett Denny, with singles going to #14 Brady Heseltine, #11 Jesse Booker, #23 Mark England, #8 Mark Pfohl, #18 Mark Love, #7 Derek Landoni, #20 Blaine Syme. Providing helpers on the night were #44 Matt Quinton with three, Pfohl, and #1 Dan Weadick with two each and singles from England, Love, #24 Matt Driscoll and #21 Kenny Coulson.
The winner of the 50/50 draw took home $148.
It should be noted that both coaching staffs were disappointed to see game officials that they each had taken issue with earlier in the season, being chosen to officiate their first playoff game. In my view, other than the two disputed non-goals, the refereeing was not overly controversial during the game. However, the OLA should make better decisions in the future when naming its officials to games. The recent history between these particular officials and the respective teams should have been considered and other officials called in to do the game to avoid the likelihood of controversy.
Boxscore:
WEL 4-1-3= 8
ELO 4-5-2= 11
Game Two – Welland
After proving in the opening game that they could indeed go toe-to-toe with the heavily-favoured Mohawks, the Warlords returned home intent on evening the series, however, the officials had other plans.
In one of the poorest officiated games I have seen in recent memory, the referees (the one in particular) clearly influenced the outcome of the game more than the players on the floor. Welland was assessed an astounding 88 minutes in infractions, with Elora converting on 6-of-18 power-play chances. Conversely, Welland netted one power-play goal on five chances.
Elora may well be the superior team in this series, however, most fans would like to see them prove it without any help from the officials. One particular dubious call in the third period resulted in a seven-minute Mohawks power-play, which not only killed Welland’s momentum but inflicted more damage on the scoresheet towards the end of the penalty time as well.
Despite the frequent and lengthy delays at both the penalty box and players’ benches, fans were treated to an exciting game when the players were actually allowed to play. As they did in the first game, Elora once again struck first with the game’s first two goals, the first while short-handed just over four minutes after the initial draw. The second, a power-play marker came at six-and-a-half minutes in.
Welland found their footing mid-period and replied with a goal at 11:51 from #11 James McCready on passes from #89 Jordy Daradick and #27 Kevin Floris.
Elora kept pressing and scored twice more, one with the man-advantage to pull ahead 4-1 before Welland countered with Eldridge’s first of the night, from #13 Jason Pundyk and #39 Connor Danko. The Mohawks then put another two by Danko by period’s end for a 6-2 lead heading into the break.
The visitors struck once more to make it 7-2 seven minutes into the middle stanza before the Warlords mounted their comeback attempt. Successive goals by McCready, #5 Ira Sowden, and Eldridge found the home side down only by two at 7-5 with four-and-a-half minutes remaining in the second. An unassisted Mohawk goal from #2 Ryan Morrison a minute later was countered by a late power-play goal from Eldridge with twenty-six second left before intermission. After forty minutes the Warlords had the momentum, down only 8-6.
The Mohawks converted two power-plays to begin the third period, pulling ahead 10-6 before McCready and Daradick replied making it 10-8 with eleven minutes to play. In the remaining minutes, Elora would tally three unanswered goals, twice with the man-advantage, as the Warlords simply could not battle both the Mohawks and the officials.
The bulk of the Mohawks offence came from the stick of #44 Matt Quinton who amassed three goals and two assists in the 13-8 win. Recording a pair each were #2 Ryan Morrison, #8 Mark Pfohl and #14 Brady Heseltine. Adding singles to round out the scoresheet were #12 Evan Holdway, #17 Brady Landoni, #18 Mark Love and #9 Justin Gibson. Setting up the goals were #22 Kyle Goss and #11 Jesse Booker with three assists apiece, Quinton as noted with two, and singles from Heseltine, #19 Jarrett Denny, Gibson and #3 Jordan Denny.
The Warlords were led offensively by Eldridge and McCready with hat-tricks apiece. Daradick and Sowden would support the team through lone goals as well. Assisting on two strikes each were #27 Kevin Floris and #13 Jason Pundyk with #39 Connor Danko, #35 Brennor Jacobs, #15 Walter Lumsden #10 Andrew Tober and Daradick each picking up single assists.
Tonight’s winner of the 50/50 took home $197, while other lucky fans took home t-shirts, Merrittville Speedway VIP passes, and vouchers to the Express Cafe, the Heaping Spoonful and the Blue Star Restaurant thanks to the continued generous support of those sponsors through our lucky program promotion.
Welland returns to the Elora Community Centre on Wednesday night at 8pm fighting to stay alive in the series and trying to force a Game 4 that would take place in Welland on Friday at 7:30pm, if necessary.
Boxscore:
ELO 6-2-5= 13
WEL 2-4-2= 8
Game Three – Elora
The Welland Vesuvius Warlords’ remarkable turnaround season came to an end last evening with a 16-4 loss at the hands of the Elora Mohawks. More details on this game will be posted later in the day as they become available.
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