The Thorold Jr. B Blackhawks wear special-edition jerseys in support of Breast Cancer Awareness.

Playing With Heart” is a phrase often used by coaches to describe the qualities they are looking for in their players.

In the case of the Thorold Jr. B Blackhawks it could describe the whole team. On Sunday night at the King Street Ice Palace, they demonstrated those qualities in more ways than one, by both outworking the Welland Jr. Canadians in a 3-0 victory and donning special edition jerseys in support of Breast Cancer Awareness.

The hot-pink numbered jerseys are certainly attention-grabbing, which is a great thing as the team is also asking for the public’s support in raising funds to fight the disease. They have been wearing the jerseys throughout October to coincide with Breast Cancer Awareness Month and if you wish to lend your support you may do so by attending their games in person of course, or may contact the team through its website, www.thoroldblackhawks.com

Obviously it is their hope that along with breast cancer, their opponents too will be beaten. Here is wishing them the best on both counts.

The Fort Erie Meteors joined forces with the Blackhawks recently by auctioning off special game-worn jerseys, raising awareness and proceeds when they squared off against each other in Fort Erie last week. The Niagara Falls Canucks will do likewise when Thorold comes to town this Friday evening and the Canucks will also be repping pink jerseys.

While I am not exactly what you would call athletic, there is no question that my lifestyle certainly revolves around sport and over the past several years I have tried to work behind the scenes to create a better atmosphere in the local sports scene.

As a team manager, I’ve always been appreciative of the sponsorship we have received for our sports teams and I’ve always tried to do what I can to drive business to those companies who help our sports teams and organization.

I’ve had some successes and a few failures along the way:

I had an idea a few years ago, the first year that I managed a lacrosse team, that I wanted to give out a Player of the Week Award to challenge my players and get the most out of them and encourage some friendly competition at the same time. Through my volunteer efforts, I already had a few gift cards that I had collected from various tournaments and other activities where I had given my time and been compensated, and I thought that if I approached local business owners, I might be able to get a few more to have enough to carry me throughout the season. I approached only businesses that I thought my players would actually support like Dairy Queen, Blockbuster and the Seaway Mall thinking if they provided me with say a $5 or $10 voucher at no cost, then my players who did not drive, would have to bring one or both of their parents along (and perhaps even other family members) and the business could make extra sales that way. A win-win situation for everyone or so I thought. At the time, I was not familiar with Deb Zarah of Boston Pizza or John Clark of M.T. Bellies, who might have actually gone along with the idea, so the experiment was a complete failure. I quickly exhausted my stockpile of $25 gift cards that I have been given for my volunteer hours and I decided that they only fair thing to do was to finish out the season by paying for $25 gift cards for the remaining weeks out of my own pocket. I don’t regret trying this experiment, but it certainly was not the smartest things I have ever done.

Thankfully, some of the other things I’ve tried have been more successful.

I started announcing and playing music during games several years ago after being asked to help out at the Ernie Clayton tournament one year. I didn’t see any reason why we could not provide that service on a weekly basis, instead of just a few times a year during the tournament weekends. What started as announcing for a couple teams grew to the point where I started announcing for everyone, and I mean everyone…house league, A, AAA, high school hockey, girls hockey, men’s league, all of our local tournaments and Championships and eventually even minor and Jr. B lacrosse as well. Not only was I providing entertainment to the players, but I was also providing extra value to sponsors by frequently mentioning their names throughout the games. After I began managing multiple hockey teams, my personal availability lessened and I had the idea that I could provide high school students (or even Niagara College students interested in a career in radio broadcasting) with the opportunity to earn some experience and volunteer hours and fill in for me when I could not make it. Unfortunately that plan has not worked out to date and I have stopped most of my announcing at present.

Let’s be clear, the vast majority clearly enjoy the music over silence, and love hearing the goals and penalties being announced. But there are always the few, usually the ones silly enough to sit right beside the speakers, who complain that it is too loud or that the music isn’t to their liking. I’ve put up with alot over the past five years or so: I’ve had equipment and personal items stolen, I’ve had to replace four or five laptops due to the constant wear and tear they receive during travel among many other issues that I won’t go into here, but the reason I stopped was there were just too many weeks where I would be at the arena from 1:30pm in the afternoon on a weekday for high school hockey right through till 11 or 11:30pm in the evening, and the last thing I would hear as I left the arena wouldn’t be thank you, but rather that someone was going to complain to the Executive and stop me from playing music because it was too loud. They are currently upgrading the sound system as I write this, so I may give announcing another shot down the road to see if the situation is improved, but I’m not sure yet as those complaints are still ringing in my ears.

The other major issue of course is that I made the arena a popular destination for youth to hang out. That’s right, instead of causing trouble in the streets, the skatepark or at the mall because they are bored with nothing better to do, large numbers of kids are at now the arena watching hockey, particularly on Friday nights. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want 20 kids up in the press box either, but what often happens is that I let in two or three and leave for a moment and they let in others before I get back. Most often these others will simply come up for a few minutes to say hi to who’s there, or see what it’s like for a few minutes if they’ve never been there before, and then they leave and go back to their seats. If anyone should have a problem with there presence up there, it would be me as it’s often my personal belongings up there. I’ve never had a single parent ever complain about their kids being up there, and in fact many actually encourage their kids to go up there so they can keep better tabs on them because they know they up there actually paying attention to the game instead of running through the parking lot or arena halls, but I hear it both from the Executive and the Arena staff on a regular basis whenever anyone is up there. Over the period of five years, there have certainly been a few isolated incidents (in truth, a very few, and almost exclusively with out of town players who did not have permission to be up there) and I’m very quick to deal with those as they occur. It’s an issue greatly blown out of proportion by some, but the reality is that if I am going to resume announcing at some point, I will need at least occasional help.

My Rink Rat Rants sports blog was another success story. Unfortunately, once I started managing teams is was clearly suggested to me that I needed to watch what I posted online, and it was even recommended by a few people that I shouldn’t post anything on Facebook or similar sites, which many will now find humourous since I have literally hundreds of followers simply because of the photos that I post there daily. At one point, I was seriously considering posting short video interviews and player profiles on here and filling the void left by our declining local news media, but I simply do not have the time to do that when managing multiple teams and trying to fit in as much photography as I do.

Finally, my biggest success has certainly been my photography, my photo-evangelism, if you will. I love taking photos probably even more than announcing because they are a permanent reminder of the great memories we are creating through sports. Despite having equipment that cost me less than $1000, and that frequently doesn’t co-operate fully, I’ve been fortunate to capture numerous memorable images, and even have had a few published despite often competing against much more expensive equipment and talented photographers. I’ve been reluctant to charge for my photos to date, even as their quality has improved with better equipment, but not hesitant to share them. I’m frequently e-mailing out-of-town teams to share the galleries with them, or creating DVDs for special occasions and ceremonies where they can be featured. It’s not that I couldn’t use the extra money, I simply think it’s more important to share the images for the enjoyment of all rather than hide them behind a pay wall where only those who choose to purchase them, can access them.

Unfortunately, this situation does pose limitations. One, I’m not able to upgrade my equipment as I would like and with Cogeco no longer offering unlimited bandwidth, I have to be careful in the timing of uploading my images to avoid excessive charges that I simply cannot afford. Still, I do the best with what I have, and while my jdisher.fotki.com account may not be up to date, you can always find my photos on Facebook.

It’s my hope that my efforts, even the ill-advised ones, have promoted and encouraged more people to be active and involved in sports on whatever level they can be than if I had simply chosen to do nothing. May the future of sport be as bright as its past.

Thank you for reading.

Dish

I’ve certainly come a long way from the days where I would refuse to play a game if I didn’t have a mathematical chance of winning. I was so competitive growing up that I would refuse to play games when I didn’t think I would be able to compete. It didn’t matter whether it was a game of Scrabble with family or a pick up game of baseball with friends, if I thought I would lose I would find any way I could not to play the game.

This meant that I did not play much as a kid, because I was not athletically gifted. Not only was I always the last one picked in gym class, but I often would forget my gym clothes at home or just choose to sit out whenever the teacher would allow it in order to avoid the embarrassment of losing. I think all my gym teachers had it in for me now that I think back, because they never minded when I sat out during basketball because it gave the others more playing time, but they would always insist I play during Dodgeball when they and I both knew that I was the main target. It did not matter how many times I was hit during the game either, play would still continue without me being eliminated, because each hit was deemed “illegal” by the teacher just so play could continue until the bell.

Despite my lack of athletic success, here are some of the things I have learned along the way.

1. Losing games doesn’t make you a loser.

Despite what I had believed most of my life, the above simply is not true. Lots of factors can affect the outcome of a game, and quite often luck can play the biggest part in whether you ultimately win or lose.

2. You can’t always control the outcome of games, but you can control the amount of effort you put in and your reaction to the outcome.

The most important lesson you can learn is to always try your best, and to show the proper attitude after a game. If you can learn to be a gracious winner and avoid being a poor loser, you will not only make the game much more enjoyable for all involved, but you’ll find in the end that you will enjoy it much more yourself and make many lifelong friendships.

3. Winning isn’t everything.
I don’t believe in the “everyone is a winner” mantra that is so prevalent in youth sports today. Ultimately, there is a winner and loser in every game, and it is important that we teach kids to recognize and accept this fact and not try to sugarcoat it to them. It’s more important to teach kids to congratulate the winner and let them have their moment of praise, than to tell everyone they are all winners and the scores don’t matter. As hard as it is sometimes, I’ve always gone out of my way to make sure the winning team is given their due. It was not easy for me to play,”We Are the Champions” for the opposing team when they had just defeated our hometown team during the Juvenile OMHA Championships in our own arena, but it was the right thing to do.

4. Your playing career does not need to end.
Okay, so you were not drafted into the OHL at 16, or the NHL at 18, and maybe you weren’t even good enough to play on the best recreational team at 35. No matter your age or skill level, you can still find a place to keep active and get enjoyment out of the sports and activities you loved as a kid. Even if one day your health prevents you from an active playing role (whether temporary or permanently), you can always find a way to keep involved as volunteers are always in dire need to fulfill roles from coaching and administration to making sure that everyone can get to and from the games. You can always find a way to be a good team player even once your playing days are done.

5. Sports isn’t everything.

While sports can be an important part of every healthy lifestyle (and should be), ultimately there are more important things in life, such as religion and family that deserve your attention. Ideally, you will find ways to incorporate all of these things together such as having your family involved in sport with you and by professing and living out your personal faith and having it guide you while you participate, but this may not always be possible and you may need to take time away from the game to deal with those things that truly matter on occasion.

As my involvement continues, so does my knowledge and respect for the game and its participants. Hopefully, I will be able to continue to share what I have learned with you in future posts.

Yours In Sport,

Dish

This past weekend I was the recipient of the Doc Brauweiler Memorial Award for outstanding sports volunteer in my hometown of Welland. To have my name mentioned along with some of the award’s previous winners, many of whom have been my inspiration and friends, is truly an honour I will never forget.

One thing that I can certainly attest to is that volunteering is a life-changing experience. You may never fully realize the impact of your efforts, but one thing is certain, it will change your life, if not that of many others.

It’s not what you choose to do that makes a difference, it’s that you choose to do it that makes all the difference. In my case, I chose very simple tasks (playing music and announcing at games, or taking pictures) that while they do not affect the outcomes of the games, they make the experience more enjoyable for everyone. Anyone could do what I do, but because no one was, I stepped up to fill the void.

I would have been the last person anyone would have expected to do this, being painfully shy and not one who had any experience with a camera, and I had a limited music knowledge or interest when I started. I could have come up with every excuse not to do it, but I took a chance, one that I will never regret and the whole experience has transformed me. I quickly learned as I went, and before long I had enough confidence that I knew I had made the right decision.

You don’t always have to wait for the opportunity to present itself either. In my case, no one asked me to start announcing. I simply noticed no one else was, and I started doing it fully expecting someone to tell me to stop. They never did. Sure, there were a few complaints initially, as I learned the ropes and figured out what I was doing, but there was also a lot of positive feedback along the way to encourage me to continue.

So I would encourage you, yes YOU, to find something you can do to help others. You never know where it will take you, but you will enjoy the ride, that I promise you.

It was a weird dream (and no it did not involve farm animals). Weird in the sense that I can’t see it ever happening (but in retrospect, all dreams are like that really, aren’t they?).

Let me explain.

The dream last night was very short, perhaps lasting only a few minutes like my own playing career in minor sports. In it, I was being blasted for something I wrote (which is nothing new). What was unusual is that I was being lambasted in a newspaper for saying something negative in one of my game recaps of the Welland Warlords.

Here’s why it is weird:

Our local newspaper’s sports coverage is so thin now, it could be written by Ally McBeal (sorry for the dated 90s celeb reference, but I don’t have much time or interest in watching TV these days, so I couldn’t think of a more current one).

I don’t really write on the Warlords at all, but if I did, after a remarkable three-season turnaround, it would be mostly positive I’m sure.

In fact, these days I’m often criticized for being too fair, for taking too many pictures of the opposing team, and for not wanting to continue blaring the goal horn after we are up by three goals because I do not want to embarrass the visiting team further.

While it’s true my sports experience as a player is limited, my passion for sports and athletes is not. Most people dream of playing sports professionally, but at this point my dream is to just play recreationally, something I haven’t done in years because of my current state of health.

Sometimes confusion sets in as to how to identify myself to others as I continue to fill so many roles on an ongoing basis (multi-team manager, certified coach and Trainer, timekeeper, announcer, photographer, website administrator, etc.) but my fallback is to just describe myself as a fan. Unlike most fans, or even team personnel, I try not to be extremely partisan in my efforts as I try to promote the sports and athletes as a whole. Obviously, I want my home teams to win, but I don’t deny the opponents their moment in the sun if they happen to be better than us on a given day. In fact, I still get complaints about when I played “We Are The Champions” after the visiting team defeated our Juveniles for the OMHA Championship a few years ago on our home ice, but I would still argue it was the right thing to do.

Back to my dream. What’s it mean and what could come with it? I don’t know. But what I do know, is that I will keep following my dreams and see where they take me.

http://www.thestar.com/sports/gthl/article/829749–parents-sue-gthl-after-sons-cut-by-team

http://www.680news.com/news/local/article/71922–parents-sue-the-gthl-after-their-sons-were-cut-at-hockey-tryouts

Let me be clear that I do not know all the details of this particular case. We will let the court decide with this case has any merit, but I would like to point out some initial concerns that I have with this whole scenario.

The parents are alleging that their children have suffered “psychological damages” and “poor self esteem” as a result of being cut from their Midget-aged team (15-17 year-old players, for those unfamiliar). I just find it odd that they do not seem equally concerned about the possible embarrassment their children might suffer as a result of them bringing this case forward publicly. They are the first parents to ever bring a lawsuit against the league, so there was no chance that this lawsuit would be handled quietly out of the public eye and without much scrutiny. Further, many will immediately suspect these parents of only being interested in monetary gain, with the $25,000 lawsuit, whether that is actually the case or not.

Let’s say that the parents are right and their children are good enough to make this team. Coaches are given the right by their Associations to make teams as they see fit. Whether the coach believes that there are players of equal ability that he has signed instead, that he can achieve better chemistry with a different mix of players, or in the worst-case scenario that he has even signed players for purely political reasons who do not otherwise deserve a spot, it doesn’t change the fact that these parents always had the option of taking their children to another centre to try out for another club at the same level and avoid this situation entirely, as most in this situation would do. Better yet, if they are so concerned with their child’s self-esteem, why not let them play at the next level below this where the children would likely excel that much more and have the chance of making a new whole new set of friends in the process?

As not all the facts are yet known, I do not want to comment much further at this time, but feel free to check back as things develop further in this case for my thoughts.

Graeme McCullough was stellar in net all tournament, picking up multiple player of the game awards on Saturday and Sunday. Not only did he do a fantastic job of stopping the ball, but he also was one of the team’s assist leaders throughout the competition. The team’s other regular netminder, Kyle Patterson, after playing goal in Friday’s second game saw action as a runner in several games on Saturday and Sunday, picking up a goal and assist in Saturday’s round-round matchup with Akwesasne, where the Storm prevailed 7-4, sealing the game with a pair of late goals against an exhausted Raiders squad.

When the tournament began on Friday evening, the Raiders dressed nearly a full squad against the eventual tournament champion and hosts, the St. Catharines Athletics. Undisciplined play from the Raiders gave the A’s the edge they needed to prevail 6-2, however, the Raiders hope to exact some revenge on Monday evening when the teams meet again in league play.

The Raiders rebounded to win their second game on Friday, 5-4 over the Caledon Bandits. A lacklustre effort in the first half saw the Raiders down 4-2 after two periods, however, Bubba Dakin single-handedly turned around the team’s fortunes by netting a natural hat-trick, including a pair of goals within a 24-second span of the third period to earn the victory.

The team’s lineup took a major hit on Saturday, with three players away competing for spots on Team Ontario, along with other absences due mainly to injury and so Bantam regulars, Zach Main and Ayden Dawn, were given an expanded role and performed extremely well against players who in many cases were two years older. While neither player has practiced with the team to date, due to the overlapping Bantam and Midget schedules, they were able to quickly adjust to the differences of the Midget game and contribute right away. Main, one of the offensive leaders and Captain of his own team, provided an assist in Friday’s opening game against St. Catharines and Dawn, a natural defensive player, thrived in a similar type of role with the older club, playing a key part of the team’s success all weekend and especially on Sunday when the team needed him the most. As luck would have it, Main too would be sidelined due to illness before the weekend ended, however, his help on Friday and Saturday paved the road for team’s eventual success on Sunday.

Saturday’s hard-fought 4-4 tie with the Owen Sound North Stars contrasted greatly with the disappointing effort shown in a 10-0 loss to Six Nations on Sunday morning, however, the team regrouped well enough to defeat Hamilton 7-1 on Sunday afternoon to qualify for the consolation final.

Without taking anything away from the offensive leaders that are given priority by the Tribune Sports Editor in our game recaps each week, make no mistake that this team’s success is due mainly to the great defensive effort it puts out each game. Wade Kenny has quietly served as our defensive stalwart, despite having great offensive ability as well, which he clearly showed with his two highlight reel goals against Owen Sound. Jack Fitzgerald is well known for his scoring touch, so it’s easy to overlook how often he’s able to fire off a laser-guided pass or tenaciously battle for a loose ball. Ryan Kirchmayer has improved more the past two seasons than anyone that I have watched in the past four years of following lacrosse, but I’m equally proud of the game-to-game improvements being made by our first-year players to the sport, Jonathan Chase and Parker Hayward and by our youngest player, Matthew Kenny. It’s a sign of a great team, when the more experienced players are helping along the newer ones and I’m proud to say we have a several players consistently showing great leadership in this regard, both in practices as well as on the floor and the bench during games. It would be nice if David Falovo would score this season, but if he just continues the excellent defensive play that we relied on him for last season in Bantam, I’m fine with that too. I’m much happier this season that we have Everett Milberry on our team this season instead of having to play against him. While it’s nice that we can normally rely on a goal or two from him each game, its his off-ball play and game intensity that sets him apart. Not that we have a shortage of physically-intense players, with Bryce Brochu, Bubba Dakin, Chris Mattison, Sebastien Beaudoin, Nico Beaudoin and Zach Olsson who all display varying degrees of the same style of play and emotion. The key to success is channeling that emotion and keeping it within the rules of play. There have only been a few games where penalties have been an issue for us, so I think for the most part our players are learning the right balance, but there is always room for improvement as the games get more intense themselves and the competition becomes more difficult. While he was the last member to join our team, Kevin Millejours has been a very welcome addition. His tremendous speed gives us an added dimension to an already potent offense.

You’ve probably noticed by now that I’ve mentioned everyone of my team’s players. This is no accident as it’s always been my belief that it takes an entire team to win or lose a game. I do tend to favour defence over offence simply because the vast majority of time that is what wins championships. Even the best players are known to go into slumps from time to time, but it’s extremely rare for a good defensive team to struggle, and if they do, they are often helped out by great goaltending.

Favouring players, however, is never something I’ve done. I expect equal effort from everyone, which each player fulfilling his role and using his skill sets to the best of their ability. As long as they have given it their best effort, then I can live with whatever the outcome is.

Despite its many challenges, this tournament proved to the Raiders themselves and to everyone else that this team has the talent and will to compete with anyone when it wants to, and one looks forward to a continuation of this type of effort as the team returns to regular season action this week with tough matchups against St. Catharines and a home-and-home with Burlington.

Obviously, we are all the product of our upbringing and I am greatly indebted to my family for making me the person I am today. My parents clearly demonstrated the importance of helping others through countless hours of community service in various churches over the years, offering their time sitting on various committees and boards, hosting and leading various study groups, lending their time at city missions and outreach services, and by visiting the sick and ministering to their physical as well as spiritual and emotional needs by comforting them. While my path has been slightly different, many of my motivations have been similar to theirs.

I grew up watching my siblings excel at sports, which is most likely why I decided to return to those very same organizations later in life to offer my time in appreciation for their efforts in making my siblings the great people in the community that they are. Thanks to the discipline they learned through sports, they grew up to be great workers and family people, which are some of the same things that I try to pass on to the players currently under my watch.

I was too stubborn to be a great student, but nevertheless, several teachers stand out in my mind and still have a tremendous impact on me today. My grade eight teacher, Mrs. Ruth Osbourne, was a stickler for proper grammar, punctuation and attention to detail in general, and I have her to thank that I can still string together sentences that make sense in our electronic age of texts and e-mails.

Mr. Rodney Oakes, who, if memory serves, I had several times per semester every year from Grade 10 to my OAC year, clearly instilled in me a love for history, economics and all of the social sciences. He gets the credit for teaching me how to argue well and prove my point using the point, proof and justification method. Apparently, he must have passed this on to his grandson as well, who I now coach in hockey, because he likes to argue too.

While I could thank products like Ruffles potato chips and Coca-Cola for making me the well-rounded person I am, the one product that held a greater influence on me in the end, was the Upper Deck hockey trading card series of 1991-92. This series of cards was unlike anything I had ever seen before. The images they captured were not your generic hockey images, but featured players stretching, yawning, tying their skates, and in poses never before put on a hockey card. These images excited me much more than the gum offered by the O-Pee-Chee packs, and many of the images I now take as an amateur sports photographer mimic that style. Interestingly enough, I came by my love of sports photography by accident as well, thanks to Shoppers Optimum Points. I had collected points for several years, never knowing what to redeem them for, and then Shoppers came out with several digital cameras in their stores. While I laugh at the simplicity of my first digital camera (the Olympus FE-340), and wonder how I ever managed to take any decent pictures with it, it was enough to kindle a passion for photography.

Then there’s the 11-year old boy, Brodie Barrick, who I saw stonewall a much-higher ranked Halton Hurricanes team during a 0-0 tie in 2006. Who knew in the years since that I would announce his OMHA hockey championship just two years later and then see him be the only player from Welland drafted into the OHL this season? Add to his name the hundreds of others who I’ve cheered, announced, managed, written about, photographed, played music for and my life’s purpose clearly comes into focus and makes sense.

When I suffered vision-impairment in 2004 due to complications from LASIK eye surgery I thought my life was over. Nothing could be further from the truth, as it was only beginning. As I’m constantly reminded by teams like the Welland Ken’s Auto Appraisals Tigers, who captured the city’s first-ever provincial championship at the Major Bantam A level in 2009-10, anything is indeed possible if you believe and work hard enough.

My works continues, as ever, a work in progress…I’m not sure what will come of it, but I know it will be good because I have done my best.

In the end I want to echo the same testimony as the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 4:7, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.” That might just be the biggest Championship that I ever get to announce.

Baseball/Softball:
2009 Notre Dame Baseball
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/2009-notre-dame-baseball

2009 Welland Minor Baseball Regular Season – House League
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/welland-baseball

2009 Welland Minor Baseball Hit-A-Thon
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/wmba-hit-a-thon

2009 Welland Mosquito Mustangs
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/2009-mosquito-mustangs

2009 Welland Vesuvius Canada Peewee Mustangs
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/2009-peewee-mustangs

Softball – Men’s Slow-pitch:
2009 Young Gunz
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/2009-young-gunz

Ball Hockey:

Ball Hockey International – Spring Session, Welland:
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/bhi-spring-2009

Lacrosse:
2009 Ontario Lacrosse Assocation Jr. B Season
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/2009-welland-warlords

2009 Welland Joe’s Valumart Tyke Raiders
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/welland-tyke-raiders

2009 Welland Equipment Rentals Novice Raiders
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/2009-novice-raiders/

2009 Welland Prospects Sportswear Peewee Raiders
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/welland-peewee-raiders

2009 Welland Ontario Power Generation Bantam Raiders
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/welland-bantam-raiders/

2009 Welland Four Paws Pet Resort Midget Raiders
http://public.fotki.com/jdisher/welland-midget-raiders/

Wins or losses aren’t even that important to me personally, but seeing kids (and adults, for that matter) playing something that they enjoy (and which they usually are quite good at) is something that I’m proud to support.

In the end, it’s not the scores, the championships or the statistics that make these games meaningful. Instead it’s all the time spent with friends and family (whether playing or simply spectating) and, sharing a series of collective experiences together, win, lose or tie. That’s what make every game meaningful to me.

This story should sound the alarm bells to communities like mine who have aging facilities and a city council who thinks we are fine with our existing facilities.

This week one of our city councilors introduced a motion to have our manager of Parks, Recreation & Leisure Services cease and desist his study into a private-public partnership on a three-pad arena that is very much needed in our town. The current facilities simply do not offer us the amount of ice time needed to meet the current demand for our programs. Many Rep Teams are forced to go out of town to practice several times per week, and other groups like Women’s (girl’s) hockey and sledge hockey do not run any programs here simply because there is no ice time available, and not because there is not a demand for these types of leagues.

One of the unions who represents our city’s outside workers recently forced the issue by holding a three day strike and making our city council agree in writing to hire union staff at any new facility before they returned to work.

Our city is in the process of replacing old water and sewer infrastructure and does not have the money to build new facilities on its own, with other projects like the expansion of our seniors’ centre and a new soccer complex being also considered. Our taxes are already some of the highest in the region, and unemployment seems to have hit us harder than other cities, due to the loss of many of our higher-paying manufacturing jobs.

Everyone realizes the tough economic times we are in, however, living with the status quo is no longer an option. It’s to the point that we cannot even throw money at the existing facilities in the hope that it will keep them running. We may be able to salvage some additional years from our Main Arena, with an investment of millions of dollars, however our Youth Arena will surely need to be closed in only a few years’ time, as our city council is fully aware (only two years ago our council approved emergency repairs to the roof of the Youth Arena in order to try to buy another ten years of service from it).

Our time to act is now. I encourage my city council to do the right thing and approve our Arena Feasibility Study Steering Committee’s recommendations to proceed with the study of a new three-pad facility so that we do not end up in the position which Orillia is now facing.

When the Minor Atom A team that I manage had their game canceled tonight due to a strike by our city workers, I decided to head out-of-town to watch the Major Bantam A team whose home games I regularly announce. On the way to the game I found out that the other five coaches on staff were unable to make the game and I would be needed to fill in as the Trainer. As luck would have it I did have to venture out onto the ice during the game, but the player was miraculously cured by the time that I made it across the ice to him.

In the last few minutes of the game, our top defenceman, our team Captain, our Head Coach and our backup goalie were all kicked out of the game. Since we started the game short-staffed as it was, with only four defencemen and eight forwards, I didn’t have too many choices on who to put out when we faced a 6-on-3 situation during the final minute of play while we held on to a one-goal lead. Thankfully, our undefeated season remains intact, so maybe I’ll get asked to coach again in a pinch.

I never know what I’m going to do when I show up at an arena these days. I could be behind the bench as a Trainer, Manager or Asst. Coach, I could be timekeeping, or I could be behind the glass somewhere taking pictures of all the action, or I might even be in the press box announcing and playing music. One thing is certain, I’m there willing to help out in any way that I can and I’m never just there just watching the game…

Last season I had the pleasure of accompanying the Minor Peewee AAA Tigers on a day trip to the Grey-Bruce area that concluded their regular season . Yesterday, I had the chance to travel with them again on the bus, now that they are a year older and competing as Major Peewee AAAs to check in how the players and team have changed in the eight months since, as they made their first of two trips to that area this season. There are several new faces on the team this year, both in terms of players and members of the coaching staff, but one thing remains the same…FUN is stressed above all.

As a result of all the hours of hard work put into on-ice and off-ice training, skill development of the players both individually and collectively has greatly increased. I believe the reason some teams fail to achieve as much success as they could is that they forget to make things fun and therefore some kids don’t buy fully into the program. Great teams expect 100% effort 100% of the time when your on the ice, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t times when you can let your guard down off the ice and just enjoy each other’s company. Bus trips and tournaments are perfect opportunities during the season to reinforce this concept, although many parents often choose to not accompany the kids and miss out on this benefit for themselves.

Last season I had the chance to announce several of this team’s games, and while my schedule and responsibilities have changed this season where I cannot do that as regularly, I still wanted to demonstrate to these players that watching their development and keeping abreast of their progress is no less important to me now. Making a point of spending time with them yesterday, despite my cahotic schedule, hopefully shows them just how much I care to see them become the best that they can be.

I don’t judge a team’s success by their overall record or stats. With my many years of experience watching the sport I know that there are games we should win and there will be others that we should by all rights lose, and many in between that could go either way. By instilling confidence in these kids, and taking the pressure off them by stressing the importance of fun above all, I believe all kids can always have winning seasons year after year regardless of how their team does in the standings. Instead of counting wins, I look at the attitudes of the players as a barometer of their success. If they are a confident and happy group they will play far better than if they are stressed out and under the gun to meet a higher set of expectations in terms of tournament victories or end-of-the-season championships (whether from themselves, their parents or the coaches). They face enough pressures at school and at home that we do not need to add to that at the rink. The best coaches realize this and find ways to motivate that go beyond looking at individual or team stats. The idea seems to fly against reason, but when you de-emphasize stats (but not effort!) you often find that the team surprises you and performs even better than anyone thought they could.

Yesterday, the team recorded their first win in Grey-Bruce in several seasons, which is already an accomplishment of which they should be proud, no matter how the rest of their year goes. That being said, I will do everything I can to make sure that I’m available should they need me to announce a lengthy playoff run in the spring and I will try to be available for the second trip up to Grey-Bruce later in the season as well. Continue making your city proud of you boys…good luck the rest of the way.

Finally, speaking of snapshots that count… as my eyes have deteriorated lately I have focused less on writing about the games and more on taking photos during them. Here are some pictures from yesterday’s games in Chesley that show the kids doing what they do best…having fun and playing hockey (Note: This year’s Minor Peewee AAA team played in a game right before the Major Peewee AAA game and we arrived in time for me to catch a period of play and take some pictures from that game as well, which ended in a 3-3 tie):

Snapshots That Count: Another Bus Trip To Grey-Bruce
Go Tigers Go!

Here are some albums from recent games I’ve attended:

Sunday October 19

Saturday October 18

Thursday October 16

Even though I call this blog Rink Rat Rants, I very rarely “rant” on here about anything.  After last night’s debacle, however, I feel a few things need to be said, so please excuse me just this one time.  I should be good for the rest of the season after this one

Port Colborne Pirates vs. Welland Jr. Canadians (8/24 Exhibition)

Those who believe that the third week of August is too early to begin playing hockey will clearly point to last night’s exhibition contest between the Port Colborne Pirates and the Welland Jr. B Canadians for proof of their argument.

Fans expecting to see even mildly entertaining hockey Sunday night were left clearly disappointed by this uneven contest, an 8-0 Pirates victory.  I’m not sure whether to blame one side more than the other, or both sides equally, but one thing is certain – there was absolutely no entertainment value to last night’s contest, even if you happened to be a fan of the Port Colborne Pirates.

Besides the fans who were asked to shell out $5 each, I think the only others I feel sorry for were Welland’s two goaltenders, Ryan Dundas and Mike Choiniere, who were provided with virtually no support throughout the evening, either on defence or offence.  Not that I blame the Welland players, many of whom I know are decent young players, but they simply were not given any chance to succeed with how things were handled last night.

Clearly better communication should have occurred between these two teams beforehand in order to provide a level of competition that was somewhat enjoyable for the paying customers.  To play a game where the teams were so unevenly matched in skill level and size only risks injury to the younger players and is completely irresponsible.  It should have been agreed prior to the game whether veterans would be played, so that both teams could try to put squads on the ice of equal calibre and then be able to take something away from this game.  As it was, I don’t believe you can properly evaluate any players using last night’s action.  Thumbs down to both sides for not using their heads on this one, and for the home side only only thinking of the extra gate revenue that could be earned.  A decent crowd once again came out expecting to be given some value for their money, and unlike last week, were not provided with a decent on-ice product.  The way things transpired, the players (and fans) would likely have been further ahead if this ice time would have simply been used as a practice instead.

I’m not sure what, if anything can be taken away from either team after playing this contest, which has me wondering why play this game at all?  Port Colborne dressed several veterans last night, however, the average fan would not have realized this as no lineup for the Pirates was provided at the game (except for when goals were announced over the public address system, which can often not be heard clearly depending on your position inside the arena). Last night’s uneven result only serves to scare away potential Welland fans from returning to future games this season, as they will mistakenly believe that the team this season will not be very competitive, if they simply pre-judge based on last night’s action.

More enlightened fans, of course, will realize that this was not even a true exhbition game since the training camps have not even started, and will wait before making any judgements on the fates of either club seen last night.

Welland plays a pair of split-squad games on Wednesday, with half the team traveling to Thorold for a 7:30pm start, while the other half ventures to the Leisureplex in Fort Erie for an 8pm opening whistle.  Thursday the Jr. Canadians return home to host the St. Catharines Falcons at 7:30pm, and then Fort Erie will visit the Rose City at 7:30pm on Friday evening for a rematch.

Last night’s winner of the 50/50 draw, from Port Colborne, took home a cash prize of $235, so perhaps one person last night did return happy afterall.

Welland’s lineup from last night was as follows:

Starting Goaltender: #30 Ryan Dundas, 3GA

Relief Goaltender: #31 Mike Choiniere

2 John Langel

3 Brandon Cassar

4 Robert Wormald

5 Emmett Beedom

6 Nick Aiello

7 Patrick Koudys

8 Adam Mataya

9 Jared Molnar

10 Brett Lustri

11 Anthony DeLisio

12 Justin Lafontaine

13 Joe Sacco

14 Nate Duliban

15 Jamie Dionne

16 Ethan Ranalli

17 Josh Nero

18 Jordan Daradick

19 Colton Ambrosio

Port Colborne did not fax their lineup to the Jr. Canadians in time to be printed out for the fans in attendance, and it therefore unavailable here.

Game-action photos here:

8/24 Port Colborne Pirates vs. Welland Jr. B Canadians (Exhibition)

Pictures from Welland Minor Baseball’s Championship Day (Peewee House League Division):
Championship Day at Welland Minor Baseball, Peewee House League Division

Pictures from the Championship Days at Ball Hockey International and the Welland Soccer Club:
Championship Day at BHI and the Welland Soccer Club

August 21 – Beamsville Bobcats vs. Welland Vesuvius Canada Mustangs

Wednesday August 20 Night Action at BHI Welland

Wednesday August 20 Under The Lights At The Welland Soccer Club

2008-09 Welland Minor Bantam AAA Tryouts

and from Teen Division at Ball Hockey International in Welland…

Sunday: Sunday Afternoon Teen Division Action at BHI Welland

Tuesday: Teen Division Playoff Action at BHI Welland

Another Afternoon At BHI Welland

August 14 – Merrittville (Green) vs. Chambers & Wickens (White), BHI Welland Boys 13-15 Division

8/2 Welland Soccer League 14u Boy’s Action, Welland Soccer Club

8/2/08 Welland Soccer League

8/8 Welland Minor Baseball Peewee HL All-Star Game, Memorial Park Diamond #2

Peewee All-Star Game

8/9 Welland Soccer League 14u Boy’s Action, Welland Soccer Club

8/9/08 Welland Soccer League

8/9 An Afternoon at Ball Hockey International, BHI Welland Rinks

An Afternoon at BHI Welland

August 6 – Westerkirk Royals vs. NF Falcons

Here are some game action photos from Sunday’s early morning contest:

August 3 – Westerkirk Royals vs. NF Falcons

For full tournament results, please visit:

New Era Classic Results

Thursday night once again found me at Memorial Park’s Diamond #2 watching the Welland Vesuvius Canada Mustangs as they came from behind in the last inning to defeat the visiting Pelham Greg Miller Restoration Panthers in Niagara District Baseball Association Peewee Division action.  Game photos can be viewed here:

Pelham Panthers vs. Welland Mustangs

NF Falcons vs. Welland Mustangs

The referees may not have done the Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders any favours, but the scoreboard did as the end result could have been far worse than the 8-2 defeat. While the long drive to Whitby is not an easy one on anyone, Welland clearly came out less prepared to play, and was scored upon only 18 seconds in by #9 Scott Laughton, on assists from #66 Brandon Clelland and #22 Adam MacKinnon.

Welland replied at 4:29 of the first, on #36 Kevin Millejours’ tally that was set up by #11 Wade Kenny, but they still did not appear to be playing anything resembling their recent level of quality play.  Laughton took advantage of their uninspired defensive effort by netting his second of the day at 10:49 from #5 Bryson Nicolucci and #44 Jacob Hand.

Another slow start in the second period allowed Hand to put the visitors up by two at 0:59 of the middle stanza on a re-direct from Laughton, but the Raiders recovered briefly when #19 Sebastien Beaudoin made good on a Millejours pass to cut the Bulldogs lead to 3-2.  It was all downhill from there, however, as the Raiders struggled on offense and could not keep out of the sin bin.  While it appeared that the officials at times could have called Halton Hills for similar infractions, the penalties they assessed against Welland all seemed to be deserved.  Welland ended with three times the penalty minutes, with 18 PIM to Halton’s 6.

Halton lit up the Raiders during the remaining minutes, with #88 Michael Nicolucci, #6 Jamie Batten, #77 Kyle Moore, #55 Derek Thomas and Laughton all scoring, with Laughton completing his hat-trick.  Hand, Michael Nicolucci, Bryson Nicolucci, #4 Kurtis Oldham, Patten, and Laughton all assisted on the latter goals.  Despite the number of goals scored, Halton only held an 18-10 shot advantage overall.

Boxscore:

HAL  2-4-2= 8

WEL  1-1-0= 2

The Raiders will look to re-group this evening when they face the Six Nations Warriors, a team they have played very well against this season, despite having lost all three previous Zone 9 match-ups this year.

Photos from this game can be found here: Halton Hills Bulldogs vs. Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders

(A free MySpace Account may be required to view album).

In the morning’s earlier Bantam games, Brampton prevailed over Peterborough 6-4, Whitby dominated Mimico 9-3 and St. Catharines could not hold on against Guelph, dropping a 7-5 decision.

Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders vs. Six Nations Rebels (7/11 7pm)

The WellandHarpwood’s Trophies Raiders gave everything they had on the floor tonight but came up just short, falling 7-5 on late goals by Six Nations.

Photos of this game can be viewed at: Six Nations Warriors vs. Welland Harpwood’s Trophies

(A free MySpace Account may be required to view album).

Boxscore:

WEL 2-2-1= 5

SIX  3-1-3= 7

In other Bantam action this afternoon, Peterborough toppled London 7-0, Whitby tripled Orangeville 9-3 and Akwesasne overpowered Kitchener-Waterloo 6-2.

Akwesasne Storm vs. Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders (7/12 11:20am)

The perennial powerhouse Akwesasne Storm subdued the plucky Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders on Saturday morning in a 10-4 walk-away victory.

Please visit the following site to view game action photos:
Akwesasne Storm vs. Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders

(A free MySpace account may be required to view album.)

WEL  2-0-2=   4

AKW  4-4-2= 10

Welland

Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders vs. London Blue Devils (7/12 5:10pm)

The Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders’ hard work was finally rewarded with a 5-3 victory over London Saturday afternoon.

Pictures from this game can be viewed at: London Blue Devils vs. Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders

(A free MySpace account may be required to view album.)

Boxscore:

LON  1-2-0= 3

WEL  0-3-2= 5

Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders vs. St. Catharines Rosie & Sheehan Athletics (7/13 11:20am)

The Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders, led by their twin towers of power, dominated their regional rivals early on in this one, staking themselves to a three-goal first period lead on markers from #19 Sebastien Beaudoin and a pair by his brother #90 Nicholas Beaudoin.  Nicholas would also net the eventual game-winning goal in the second period, completing his second hat-trick of the season.  #17 Michael Simpson set up two of the goals, and #91 Anthony DiFruscia also contributed a secondary helper in the impressive victory.

True to form the St. Catharines Rosie & Sheehan Athletics refused to lay down in this one, storming back with a goal in the second stanza by #10 Hunter Garlent, and tallies in the third by #20 Jacob Dion and Garlent.  Assisting on the A’s strikes were #18 Spencer Coates, #21 Charlie Sheehan, #14 Chris Hutton and Dion.

Welland held a 21-18 advantage on shots-on-goal during the 45-minute contest.  Both goalies, #1 Eric Fannell and #29 Graeme McCullough stood tall between the pipes for their respective teams.  Each team is loaded with offensive talent, however, on this day the goalies seemed to have the upper hand, making one great save after another to give the crowd plenty of moments to cheer throughout the game.

Boxscore:

WEL  3-1-0= 4

STC  0-1-2= 3

Kitchener-Waterloo Braves vs. Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders (7/13 5:10pm)

The Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders were unable to regain their focus after defeating the St. Catharines A’s in the morning session, losing 5-2 to the Kitchener-Waterloo Braves in their last contest of the opening Qualifying weekend.

While the Raiders took an early two goal lead in the first period on goals by #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin and #19 Sebastien Beaudoin, they did not at any point appear to be in control of this game.  Their poor collective effort on offence and defence eventually tripped them up as the Braves stormed back to upset the Raiders 5-2.

Scoring for the Braves were #15 Chris Cloutier, #14 Chris Walser, #2 Patrick McKelvie, #7 Spencer Lee, and #18 Cristian Wyman.  Lee’s goal appeared to be the back-breaker for the Raiders, as he took advantage of a mishandling of the ball by Welland netminder #30 Kyle Patterson to score into the open net.

Welland sits at 2-4 after the opening weekend and has an uphill climb if they hope to crack the Top 6 and earn a trip to the Finals in Guelph during the August 15-17 weekend.  Based on their efforts against Six Nations and St. Catharines the team clearly has the ability to play with the best, but it depends on which team takes to the floor.  The team that took to the floor against Halton Hills and Kitchener-Waterloo this past weekend clearly did not resemble anything close to the team that has been so competitive all season.

Boxscore:

K-W  0-3-2= 5

WEL  2-0-0= 0

Forty-five minutes of play solved nothing as these two evenly-matched teams played to a 4-4 draw on Wednesday night in Welland.   The Athletics came back from two goals down in the final frame to pull even with their Hwy. 406 rivals.

#8 Corey Antongiovanni paced the visitors with two goals while #10 Hunter Garlent produced two points for the A’s with a goal and an assist, and #15 Adam Bellamy registered a two-point evening with a pair of helpers.  #55 Charlie Sheehan notched the other St. Catharines marker, and #14 Chris Hutton and #20 Jacob Dion each picked up lone assists in the contest.

The Raiders’ #15 Brooker Muir and #19 Sebastien Beaudoin each responded with a goal and two assists to marshall the bulk of their team’s offence for the home side.  #93 Damien Alfieri sparked the team by scoring the game’s opening goal, and #36 Kevin Millejours netted the team’s last marker in the second period.

Shots on goal slightly favoured Welland 38-37 overall, despite a 20-12 third period barrage by the Athletics that fully tested #29 Graeme McCullough.  Not to take anything away from his counterpart, #1 Eric Fannell, who played solidly at the other end as well, but McCullough was clearly the pivotal factor in Welland walking away with a point in this contest as the team in front of him simply wore down in the game’s late stages due to fatigue.

It’s always a pleasure watching these two teams battle it out on the floor and fans will get the opportunity once again to see these two teams fight it out at Provincials in Whitby during the upcoming weekend.  First however, the Raiders must face the stiff challenge of the Six Nations #1 Warriors on Monday and then travel to the Garden City to square off against the St. Catharines #2 Athletics on Tuesday.

Boxscore

STC  1-1-2= 4

WEL  1-3-0= 4

vs.

A solid defensive effort and stand-out goaltending from #30 Kyle Patterson allowed the Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders to make a good showing against the visiting Six Nations #1 Warriors, although they fell by a 5-2 final to them in the end.

The Raiders, who fielded eleven runners to the Warriors’ fifteen simply were too exhausted in the final stanza to mount much of a comeback.  The last period saw the Warriors control much of the play and, as a result Patterson, was extremely busy between the pipes, coming up with one great save after another to keep things close.

A tremendous bright spot for the Raiders, in addition to their excellent defensive play that saw them cut the Warriors down from seven and nine goals in their previous two meetings, to only five in this game was the fact that this was their first penalty-free contest of the season.  Their hard-nosed style of play often leads to an accumulation of penalty minutes each game, however, on this night a great show of discipline kept them out of the sin bin.

#90 Nicholas Beaudoin and #36 Kevin Millejours each registered a goal for the hosts, with #19 Sebastien Beaudoin, #93 Damien Alfieri and #98 Zach Olsson picking up assists on the night.

The Warriors found offensive spark from #15 Adam Bomberry who notched a pair to go along with singles from #55 Kyle Sault, #18 Jacob Bomberry and #88 Joe Maracle.  Tallying helpers were #66 Josh Johnson with two and #15 Adam Bomberry and #99 Tim VanLoon with one each.

These two teams meet again in Welland in one week’s time on July 7 at 9pm, but first the Raiders will host the St. Catharines #1 Athletics on Wednesday in another tough Zone 9 battle.

Boxscore

SNW  2-2-1= 5

WEL   1-0-1=2

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.

vs. 

Lacrosse seemed to be the furthest thing on the mind of some players during Monday night’s game between Six Nations #3 and the Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders.  Tension was apparent in the very early stages of the game and escalated until the point where #11 Philup Henry of Six Nations and #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin squared off in a pre-meditated fight during the second period.

One of the things I look forward to each week is announcing the starting lineups, playing in-game music, and relaying goal and penalty information over the arena’s public address system for several games each week, including at the Jr. B level. Monday’s game was so unsportsmanlike from both teams at times that I nearly left the arena mid-way through the game out of frustration from what I was seeing.  I gutted it out until game’s end only out of respect to the many fans in attendance, and not because certain players deserved the privilege of hearing their names being called.

Not all was negative in this game as two players from each team stood out with notable performances.  Six Nations #61 James Garlow and #66 Matt Jamieson each recorded two-point nights for the visitors, with Jamieson netting a pair on Welland netminder #30 Kyle Patterson and Garlow contributing a goal and an assist.

Patterson was outstanding for the Raiders in net, stopping countless breakaways on the evening and posting two helpers to help his own cause.  #98 Zach Olsson continued his excellent play of late, finding the back of the Six Nations’ net twice.  Both of these Welland players received the Winning Attitude Player of the Week award for their tremendous play, both in Zone 9 as well as tournament action up in Orangeville this past weekend.

Welland, despite not playing anything near to what they are capable, were 9-4 victors on pairs of goals from #10 Jack Fitzgerald, #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin, #19 Sebastien Beaudoin, and Olsson.  #93 Damien Alfieri scored the other Raiders marker and posted two assists to go along with it.  #91 Anthony DiFruscia led all Raiders with four helpers on the evening, with Patterson adding a pair and #9 Ryan Kirchmayer, #15 Brooker Muir, Dakin and #6 Brandon Porga providing lone assists.

Replying for Six Nations were Jamieson with two goals and singles by Garlow and #9 Kurtis Martin.  Assisting on the night were #19 Les Skye, #29 Austin Hill, #5 Jake VanEvery and Garlow.

Both teams were assessed twenty-seven minutes in infractions, and each side capitalized once with the extra-attacker on the night.  Shots on goal favoured Welland by a 37-14 margin.

The Raiders, winners of seven consecutive league contests sit at 12-8 overall (and 8-4 in Zone 9 play), and are back in action on Monday evening at home versus the Six Nations #1 Warriors.  Game time is 9pm.

Boxscore

SNW 1-2-1 = 4

WEL 4-2-3 = 9

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The Welland Vesuvius Warlords captured their first playoff berth since 2002 with a 6-2 victory over the visiting Hamilton Bengals on Friday evening.

Few would have thought this would have been possible as the team came into this year with a winless streak that stretched over the past two seasons, but thanks to excellent goaltending, a suffocating defence and timely offence, long-time fans like Harry Wannifreid – to whom this season was dedicated – were finally rewarded.

The Bengals opened the scoring with a goal from #4 Ryan Dilks that was set up by #94 Dustin Ellis at 4:23, but the Warlords quickly responded when #27 Kevin Floris deposited his sixth of the year past #39 Matt Oddi, from #89 Jordy Daradick and #23 Tyler Warren, at 4:44.

#14 Josh Eldridge would record his twentieth of the season at 6:59 to put the Warlords ahead, on passes from #8 Mackenzie Abbott and #9 Steve McIlwrath, and the Warlords would not look back from that point as the pulled out to a comfortable 4-1 lead after twenty minutes of play.  Warren would score the third Warlord’s goal of the evening, his eleventh of 2008, from Eldridge and Floris at 16:43 on the power-play.  Eldridge would then put in his second of the night and twenty-first of the year, from Warren and Floris while the Warlords still enjoyed the man-advantage.

The second period saw the Warlords strike again with the extra-attacker as Daradick would net his twentieth of the season as well, from Eldridge and Warren to stake the club to a commanding 5-1 lead at 7:49 of the second stanza.

Hamilton would capitalize with the additional runner as well, when #13 Zack Hill found the mesh behind #39 Connor Danko after re-directing passes from #22 Kyle Aquin and Dilks.  Welland would put an exclamation point on the game and season when #9 Steve McIlwrath tallied his eleventh goal of the year with thirteen seconds left to play in the game, by converting on Danko’s fifteenth assist of the season.

While not overly tested thanks to the stifling defence in front of him, Danko made the big saves when he needed to, something we have been accustomed to seeing him do all year long.  Danko would be the first to praise his tremendous defensive corps in front of him, who are led by captain #13 Jason Pundyk.  The crew on the back-end of the floor has quietly toiled away every game and does not often get the attention that it deserves.  One player who stood out this evening was #43 Kris Lavoie, who broke through for several great scoring attempts this evening.  Lavoie, and others like #32 Thomas O’Malley, #11 Johnny Storm, #12 Alex Cavasin and #33 Jeff Borgatti haven’t recorded many points this season, but they are an undeniable part of the team’s success by having shut down the opposition’s top players game in and game out.

Tonight’s Player of the Game for Welland was #27 Kevin Floris, with a goal and two assists.  Kevin has been a tremendous asset to the team since being signed last month, and he will definitely be one of those counted on if the Warlords are to make a strong showing in the playoffs.  Player of the Game for Hamilton was their captain #4 Ryan Dilks, who factored into both of their goals this evening.

Finally, recognition must be given to Jesse Cracknell and his excellent coaching staff for their tremendous work with the players.  While his impact was not immediately felt in the standings last season, when he came on board mid-way through the year as an Assistant, there is little doubt that the players even then began to emulate his exceptional work ethic and fierce competitiveness.  There has been a lot of respect and pride brought back to the organization this season because of the great example he has personified.  I wish to extend my congratulations to the entire team management and coaching staff for a job well done.

Not only was the team a winner on the floor tonight, but several fans walked home winners as well.  Sharon Eldridge of Welland went home $208 richer thanks to the 50/50 proceeds she pocketed.  Another lucky fan was rewarded with an autographed NLL All-Star jersey that has been on display all season-long, and yet more fans took home prizes thanks to the lucky program promotion and the generous support of sponsors like the Express Cafe, Merrittville Speedway, the Heaping Spoonful and the Blue Star Restaurant.

The Warlords would like to thank all their loyal fans for their attendance this season as well as acknowledge the tremendous help received from their great game-night sponsors, like the Welland Forge, who presented tonight’s regular-season finale.  A big thank you is further extended to all the wonderful Sponsor-A-Stick families who have been printed in each night’s program.  Without these great assists, this successful season would not be possible.

The Warlords remind their fans to check the local newspapers as well as http://www.warlordlax.com for full playoff details as soon as they become available.

Boxscore:

HAM  1-0-1 = 2

WEL    4-1-1= 6

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The Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Bantam #1 Raiders might have been short on bodies last night, but there was no shortage of heart or grittiness as they battled back to overcome the Six Nations #2 Warriors last night at Gaylord Powless Arena in a 7-6 thrilling finish.

Faced with a number of absences due to vacation, injury and suspension, the Raiders dressed only eight runners and a goalie last night but still managed to pull out the victory against a formidable, and nearly-full, Warriors roster.

It did not look good for the visitors early on, however, as the Warriors pulled out to a 2-0 early advantage on goals by #10 Mitchell Green, only thirty-nine seconds in, and #16 Lyle Hill at 4:45.  #44 George Atkins would set up the game-opening marker with Green picking up an assist on the second.  Welland’s #91 Anthony DiFruscia would reply with his first of two on the night for Welland, scoring on the powerplay from #93 Damien Alfieri and #10 Jack Fitzgerald, at 9:23 of the first, to cut the Warriors’ lead in half.

The Warriors would come right back at 11:26 when #9 Brad Hill beat Welland netminder #30 Kyle Patterson, on helpers from Green and #55 Stephen Wilson.  #15 Brooker Muir would offer a counter-punch for the Raiders, bulging the twine behind Nations’ backstop #99 Ladd Garlow, from DiFruscia and #36 Kevin Millejours with just under two minutes to play in the opening stanza.  Garlow would later stymie Millejours on a breakaway, robbing him of a near-certain goal with a great stop.

Six Nations would restore a two goal cushion in the second with a tally from Atkins, on re-directs from Hill and Green.  #93 Damien Alfieri would shave the hosts’ lead to a single goal about half a minute later, as Welland trailed 4-3 heading into the final fifteen minutes of action.

True to form this season, the Raiders grew ever stronger as the game progressed, despite being exhausted from the short rest periods in between shifts.  Both teams managed nine shots in the opening period, but Welland started to assert themselves more in the second, taking the period with a 11-2 shot-differential.  The third period saw the Raiders outshoot the Warriors 12-5, for an overall advantage of 32-16.  Goaltending a both ends of the floor was terrific as both goalies made several outstanding stops to give their teams a chance to win the game.

With more shots, came more goals as the Raiders outscored Six Nations four-to-two in the third period, with Welland assuming the lead three times in the final fifteen minutes only to have the Warriors tie it up twice.  Atkins scored a second time for Six Nations from Wilson, and #66 Eric Thomas also notched an unassisted marker in the period, but it was not enough to keep pace with the Raiders who filled the opposition net with two more goals from #15 Brooker Muir, completing his hat-trick, and one more from DiFruscia who had two goals and two assists on the night.

Welland improves to 8-3 in Zone 9 action with the victory, and 11-4 overall, and now prepares to compete in Orangeville’s Barry Burman Invitational this weekend.  The Raiders will have little time to rest in the coming days, as once the tournament wraps up on Sunday they return home to face Six Nations #1 on Monday evening and hit the road to battle the Burlington #1 Chiefs on Tuesday night, having games on five consecutive nights.

Boxscore

WEL 2-1-4 = 7

SNW 3-1-2 = 6

vs. 

The struggles continue for the Welland Vesuvius Warlords as they limped home from Elora after a 9-3 defeat at the hands of the Mohawks on Sunday night.  It was the fourth consecutive loss for the Warlords, who are still trying to secure a playoff spot.

Elora took ahold of the game in the first period with a power-play marker from Ryan Morrision to open the scoring, and then goals by #20 Blaine Syme and Justin Gibson, to take a 3-0 advantage.  #89 Jordy Daradick replied for Welland before period’s end, with his eighteenth of the year, from #5 Ira Sowden and #32 James McCready.

Brody Heseltine, Kyle Goss and Mark Love continued to find success against Warlords’ starter #39 Connor Danko in the middle stanza before #15 Walter Lumsden recorded his first of the season in response for the visitors.  Syme would net his second of the evening and Brady Landoni and Jesse Booker would also find the mesh before the second intermission.

The only goal of the final period came from the stick of Daradick, on a set-up from #27 Kevin Floris and Sowden, for his nineteenth of 2008.

Welland’s powerplay short-circuited, going 0-for-8, while Elora did not fare much better at 1-for-7, although they also recorded a short-handed strike thanks to Syme, who received player of the game honours for his team.  Daradick received the corresponding honour for Welland for his contribution of a pair of goals on the night.

Welland looks to close out the regular season with a win against Hamilton at home on Friday night.  The Warlords have been the Bengals twice previously this season, both by scores of 3-2.  Friday’s game night is sponsored by the Welland Forge and the action gets underway at 7:30pm.

Boxscore:

WEL  1-1-1 = 3

ELO  3-6-0 = 9

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One of the unfortunate aspects of being an announcer is that occasionally you run into games where it is all about the whistles.  You get so focused on trying to keep up with the goals and penalties that the game itself flies by and all you can recall afterward are the number of stoppages in play, and not much about the gameplay itself.  Last night was one of those games for me, so I will just report the facts as written on the gamesheet and not try to characterize as much of the action as I normally would.

The Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Bantam #1 Raiders dispatched of the St. Catharines Athletics by a score of 12-2 last night.  A short-staffed Raiders squad was buoyed by the excellent play of three affliated Peewee players, #6 Brandon Porga, #32 Zach Main and #77 Jordan DeMars.

#19 Sebastien Beaudoin, #15 Brooker Muir and #36 Kevin Millejours each recorded a pair of goals for Welland, with #44 Bryce Brochu, #93 Damien Alfieri, #91 Anthony DiFruscia, #90 Nicholas Beaudoin, #10 Jack Fitzgerald, #15 Brooker Muir, and #9 Ryan Kirchmayer pocketing singles.  Tallying assists on the evening for the Raiders were #17 Michael Simpson, #91 Anthony DiFruscia and #93 Damien Alfieri with two apiece, and #98 Zach Olsson, Fitzgerald, Porga, Brochu and Muir with lone helpers.

Welland’s initial run of seven goals to start the game was interrupted by #15 Josh Kozielski, who beat #29 Graeme McCullough with an unassisted marker at 11:42 of the second stanza to break up his shutout bid.  St. Catharines’s #53 Nick Cowlow would also find his way onto the scoresheet by netting an unassisted strike at 9:30 of the third period.  While Athletics’ netminder #1 Adam Edgar was kept busy facing a steady barrage of shots all evening, McCullough faced only six shots in the Welland crease.  St. Catharines picked up 26 minutes in penalties to Welland’s 20, with the majority of these coming in a late-game fight, which #55 Jake Stuart of St. Catharines instigated against Welland’s #19 Sebastien Beaudoin.  Both players received minors for unsportsmanslike conduct and 10-minute misconducts for their actions, even though several punches were through by each during a fairly-even and spirited fight.

Welland continues a busy week by heading to the Gaylord Powless Arena Tuesday night to square-off with the Six Nations #1 Warriors before competing in the Barry Burman Memorial tournament this weekend in Orangeville.

Boxscore

STC  0-1-1= 2

WEL  4-3-5= 12

]]> http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/2008/06/17/raiders-pull-away-from-as-616/feed/ 0 Dish http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/2008/06/13/raiders-grab-bengals-by-the-tail/ http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/2008/06/13/raiders-grab-bengals-by-the-tail/#comments Fri, 13 Jun 2008 17:53:26 +0000 Dish http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/?p=818 ]]> Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Bantam #1 Raiders vs. Hamilton #1 Bengals (Zone 9 Lacrosse)

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After coming out flat in the opening half of the game the Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Bantam #1 Raiders found themselves trailing the Hamilton #1 Bengals on Wednesday night by three goals after the first nineteen minutes of action, but managed to claw their way back into the contest in the latter half and overtake the hosts with only 0:50 left to play in a remarkable finish to a very exciting and competitive game.

The Bengals were missing five players who were quite effective against the Raiders in their previous meeting, which was played the week before in Welland, ending in a 7-4 Raiders victory. This made the task at hand much more difficult for goaltender #33 Marc Gaudet, as the Hamilton offence struggled without their captain #11 Daniel Williams to provide leadership like he had in the previous game.  Gaudet once again put up a good fight against the tenacious Raiders, but strong performances by several Raiders including #19 Sebastien Beaudoin, #90 Nicholas Beaudoin and #98 Zach Olsson resulted in a come-from-behind 4-3 win.

The determined charge of the Welland club during much of the final two frames made up for the initial struggles that saw them largely unprepared to make a stand against the Bengals, who used their size and strength advantage quite effectively in the early stages.  #84 Ryan Coulter was a force in the early going, knocking around several bodies, which resulted in him picking up a goal and an assist.  #7 Jake Bain did likewise and #25 Darnell Nurse also tallied for Hamilton on the night.

Once Welland came to life they completely dominated the remaining minutes.  While Welland managed only three shots on goal to Hamilton’s 8 in the first period, the second saw them out-shoot Hamilton 12-6, and during the third they held a 10-3 advantage, for an overall edge of 22-17.

#10 Jack Fitzgerald put the Raiders on the board at 7:38 of the middle set, scoring his ninth of the season from #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin and #91 Anthony DiFruscia.  Olsson would find the opposition’s mesh for the fourth time this year, on a feed from #19 Sebastien Beaudoin at 3:49 of the final period.  Beaudoin would then follow up with a valiant effort in the waning moments, recording a pair of goals to give him nine in 2008, and leading his team to victory.  Beaudoin tied the game with and unassisted marker with three minutes remaining and then scored the game-winner from #11 Wade Kenny with only fifty seconds remaining, capping off a great comeback.

While #30 Kyle Patterson did not face a large number of shots, he was solid making big saves when he was called upon.  The second Bengals goal resulted when the Welland defender slipped on the play, leaving a wide-open Nurse at the right side of the crease for the easy throw-in, and the third goal was the result of a great shot over a defender’s shoulder that Patterson likely did not even see.  Patterson made one miscue when his clearing attempt was picked off by Bain near mid-floor with less than four minutes remaining, but thankfully Beaudoin was back in his own end and made an outstanding defensive play to thwart the scoring opportunity.

The win improves Welland’s record to 6-3 in Zone 9 play, and 9-4 overall.

Welland faces two more tough challenges in the upcoming week with a home contest against St. Catharines #1 Athletics on Monday followed by a re-match with the Six Nations Warriors at Gaylord Powless Arena on Tuesday.  The team then travels to Orangeville to compete in the Barry Burman Memorial over the weekend, where they will face Kitchener-Waterloo, Orangeville, Six Nations and Guelph.

vs. 

Fans who did not recognize either team Thursday evening could be forgiven, as the Six Nations Rebels arrived clearly strengthened in comparison to their previous meetings with the Warlords this season, having added several Jr. A-calibre players in their lineup, whereas the Welland Vesuvius Warlords were hampered by an injury-depleted roster.  What resulted could most kindly be described as a mismatch.

The Warlords, who until recent times, have impressed nearly everyone with their competitiveness, simply lacked the discipline (particularly the forwards) and work ethic (nearly everyone) tonight which have allowed them to be successful against all comers this year.  While there were a few exceptions to this rule, such as the play of #21 Brad McConnery on defence, and #89 Jordy Daradick and #27 Kevin Floris offensively, the Warlords as a whole did not appear at any point in the game to be prepared to take on the Rebels tonight.

The Rebels did not waste any time showing why they are an undefeated 17-0, as #97 Jesse Sault struck only fifty-six seconds into the game to stake the visitors to the early lead.  #89 Jordy Daradick would score his first of two on the night to tie the game just over five minutes in, however, the rest of the game went by virtually uncontested.  Daradick’s second goal of the night, his seventeenth of the year, would pull the team within two with just under five minutes to play in the opening period, but the final outcome of this game was never in much doubt.

Welland’s power-play suffered in the absence of catalyst #18 Tyler Tanguay, going 0-for-10.  The team expects to be without the services of Tanguay for the rest of the season, unless they manage to have an extended playoff run.

Captain of the Rebels #82 Stu Hill marshaled his team to victory, picking up Player of the Game laurels on the strength of a two goal, four assist performance.  Daradick received the corresponding honour for the Warlords on the basis of his output of a pair of goals for the home side.

#20 Torrey VanEvery recorded four goals tonight for the visitors and also picked up four assists, amassing an impressive eight points.  Others marking up the gamesheet for the Rebels were #99 Cody Johnson with a pair and #66 Alex “Kedoh” Hill, #10 Kraig Maracle, #48 Chancy Johnson and #9 Andy Jamieson each with singles.  Contributing assists during the contest were  #66 Hill with three, #99 Johnson and #21 Jordan Johnson with two apiece and #7 Jeremy Johns, #10 Kraig Maracle, #12 Russell Longboat, #18 Randy E. Johnson, #19 Ryley Johnson and #89 Randy Johnson with lone helpers.

#27 Kevin Floris would respond with a short-handed marker for Welland, while #8 Mackenzie Abbott would set up two strikes and #5 Ira Sowden one.  Six Nations found much success with the extra-attacker Thursday evening, converting 6-of-13 chances.

The Warlords were assessed 43 minutes of infractions to the Rebels 37.  #9 Andy Jamieson and #15 Walter Lumsden went toe-to-toe in the game’s only true fight during the first period, however, the nastiness continued throughout the game with several Rebels players taking liberties with their wooden sticks seemingly at will with the Warlords offering little in the way of resistance or retaliatory actions in kind.  Backup netminder, #35 Brennor Jacobs made an appearance in relief of the seemingly weary #39 Connor Danko and was deliberately run without any reaction from the Warlords on the floor or bench.

The Warlords, winless in their last three, hope to regain some positive traction against Elora in their final regular season road contest on Sunday evening before returning to the Rose City to play their final regular season home contest versus the Hamilton Bengals on June 20 at 7:30pm, a night which is sponsored by the Welland Forge.

Tonight’s 50/50 winner took home a cash prize of $175, while other lucky fans were awarded prizes such as VIP passes to Merrittville Speedway, vouchers to the Heaping Spoonful, the Express Cafe, and the next Warlords home game, as well as a T-shirt thanks to the generous support of our loyal sponsors the Heaping Spoonful, Herc’s Muscle Shop, Merrittville Speedway and the Express Cafe.

Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders vs. Burlington Chiefs

vs.  

An opportunistic Burlington Chiefs squad exploited the normally stingy penalty-killing units of the Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders on Tuesday evening, nearly escaping with the win on a 4-of-6 power-play bonanza.  In the end, however, Welland’s reliable goaltending and defence held during the game’s late stages, and the Raiders escaped with a 7-5 road victory.

#11 Wade Kenny continued his strong play of late by netting an unassisted breakaway marker at 7:48 of the first to stake the visitors to the 1-0 lead, which they held for the remainder of the opening period.  #18 Marcus Elvin would respond on the power-play for the home side at 1:30 of the middle stanza, deflecting passes from #4 Bryce Jurk and #19 Ryan Callaghan past Welland starter #29 Graeme McCullough to knot the game at one.  #17 Michael Simpson would catapult the Raiders back into the lead with a goal from #91 Anthony DiFruscia and Kenny at the 6:19 mark.  The see-saw battle continued as Burlington again pulled even on #11 Keyan McQueen’s goal at 8:12, which was set up by Callaghan and Jurk.  The hosts would then assume the lead on Callaghan’s marker with the man advantage, with an assist from McQueen just over ten minutes into the middle frame.  The Raiders would net the equalizer with just over a minute left to play before the intermission, when DiFruscia made no mistake after a great feed from #19 Sebastien Beaudoin sent him in alone on #1 Thomas McHugh.

Elvin scored his second of the evening for the Chiefs only twenty-four seconds into the third, rifling a shot past McCullough after he found himself in all alone.  Not to be outdone, #90 Nicholas Beaudoin showed he too can make the most of a 1-on-0 situation by converting a breakaway chance at 2:53.  #98 Zach Olsson took advantage of Burlington sniper Callaghan’s double-minor by netting the eventual game-winner on the power-play, from Beaudoin and Beaudoin, as the Raiders finally assumed a lead they would not relinquish.  The Chiefs did not surrender easily, closing within one on Jurk’s tally from Callaghan and McQueen at 10:55.

Noted for their great sharp-shooting ability, the best of the Chiefs looked to pick the corners on McCullough, but he would do such a fantastic job of covering his angles that it gave them nothing to shoot at and the majority of their aerial assaults would miss the net by mere inches.  The best chance the Chiefs had to tie in the waning moments came when #10 Nick Nesbitt had a wide open cage to shoot at, but in his rush to get the shot off, his attempt ended up going askew.  Seconds after vacating the net in favour of the extra-attacker the Chiefs surrendered an empty-net goal when #44 Bryce Brochu sealed the game for the Raiders by streaking in after a helper from Kenny sent him on his way to close out the scoring in this wild 7-5 contest.

Goaltending that was second-to-none at both ends provided a challenge for the snipers on both squads this evening and made this a very entertaining game to watch.  The defence held up fairly well for both teams at even-strength, as special teams had the biggest impact on the scoresheet tonight.  Burlington was a potent 4-for-6 as mentioned previously, while Welland struck only once in four tries with the man-advantage.  Shots on goal favoured Welland 19-11.

Game night photos can be viewed here:

June 6 – Burlington Chiefs vs. Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders

(A free MySpace account may be required to view album.)

The Raiders will be back in action Wednesday evening in Hamilton as they face another very worthy competitor, the Bengals, starting at 7pm.  In their previous meeting this season, held in Welland, the Raiders pulled out a 7-4 victory in a very evenly-matched battle, and one would expect more of the same this time around.  Welland now stands at 5-3 in Zone 9 competition this season, and 8-4 overall.

John McCauley Memorial Tournament – Brampton, June 6-8, 2008

6/6 7:00pm

vs.

Penalty minutes kill Raiders’ momentum, any chance of winning game

The Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Bantam #1 Raiders stumbled out of the gate in their tournament opener versus Mimico on Friday, but more than made up for this with some outstanding play the rest of the way to capture the Gold Medal against the Mountaineers in their rematch on Sunday afternoon.

Friday’s disappointing start was due in large part to an uninspired effort during the first fifteen minutes of play, which saw Welland scored on within the first thirty seconds, and four more times during the opening set.

While Welland performed better during the next two frames, they constantly gave back momentum to the Mountaineers through an endless parade of penalties, earning 28 minutes overall to Mimico’s 2.

A bright spot in the preliminary contest was the dominant performance of #11 Wade Kenny. Kenny, who has for several years distinguished himself as one of Zone 9′s best players as a member of the Fort Erie Hawks, steamrolled his way through the opposition, laying waste to any bodies that dared get in his path.  Wade would pick up two assists, but it was his physical play and hustle throughout the game that one couldn’t help by notice.

#98 Zach Olsson, #15 Brooker Muir, #19 Sebastien Beaudoin, #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin and #36 Kevin Millejours would each collect single tallies on the night, with Millejours, Kenny (2), #90 Nicholas Beaudoin, #17 Michael Simpson and #29 Graeme McCullough assisting on the goals.

Leading the charge for Mimico was #14 Seamus Shanahan, who had three goals and three assists for six points.  #15 Scott Foster notched a pair of goals for the Mountaineers as well, and single tallies were recorded by #7 Eric Morenz, #8 Justin DeMarchi, #3 Landon Fletcher, #12 Nicholas Paul and #9 John Anastasakis.  Dishing out helpers were Shanahan with three, Paul and Anastasakis with two each, and #11 Benjamin Luymes, #18 Christian Mazzanti, #17 Dalton Barnes McColeman, #44 Matthew Lee, DeMarchi and Fletcher with one each.

The Raiders were edged in shots 20-18 despite playing short-handed for the majority of the forty-five minutes of play. Welland ceded four goals on eleven Mimico power-plays, while only receiving one man-advantage situation themselves, which they were not able to convert.

6/7 9:00am

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Welcome Back, Jack!

Little fireball #10 Jack Fitzgerald returned to the Raiders lineup from injury and immediately re-ignited the Welland offence, scoring three in his return to action.  Despite his small stature, Jack gives big performances every time he hits the playing surface and Saturday’s games were no exception.   Fitzgerald also tossed in an assist in the morning session, a 9-4 Raiders conquest of Oakville.  #36 Kevin Millejours provided another large chunk of the visitors’ offensive surge, contributing a goal and two assists, while #91 Anthony DiFruscia dropped in a pair and #90 Nicholas Beaudoin put up  a goal and three helpers to subdue the Hawks.  Marking up the scoresheet further were #19 Sebastien Beaudoin, #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin with goals, and #98 Zach Olsson, #44 Bryce Brochu, #93 Damien Alfieri, #11 Wade Kenny, and Dakin with lone assists.

The Raiders outshot the Hawks 20-14 overall, going 0-for-4 on the power-play, but also negating both penalties they were assessed during the contest.

6/7 4:00pm

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Return of Bryce is nice

In the Raiders’ second game of the day, it was #44 Bryce Brochu’s turn to shine, as he tossed in two goals and an assist to help the Raiders defeat the Halton Hills #2 Bulldogs by a 5-2 score to advance to Sunday’s Gold Medal Game versus the Mimico Mountaineers.  Brochu had missed the Raiders’ previous two contests during the week, and his return to the lineup on Saturday had an immediate positive effect.

#29 Graeme McCullough backstopped the team to victory from there with a fine performance between the pipes, blocking 17 of 21 shots.  McCullough was only solved on the day by #17 R. Cicchetti, #7 J. McBride, #16 D. Stevens and #1 K. Kristensen-Inviovia, with #10 J. Laidlaw and #6 M. Van Dijk providing assists.

The foundation of the Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders’ success this season has been the combined team effort on defence, which was on display again Saturday when they smothered Halton #2, picking up a 5-2 win to advance to the Gold Medal game on Sunday versus Mimico.  Pair that with stellar goaltending and a motley crew of goal-scorers, as it’s easy to see why this team has closely battled even the very toughest teams it has faced so far this season.

If not for the fantastic netminding of Halton’s #1 Drew Coleman, the outcome could have easily be slanted more in the favour of the Raiders, who often had the misfortune of their shots hitting the crossbar or goalpost when they did manage to elude the grasp of Coleman.

Welland struck quickly with #15 Brooker Muir finding daylight only 12 seconds into the game and giving his team the 1-0 early advantage.  #10 Jack Fitzgerald combined with #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin and #44 Bryce Brochu to double the Raiders lead, before Brochu netted an unassisted power-play goal making it 3-0.  #91 Anthony DiFruscia tallied to put Welland up 4-0, on an assist from #17 Michael Simpson before Halton took advantage of a 3-on-1 breakout and responded with one of their own from #33 Sebastian Beckett, on a set-up from #22 Kirk Riedstra and #1 Coleman.  Before the end of the second period, Halton would strike again, with #8 Liam Clare putting home an unaided power-play tally.

Brochu would collect his second of the game during the third to provide the Raiders with some added insurance, on passes from Dakin and #90 Nicholas Beaudoin, and Welland went into lockdown mode from there, allowing only five shots in the final fifteen minutes.  Welland outshot Halton 27-21 overall.  Halton struggled converting only once on seven man-advantage opportunities, while Welland went 2-for-4 with the extra-attacker.

6/8 1:15pm

vs. 

Raiders chip away at Mountaineers, results in avalanche of goals

After Friday’s disappointing effort in the opener, the Raiders were determined to prove to Mimico that the previous result was just an aberration.  Stymied early by the efforts of Mimico crease-keeper #1 Kenton Iannizi, the Raiders continued to fire away and eventually they were rewarded with a number of goals in the latter half of the game.

Welland’s #44 Bryce Brochu converted a #11 Wade Kenny pass into a short-handed marker to open the game’s scoring at 5:15 of the first before the Mountaineers replied at 7:55 with #8 Justin DeMarchi beating #30 Kyle Patterson while in all alone.

The Mountaineers would jump out to a lead when #3 Landon Fletcher parlayed a #17 Dalton Barnes feed into a 2-1 advantage, however, this would prove to be short-lived as the Raiders stormed back just over a minute later to tie the game on a #7 Jack Fitzgerald goal, assisted by #90 Nicholas Beaudoin.

Beaudoin would produce a powerplay marker to put his team in the forefront, on a pass from #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin, however Mimico would once again draw even with Welland on an unassisted strike from #13 Jeremy Hill, who streaked in and found paydirt on a breakaway chance.

Video footage from this game to be posted shortly…

That is as good as it would get for Mimico who then were shell-shocked as the Raiders offence kicked it into high gear, amassing seven unanswered goals by game’s end to run away with the John McCauley Memorial Bantam A/B Championship in convincing fashion.  In the period and a half that remained #15 Brooker Muir and Dakin would record a goal and an assist each, Brochu would inflict further damage picking up another two goals and an assist, Beaudoin would complete the hat-trick by firing home another two, and Fitzgerald would also score for the second time in the contest.  #30 Kyle Patterson, in addition to playing well in net for Welland, helped his own cause with an assist.  #98 Zach Olsson, #9 Ryan Kirchmayer, #17 Michael Simpson and Kenny also drew single helpers during this span to pace the Raiders.

Welland outshot Mimico 23-14 overall and was 2-for-6 with the extra-attacker.  The Raiders held Mimico scoreless during the four short-handed situations they faced.  #44 Bryce Brochu was named Tournament MVP based on his fine performance during the final two days of the competition.

Welland returns to Zone 9 action with two tough road contests this week.  Tuesday evening they travel to Burlington to faceoff against the Chiefs in a 9pm tilt, and the following night they square-off against the Bengals in the Steel City starting at 7pm.

The Welland Vesuvius Warlords were buried by an opening period six-goal onslaught from which they were unable to fully recover, losing to the Orangeville Northmen in an 11-6 final on Saturday evening.  Early penalty trouble caused the Warlords to fall behind 7-1 duing the first period, as the Northmen were able to convert on three early man-advantage situations.  Seven different Orangeville players deposited balls behind starter, #39 Connor Danko, as Matt Noble, Adam Hawkins, Andrew Stoner, Frank Collins, Steven Rodgers, Deron Dempster and Clark Deceer each tallied for the hosts. David Martin (3), Jake Thompson, John VanDerClessey, Stoner and Aaron McNutt picked up the assists on the goals.  #23 Tyler Warren recorded the only goal of the period for the Warlords, responding on the power-play from #27 Kevin Floris.

The second period began with #8 Mack Abbott converting a #89 Jordy Daradick pass into the Orangeville cage for his sixth of the season.  After Bill Hostrawser became the eighth different Orangeville scorer at the mid-point of the period, Warren sunk his second of the game and tenth of the year, from #14 Josh Eldridge and Daradick just over a minute later during a Warlords’ man advantage.

Hawkins struck again with the extra man for his second of the evening, from Collins and Thompson with just under four minutes to play before the second intermission, and Orangeville closed out the period with a pair of goals from Rodgers, completing his hat-trick.  Dave Morton and Hostrawser produced the helpers on his third goal, which gave Orangeville a commanding 11-3 lead with twenty minutes of play remaining.

At the start of the final frame, #35 Brennor Jacobs came in to relieve workhorse Danko, who played his 1000th minute of the season on Saturday.  Jacobs slammed the door the rest of the way, which seemed to spark the team as they found some offensive touch with power-play markers from Eldridge, Floris and Abbott.  For Eldridge it was his 19th of 2008 from Abbott; Floris’ fourth from Eldridge and Warren; and Abbott’s seventh from Floris and Daradick.  Once again, the Warlords felt the ire of the officials and fell into penalty trouble during the latter half of the final period, however, this time it only resulted in killing their own comeback momentum and did not result in further offence from the Northmen.

Floris was award Player of the Game honours for Welland, who were displeased that the game was delayed by 75 minutes due to a late official, the second time this season that an away game has had a lengthy delay at the onset.

The team, now 9-8, looks ahead to Thursday night at home where they hope to move closer towards clinching a playoff berth by defeating the visiting Six Nations Rebels, on a game night which is sponsored by Neu-Form Custom Metal Fabricators.  Game time is 7:30pm.

Gamesheet:  Not Yet Posted

Warlords Website:  http://www.warlordlax.com

Northmen Website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orangeville_Northmen_Jr._B

vs. 

Riding a four-game winning streak, the Welland Vesuvius Warlords had to be fairly confident walking into the Merritton Arena Thursday night to play the St. Catharines Spartans, a team they have beaten quite handily twice previously this season.  Unfortunately for the Warlords, last night’s 8-2 loss only proves that no opponent can be underestimated in this league on any given night.

By all accounts, the Spartans appeared to be the superior team throughout last evening, although it took them until the second period to break the game open, thanks in large part to the goaltending of Welland’s #39 Connor Danko.  Danko dazzled early, thwarting the Spartans #9 Shayne Adams on a two-on-none chance. but Adams would later solve Danko to open the scoring for the home side.

After #5 Ira Sowden scored from #23 Tyler Warren and #9 Steve McIlwrath early in the second stanza to tie the game, but it was all St. Catharines for the remainder of the period, who went on a five-goal unabated goal-scoring run.  #5 Greg Norris, #21 Kyle Winterbottom (2), Adams, and #77 Chris Attwood would each find the mesh in the middle frame, with assists being garnered by #16 Corey Green, #13 Dane Hansen, Adams (3), #18 Rudy Stawarek (2), #15 Sean Frankland and #8 Dillon Hendsbee.  Welland would finally staunch the bleeding with a late tally from #32 James McCready, on a set-up from #43 Kris Lavoie, but the damage had already been done.

Tempers flared in the third period with these 406-Highway rivals, and the Spartans took advantage by closing out the game with two more goals.  Attwood added on to his game-winning goal by depositing his second of the contest from Frankland and Adams at even-strength. #93 Vinny Covello would follow up with the team’s third power-play marker of the evening, on an assist from Hendsbee just after the mid-point of the final frame to produce the 8-2 final outcome.

The Warlords, now at 9-7 on the year, will attempt to turn things around and get one step closer to clinching a playoff berth when they take on the Orangeville Northmen on the road this Saturday.

Gamesheet:  http://www.zsisports.com/boxscore.php?ScheduleID=886

Warlords Website:  http://www.warlordlax.com

Spartans Website:  http://www.hometeamsonline.com/teams/?u=SPARTANJRBLACROSSE&s=lacrosse&t=c

vs. 

Down to only 11 runners and one goalie due to injuries and absences, the Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Raiders were looking for some leadership as the always-challenging Hamilton #1 Bengals came to town Wednesday evening in Zone 9 lacrosse action at the Welland Main Arena.  As he has done each game this season, team captain #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin once again demonstrated that he is capable of leading the team both on and off the floor as the Raiders picked up their second straight victory of the week, this time by a 7-4 score, improving their record to 4-3-0 on the year.

Dakin recorded a hat-trick for the second time this week, having already completed the feat against the Fort Erie Hawks on Monday night.  Tonight he scored the game-winning goal, completing the natural hat-trick in the process, to go along with a lone assist, which earned him the Winning Attitude Player of the Week honours. He chose as his prize a $50 Gift Card to the Pen Centre, which he was presented with in the dressing room after the game.

He was not alone in giving a top-notch performance, however, as all of his teammates followed his example giving a high level effort throughout the lineup, in what is perhaps this team’s most complete effort to date.  #91 Anthony DiFruscia maintained his consistency, picking up a goal and two assists, while #90 Nicholas Beaudoin also tallied three points with the same offensive output.  #17 Michael Simpson grabbed two assists with another hard-charging effort, and #15 Brooker Muir did likewise, proving that toughness comes in all sizes. #9 Ryan Kirchmayer once again looked outstanding with his off-ball work and was rewarded with an assist.  #36 Kevin Millejours recorded his fifth goal of the season and #19 Sebastien Beaudoin also found the mesh for the Raiders scoring his fourth of 2008.

#29 Graeme McCullough not only played spectacularly between the pipes for the Green and Gold, but helped his own cause by setting up the Raiders sixth goal.

The Bengals took their stripes early on in this one, trailing by three goals after one period of play.  Hamilton recovered in the second to narrow the host’s lead to 5-2 after thirty minutes.  #3 Brandon Ames would re-direct a feed from #25 Darnell Nurse to get the visitors on the board at 5:33 of the middle stanza.  Captain #11 Daniel Williams would follow up with his first of two with just under five minutes left before the break to close within three.

Hamilton would keep pace with the Raiders during the final two frames of the contest, with each side recording a pair of goals in each of the second and third periods, but they could not overcome the strong start the Welland squad had this evening.  #84 Ryan Coulter would notch an unassisted marker just over five minutes into the third and Williams would deposit his second of the night past McCullough with under two minutes left to play to make things interesting.  The Raiders, however, would beat Bengals netminder #33 Marc Gaudet with thirty seconds remaining to seal the victory.

Welland’s special teams would once again perform quite well, going 1-for-3 with the man-advantage while netting a short-handed tally as well.  Unfortunately, they also allowed a power-play goal and short-handed marker from the visitors as the Bengals were 1-for-5 with the extra-attacker.  Welland fell into penalty trouble particularly in the third when they were assessed a four-minute double-minor immediately followed by a two-minute additional minor.  To their credit, they worked tirelessly to kill off the infractions without allowing a goal during the six-minute span, but ceded the late period goal while killing off a subsequent minor to blemish their otherwise great special teams performance.

The Raiders outshot the Bengals by a thin 24-21 margin overall.  Welland now prepares to compete in this weekend’s John McCauley Memorial Tournament in Brampton where they will face Mimico, Oakville and Halton #2.

Tonight’s Boxscore:

Ham 0-2-2=4

Wel   3-2-2=7

vs.

Breaking off a three-game losing skid, the Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Bantam #1 Raiders shot down the Fort Erie Hawks 11-0 in Crystal-Ridge last night.  Leading the charge for the visitors was #90 Nicholas Beaudoin with a goal and four assists, with brother Sebastien right behind with a goal and three helpers on the night.  #44 Bryce Brochu notched his first two goals of the season, and #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin also netted a pair of goals to go along with his two assists.  #91 Anthony DiFruscia contributed a goal and an assist, with the remaining single tallies coming from the sticks of #36 Kevin Millejours, #11 Wade Kenny and #15 Brooker Muir.  #17 Michael Simpson played another strong game, providing nice feeds to set up two goals, while #98 Zach Olsson, #98 Damien Alfieri, Kenny and Muir each set up one strike apiece.

#29 Graeme McCullough picked up his second whitewash of the season, needing only to stop three shots.  His counterpart, #1 Raven Martin, played tremendously in goal for the Hawks, making several great stops throughout the contest, but was simply overmatched by a large volume of fantastic scoring chances the Raiders were able to produce. The Raiders scored on their only powerplay opportunity of the contest, while holding the Hawks scoreless during two short-handed situations.  Welland outshot Fort Erie by a 23-3 margin.

Welland looks to carry forward some of this momentum into Wednesday evening’s home game versus the Hamilton Bengals.  The Raiders, who are currently struggling with some key players injured or away, will be competing in the John McCauley Memorial Tournament this upcoming weekend in Brampton.

Pictures and video highlights to follow.

Pictures can be found here:  (A free MySpace Account may be required to view.)

http://tinyurl.com/5pneyx

Tonight’s Boxscore:

Wel 3-5-3=11

Ft. E 0-0-0=0

vs.

A five-goal third period assault allowed the Welland Vesuvius Warlords to pull away to a 9-4 victory over the London Blue Devils on Saturday night in the Forest City.

Hat-tricks by #9 Steve McIlwrath and #10 Andrew Tober provided the bulk of the offence the Warlords needed to improve to 9-6 on the season.  #23 Tyler Warren and #14 Josh Eldridge each recorded three points on the evening, with Warren providing three helpers, and Eldridge with two goals and an assist, respectively.

Also recording multi-point nights with two points apiece were #89 Jordy Daradick with a goal and an assist, and #27 Kevin Floris, #5 Ira Sowden, #7 Matt Zaruk, and #8 Mackenzie Abbott with two helpers each.  Contributing one helper each in the win were Warlords #39 Connor Danko, #17 Trevor Hall and #33 Jeff Borgatti.

A combined eighteen minutes in penalties did not provide much opportunity for either side’s special teams to work, however, each team managed a power-play marker on the night, with London going 1-for-3 and Welland 1-for-4 with the extra-attacker.

London’s #5 Matt Cassidy, who factored into three of four of his team’s goals, was named their Player of the Game, while Andrew Tober was given the honour for the Warlords.  The Warlords are back in action on Thursday in Merritton versus the St. Catharines Spartans.

Gamesheet:  http://www.zsisports.com/boxscore.php?ScheduleID=864

Warlords Website:  http://www.warlordlax.com

Blue Devils Website: http://www.bluedevilslacrosse.com

]]> http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/2008/06/01/welland-vesuvius-warlords-vs-london-blue-devils-531/feed/ 0 Dish Welland Vesuvius Warlords London Blue Devils http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/2008/05/31/sarnia-pacers-vs-welland-vesuvius-warlords-530/ http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/2008/05/31/sarnia-pacers-vs-welland-vesuvius-warlords-530/#comments Sat, 31 May 2008 04:17:34 +0000 Dish http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/?p=698 ]]> Sarnia Pacers vs. Welland Vesuvius Warlords (OLA Jr. B Lacrosse)

vs.

The Sarnia Pacers couldn’t keep pace with the Welland Vesuvius Warlords tonight, despite a final period rally that saw them pull out a 6-4 respectable outcome after being largely dominated during the first two periods.

#27 Kevin Floris recorded his second of the season for the Warlords, since signing with the team two weeks ago, from #23 Tyler Warren and #14 Josh Eldridge, while the Warlords enjoyed an early powerplay only 2:42 into the game.  A parade of trips to the penalty box from both sides during the remainder of the opening stanza saw the home side walk off the floor with a 1-0 advantage at the break.

During the first intermission, the Warlords were pleased to have the Welland Buckner’s Source for Sports Tyke Raiders on hand, who played an inter-squad scrimmage to entertain the large crowd in attendance at tonight’s game.

When the Warlords returned to the floor they proceeded once again to easily handle the Pacers, building up a 4-0 lead by period’s end on two goals from #17 Trevor Hall and one from #89 Jordy Daradick.  #23 Tyler Warren, #77 Dustin Gatt, and #12 Alex Cavasin, who returned to the lineup tonight after recovering from an injury that has left him sidelined for the past couple of weeks, each picked up assists on the goals.

Welland’s offence was not done for the night, however, as #9 Steve McIlwrath would score on a long-bomb from #39 Connor Danko, and Floris recorded his second of the evening, from #8 Mackenzie Abbot and #5 Ira Sowden to build up an insurmountable 6-0 cushion.

To their credit the Pacers did not concede defeat so quickly and ended the game strongly by picking up four unanswered tallies.  #9 T.J. Mara would score twice, picking up Player of the Game honours for his team, and teammate #19 Riley Thompson would also contribute multiple-points with a goal and an assist.  Rounding out the scoring for the visiting Pacers were #17 Josh Bujaki and #16 Riley Thompson, with Thompson, #7 Jesse Thompson and #21 Chris Theoret assisting.  Tonight’s player of the game for Welland was #23 Tyler Warren, who had two assists.

Tonight’s 50/50 winner took home a cash prize of $165, while other lucky fans took home prizes supplied by loyal sponsors the Blue Star Restaurant, Merrittville Speedway, the Heaping Spoonful and Herc’s Muscle Shop.  The Warlords like also wish to acknowledge the generous support of PenFinancial Credit Union, tonight’s game night sponsor.  The Warlords, who are now 8-6 on the year, play their next two games on the road, tomorrow night in London versus the Blue Devils, and Thursday evening in Merritton against the St. Catharines Spartans, before returning home to face the Six Nations Rebels  June 12 at 7:30pm in a night sponsored by Neu-form Custom Metal Fabricators.

Gamesheet:  http://www.zsisports.com/boxscore.php?ScheduleID=861

Pacers Website: http://www.sarniajrbpacers.org/

Warlords Website:  http://www.warlordlax.com

vs. 

The Welland Harpwood’s Trophies Bantam #1 Raiders deserved a better fate than the 9-3 loss they received tonight at the hands of #18 Jacob Bomberry and the Six Nations #1 Warriors.

The Raiders effectively shut-down Bomberry and company for over two periods, before a late rash of penalties caused the scoreboard to spike in favour of the hosts.

#90 Nicholas Beaudoin fired up the visitors by scoring a breakaway goal on Nations’ netminder #29 Quinton Martin at 2:45 of the opening period, being hit with a great long distance feed from #44 Bryce Brochu as he was exiting the penalty box.  Six Nations would equalize the score at one, at 4:19, on a goal from #12 Brendan Bomberry that was assisted by #44 Jason Martin and #18 Jacob Bomberry.  Jacob Bomberry would then put his team ahead with an unassisted marker at 6:44.  Welland’s #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin would tie the game going into the break, finding the mesh with only four seconds left in the opening frame, with #15 Brooker Muir picking up the assist on the play.

The second stanza saw no scoring from either side.  The visiting Raiders were able to contain the powerful offence of the Warriors while generating some great scoring opportunities of their own with fast-breaks by #10 Jack Fitzgerald, #93 Damien Alfieri and #11 Wade Kenny among others.  A disputable crease-violation call on #16 Ryan “Bubba” Dakin’s apparent goal, robbed the away side from assuming the lead and carrying further momentum.

The third period saw the Raiders fall by the wayside due to fatigue as well as a succession of late penalties.  #88 Joe Maracle strung together a hat-trick, and #18 Jacob Bomberry recorded a seven-point evening, racking up a pair of goals to go along with his five assists.  Other Six Nations scorers were #14, the captain, Spencer Hill, #77 JR Atkins, and #7 Warren Miller.  Providing helpers on the evening for the Chiefs were #44 Jason Martin with three, and #99 Tim Vanloon and #4 Luke Chatelain each with single dish-offs.

#29 Graeme McCullough kept his teammates competitive throughout the contest with a fantastic performance between the pipes, and the late goal-surge was more a result of the team being short-handed in front of him, as the Warriors converted four times on nine man-up situations.

#11 Wade Kenny would bulge the twine with an unassisted goal in the third period with just over six minutes to play, making it 5-3, but the Warriors replied with four unanswered tallies after that point to put the game out of reach.

Welland slips below .500 at 2-3-0 on the season with tonight’s defeat, but will hope to even their record against the Fort Erie Hawks a week from tonight during their next scheduled league game.

Photos of tonight’s game can be viewed here:

http://tinyurl.com/5vpjua  (Free MySpace Account required)

Tonight’s Boxscore:

Wel 2-0-1=3

6NW 2-0-7-9

vs. 

The Welland Vesuvius Warlords bungled against the Bengals Sunday night but still managed to come back to the Rose City with the two points in hand, thanks to a game-saving performance by #39 Connor Danko during the third period.

It looked like a lock for the visitors early on as the Warlords completely shut down the Bengals for the first forty minutes of action.

#18 Tyler Tanguay scored his fourteenth only twenty-three seconds into the contest, from #5 Ira Sowden and #89 Jordy Daradick, to put the Warlords up 1-0.  Daradick then followed up with his thirteenth of 2008, from #13 Jason Pundyk and Danko, at 1:58 of the second as the Warlords continued their early dominance. #23 Tyler Warren deposited his eighth, on the powerplay from Sowden and #27 Kevin Floris, to build up a 3-0 Welland advantage at 12:24 and it looked not only that Welland would pick up the win, but perhaps a shutout victory in the process.

In the final frame, however, it was all Hamilton.  The Bengals outshot the Warlords 17-9 in the final twenty minutes, and 43-32 overall.  A goal and an assist each from Zach Hill and Ryan Dilts drew the hosts within a lone goal, but that was all as Danko shut the door the rest of the way to preserve the win.  Kyle Aquin assisted with Dilts on Hamilton’s first tally, scored by Hill on the powerplay only twenty-two seconds into the third.  Dilts bettered Danko, from Hill and Aaron Buswell, at the 9:17 mark to lock in the 3-2 final outcome.

Neither team looked impressive with the extra-attacker during the contest, with each finding only limited success.  Hamilton was a meagre 1-for-8 whereas Welland fared even worse at 1-for-10.  Loose ball recovery was about even for both sides, with no Warlords entering double-digits in the category, and Hamilton narrowly edged Welland 50-47 overall.

Player of the game honours were awarded to #39 Connor Danko of Welland and #39 Matt Oddi of Hamilton.

Friday night the Warlords are back in action at home against the Sarnia Pacers in a 7:30 start, a game which is sponsored by PenFinancial Credit Union.  The following day the club travels to London for a matchup with the Blue Devils.

Gamesheet:  http://www.zsisports.com/boxscore.php?ScheduleID=852

Warlords Website: http://www.warlordlax.com

Bengals Website: http://www.bengalslacrosse.com

Photos from the game can be found here:  http://tinyurl.com/69deyd (Free MySpace Account required)

vs.

In what was perhaps their best effort of the season, the Welland Vesuvius Warlords proved to everyone, and especially the Niagara Thunderhawks, that they are not a team to be taken lightly these days.  Just the night previous, the Warlords had the undefeated Six Nations Rebels on the ropes before a third period letdown let them back into the game.

Tonight, a team that had beaten them in two previous meetings this season came into the Welland Arena perhaps a little too overconfident and were in for a rude awakening as the Warlords never had their superiority questioned on this night, winning 10-6.

Welland struck early and often, building up a commanding 5-1 lead in the first before allowing a late-period power-play goal to go into the first intermission up by a 6-2 margin.  #23 Tyler Warren led things off with his seventh of the season on an assist from #8 Mackenzie Abbott only 1:19 into the game.  #27 Kevin Floris would immediately win over the home crowd in his first appearance at home in a Warlords uniform by converting an Abbott pass at 9:30 for a 2-0 lead.

Niagara’s #44 Dave Evert would get the visitors on the board at 10:13 with an unassisted tally, but the home side would reply thirty seconds later when #14 Josh Eldridge drained his 16th of the 2008 campaign on helpers from #18 Tyler Tanguay and Tyler Warren.  Tanguay would combine with Warren and Floris for the next Welland goal,his thirteenth, which came at 13:58.  Mack Abbott continued his strong game by notching his fifth of the season from #10 Andrew Tober with 4:57 left to play in the first.  #16 Jonathan Williams would respond for Niagara with only ten seconds remaining before the intermission, redirecting an #3 Elijah Printup pass for a power-play goal that make it 5-2.

The Thunderhawks’ #10 Bryn Jones pulled his team within two with an unassisted goal at 1:29 of the second before #8 Steve McIlwrath, with Floris and Tanguay assisting, scored his second of the night to make it 6-3 at 4:53.  #32 James McCready would inflict further damage by beating #00 Corey Henry with his first goal as a Warlord, from #5 Ira Sowden at 7:28.

Jonathan Williams would continue his strong performance, scoring his second of the evening from #27 Corey Fowler and Printup at 8:21 on the power-play.  Daradick would deposit his eleventh of the year from Floris on the powerplay at 11:42 of the middle stanza.  Welland would make it 9-4 on McIlwrath’s second, which was set up by goaltender #39 Connor Danko at the seventeen minute mark.  Printup would narrow the gap with a goal exactly one minute later on assists from Fowler and Williams.

The third period did not change the momentum with the teams trading lone goals, with Fowler scoring from #30 Jace Hill only 2:36 into the final frame and McCready netting his second of the night at 8:44 from #17 Trevor Hall and Tanguay to produce the 10-6 final.

Welland was 1-for-6 with the man-advantage with the Thunderhawks went 2-for-5 with the extra-attacker.  Players of the game, which was sponsored by Wormald, Masse, Keen, and Lopinski Chartered Accountants, were #3 Elijah Printup for the Thunderhawks with 1G, 2A and #27 Kevin Floris for the Warlords with 1G and 3A.

Tonight’s winner of the 50/50 draw, Ed Borgatti, took home $145 while other lucky fans took home prizes from the Heaping Spoonful, Merrittville Speedway, the Blue Star Restaurant, the Welland Warlords and Herc’s Muscle Shop via the lucky program promotion.

Welland is back in action Sunday evening on the road versus Hamilton before returning to face the Sarnia Pacers next Friday evening at 7:30pm in a game sponsored by PenFinancial Credit Union.

Gamesheet:  http://www.zsisports.com/boxscore.php?ScheduleID=844

Thunderhawks website: http//www.thunderhawks.ca

Warlords Website: http://www.warlordlax.com

]]> http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/2008/05/24/niagara-thunderhawks-vs-welland-vesuvius-warlords-523/feed/ 0 Dish Niagara Thunderhawks Welland Vesuvius Warlords http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/2008/05/23/welland-vesuvius-warlords-vs-six-nations-rebels-522/ http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/2008/05/23/welland-vesuvius-warlords-vs-six-nations-rebels-522/#comments Fri, 23 May 2008 14:55:02 +0000 Dish http://dishdaily.wordpress.com/?p=636 ]]> Welland Vesuvius Warlords vs. Six Nations Rebels (OLA Jr. B Lacrosse)

vs. 

An upset victory slipped away from the Welland Vesuvius Warlords’ grasp as they surrendered three unanswered third period goals to drop an 8-6 decision to the Six Nations Rebels on the road last night.

Despite the immediate impact of newly-signed #27 Kevin Floris, who led all Warlords with fourteen loose ball recoveries in addition to providing two assists, the Warlords were stung by a late comeback from the indomitable Rebels.

The Warlords didn’t waste any time last night proving that they can compete with any team in the league, including the as-yet-undefeated Rebels.  #18 Tyler Tanguay beat the Nations netminder with a short-handed tally, thanks to a #77 Dustin Gatt pass 5:57 after the opening draw.

Rebels’ sniper #7 Jeremy Johns replied with a power-play marker at 6:28 from #19 Torrey VanEvery to knot the game at one.  The Warlord’s #9 Steve McIllwrath would put the visitors ahead going into the intermission by converting on Floris’ first assist on the night for his fifth of the season.

#14 Josh Eldridge pocketed his fourteenth of the 2008 campaign on assists from Floris and #89 Jordy Daradick on the power-play at 3:49 of the second as Welland took a 3-1 advantage.  Six Nations would storm back with two goals within a minute and seven seconds, just after the mid-point of the middle stanza to draw into a short-lived tie.  #21 Jordan Johnson would make good on passes from #00 Cody VanEvery and #89 Randy Johnson at 10:31 and then #77 Stu Hill would follow up on a feed from Cody Johnson at 11:38.  Assistant captain #22 Hawenaedes Thomas would give the Rebels their first lead of the game at 17:16 of the second, on assists from #33 Mike Miller and #15 Clark Robinson.

The Warlords would not bow to the pressure and responded with a pair of goals to close out the period once again with the lead.  #23 Tyler Warren recorded his sixth of the year from #10 Andrew Tober and Tanguay with 1:51 remaining, before #8 Mack Abbott notched the go-ahead goal from Eldridge and Daradick with only one tick left on the clock to make it 6-5.

Stu Hill would strike for the second time from Jeremy Johns with 18:43 left on the scoreboard in the third to once again equalize the score, but #17 Trevor Hall and Abbott would find Eldridge would made no mistake in scoring his fifteenth of year to put the visitors up by a goal with 15:26 left to play.

Unfortunately, the Six Nations squad proved to be just too strong, putting up three unanswered goals to close out the game with the 8-6 victory.  Captain Stu Hill recorded his hat-trick on a helper from #11 Brent Longboat, and then #8 Ryley Johnson struck from #9 Andy Jamieson and #4 Marty Hill with eleven minutes remaining.  Jeremy Johns would close out the offense by parlaying a Torrey VanEvery pass into the mesh behind Welland backstop #39 Connor Danko at 11:34.

Players of the game were Danko for Welland who stopped 50-of-58 Rebel’s shots, and #7 Jeremy Johns who provided the hosts with a pair of goals as part of his three-point evening.  Welland managed 44 shots in the direction of the Six Nations net, however were outmatched in loose-ball recovery 75-52, despite the good work of Floris and others.

Welland was 1-for-3 with the man-advantage while Six Nations was 1-for-4 on the night with the extra attacker.

Welland (5-6-0) takes on the Niagara Thunderhawks (5-3-0) tonight at home starting at 7:30pm in a game presented by Wormald, Masse, Keen & Lopinski Chartered Accountants.

Gamesheet:  http://www.zsisports.com/boxscore.php?ScheduleID=843

Warlords Website:  http://www.warlordlax.com

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