CCHL This Week

By JEFF MAGUIRE

As the Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) season nears the halfway mark there is no doubt that one of the early surprises in the Tier 1 Junior A season to date is the play of Kanata Stallions.

Last April Kanata hosted the Fred Page Cup Eastern Canadian championship. They gave a very credible performance, winning two of three round-robin games before falling to CCHL champion Nepean Raiders in the semi-final game. Raiders were edged 3-2 by Woodstock (New Brunswick) Slammers of the Maritime Junior A Hockey League in the tournament final.

Stallions went into the event as the only team in tournament history who had failed to qualify for their own league playoffs. In fact Stallions have missed the CCHL post season three of the past four campaigns.

This season, with former National Hockey League defenceman Corey Foster back behind the bench, Kanata is challenging for the overall lead in the 12-team league. Last week they won a pair of 2-1 decisions on home ice to improve their record to 17-11-1-0.

Stallions were idle Sunday. On Monday morning they were tied with Nepean Raiders for second place in the very tight Yzerman Division with 35 points, just one behind Pembroke Lumber Kings. Pembroke doubled Nepean 4-2 Sunday to take over top spot in the six-team division. Lumber Kings hold one game in hand on Kanata while Nepean has three in hand.

Smiths Falls Bears, who defeated last place Kemptville 73’s 4-1 on Sunday, lead the Robinson Division and overall league standings with an impressive 20-8-0-1 mark and 41 points. Carleton Place Canadians, who blanked Hawkesbury Hawks 2-0 Sunday afternoon, are second in the Robinson standings. They too have 35 points to date.

The overall CCHL standings are so tight that there is just a 10 point gap between first place Smiths Falls and seventh place Cornwall Colts. Cornwall also won Sunday, doubling Cumberland Grads 6-3.

Foster, who took the head coaching reins in Kanata partway through last season following Randy Pierce’s dismissal, is confident his team can stay in the thick of the race.

“We’ve got a good group of kids. Everyone in the room gets along really well,” Foster said Monday.

“This (halfway point) is where the season gets tough. The guys will have to commit completely, compete hard in every game and work hard in practice.

“I think this group is willing to do what it takes.”

Solid goaltending

Stallions have been getting steady goaltending with veteran Brandon Lane turning in some outstanding efforts. The 20-year-old Lane leads the league in appearances with 25 and he currently sports a 13-9 mark and one shutout.

Back-up puck stopper Brayden St-Germain has been a big addition. The 16-year-old is being groomed as Lane’s replacement and he has not disappointed so far. The Stittsville native has appeared in 10 games and has a 4-3 mark. Monday he stood 10th among CCHL net minders in goals against average with a solid 2.80 mark.

On offence veteran centre Derian Plouffe leads the club with 17 goals and 17 assists. He was tied for fifth on the league scoring chart Monday.

Second year left winger Brandon Petrie has accumulated 27 points including 17 set-ups while centre Fabian Walsh is third with 26 points. Defenceman and team captain Curtis Watson is a strong fourth on the Kanata scoring chart with 20 points including 16 assists in 29 appearances. Watson, a 20-year-old from Braeside near Arnprior, is in his fifth season with Stallions.

“We’ve got some guys back from last year who are playing well. But I am very impressed with some of our new additions,” Foster observes.

“We’ve played more games than most of the teams in the league. But that is going to change very quickly now. So every win is important.

“The whole league is so tight this year. Every game is huge,” the head coach adds.

“The parity is really good for the league.”

Next up for Stallions is a home ice engagement with Cornwall Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at Kanata Recreation Complex. Friday night they visit Cumberland Grads, the last place side in the Yzerman Division. The face-off in Navan will be at a somewhat earlier than usual 6:30.

Sunday summaries

Smiths Falls 4 – Kemptville 1: After slipping up in Kemptville in their previous meeting Oct. 28 (73’s won 1-0) the visiting Bears came out on the winning end this time around, although the home team gave them all they could handle. The 73’s held a 32-27 shots advantage but Jimmy Howe made 31 saves to help the league leaders to their third win in four games. Bears handed Kemptville a lifeline, taking 10 of the game’s 16 penalties. But 73’s were only able to cash in once on 10 opportunities. The first period was scoreless but CCHL scoring leader Chris Maniccia connected for his league best 23rd goal midway through the second to give high flying Smiths Falls the lead. Right winger Ryan Eardley made it 2-0 Bears early in the final frame. Jesse Lussier pulled Kemptville close during a powerplay at the 11:13 mark. Back-to-back strikes by Yannick Crete five minutes, 41 seconds apart sealed it for Smiths Falls. Crete’s second goal and 15th of the campaign was into the empty Kemptville cage with 1:09 left. Crete is in fourth place in the league scoring derby. Line mate Maniccia picked up assists on both of his tallies. Howe was named the game’s first star. Kemptville’s Billy Cooper was the losing goalie, turning aside 23 shots.

Pembroke 4 – Nepean 2: Sunday’s best match-up saw Lumber Kings win a four-pointer against Raiders to take over first place in the Yzerman Division. The loss prevented Nepean from remaining on top and extending their lead over Pembroke. The home team dominated, outshooting Raiders 34-24 and holding period leads of 2-0 and 3-1. But Ryan Mulder kept Nepean in the game making 30 saves and left winger Steven Johnston’s 11th goal at 8:29 of the third set up a frantic finish. Winning goalie Darren Smith kept the door shut the rest of the way and Tyler Gaudet’s second goal of the game, into the empty Raiders’ goal with 14 seconds remaining, clinched two important points for Pembroke. Kings’ goal scoring leader Stephen Hrehoriak opened scoring with his 13th of the campaign and Colin Bradbury had the other first period goal for the winners. Winger Timmy Moore had a pair of assists for Pembroke. Brandon Watt netted the first Nepean marker in the second period. Both sides were 0-4 on the powerplay.

Carleton Place 2 – Hawkesbury 0: Two third period goals, the last into the empty net, gave Canadians a hard fought win over the improving Hawks Sunday afternoon in front of more than 400 home fans. Almonte native Justin Laforest made 23 stops to record his first shutout of the campaign. The triumph gave Carleton Place (17-9-1-0) a split of their weekend home and home series with Robinson Division rival Hawkesbury. The second place Canadians outshot the fifth place Hawks 33-23. But the game was scoreless for 43 minutes and 42 seconds until Alex Globke unleashed his 13th goal to win it. Right winger Luke Kasteel’s sixth of the campaign came with just one second remaining and veteran Hawkesbury goalie Brock Crossthwaite on the bench in favour of a sixth attacker. It was only the second ‘0’ of the campaign for Carleton Place who has yet to be blanked themselves this season. Hawkesbury was assessed seven of the 13 penalties called during the contest. Laforest, Globke and Crossthwaite were the game stars!

Cornwall 6 – Cumberland 3: Colts won their second of the weekend, doubling sliding Cumberland at Navan Memorial Centre and Arena Sunday afternoon. Cornwall remained third in the Robinson loop, four points behind Carleton Place. Grads, the last place side in the Yzerman Division, lost for the fifth straight time. It was their eighth setback in 10 outings. The home team was in it early. The teams were tied 1-1 after 20 minutes and defenceman David Bennett’s powerplay tally gave the hosts the lead early in period two. Cornwall then scored five in a row, two in the second and three more in the third period to take charge of the engagement. Centre Marly Quince scored his team leading 19th goal and added an assist while blueliner Brandon Howes also had a goal and one helper. Newcomer Lawson MacDougall scored his first goal in only his second appearance for Cornwall while defenceman Pierre Ouellette also netted his initial marker of the campaign. Carl Belizario and Mitch Zion had the others for Colts. Defenceman David Higgs and centre Matthew Morin with a shorthanded effort late in the third also replied for Cumberland who was outshot 41-32. James Edwardson was the winning net minder while Reilly Turner suffered the loss. Grads were handed nine of the game’s 17 minor penalties but they didn’t surrender a powerplay goal.

Brockville 5 – Gloucester 4: Braves completed a 2-0 weekend, edging Matt Rosebrook and Gloucester. Rosebrook, who is undoubtedly the trade acquisition of the season to date in the CCHL, scored four straight goals for Rangers who had trailed 4-0 just over 13 minutes into Sunday’s game at Earl Armstrong Arena in Orleans. The 19-year-old Carp native now has 18 goals and 26 points in 22 games since moving to Gloucester as part of a four player trade with Kemptville in late September. Rosebrook leads Rangers in goals and is just four points behind team scoring ace Alexandre Boivin (he had two assists Sunday). Left winger Erik Brown of Braves spoiled the Rosebrook-led comeback bid, netting his fifth of the campaign at 6:41 of the final frame. David Ferreira, Braves’ scoring leader Ben Blasko, Zach Todd and Chris Roll, each with powerplay tallies, gave the visitors their early lead. Matthew Jenkins made 31 saves for the net minding triumph. Gloucester led the shots parade 35-31. Blasko, the second leading scorer in the CCHL (he has 45 points) and Ferreira each had three point games. Gianmarco De Meis started in goal for Gloucester but was relieved by Gunner Rivers after giving up three goals on just six shots. Each team was assessed eight penalties with Rangers going three for seven on the powerplay while Braves were two for five.

Lower lights win

All 12 teams saw action Friday and three of the league’s lesser lights scored important wins over higher standing opponents. League-leading Smiths Falls also fell to defending champion Nepean in a hard fought encounter.

Nepean 2 – Smiths Falls 1: Playing at home Bears ran into a hot goalie in the person of Nepean veteran Matt Zawadzki. He blocked 39 shots as Raiders surged into the lead (on percentage points) in the Yzerman Division. At the end of play Friday they were tied in points with Kanata and Raiders were one ahead of Pembroke and two up on Ottawa. This was a defensive contest with all three goals scored in the opening period. Smiths Falls' goalie Patrick Martin, who has been hot of late, was pulled after giving up back-to-back markers by Kenneth Neil and Nepean scoring leader Dalen Hedges six and a half minutes apart. Neil set up what proved to be the winning goal by Hedges. Late in the period right winger Connor McLaren netted his 14th of the campaign to make it close. The goaltenders stole the spotlight in the final 40 minutes. Zawadzki, who was named the game’s first star, stopped 28 shots including 16 in the middle stanza. At the other end Martin’s replacement, Jimmy Howe, kicked out 22 shots to keep Raiders from adding to their advantage. There were just seven minor penalties called, four of those going to Nepean and there were no powerplay goals. A good Smiths Falls crowd of just less than 800 took in the action.

Brockville 4 – Pembroke 2: Braves surprised the visiting Lumber Kings, breaking out after a slide that had seen them drop eight of their previous 10 starts. Brockville still has a major climb ahead in the Robinson Division. But they improved their home record to 8-6. They needed an empty netter to clinch the two points however. The loss was just the third for Pembroke in 10 games. The visitors led 2-1 going into the third period. Braves triggered three unanswered in the final frame including back-to-back powerplay strikes by centre David Ferreira. He took over the team goal scoring lead with 16. Brockville might have added another goal in the period but Cory Wilson’s penalty shot was stopped by Kings’ net minder Andy Munroe who sported the CCHL’s second best goals against average following action Friday. Braves were an impressive three for four on the powerplay with scoring leader Ben Blasko also scoring during a man advantage situation. Team captain Chris Roll found the empty net with just 22 seconds remaining to wrap it up. Pembroke got a goal and an assist from Emilio Audi who moved to 22 points. Defenceman Charlie Connell fired his third of the season late in the opening frame. Each team picked up five minor penalties but Lumber Kings were 0-4 on the powerplay. Nearly 900 witnessed the game at venerable Brockville Memorial Centre.

Kanata 2 – Ottawa 1: Stallions got another excellent net minding performance from Brandon Lane as they won a squeaker over Yzerman rival Ottawa at Kanata Recreation Complex. Lane made 30 saves as the visitors held a 31-24 edge in scoring chances. Brandon Petrie’s 10th goal at 7:54 of the third was the winner. The contest marked the second straight 2-1 decision on home ice for Kanata who has been the surprise team in the CCHL so far this season. Stallions and Gloucester have played the most games in the division to date (29) but Kanata’s 17-11-1-0 record has them among the league leaders as the campaign nears the halfway pole. Stallions’ winger Alex Stothart opened scoring just past the midway mark of the first. Junior Senators’ scoring leader Ben Robillard replied with his 13th early in the middle stanza. Alexandre Savard-Belanger was the losing goalie making 22 saves. The setback was the second of the week for Ottawa but they remain in the thick of the battle for the division pennant. Kanata was assessed seven of the game’s 12 minor penalties. All three goals were even strength strikes. A good Kanata crowd of more than 300 watched the well played contest.

Hawkesbury 3 – Carleton Place 2: Canadians, the second place side in the Robinson Division, failed to take advantage of their opportunity to gain ground on leaders Smiths Falls. They were edged by the improving Hawks who have been a thorn in their side in recent times. Hawkesbury won their second in three starts against Carleton Place, both at home. Last March the fifth place Hawks surprised the fourth place Canadians in the opening round of playoffs, sweeping Carleton Place four straight. Canadians became the latest victim of Hawks’ strong Friday night home performances this season. Hawkesbury has won seven of nine home games on Friday nights this season. The first was scoreless but two Hawks’ goals in less than three minutes meant the end of the line for Carleton Place starting goalie Tony Kujava. His replacement Justin Laforest yielded Brandon Bussey’s powerplay goal just two minutes, 11 seconds after taking over. Despite blocking 13 shots the rest of the way Laforest was the hard luck loser. Carl Faucher and defenceman Holden Anderson had the earlier goals for Hawkesbury. Anderson also set up one while winger Antonio Roumeliotis earned two assists. Stephen Baylis triggered a shorthanded, unassisted goal late in the second. Winning goalie Brock Crossthwaite also yielded a third period powerplay goal by Carleton Place newcomer Jide Idowu. The defenceman from Florida netted in his first appearance for Canadians. It was a chippy game with 21 penalties called, 12 of those going to Carleton Place.

Cornwall 5 – Gloucester 3: Colts emerged from a brief two game dip to get back into the thick of the Robinson Division race. Friday’s win at Earl Armstrong Arena in Orleans evened Cornwall’s record against Rangers at two wins apiece. The visitors led 3-1 and 4-1 at the intervals and they grabbed a four goal lead with 6:32 remaining and then withstood a late Gloucester charge that produced two goals in a span of 2:59. Second year centre Marly Quince took over the Cornwall scoring lead with two goals, giving him a team high 18. He also set up left winger Alexandre Gendron’s fifth goal which made it 3-1 in the first period. Winger Michael Pontarelli led the winners with his 12th goal and three assists. Veteran forward Mitch Zion had the other goal for Cornwall and he also helped out on one. Gloucester captain and scoring leader Alexandre Boivin reached the 30 point plateau with his eighth goal and one assist. Teammate Chad Millett also had a goal and one helper with Patrick White scoring shorthanded in the third period. Colts out chanced Rangers 36-27 with James Edwardson the winning goalie and Gunner Rivers suffering the loss. Each side picked up 10 penalties and both had a powerplay tally. A pair of late game tussles saw two players from each side tossed for fighting. All four will miss their team’s next game.

Kemptville 6 – Cumberland 3: The 73’s emerged from a lengthy slump which had seen them take just three points from 10 games, doubling Grads in front of 238 Kemptville fans. The battle of last place teams saw Kemptville move within seven points of fifth place Hawkesbury in the Robinson Division. The Navan-based Grads continued to trail Gloucester by six points in the Yzerman loop. Three unanswered strikes in less than six minutes in the first period set Kemptville on course for just their sixth victory in 25 games. Centre Joey House erupted for a hat trick giving him seven goals. Blaine Byron and Jake Butler had a goal and one assist each while team scoring leader Lucas Gonu fired No. 16. Brett Varrin, Mason Nowak and Jesse Lussier added two assists apiece to the Kemptville attack. Cumberland veteran Zach Rodier tallied twice while Matt Allan scored once and helped set up both of Rodier’s tallies. Jacob Tugnutt, son of former National Hockey League goalie Ron Tugnutt, earned his first net minding win in three decisions, making 33 saves. Cumberland out chanced the home team 36-32 with Devan Tremblay the losing goalie. There were just eight minor penalties in the well played contest, five of them going to Grads. Byron’s opening goal came during the game’s first powerplay. House, a four season CCHL veteran, was an easy choice as the first star!

Early week games

Smiths Falls 5 – Cornwall 1: The league leaders continue to get outstanding goaltending and their forwards, especially centre Chris Maniccia, are providing plenty of offence. It was the same story in Cornwall Thursday. The teams were even in shots at 38 apiece. But veteran puck stopper Patrick Martin allowed only one goal on the way to his league-leading 13th win against just four setbacks. Speaking of league leaders, Maniccia improved his CCHL-best statistics with a well taken hat trick and one assist. With 52 points following the game Maniccia is averaging two points per game. Colts had four powerplay opportunities only to have Bears pull the rug out from under them. Smiths Falls scored a very rare three shorthanded goals including one by Maniccia in the second, a first period strike by Karson McCartney and the third by Yannick Crete on a set-up from McCartney. Maniccia’s third goal, with 6:27 remaining, came during a Bears’ powerplay. Cornwall scoring leader Roman Ammirato was the only player to beat Martin. His goal came late in the opening stanza and left the teams deadlocked heading into the middle period. The visitors then scored four unanswered, two in each period, to win skating away. Jordan Piccolino was the losing goalie despite turning aside 33 shots.

Pembroke 5 – Ottawa 1: Lumber Kings moved back atop the Yzerman Division standings with a strong performance against Junior Senators at Jim Durrell Recreation Complex Wednesday. To underline how tight the division is, following play Wednesday Pembroke had 34 points while three other clubs, including Ottawa, were tied with 33. Kings dominated in this one, out gunning Sens 35-19 and holding period leads of 2-1 and 5-1. Ex-Lumber King Charlie Millen, who was seeking his third straight shutout going into the contest, was replaced for the third period by Alexandre Savard-Belanger who stopped all eight shots he faced. Pembroke spotted Ottawa the opening goal. Senators’ scoring leader Ben Robillard notched his 12th after only one minute, five seconds of play. Colin Bradbury with his second and Emilio Audi, with his first of two during a powerplay, replied for the visitors in the opening stanza. Right winger Timmy Moore connected for his first of the campaign four minutes into period two. Pembroke wrapped it up when Brendan McGuire and Audi (with his second) struck just 13 seconds apart in the late going. McGuire also assisted twice as did defenceman Carl-Philippe Ouimet. Ottawa was assessed seven of the game’s eight penalties. Audi, McGuire and centre Owen McDade completed a Pembroke sweep of the three star selection!

Nepean 6 – Kemptville 5 (OT): Raiders withstood a big third period comeback by visiting Kemptville Wednesday, winning on Keenan Hodgson’s second goal of the night and 11th of the campaign at 1:44 of overtime. Nepean led 1-0 after 20 minutes and they appeared to be on cruise control after adding four more unanswered goals in the second. To their credit the struggling 73’s refused to quit. They raced back into the game scoring four goals in 12 minutes. Then, with just 2:10 left in regulation 73’s scoring leader Lucas Gonu completed a third period hat trick to force OT. Kemptville was assisted by goalie Jacob Tugnutt who stopped all 13 shots he faced in the third period after replacing starter Billy Cooper. Kemptville carried the momentum into the extra period, outshooting the home team 4-2. Veteran net minder Matt Zawadzki stopped all four shots setting the stage for Hodgson’s winner. The single point was the first for Kemptville in five games but they remained mired in last place in the overall league standings. For Nepean it was Phillip Nasca scoring on a second period penalty shot and he also set up a pair. Raiders’ ace Dalen Hedges along with Andrew DeBrincat and Brent Norris had the others. Kemptville got a goal and an assist from Blaine Byron with Brett Varrin the other goal scorer. There were just seven minor penalties called, four of those to Nepean.

Smiths Falls 7 – Brockville 1: It was a frustrating Tuesday night for the struggling Braves who outshot host Smiths Falls and yet came out on the wrong end of a lopsided score. Bears rebounded from a Sunday loss in Carleton Place scoring two unanswered in the first, two more in the middle frame and they then added three without a reply in the final stanza. Jimmy Howe was excellent in Bears’ cage turning aside 27 Brockville scoring tries to improve his record to 6-4. League scoring leader Chris Maniccia padded his statistics with a goal and three assists to move to 48 points in 25 games. Following play Tuesday he was nine points ahead of Braves’ centre Ben Blasko who picked up an assist on defenceman Jay Kourkoulis’s first goal of the season. The powerplay strike late in the second period was the only puck to elude Howe. Karson McCartney led the Smiths Falls assault with two goals and one helper. Maniccia’s line mate Yannick Crete also scored twice giving him 12 goals and 34 points. Jesse Blais and blueliner Chris MacMillan, with his first of the campaign, were the other goal scorers. Matthew Jenkins was the losing net minder. The only major penalties came early in the third when Bears’ forward Adam Abu-Ali and Braves’ defenceman Kevin Kirisitis went toe-to-toe. Both were handed fighting majors, game misconducts and minor penalties. Abu-Ali was tagged as the aggressor.

Kanata 2 – Hawkesbury 1 (SO): The stampeding Stallions claimed their 16th win in 28 appearances, emerging with the bonus point after winning the shootout Tuesday. This was a goaltender’s dual with Kanata veteran Brandon Lane stopping 37 shots as the visitors held a 38-32 edge in scoring opportunities. At the other end Carmine Guerriero was also very sharp. Like Lane, he allowed just one goal in regulation, blocking 31 shots on the night. The first period was scoreless but early in the second light scoring Hawkesbury forward Jean-Pierre Larmoyeux triggered his third of the year during a powerplay. It remained 1-0 Hawks until the 12:31 mark of the final regulation period when Stallions’ scoring leader Derian Plouffe forced overtime with his 17th goal in 27 appearances. Plouffe was second in goals and fifth on the league scoring list following play Tuesday. The clubs skated through a scoreless extra period and in the shootout phase Devin Cobbold of Kanata was the only player to find the back of the net. Three Hawks’ shooters came up empty. There were 11 penalties called, six going to the home team.

Tuesday night three games will open this week’s CCHL schedule. Smiths Falls hosts Hawkesbury, Cumberland visits Carleton Place and Cornwall will travel to Kanata. Thirteen more games are slated Wednesday through Sunday.

Jeff Maguire is a career journalist based in Carleton Place. He has covered junior hockey in Ontario for 41 years. Jeff’s report will appear on the CCHL website every Monday throughout the season. He can be reached by e-mail at: jeffrey.maguire@rogers.com