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The Citizen, 2010-03-11, Page 8PAGE 8. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2010. Blyth Minor Soccer & Baseball 2010 REGISTRATION Wednesday, March 17, 7-9 pm and Saturday, March 20, 9:30 am - noon will be held at the Blyth Public School on For more information call: 519-523-4202 Blyth & District Soccer (ages 3 and up) Blyth Minor Ball (ages 5 and up) SportsPeters receives call-up, wins three of four, awarded game stars for two With a save percentage of 94.3 per cent, and two game stars in only four games, Blyth-native Justin Peters is really making waves in the NHL. Recently called up for the Carolina Hurricanes from their farm team, the American Hockey League Albany River Rats, the left-catching goaltender has had an amazing run so far, winning three of his four games. A second-round draft pick in the 2004 NHL Entry draft, Peters has gone from AAA hockey in Huron-Perth to NHL starter in eight years. Peters received a pleasant surprise at a recent away-game versus the Toronto Maple Leafs, having nearly 50 friends and families crowd the stands at the Air Canada Centre (ACC) to cheer on one of the hottest young goalies in the NHL. His mother, Janice, said the experience is still settling in due to its surreality. “It’s exciting, I’ve never been to the ACC and it’s a beautiful arena, a perfect spot for us to see Justin’s game,” she said. The experience was made even more incredible for Janice as she hadn’t even seen her son on television yet due to scheduling. “It seemed just like another game,” she said. “Maybe I just need to see it on television and hear his name announced for it to really settle in.” Janice said that Justin had no idea so many people were coming down to see him, and he had a huge smile on his face. “It was awkward, getting everyone next to the door so he could come see us,” she said. “And he worked his way over the seats to shake hands, he was so happy to see everyone.” When asked about inspirations, or driving factors, both Janice and Jeff, Justin’s father, said the same thing: Justin was really his own motivator. “Justin had worked so hard, and sacrificed so much to get where he is,” Janice said. “It’s a lot of work being in the AHL and the NHL, everyone thinks it’s fun, but you’re up at the crack of dawn to skate, you live out of a suitcase, you can get completely uprooted at anytime, it’s a real sacrifice.” “He always pushed himself harder than anyone else,” Jeff said. “He would race the skaters on the ice to get them to go harder. If he had a bad game, he would come back and work that much harder, he was really his own inspiration.” Both agreed that, while Justin would say he wanted to play in the NHL, neither really believed it was happening until they saw him take the ice. “If you told me six years ago, heck, six months ago that I’d be sitting in the ACC watching Justin play, I would have doubted it, but he really pushed himself all the way,” Jeff said. Jeff said that watching his son play at the ACC was great. “It was great, obviously, to see him on the ice,” he said. “He played well, but we were really there for him. I was so happy for him, to see him compete at that level is just amazing.” “His hard work and determination really paid off,” he said. By Denny Scott The Citizen Nice stop Blyth’s goalie came up big on this save on March 3 against Norwich, but he couldn’t stop them all as the Blyth Midget Rep Bulldogs lost the contest by a score of 2-0. (Vicky Bremner photo) The Blyth Midget Bulldogs are attempting to overthrow 2008-09 Midget ‘D’champions, the Norwich Hawks. Norwich took the most recent game 4-1, tying the series at two. Blyth’s one goal was scored by Dan Dery, and assisted by Shea McLean and Adam Cronin. The series has gone back and forth since the first time the teams took to the ice on February 27. Blyth took the lead in the series that night with a 4-3 win over Norwich. Goals were scored by Dery (two) and Dallas Pennington (two). Assists were awarded to Tyler Middegaal (two), Matt Popp (two), Dery and Stretton. The next match saw Blyth and Norwich battle to a 1-1 overtime tie. Adam Cronin scored Blyth’s sole marker, while Popp took another assists. Game three in Blyth saw Norwich shut out the Bulldogs 2-0, tying the series at one. Game four in the first-to-three series saw Blyth take the lead with a 3-1 win. Goals were scored by Michael McDowell, Cronin, and Austin Sjaarda. Assists went to Tyler Stevenson, Pennington, John LeComte and Cronin. The Midget Bulldogs took to the ice again on March 9 to finish the series. The score of this final match was unavailable as of press time. Wingham Golf and Curling Club EARLY BIRD GOLF REGISTRATION * BEST RATES AVAILABLE * FREE DRIVING RANGE * WE PAY THE GST Saturday, March 20 10:00 am - 3:00 pm Sunday, March 28 10:00 am - 2 pm Phone: 519-357-2179 Norwich eliminates Bulldogs in final game The puck stops here Carolina Hurricanes goaltender, and former-Blyth resident Justin Peters had an amazing start in the NHL. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/Courtesty of Carolina Hurricanes)