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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1993-10-20, Page 13cert ,w,+ % NOV. 4,5,6 (s.H.a.H.S.) 14 MORE DAYS FCO HOCK junior 'D` hockey Three quick goals lift Hawks over Alvinston By Fred Groves T•A staff EXETER - A three -goal surge in less than a minute in the third peri- od helped the Exeter Hawks to their third win of the OHA Junior Devel- opment League season. Friday night at the South Huron Recreation Centre, second -year for- ward Sean McCann netted a hat trick as the Hawks downed the vis- iting Alvinston Flyers 7-3. The win lifts the Hawks west di- vision record to 3-1 'Which they took against -the visiting Seaforth Centenaires last night and which they hope to expand upon when the Lucan Irish come to town Friday for an 8:30 p.m. start. "We've got a game on Tuesday night and we'll work on a few things for Friday's game but we can't look past Seaforth yet. Once we get into tougher competition we'll definitely change things, how much I don't know," said Hawks' coach George Pratt. It was the second Friday in a row that the Hawks hosted the Flyers, a little glith, in the schedule which may have to be corrected in future years. "It's unfortunate that' it happened but it's two wins for us," said Pratt. The Hawks get off to a slow start on Friday and Sean McCann's goal, which knotted the score at a goal each was the only tally for the Hawks in the fust frame. McCann, who netted his third, fourth and fifth goals of the season stole the puck at his own blueline and went all the way down the rink to score. "We were taking Alvinston too lightly," said Pratt of his team which beat the Flyers 10=3 a week earlier. "The guys weren't showing up to play. After the first period we got the message to them, I wasn't happy, we were lucky to be tied." Goalie Kirk Durand kept the Hawks in the first period and made several .key saves throughout the night. It was his first game of the season as he has had a sore thumb and with rookie Chris Lyndon, the duo have a 3.00 goals against aver- age. "Kirk played a good game for be- ing off a little while," said Pratt. The Hawks received a lot of of- fence from their blueliners as Jamie Cornish netted his second power- play marker of the year and captain Dave Dalrymple got his first. Dalrymple's goal came late in the second when Steve Farquhar dug the puck out of the corner, got it to another defenseman Mark Lynn in front of the net before Dalrymple came in ;to,put it past Matt Dan- buook. "It's nice to see them moving into the play. If our wingers are tied up and we have good control of the puck, by all means go in," said Pratt. Rookie Lee Gibbings got the oth- er Exeter goal, his fust of the sea- son while Brad Blain, Rob Shew- chuck and Mau Caton answered for the Flyers. Playing games a week apart against the same team can cause for some hard feelings as Exeter's Mark Livermore battled Marty Thompson and Hawks' Todd McCann squared off with Aaron Griffith alliin the third period. Hawks 'bappeni gs:...After four games, the 3-1 Hawks are led in scoring by Shayne Robinson who St has 13 points (including three as- sists on Friday) and Sean McCann with 11 points...Both teams re- ceived a minor penalty for too many men on the ice... All the stk:ks were looking for the puck which was covered up to the puck on Friday were Exeter's Sean Oil this play by Alvinston goalie Matt Danbroyvk. Trying to get McCann and Shayne Robinson. cCann, left; Todd Exeter Hawks' forward Lee Gibbings goes face-to-face with an Alvinston player during Friday's action. -Friday's preview WHAT: OHA Junior Development League Hockey WHEN: Friday, Oct. 22, 8:30 p.m. WHERE: South Huron Recreation Centre, Exeter. VS.' do their first four games,(nOt fue y's gattie �iitlat Ittttg Seaforth) they've played, the Hawks have baited strong and have a bal- anced scoring attack that the coaching staff seems pleased with. As expected, the big line of Sean McCann, Shayne Robinson and Todd McCann is this club's strong point. Sean McCann and Robinson have 11 of the Hawks 29 goals thus far. But Ray Cousineau, Mark Livermore, Ja- mie Cornish, Nathan Burns and Steve Farquhar all have a pair each. Goaltending is a strong point as rookie Chris Lyndon had a shutout his first game and after three outings posts a 3.00 average. In his first start, re- turnee Kirk Durand allowed only three goals. Undefeated ''in their first four games (the Irish hosted Alvinston last night) the big surprise on this club is 15 year-old defenseman David Man- cari. A bantam a year-ago, the Londoner came into last night's game with four goals and as many assists in only four games. The Irish got a big lift Friday when they travelled to Mitchell and came home with a 5-5 draw with the defending provincial champs. . As expected, centre Greg DePrest has eight points and with Steve Moore and newcomer Rob Davis, are the Irish's premier line. It was tough to have to find two new goalies but the Irish are doing well with Steve Watson and Stuart Ashton. The Irish rotate their goalies and both look good. WHAT TO LOOK FOR; This will be a classic matchup between a pair of old rivals. Don't expect a lot of defense as the Hawks' McCann - McCann -Robinson line will try to outgun DePrest-Moore-Davis..Exeter could have a big advantage in that they are the home team and Hawks' coach George Pratt gets the last change and in a game that has a lot of scoring potential like this one, that's important... Irish action - see page 15 Board room decisions won't hurt hockey basics comics are everywhere. This column is about the ongoing, 'I want, you can't have it' battle over the rights to govem minor hockey in this province. But while there is a lot of com- motion over this sensitive issue, it's one which shouldn't send mass panic through the ranks. Boys and girls will still continue to drag their equipment to the arena, mom and dad will closely follow, and the players will still continue to skate, shoot and score. It's very gratifying to see that the grass roots of this wonderful sport will remain untouched despite all the crap and B.S. that goes on in the board rooms. Lawyers and representatives from the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Associ- ation (CAHA) have agreed to disagree until at least January 15, 1994. What the OMHA had asked for was the right to have its 100,000 members affiliate with the CAHA. Sony, nice try, maybe later. In a nutshell, the OMHA which has been branded an outlaw league, will not be able to bave any of it's member teams compete in CAHA sanctioned, American or overseas tournaments. It also means that any OMHA teams who qualify for national championships would not be able to play. It's a real good thing that this holds true for minor teams and not any which belong to other organizations such as the Ontario Hockey Association or, heaven forbid the Ontario Hockey League. What Would it be like if representatives from the OHL were not able to play in the United States, or overseas or participate in any Canadian championships. This is what it would come to - Thc Detroit Junior RedWings, a team in the OHL (which is Ma- jor Junior 'A'), would simply not be part of the league. Sure they would probably be able to come over here and play but teams such as the Windsor Spitfires, London Knights and Pe- terborough Petes would not be able to go over -there. Ever ear the Major Junior 'A' teams in this country battle for what is called the Memorial Cup. It's a very historic and prestig- ious trophy which is awarded to the best club in the country. If the OHL were to ever have a relationship with the CAHA like the OMHA does, then OHL teams would not be able to play for the national championship. The Memorial Cup toumament is where premier hockey players are scouted and their performance at the event often determines whether or not they're going to the NHL. What the split between the OMHA and the OHA has done is limit good hockey players from getting into certain tournaments, especially the International Silver Stick. I have to give credit to those minor hockey associations such as Stratford and Greater London who have jumped away from the OMHA and created the Minor Hockey Alliance of Ontario. This group represents about 15 per cern of the OMHA's player population and the Alliance has returned to the CAHA umbrella in order to be able to play in such things as national champion- ships and travel to the states. Minor hockey, for those who have participated on the coaching side of it, has nothing to do with politics until you reach the playoff crutch when there always seems to be some governing group with it's hand out waiting for money. Minor hockey is about adults in team jackets with the word coach, manager or trainer on it, talking to a colleague in a hallway and making plans for the next game. It's about the hockey moms who spend hours driving the family van across frozen roads and spend endless hours in the kitchen fixing those goodies for the bake sales. Minor hockey is about dads who bite their nails and buy their kids a coke and a hot dog after the game. It's nothing about those guys in suits sitting around tables and making decisions which, probably to their displeasure, dues Dot ruin kids lives.