Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1996-04-24, Page 27Congratulrilioiis to the players and coaches! CONSTRUCTION RAY MILLS (519) 228-6704 CENTRALIA, ONTARIO NOM 1K0 Page 26 Times -Advocate, April 24,1996 HARD-FOUGHT SERIES WON IN SEVENTH GAME By Chris Skalkos T A Reporter LUCAN There's no other way to put it...the Exeter Hawks are the best Junior "D" team in Ontario. Exeter won its first Ontario Hockey Association Championship in 20 years Saturday night when they defeated the Wellesley Apple Jacks 2-1 at the Lucan Community Centre. The Hawks needed seven games to beat Wellesley before claiming the prestigious O.H.A. title in a dramatic see -saw series. Game seven Game seven was the game that would go down in the record books and it turned out to be a goal tender's dual between Wellesley's all-star netminder and Hawk's goalie Dave Nahrgang. With the momentum of two wild overtime wins under their belt in games five and six. Wellesley jumped off to a flying start creating two good scoring opportunities within the first minute of action. But Nahrgang stood tall between the posts making two huge saves to keep his team from going under early. The Hawks got their legs back midway through the second and started to apply their own pressure rapping a few pucks off the post. Livermore finally found the twine shooting from the slot after being set up by Ben McCann and Robinson. The one goal lead carried Exeter through the first period and well into the second. The Hawks missed going up by one when Robinson found himself with the puck staring at an open net after a melee in front, but couldn't get a shot away. Livermore went in alone on a break away shortly after that, but he was robbed by the Wellesley goaltender who was sprawled out on the ice. The Hawks continued to apply pressure swarming around the net. With just over two minutes left in the second frame, Burns fought off two Wellesley defensmen deep in their zone digging the puck up and snapping a pass to Sean McCann who was breaking for the net. Dwarfed by the much larger Wellesley players, McCann side stepped a check and stick -handled his way in front of the net beating the goalie with a side-to-side deke. Sean McCann's goal at 17:39 in the second period would turn out to be the winner. Wellesley got one back on a power play in the third, but they couldn't beat Nahrgang for the tie and the Hawks held on to clinch the championship series. Game six After Wednesday's Ioss in Lucan, the Hawks were determined to finish the series in Wellesley on Friday night. They played the Jacks twice in their own arena beating them both times by the same score 5-2, and it looked as if they were going to do it again when Kennedy scored 55 seconds into the game after taking a pass from Nathan Burns. Wellesley rebounded with a quick goal two minutes later and the score remained tied at one going into the second. Bill Hodge scored Exeter's second goal when he took a feed from Craig Corriveau and Mark Livermore. He beat the goalie cleanly with a shot to the top right corner. Sean Brown scored a shorthanded goal in the second frame after Robinson stole the puck and set him up with a quick pass in front of the net. Brown put it upstairs as the goalie slid across the crease. Fighting back from a 3-1 deficit the Apple Jacks exploded for two quick goals to tie the game at three. Intense pressure applied by the Hawks late in the third resulted in a goal when the line of Steve Farquhar, Jeff Glavin and Corriveau peppered the Wellesley goalie with shot after shot until Glavin finally slid it under the goalie off a rebound at 8:05. Exeter was only half a minute away from winning the series when the Apple Jacks pulled out all the stops and tied the game with an incredible last-ditch effort with only 33 seconds left in regulation time. The stage was set for another overtime match. Again, the Hawks had outshot the Jacks 42-27 but the ones that count are the ones that go in, and it was Wellesley who came out on top. After two overtime periods a shot squeezed between the legs of goalie Darren Kints and dribbled over the goal -line. The double overtime victory for the Jacks tied the series at three sending it into a winner -take -all match in Lucan the next night. Game five spike into the Apple -Jack coffin, however, Wellesley wasn't ready to oonoede the series yet. They beat the Hawks 43 in overture sending the series back to Wellesley for game six. The overtime game was the closest the Jacks came to keeping up with the Hawks since the series began matching them shot -for -shot in the first period. Exeter scored first compliments of Shayne Robinson who found a home for the puck after it was rejected by the goal post midway through the Ara However a turnover at the red line allowed Wellesley to tie the game while short-handed. Sean Brown made it 2-1 when he took a backhand pass from Joe MacDonald and went in alone beating the goalie on a dean break away. But Wellesley came back with a goal in the second period to tie it up at two. The game remained scoreless in the third until Wesley went up 3-2 with only 1:25 left in the game. With their goalie pulled in favour of an extra skater, the Hawks tied the game when Chris Kennedy jammed the puck in after a scramble in front of the net with only 56 seconds left on the clock The dramatic last minute tieing goal sent the Hawk fans to their feet cheering wildly. Outshooting their opponents 42-19 through the first three periods and emotionally pumped after pulling through in the dutch, it seemed the odds were with the Hawks for scoring the winning goal in overtime. However, that quickly vanished when the Jacks scored in the extra period to win the contest. The aftermath Joyous chaos was the only way to describe the celebrations after the final buzzer sounded at the end of game seven. The Hawks jumped the boards and piled -on Nahrgang while the fans roared to their, feet in the stands. After shaking hands with Wellesley, team leader, Jason McBride accepted the O.H.A. Junior Development Championship Cup from league officials and hoisted it above his head. A sight Exeter hockey fans haven't seen in 20 years. Each member of the team took turns parading the trophy around the ice before taking it into the dressing room where a champagne shower was in progress. Everyone took a sip from the Junior "D" cup that has eluded Exeter since 1976. The team celebrated back in Exeter with friends and family and capped the victory celebrations with a ride on the town fire truck on Sunday afternoon. McBride was at a loss for words after the last game struggling to contain his emotions. "I'm just thankful to be a part of this team. I had a lot of good guys around me," he said. "I feel sorry for those guys (Wellesley), they're a good hockey team but we knew we were better." McBride credited the Hawk coaching staff of Dave Revington, Jeff Dalrymple and Barry Baynham for their laid-back coaching style explaining it allowed the team to come into their own. "We really didn't have to say anything to them. We tried to steer them in the right direction but mostly we just let them play. There's a lot of talent on this team and I think they really showed their character...they deserved to win." Head Coach, Dave Revington said goaltending was a factor in stretching this series out to seven games and he credits Nahrgang and Kints for keeping them in the game while the offensive lines found a way to beat the Apple Jack goalie. "If it wasn't for our goaltending we wouldn't be in the final series," said Revington. "I'm happy for the executive, and I'm happy for the guys, especially the ones that won't be back next year...they deserved this," said Revington who will lose a few players going over age or to other prospects. Assistant coach, Jeff Dalrymple credits the team's offensive depth and their ability to go with four equal lines and six defensmen. Despite outshooting Wellesley 286 to 159 the Hawks didn't take the series easily. "It didn't come down to shots on net, it came down to opportunities and scoring chances," said Dalrymple. "Nothing was easy in any of our playoff series, but I've never seen a team pull it together time after time and none of those games were bigger than the championship 60 minutes we just played." Even though they battled Wellesley to the last minute of the last game, Dalrymple said he never doubted they would win. "The guys were not going to let it slip away," he added. "The bottom line is that the best team won and it couldn't be any sweeter than this." The Hawks rebounded with three consecutive wins after losing their first match with Wellesley and were threatening to clinch the series when they hosted their opponents in Lucan for game five Wednesday night. Up until then Exeter had outshot their opponents 170 to 90, and the last time they played in Lucan they beat them convincingly 7-2. Poised to win their fourth game in front of a capacity crowd, the Hawks were ready to drive the final 1111 ()\ l IIH r\(1 (O\(;R\IlI \I1 1111 1\11IkI1\\\IpsO\ 1I111h 1 4.1 \,,()\ Congratulations on reaching yourgoa(s! SVpis epartmen Stoi 311 Main St. Exeter 235-2811 Congratulations Exeter Hawks! W Photo 6 St Framing Next To Seo 1 HOUR SAM THE RECORD MAN 301 Main St. S. 2353713 May the Memories Lash. ILyeTIllle.. WATER DISTILLERS 342 MAIN ST. 235-0699 MARIC We are very prvutlofyour successful- year! GENERAL COACH 73 Mill St. Hensel! • 262-2600 Wet! rDone! 'The Mutual Group Geoge Goddolt Way to Go Hawks! WInaDOORCENIEE sales • Service • installation Exeter 235-3502 Prs. as Delivery VISIT OUR SHOWROOM AT 360 MAIN ST. S. Exeter 235-3542 Pree EstimatesbDeihmry f ,?niVl $ , tr•--i ;1'Yf'r11.1C1 ,aric,rYL. /pis%R Congratulations fro 5.0614./ SIGNS a 235-2474 STEVE HARRISON 313 Carling St. Exeter, Ont. WayTo Cao! BIG '0' INC. Hwy. 83 Exeter 235-0870 Congratulations on agreat SawIeq season! GAIt'S A Be GIIILL 58 Main N. Exeter 235-2773 Wfiat a 5uccessfu(Year! KELLER Roof.ng 8 Stieet Mvlefal Co EXETER 235-3643 FAX: 231.0053 1 -800 -770 -ROOF t.