The Citizen, 2016-12-22, Page 42PAGE 42. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2016.
Sports
Centenaires post revenge win over Clinton Radars
It would be easy for the Huron
East Centenaires to be satisfied with
close games and good efforts against
Sr AA Men's hockey powerhouse
Clinton Radars, but the Centenaires
see themselves now as a team
capable of more than that.
It has been many years since the
old rivalries of Clinton and Seaforth
sparked the excitement it has this
season according to Centenaires
president Bill Tremeer.
"It's been a few years, but in my
minor hockey days, playing Clinton
was always a rivalry," he said,
adding that the close drive between
centres has always meant that family
and friends filled the arenas and it
has generally made for competitive
hockey games. "You could feel the
excitement on Saturday."
Tremeer said there were fans out
supporting both squads and it felt
like those contests of his youth.
"Not only did we have a lot of fans
out supporting the Cents, but the
Radars faithful were out and it really
felt like old days around the arena,"
he said. "There was lots of
excitement and a great game."
Immediately from the drop of the
puck it was obvious the pace was
going to be fast as the Clinton
Radars used their speed to break past
the Centenaires' defence and test
goalie Jesse Raymond.
The former Stratford Culliton had
this rematch with Clinton circled on
the calendar after a stinging loss in
November when the Radars
snatched a 3-2 win by scoring the
winning goal with less than a minute
to go in the game.
"For sure I wanted this win," said
Raymond, who earned the game
MVP nod from his teammates after
the game.
The first period showcased what
both teams were capable of, with the
Radars performing lots of fast paced
breaks and good puck control and
the Cents crashing low in the
Radars' end.
It would be the Cents' Chett
Binning to register the first goal with
two minutes to go. Binning's
teammate Rueben Smith would
notch the next marker, putting the
Cents up 2-0 as they headed to the
dressing room at the end of the first.
The Radars hit the ice with
intensity in the second period. It was
the speed of the Radars that set the
Cents back on their heels.
"Those guys can move the puck
and skate really well," said Smith.
"If you give them the space to get the
step, that can turn it into a scoring
opportunity really quickly."
Two well -organized goals, one by
Randy Kilburn and another by Luke
Vick, put the Radars on the board
and tied the game.
With less than a minute to go,
Radars veteran Tyler Doig netted a
painful go-ahead goal to take a 3-2
lead into the third.
"I thought the boys might have
been out of gas. The tempo in the
first two periods was really high,"
said Tremeer. "There are plenty of
proud guys on our bench and they
knew they would have to bring
everything in the third."
The third period mirrored the first
period in many ways with the Cents
defence working on closing the gaps
the speedy Radars were gunning for
and forwards going back to a
workman -like low grind in the
Radars' end.
Seaforth veteran Scott Henderson
was able to settle down a loose puck
and tie the game up with a rocket
shot up high over Radars goalie
Marc Nother.
Raymond and Nother both went to
work for their teams snatching away
several opportunities by both teams
to force the game into overtime.
After five minutes of furious four -
on -four action, the game went to a
shootout.
Raymond and Nother both kicked
away seven shots before
Centenaries' Joe Kitchen slipped in
the overtime winner.
"That felt awesome," said Kitchen.
"To go through that many shooters
and seeing Jesse make the saves he
did throughout the shootout and the
game made it feel really good to
score and to get this win."
The Centenaires will have few
weeks to enjoy the victory before
facing Clinton again Jan. 6 in
Clinton.
It is a game fans and players are
looking forward to according to
Tremeer.
"I cannot wait" he said. "We have
said often that we have this team
here for some of the old excitement
and energy that used to be part of our
hockey growing up. The two games
against Clinton here have been all
that and great hockey. I am sure it
will be the same in their arena."
A tight one
On Saturday the Blyth Bantam Bullets girls broomball team
welcomed Mildmay to the Blyth and District Community
Centre. After a tense game, the two teams had to settle for
a 1-1 tie. (Vicky Bremner photo)
TUCKERSMITH COMMUNICATIONS CO-OPERATIVE LTD.
A the best in 2017!
Clinton Seaforth Brussels
www.tcc.on.ca 519-606-2211 tcc@tcc.on.ca