Grizzlies "A" finalists in Senior Tyke tournament

Posted Feb 2, 2012 By Steve Kennedy

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back row (l-r) manager Russ Thompson, head coach Al Danford, trainer Steve Kennedy (absent assistant coach Chris Peters).

back row (l-r) manager Russ Thompson, head coach Al Danford, trainer Steve Kennedy (absent assistant coach Chris Peters).

EMC Sports - The Grizzlies Senior Tykes played in the annual Havelock Hawks Senior Tyke Tournament last Saturday. It was their first tournament of the year, and they made it to the "A" finals. There they ran into a very good Campbellford team with a hot goalie and Centre Hastings was defeated by a final score of 2 -0 in a tight game.

Earlier that morning, the Grizzlies played their first game against the Ennismore Eagles. Centre Hastings started slowly and fell behind early, but they bounced back and were poised to win the game. Unfortunately, Ennismore tied the game with two minutes left to play, and the game ended in a 6 -6 draw.

Landen Carey had jump and scored four goals, with defencemen Ben Danford adding two more. Caleb Watson was relentless in his work ethic, and he had what was perhaps his best game of the season. Forward Riley Lovely was also very determined and had a strong game.

Game two was another come-from-behind effort, and the Grizzlies were able to edge the Orono Leafs by a score of 4 -3. Nick Oke scored a hat trick, and Danford added another. The two skaters worked very well together on Oke's second goal. Danford rushed the puck up the right boards. As the Leafs converged on him near their blue line, he feathered a pass over to Oke, who was streaking up the middle of the ice. Oke took the pass on the tape and broke in unencumbered to score.

On the defensive side of the puck, head coach Al Danford was very pleased with the play of defenceman Sam Fluke. "He played well in our end, and he was really effective at clearing the zone," he said. "As well, our goalie, Kurtis Lautenbach, made some really nice stops. He was outstanding in net for us, as usual."

With a 1 -0 -1 record, the Grizzlies finished first in the pool. On the other side, the Campbellford Colts went undefeated in their pool and, they too, found themselves headed to the "A" final.

The championship game was a Tyke goaltending duel for the ages. Together, Lautenbach and Colts' goaltender Victoria Brunton took turns denying the shooters and bringing the crowd to its feet. Lautenbach made an unbelievable glove save that was destined for the top corner. Brunton was brilliant in her lateral movement and kicking out her pads to take away the bottom of the net.

Campbellford finally broke the stalemate midway through the second period and went up 1 -0. No one was able to score again until Campbellford added another with a mere four seconds to play in the third.

The Colts defeated the Grizzlies by a final score of 2 -0, and the Grizzlies on the ice were clearly dejected after the second goal.

However, from the bench, coach Danford had a different perspective on things.

"It's good to see that our players care," he said. "But, the Senior Tyke team from Campbellford never lost a league game all year, and this game was back and forth. Really, it was the best game we've played all year. We couldn't be more proud of the way they played. The players should be proud of themselves as well, and that's exactly the message we're going to give them."

During the trophy presentations after the game, goaltenders Lautenbach and Brunton both received Player of the Game honours for their teams. Centre Hastings would like to congratulate Campbellford on the tournament victory.