Mar 26, 2013 | cshanks | 1034 views
Bantam Muskies End Season with Silver Medal in Bill Buss Applewood A Tournament
The Lindsay Muskies competed in the Bill Buss A Tournament this past weekend with a great showing and earned the Silver Medal against the higher category competition. The Muskies started the tournament with a 4-3 win over Milton. The Muskies got out to a quick 2-0 lead 23 seconds into the game and built the lead to 4-0 before getting off their game and letting Milton get under their skin. Milton slowly got back into their game and closed within 1 to 4-3 with 16 seconds left but the Muskies were able to hold on for the win. Goals were scored by Caileb Duffy (assists to Zack Rhodes and Cameron Robinson), Zack Rhodes (assists to Caileb Duffy and Cameron Robinson), Matt Cooke (assists to Jaryd Lapointe and Riley MacIver) and Cameron Robinson (assists to Caileb Duffy and Zack Rhodes).
Game 2 was against Cooksville, a strong team from the Mississauga Hockey League. This was a very tough and strongly battled game with the Muskies earning a 1-1 tie on the back of goaltender Tanner King who played outstanding as he made several jaw-dropping saves that left the Cooksville players shaking their heads. The Muskies goal was scored by Cameron Robinson with assists to Riley MacIver and Jaryd Lapointe.
Saturday morning Lindsay played the host Applewood team in game 3. Lindsay came out very flat without much intensity but were able to take a 1-0 lead early in the 2nd period on a goal by Cameron Robinson (assists to Riley King and Garrett Fierheller). Silly penalties got the Muskies into short-handed trouble in the 2nd period as Applewood took advantage to score 2 PP goals less than a minute apart to take a 2-1 lead. The Muskies came out with better intensity in the 3rd period and dominated but couldn't seem to get the equalizer. With 3 minutes left the Muskies got a 2 man advantage and pulled the goalie for a 6 on 3 and finally got the equalizer from Zack Rhodes (assists to Cameron Robinson and Caileb Duffy). Domenic Arthurs backstopped the Muskies and made several key saves to keep the game tied and preserve a point for the Muskies.
This left Lindsay in 2nd place in the Round Robin pool with 4 points heading into the final game against Pool leader Clarkson who was undefeated at the time with 6 points. If Lindsay could manage a win in this game they would win the pool and ensure an easier Semi-final game on Sunday morning. The game was tightly contested throughout the first period until Clarkson took a 1-0 lead late in the 1st. Shortly after that Lindsay was able to score a PP goal to even the score with Caileb Duffy scoring with assists to Cameron Robinson and Zack Rhodes. Lindsay was able to control the 2nd period and took a 3-1 lead into the 3rd on goals by Matt Cooke (assists to Dawson Bruce and Garrett Fierheller) and Dawson Bruce (assists to Matt Cooke and Drake McQuarrie). With the Muskies in penalty trouble again in the 3rd period the team showed tremendous PK in keeping the 2 goal lead. Dryden Brown, Cody Defreitas, Liam Shanks and Curtis Appleton led the way on the PK. With under a minute left and 2 players in the box the Clarkson team pulled their goalie for a 6 on 3 but Riley MacIver was able to score the game sealing short-handed empty net goal (assists to Liam Shanks and Curtis Appleton) to give the Muskies the 4-1 win and clinch 1st place in the round-robin. Tanner King was again the star of the game with several unbelievable saves.
The Sunday Semi-final saw a re-match with Milton and while the Muskies came out nervous and slow they were able to build momentum throughout the game. Matt Cooke got the Muskies on the board late in the 1st (assists to Jaryd Lapointe and Dawson Bruce) and this seemed to give the team energy as they built the lead to 5-0 before the end of the 2nd on goals by Cameron Robinson (assists to Caileb Duffy and Zack Rhodes) and a hat trick by Zack Rhodes with assists to Caileb Duffy (2), Cameron Robinson (2), Riley MacIver and Dryden Brown. The Milton team turned this game ugly with some undisciplined play and the coaching staff was very proud of the team for keeping their composure. Curtis Appleton rounded out the scoring (assists to Riley King and Garrett Fierheller) to secure a spot in the final with a 6-0 win. Tanner King earned the shutout.
The final saw a re-match with the tough Cooksville team. The 1st period was evenly contested and saw the period end in a 0-0 tie. However the 2nd period saw Cooksville take control of the game with their size and speed and a relentless forecheck which was wearing down the Muskies after a long weekend of hockey. However Tanner King and some solid defensive zone coverage kept the score tied until the Muskies benefitted from a break and scored the opening goal (Caileb Duffy from Cameron Robinson). The Cooksville team kept coming however and were able to build a 3-1 lead before the end of the 2nd period. Lindsay kept battling throughout the 3rd and kept the game close until the dying seconds when Drake McQuarrie (assists to Liam Shanks and Cody Defreitas) scored to make it 3-2 with 11 seconds left with the extra attacker out there. The Muskies tried valiantly to tie the game with 2 final shots but were unable to get the equalizer and force OT and had to settle for the Silver Medal. Again Tanner King had a tremendous game to give the Muskies a chance to win it.
All in all a tremendous end of season result for the Muskies playing against the higher "A" calibre competition.