Bell
Capital Cup
Minor
Peewee AA Rangers win Bell Capital Cup
By Fred Sherwin
OrleansOnline,ca
 |
Zach
Holroyd (left) and Liam Murdoch hold up the
Bell Capital Cup after the Gloucester Rangers
Major Peewee AA team beat the Blue Junior
Black team from Finland 3-2 in the final.
Photo courtesy of InAction Photograohy
|
|
It
didnt matter which country the opposition came from
for the Gloucester Rangers Major Peewee AA team at this
years Bell Capital Cup Canada, the United
States, even Finland, the Rangers beat them all en route
to capturing the tournament championship.
On
New Years Eve, the Rangers proudly skated around
Canadian Tire Centre ice with the Allen J. MacDonald Memorial
Trophy after defeating the Blue Junior Black from Finland
3-2 in the championship final.
Beating
a Finnish team in the final is definitely a storybook
ending for the boys, said Rangers head coach,
Kennedy Johnston.
The
whole experience of playing at the home of the Ottawa
Senators along with the thrill of winning the championship
is something I know I will never forget, its very
special.
After
finishing No.1 and No. 2 in round robin play, Gloucester
(12 pts) and Finland (10 pts) ended up in the big game
after squashing their opponents in the playoff rounds,
Initially,
the Rangers lost 3-2 to the Timmins North Stars in their
tournament opener, before rattling off three consecutive
wins over American competition. The Rangers winning streak
was composed of victories against Winchester, MA (4-0),
the New England Jr. Falcons (2-0) and the Lancaster, PA
Firebirds (2-1).
The
Rangers qualified for the champi- onship game with an
exciting 3-2 double overtime win over the Ottawa Sting
in the semi-finals thanks to Jackson Dallaires game-winning
marker.
The
Finnish team knocked off Timmins 5-2 in their semi-final
to set up the international showdown at the CTC.
The
Rangers jumped out to quick start and struck just 53 seconds
into the opening period on a goal by Tristan Faubert that
was set up by linemates Marc-Antoine Petrut and Cole Cassidy.
The
Finns did everything they could to get the equalizer,
but Mason Ramsey was solid between the pipes for Gloucester.
The
Rangers doubled their lead at the 2:14 mark of the second
period when Cassidy completed a picture perfect tik-tak-toe
play, started by Olivier Johnston who sent a lead pass
to Cassidy, who then worked a give and go play with Faubert
before beating Finnish goalie Oliver Hannula glove side.
The
team was excited when we went ahead 2-0 but I warned them
that Finland is a very good team and wouldnt give
up, Johnston said.
He
was right as Aleksi Leisti responded with a breakaway
goal for Finland at the 5:10 mark of the second period
that cut the Rangers lead in half.
There
seemed to be no stopping the Gloucester side, however,
as they regained their two goal lead at the 3:47 mark
of the final stanza when Faubert notched his second of
the game on a pass from Cassidy
Finnish
skater Eeilis Leikkari set up an exciting finish when
he managed to tuck a loose puck under a prone Ramsey to
make it a one goal game wth 3:39 left on the clock.
The
Rangers would make things even more interesting when Cassidy
was sent off for interference with 34 seconds left to
go, allowing the Finns a two-man advantage after they
pulled their goalie.
The
Rangers remained calm and held on for the big win and
even bigger celebration as the final buzzer sounded.
The
competition in our division was excellent it forced us
(Gloucester) to be at our best. Coming out on top was
biggest win of the year, said Johnston.
Their
most recent accomplishment at the Bell Capital Cup marks
the teams third tournament win this season.
In
November, the Rangers captured the Wally Beavis tournament
in Peterborough and the Kingston Canadians tourney the
same month.
The
team has a week to enjoy their Bell Capital Cup success
before resuming their regular season schedule on Jan.
8 against the St. Lawrence Steel.
The
Rangers currently sit in third place in the Hockey Eastern
Ontario standings, two points up on St. Lawrence and six
points back of the second place Ottawa Sting. The Nepean
Raiders currently lead the division with 41 points in
24 games.
 |
Members
of the Gloucester Rangers Major Peewee AA
team pose with the Bell Capital Cup and championship
banner. Photo courtesy of InAction Photograohy
|
|
Of
the three Gloucester peewee teams entered in the Bell
Capital Cup, all three made it to their respective division
finals including the Minor Peewee AA squad which played
up in the Minor Peewee AAA division and beat the Ajax
Pickering Raiders 4-0 in the final on goals by Owen Outwater,
Dylan Paron, Tanner Fennell and Atiqalaaq Uuttuvak.
Owen
Willgos registered the shutout in net for the Rangers.
The
younger Rangers outscored their opponents 41-13 in compiling
a perfect 7-0 record playing in the highly competitive
AAA division.
The
four leading scorers in the division were all from Gloucester,
with Outwater (9G, 6A) edging out Christopher Barlas (8G,
7A) by one goal for the tournament scoring title.
The
third Rangers peewee team to make it to the division finals
was the Minor Peewee A squad which lost 2-1 to the Ottawa
Sting in the Minor Peewee AA final.
The
Rangers made it into the final by compiling a 4-0-0 record
in the round robin portion of the tournament. They were
led by Daniel Kyte who had four goals and two assists
in five games including the final.
Logan
Graham (3G, 2A) and Morgan Deslauriers (1G, 4A) contributed
five points each.
In
the girls Peewee AA division, the Gloucester-Cumberland
Stars lost 1-0 to the Barrie Sharks in double overtime.
It
was a heartbreaking loss for a team that averaged nearly
five goals per game in amassing a perfect 5-0 record in
the round robin portion of the tourament while giving
up just four goals against.
(Posted
8:30 p.m., Jan .3)
Visit
www.orleansonline.ca's main page
|