Nov 01, 2015 | goldfield | 944 views
Thundering Strongly into a New Season
Oro Peewee LL1 is three games deep into the 2015/16 season with a trio of solid performances under their belts
This hard working team looks poised to be a handful for any opponent they face this year
Every season starts anew with plenty of excitement often mixed with dash of trepidation
There is a room full of new and old faces with boys and girls looking to make a good first impression
This year brings a new Coach, a smaller roster and a popular goalie brought out of retirement
One of coach Aaron's earliest surprises came during first practice.
He remarked that when he blew the whistle,every player immediately rushed to center ice ,took a knee and focussed on direction. This and near perfect attendance at subsequent practices bodes well for a team trying to develop skills
and chemistry on our long march to the playoffs
Oct 17,2015-Game 1 vs Wasaga Stars 2
Coach Mike assumed Head Coaching duties behind the bench and the team was ready for business right from the opening faceoff with tenacious forechecking.
It took the Thunder just over a minute to get on the board with an gorgeous,winding three zone rush by Wesley who finished with a lightning bolt low glove. Goal was credited to Jesse,with apple to Wes as the refs flipped the order mistakenly.
Oro dominated possession and play throughout the period but were held off the scoresheet by the Wasaga netminder who made many timely saves
The team was passing the puck exceptionally well and Bo,Jesse and Zack found early chemistry
Defensive pairings of Cassie and Peter,Wes and Caelan looked very complimentary to one another as well
Unable to capatalize on numerous chances ,Oro took a 1-0 lead to the third
With constant pressure it seemed only at matter of time until the pucks went in,and the floodgates opened in the final stanza
Bo pounced on a turnover at opposition blueline and sped off to find twine and invigorate the scoring
Two shifts later Ty barged into traffic behind Wasaga's net winning possession and circled the post to hit Bo low slot who drilled into an open cage. Very nice play assisted by Wesas well.
Next up was the pass of the game as Zack found Jesse post high with long,gorgeous cross seem pass right on the stick. Jesse made no mistake and buried it home quickly.
Robert was rushing the puck strongly game long and tried to split the D with his customary freight train speed. Puck was turned over but Ty smartly pounced on the loose disc sliding it post in on his backhand to round out the third period onslaught
The D had been splendid,keeping the majority of opportunities to the outside as Owen played his first game between the pipes in a year and a half! He was sharp throughout flashing quick flippers and a golden glove
Wasaga managed to break his shutout bid,but no biggie...lots of chances for zeros in this long season and we don't call him the Big O for nothing!
All in all, a great way to kick off the 2015/16 campaign and the team did Coach Mike proud!
Final
Oro 5 -Wasaga 1
October 24,2015-Game 2 vs Midland Centennials 1
The team was buoyant after their first big victory and came ready to play
Early scouting reports suggested Midland 1 would be a force to reckoned with this season and they certainly came as advertised
First period saw numerous chances exchanged,but Oro seemed to have the better of play.
Early chances were thwarted and Oro was a little guilty of making one move too many at times vs ripping shots on goal and chasing rebounds
Robert was busting out of our zone extremely well hitting wingers on the fly but Midland's D was formidable against attacking waves.
Our defense bent but didn't break against some exceptionally speedy and skilled Centennials and Owen saw his share of pucks this game
Midand got on the board late first but Oro wasted no time in answering
Once again Wes found the first marker with timely assists form Jesse and Brodie
Second period saw Midland press harder and Owen had to come up big
Getting used to new,larger pads is not an easy trick and O was using the big flippers effectively and froze the puck smartly under duress
Midland got a very late marker that let some wind out of sails heading to the third and the team showed it's first sign of weariness tinged with frustration.
Despite outchancing Midland for 2 periods,they found themselves down against a goalie that was getting in their heads
Third saw Midland finish strongly and netted an insurance marker with 5 mins to go
Oro continued to try hard,but perhaps too singularly at times.
Midland's big D went end to end with Owen pokechecking him deftly but the rebound was batted in by the trailer and that finished any hopes of a comeback
When it was all over the team could be satisfied they played a tough Cent team even or better for much of the game in this early season.
With some familiarity and focus on team play,Oro can expect to fare better next time around
Final
Midland 4- Oro 1
Nov 1,2015 Game 3 vs Midland Centennials 2
Coach Aaron,fresh off successful coaching indoctrination in far away lands ,was anxious to assume his Head bench duties for the first time this year.
The team too was anxious to revenge their first loss this season against Midland 1's cousins
They didn't get the start desired as a minute in the Cent's Captain pounced on a loose puck at the blueline and came in alone to blast home a laser which Owen had no chance on.
Gut check time..and the team bared down
As has become customary,Oro forced a decided edge in possession time and zone play and only sharp goaltending by Midland's keeper kept us off the board
That came to an end with just .01 seconds on the board as Bo and Wes teamed up to beat the buzzer
Both players have had exceptional starts to this season.
Bo (Jacob) has always been a shifty, natural goal scorer as long as I have known him,but he has developed his skating to a new level.
Better edges,top end speed and the ability to skate just as quickly with the puck makes him a formidable offensive weapon. Keep up the good work Bocephus!
Wesley is a competitive dynamo,who can shut down a rush and wheel out his zone with equal ease and grace.
Coach Aaron had this to say about Wesley in awarding him the Team's Captaincy recently;
"Wes has been working diligently to improve his hockey skills and it shows. He has been a rock on defense and a potent offensive threat in our first two games of the season.Wes has a great attitude and will undoubtedly be a great role model for all team members"
Congratulations' Captain Wes for this very much deserved honour!
Second period saw the team continue to press unrewarded.
A few boys must be feeling snakebitten as a trio of hot handed tenders have thwarted many great chances to date but the old adage holds true; keep creating chances and the pucks will eventually go in
And they did
Jesse,who has been an early season revelation with his tireless compete,playmaking and nose for the net,gave us the lead with helpers from Bo and Peter.
In our end the D had been confidently passing,wheeling and make soild decisions keeping opportunities wide and out. Cassie and Peter have been using their size and long sticks effectively to keep opposition at bay and Wes and Caelan look smooth in taking turns wheeling pucks out of danger.
Owen kept solid position high on shots and turned away pucks with confidence.
Late second Robert took a pass from Caelan on the fly,drove the zone with speed then pulled up with a spinorama backhand to the high slot. Ty seized it,caught the goalie going the other way and went backhand off the post slider for one that just trickled over the line.
This was Ty's best game of the year.
He was hugely competitive on the puck and flying out there in all zones.
Always a strong passer but it was his dogged pursuit on forecheck and backcheck that paid dividends tonight,none better than chasing down Midland's big D man on a potential breakaway and dislodging the puck before crashing into the boards. Great game son and POG honours from Coach on your effort.
A 3-1 lead into the third and Oro kept up the momentum.
Robert continued exceptional pivot puck sharing and found Zack for the clincher...a nice reward for another tireless skater who keeps getting better each outing.
Brodie picked up an apple here too and told him post game he was in "beast mode" tonight...skating as hard and fast as we've seen and competing all over the ice. Learning to own the offensive crease is in the offing and we saw glimpses of it tonight. Keep working hard in practice big guy..it's clearly paying off!
Owen had to make two very tough saves to keep Midland at bay late,and buoyed, they pulled their goalie in a last gasp attempt of "never say die"
The team buzzed and puck bounced until Caelan hit Jes for an open netter earning his second on the afternoon thus capping a fine outing
This was a total team effort making Coach Aaron's Head Coaching debut one to remember and this team should be proud of themselves
This has been an excellent start to the season Thunder, and you too are a team to be reckoned with
Come what may
Final
Oro 5 - Midland 1
(check back for pics...technical difficulties :)