The Gary Edgecombe CA Peewee Rep
Coyotes beat the Oro Thunder in five games to advance in OMHA
playoffs. They now take on the Penetang Flames for the right to
advance to the semi-finals.
Game one on January 17, saw a spirited Oro team take it to the Coyotes. Late in the first period, Oro took advantage of a two-on-one and scored. From then on, their captain, #7, and the other defensemen shut down any Coyote scoring opportunities. The game ended in a 0-1 loss for the Coyotes.
Game two in Oro, January 18, ended in a 2-3 overtime loss for the Coyotes, but they weren't without their chances. The Coyotes were awarded two penalty shots, and Oro had one. Unfortunately the Coyotes didn't capitalize on their shots, and a poorly-timed line change led to an Oro break-away in overtime, ending the game.
The Coyotes went into game three, January 21, facing elimination. It seems the boys perform better when under pressure because they came out shooting. They scored two in the first period and one in the second. They sat back in the third, icing the puck when they could, and ended up giving Oro some opportunities, but goaltender William McDowell was not interested in squandering a shutout. The game ended 3-0 for the Coyotes.
Still facing elimination, the Coyotes headed for Oro on January 22. Both teams could sense the seriousness of the game and the score stayed 0-0 for two periods. Halfway through the third period, Oro scored on a four minute power play. The Coyotes pulled their goalie with two minutes to go and managed to keep the puck in Oro's end for two face offs. On the second face off, Jake Bouzis passed to Jason Priest and he scored the tying goal. In overtime, Carter Crowder made a pretty pass to Jack Nell who batted in his own rebound for the 2-1 win.
Game five in Elmvale, January 24, started the same as game four, with two scoreless periods. With just over three minutes left in the third period, Jason Priest passed from behind the Coyote net to Carter Crowder who carried the puck into the Oro zone. Carter passed the puck to a speeding Jack Nell who drove straight for the net, finding the five hole and scoring on the way. The team protected the 1-0 lead and William McDowell's second shut out of the series.
The Peewee Rep Coyotes now meet the Penetang Flames as the underdogs, a status they seem to prefer. Come out and cheer on the boys as they play game two at home on Friday, January 31, at 8:20pm.