It was a much-anticipated weekend for the MBRP Major Midget
Otters as the team travelled to Midland for the Regional Silver Stick
tournament. The Majors were held winless in three round robin games and headed
home without so much as a sniff at Sunday’s semi-finals.
Huntsville had their work cut out for them in the 12-team tournament, facing the Elmira Jr. Sugar Kings in game one. The first period saw the Otters on their heels as the Kings carried the balance of the play. Huntsville was able to weather the storm and the game remained scoreless at the end of the first frame. Huntsville took the lead early in the second period with a power play goal by Ethan Murdy, but Elmira would counter with a goal off the rush several minutes later.
Both teams traded scoring chances for the remainder of the second period and headed into the third tied at one. Mid-way through the third period the Kings would take a 2-1 lead after winning a race to a loose puck off the draw. Huntsville tried to push back but multiple attempts to tie the game were turned aside by the Elmira goaltender. The Kings would add an empty net goal late in the game to seal the victory.
Despite the defeat the coaching staff left the arena very proud of the way the boys had competed with yet another top single A team.
The loss put Huntsville behind the 8-ball, meaning the Otters now needed to win both of their remaining games and finish with a very high GF/GA percentage to have any hopes of moving on. Saturday afternoon saw the Otters match up against the Erin-Hillsburgh Devils in a must-win game.
The Devils came out flying and netted three first period goals on the flat-footed Otters. In the second period Kyler Campbell would make it 3-1 with a great individual effort, ultimately helping Huntsville claw back and swing the momentum. On the next shift Russel Jones found the back of the net with a great wrist shot from the top of the circle to put the Otters within one. Huntsville would continue to press and held the majority of the play for the remainder of the second period.
The third period was filled with frequent penalties by both teams, eventually resulting in Erin-Hillsburgh converting on one of their power play chances to make it 4-2. With nothing to lose Huntsville pulled their goaltender late in the third period. Unfortunately the Devils quickly found the back of the empty net to officially extinguish Huntsville’s chances of moving on.
The Otters finished their round robin schedule on Saturday against the Napanee Stars. While both teams were out of contention the game proved to be a spirited affair. Cam Aben opened the scoring for the Otters, and shortly thereafter the entire Huntsville bench thoroughly enjoyed watching Josh Cormier get his first of the year. The final result was a 2-2 tie, putting an end to a somewhat disappointing weekend. Regardless of the outcome the weekend was not without several bright spots.
The Majors now set their sights on the remainder of the regular season, picking back up with a Friday night tilt on the road in Collingwood.