2005 National U18 Club Championship

PACIFIC 4 CENTRAL 5

Round Robin
April 20, 2005
Guertin Arena
Gatineau, QC

By/Par: Graeme Kishiuchi

In a must win game for both teams, the Edmonton SSAC Athletics took on the Don Mills Flyers.  With both teams coming off undisciplined performances, they were looking to stay out of the penalty box and the referees were looking to keep tighter control.  The Athletics had the first power play, where Scott MacNeill had two in close chances that were stopped by Sean DeZilva.  The Athletics got into penalty trouble and Kyle Wetering put home a rebound of a Brent Tamane shot to give the Flyers a 1-0 lead.  With the Flyers on another power play, Tamane picked up his second assist with a nice feed to James New who beat Keanan Boomer through a screen from the point for a 2-0 lead at 9:05.  Edmonton cut the lead to one on a power play of their own when Brad Tierney picked up a point shot off the end boards and beat DeZilva low at 16:43.  Wetering had a late chance on a breakaway, but couldn’t find the handle, as the teams traded chances late, ending the period with a 2-1 Flyers lead. 

The Flyers applied early pressure to start the second period and Kyle Ventura put home a cross crease pass from James Murdoch at 2:29 into the period.  Both teams continued to have penalty trouble, and the Athletics finally capitalized on a 4-on-3 when Matt Wear beat DeZilva blocker side at 8:41 to bring them within one.  The Flyers picked up the pace and Boomer had to be sharp, making a couple of big stops.  DeZilva was up to the task as well, making five spectacular saves during an Athletics flurry.  The Flyers turned the tables, transitioning DeZilva’s big saves into a great goal by Ventura on an individual effort for his second of the afternoon, making it 4-2.   That sequence proved to be the key point in the game, as the Flyers controlled the rest of the game.  The Athletics defensemen had trouble contending with the speed of the Flyers, as Boomer took away some sure goals.  The teams headed into the second intermission, with Don Mills out shooting Edmonton 26-22 after two periods. 

The Athletics started the period in penalty trouble again, leading to Ben Gazdic’s goal on a 4-on-3 at 6:28 into the third period.  Don Mills slowed the pace of the game for the bulk of the third period; limiting Edmonton to only a few scoring chances with their solid fore-check.  Edmonton did break through late, when Justin Delong scored on the power play with 3:33 left to go. Edmonton added another goal by Adam Ross with 20.8 seconds left to make it interesting, but the Flyers held off the late flurry for a crucial 5-4 win.  The Player of the Game for Don Mills was Kyle Ventura (2 Goals).  The Player of the Game for Edmonton was defenseman Taylor Fedun.