This past weekend, the Durham Crusaders U11 LL Team took their shot at the Regional Silver Stick Tournament in Wasaga Beach. It was the tournament's 50th anniversary, and the Crusaders were up against teams from Listowel, Mitchell, Wingham, Penetanguishene, and the hosts, Wasaga Stars.
On Saturday morning, the Crusaders kicked off their campaign against the Mitchell Meteors. Although the Boys in Blue were off to a slow start, scoring one in the first and one in the second, they picked up steam, scoring two more goals in the third period for a decisive 4-0 win. Big shoutout to JP between the pipes on this one and Mason B for his end-to-end efforts as our player of the game.
While the team refueled with a lunch, and the parents shook off the cobwebs from the night before, the players began to set their sights on Game 2 vs the Wingham Ironmen.
The second game started much like the first, with the Crusaders pulling ahead by two within the first 5 minutes. The Wingham team didn’t sit back and answered quickly with three goals in the second half of the period to leave the score at 3-2 Wingham after one. It was a tense matchup between these two teams, but the second period would be in the hands of the Crusaders, scoring 3 goals to 1, leaving the score at 5-4 in favour of the Crusaders before entering the third. This period would effectively be the x-factor in the final decision as the Crusaders couldn’t seem to beat the Ironmen’s goalkeeper and allowed two goals against. Down to the dying minutes of the third period, with the goalie pulled, they just couldn’t pull off a goal, allowing the Ironment to walk away with the win. Our Silver Stick Player of the Game went to Luke for his strong plays on defense, which undoubtedly saved more than one goal during the game.
Saturday night was important for these kids (and parents) as it allowed them to connect more off the ice with some pool time and a pizza party, all while keeping the hotel staff on their toes. More importantly, we could recoup and shake off the frustrations from the game earlier in the day.
Sunday’s matchup versus the Listowel Cyclones was a must-win. This game saw the two best teams in the tournament face off against each other for a chance at the finals. There were some strong efforts back and forth, and the Crusader forwards began making some crisp passes cross-ice and in front of the opponent's goalie, which ended up in the back of the net. The teams were deadlocked after two periods: 2-2 after the first, and 3-3 after the second. During the final period, the Cyclones pulled ahead 4-3 within 20 seconds of puck drop. This would now be a test for the Boys in Blue to see if they could rally and pull out a win - a tie was out of the question. 8→14 were in sync all game and didn’t disappoint, as the two connected on a goal two minutes later to tie it up at four-all. In the final minutes of the third period, a chip up the boards from the defenseman to Silipo, who fed Boesch, would see the go-ahead goal after staving off a Listowel empty net/extra attacker in the final seconds. The Crusaders played their hearts out in this game to stay alive in the tournament. The Apple Man - Silipo #8 was our player of the game, assisting and setting up 4 out of the five goals in this final matchup.
Unfortunately, with unique Silver stick rulings, the Crusaders missed having a spot in the finals due to a tie-breaker technicality. Although Blue had the second-best winning record of the tournament, wins (aside from the points they carried) didn’t play a factor in the tiebreaker. Penetanguishene would be the fortunate contender in the finals, having allowed fewer goals against in their three games and only having one win and two ties. This near miss would have seen the Crusaders have a shot at redemption versus the Wingham team, who went on to win the tournament.
Next up, the Crusaders look to improve their 2023-2024 campaign of 13-3-2 as they host Kawartha Coyotes on Tuesday night. Go Blue!
-Coach Steve