The Etobicoke Dolphins moved into sole possession of first overall in the OWHL defeating Burlington and Central York.
The Etobicoke Dolphins moved into sole possession of first overall in the OWHL defeating Burlington and Central York.
This past weekend at the Ford Performance Centre in Etobicoke, Ontario, the home of the Etobicoke Dolphins, the team prepared to take on both the Burlington Barracudas and the Central York Panthers to close out the week’s games with first place in the league on the line.
First up, the Burlington Barracudas, a team with almost an identical record, outstanding goaltending and a really difficult defensive structure to play against. Heading into this one, fans knew it would be equal parts exciting hockey and likely a low scoring affair. The first period started off slow for both teams, with no real scoring chances and a shot total for both teams sitting at 16. But the second period changed everything.
A goal at 15:36 by the Barracudas’ Lexi Stanat opened the scoring, quickly then followed up by the Dolphins’ Riley Sorokan on the powerplay. Tied 1-1 after forty minutes, and the shot clock jumped to 27-12 in favour of the Dolphins. The Dolphins continued their strong play in the third, adding the winning goal by Emma Beauchamp at 12:55, followed by an insurance marker by Sofia Ismael at 12:01. Final in this game was 3-1 Etobicoke, vaulting them into first in the league.
“It was very intense,” Beauchamp said. “We just tried to keep them stick on stick, keep them outside and obviously that worked.”
“Our team battled all the way until the end,” added forward Adrianna Milani. “I thought our character showed and it was great to get a win against that team.”
This game could have easily been a much higher scoring game if not for the Barracudas’ starting goaltender Mackenzie Ferguson who kept her team in it with some truly outstanding saves. Not to be outdone, at the other end, the Dolphins’ netminder Lily Prendergast, though far less tested, made solid saves of her own and showcased her athleticism. The difference here was the defense of the Dolphins, limiting the Barracudas to only 17 shots, well below the 40 the Dolphins had.
Game two of the weekend featured the Central York Panthers, a team the Dolphins had defeated earlier in the week by a score of 6-1. Heading into this game, the Dolphins and their fans knew that the Panthers were going to be looking to make a statement in this one after being taken down in such a fashion and it was a back and forth game in its entirety. Sade Sandilands opened the scoring at 16:27 of the first for the Dolphins, but at 9:11 of the same period, Panthers forward Cheyenne Degeer did what she does best: score, this time a powerplay goal, which was a theme in this game. The Dolphins, coming off a game in which they did not see the penalty box at all, had a steady stream of players heading there, 6 penalties versus the Panthers with 4. The Dolphins did manage to pull ahead late in the first at 8:09 on a goal by Sofia Ismael. Lexie Bertelsen and Rachel Piggott factored into both first period goals by the Dolphins and were both noticeable all game long.
The second period opened up with a powerplay goal by the Panthers at 14:49 by Avery Johnston to tie the game (the Panthers finished 2 for 4 on the powerplay in the game), but the Dolphins scored two quick goals from both Beauchamp and Adrianna Milani, but the Panthers were able to cut into that lead once again late in the period on a goal by Annabella Van Berkel.
Heading into the third, the Dolphins were holding onto a very close 4-3 game and the Panthers never let up. Aggressive forecheck after aggressive forecheck challenged the Dolphins on every shift. Despite the strong play from the Panthers, the Dolphins were able to score a late period empty net goal from Milani, her second of the game, to seal the victory, giving them a 5-3 win, and a 3-0 record for the week.
“Obviously it wasn’t the prettiest of games,” said Van Volsen. “But I think we stuck together as a team and got the job done. 3 games in one week is always tough but I think we came out and got the job done.”
“It wasn’t the finish we hoped for,” said Panthers’ forward Degeer. “But we pushed a really good team right until the end of the game and I’m really happy with our effort.”
A busy weekend of exciting hockey in the OWHA, two big wins for the Dolphins, three straight on the week now leaves them atop the leaderboard with 41 points in 16 games.
This weekend, the Etobicoke Dolphins exemplified a quote they approach every game with and the last thing each player sees before leaving the dressing room: “It’s amazing what can be accomplished if no one cares who gets the credit.”