Nov 04, 2018 | Chris Vogels | 725 views
Larry Hudson Midgets rolling along...
The Larry Hudson Midget Reps have been rolling along since the Tilsonburg tournament having many successful games despite being short a few players for many of the games. After a few late nights and a handful of games - here's a quick summary of their recent games.
On October 23 the Meteors welcomed South Bruce to Mitchell. The visitors would open the scoring early in the first period but Dow would take a great pass from Vink and snipe one in from the circle to tie it up only 5 minutes later. With everything knotted up after one, Harmer would pot what would eventually be the winner early in the second with assists to Jacob and Huitema. Later in the 2nd period MacLean's pass would feed Dow as he scored his 2nd goal of the game to add some insurance in the middle frame. The third period would not see any scoring from either side and James made some key saves to back the Meteors to a win 3-1.
A few days later the boys would find themselves in Port Elgin for a Saturday night game. Rauser would start things off midway through the first with assists to R Harmer and Vogels. Harmer and Rauser would team up early in the 2nd to regain the lead after Saugeen Shores tied things late in the 1st. L Harmer converted a nice passing play from Gettler and Dow in the dying seconds before the flood and Eidt finished off the last minute of the third with a goal of his own and assisting credits going to L Harmer and Dow for a 4-1 win. Credit again needs to be given to the defencemen, solid back checking - and Kari's solid goaltending throughout the game.
In the rubber match - on the eve of Halloween, Saugeen Shores would make their way down to Monkton. The Meteors again played a solid game, moving the puck well and killing off more than their fair share of penalties. Still being short a few good men, they relied on a couple of APs again who stepped in and stepped up to the challenge. Vogels would deflect a shot from R Harmer from the top of the circle and 2nd assist going to Rauser. Saugeen did even things up early in the 2nd but a minute later, the breakout play from McMann & Rauser would send Vogels in to beat the netminder and regain the lead a minute later. In between penalty kills and 4 on 4s, Rauser's sweet hands (assists to R Harmer & Vogels) would add to the home team's tally and James Vink would crash the into the net while following his puck around the Storm's goalie for his first of the season - assist credits to both APs Forest and Tweddle. To finish things off, Logan would bury his own rebound after receiving a great pass from Gettler/Dow.
Playing the 2nd game in two nights up in Palmerston would bring the boys back down to earth as Minto came out flying and the boys found themselves in a 3-0 hole before they could get to the first buzzer. The Mad Dogs brought pressure and fast plays and the Meteors were on their heels for much of the period. Mitchell also found themselves in some penalty trouble and couldn't seem to find their groove throughout much of the game. While Kari shut the door throughout the 2nd and 3rd periods, Mitchell could not find the back of the Mad Dog's net with many close calls - but nothing that would close the gap. Vogels would finally break Minto's shutout bid midway through the third but that was all Mitchell could muster up before an empty net goal would send the boys home with a 1-4 loss.
After a few days off, it was time to reset and prepare for a rematch with Kincardine who came to town for a Sunday night game. Kincardine had won the season opener up in Kincardine exactly one month prior, so the Meteors were looking for revenge. Our boys worked the systems well and moved the puck effectively right from the start. Lines were clicking and we finally had one of the three missing links back on the ice. With 5:30 left in the first period, Eidt struck first blood with assists going to Huitema and Dow. With .6 seconds remaining, Dow's pass to Huitema would see a puck get through and Vogels cleaned up the garbage to go up 2-0 after the first frame. Early in the 2nd, Rauser controlled the puck down low, passed it over - and again Huitema's shot would get through. This time it was Ryan who would clean up the loose puck to take a 3-0 lead. Only a few minutes later, Gettler would finish of the play and Mitchell would take a 4-0 lead going into the third period - assists to Catalan & Vinker. The third period would see the fast paced game continue and while the Meteors did have to kill off a couple penalties, they controlled the play much like they did throughout the first two frames. The defence core continued to be solid and controlled the puck in their own end and at the Kinucks blue line - and James was rock solid in net. While it looked like he may keep everything out - as some spectators were thinking about the shutout, a bouncy puck found it's way in through a crack somewhere to make the final score 4-1. Back on the winning track & ready for the Goderich Sailors tomorrow night.