Mar 26, 2018 | novrep | 1461 views
Wolfpack Fall in OMHA Finals
The Paris Wolfpack Novice Rep team were defeated by a very talented and prepared Lambeth Lancers team in their OMHA Finals. Paris competed and worked hard in all three games but the depth on the Lambeth team eventually wore the Wolfpack down and allowed them to pull away.
The Wolfpack headed into the new year with a sub .500 record in their league play but turned in a great performance during their OMHA playdowns. Facing elimination in the quarter-finals, Paris found another gear, while out scoring NOTL 10-3, to battled back to win games four and five. This set up a semi-final date with the Simcoe Warriors. Simcoe would win game one but the Wolfpack dug their heels in and fought back to win three tightly contested games and advance to the finals.
In the finals, Paris played a near perfect game in game one. Lambeth scored once in the first and once in the second to take a 2-0 lead. The Wolfpack kept battling and Andrew G was able to find Carson V in the slot late in the second period to cut the lead to 2-1. Paris was able to hang in for the first half of the third period before the Lancers were able to break through. With just under 8 minutes to play, Lambeth scored twice in 35 seconds and the deficit was something Paris could not bounce back from.
In game two, Paris hung with the Lancers in the opening period allowing only one goal. Trailing 1-0 heading into the second period, Tyler R gave the hometown crowd something to cheer about when he tied the game three minutes into the 2nd period. Unfortunately, the constant pressure by the Lancers wore down the Wolfpack and they were able to create some breathing room. Ryker H scored a nice goal on an end to end rush in the second period to cut the lead to three, but Paris would not get any closer.
In game three, Lambeth flexed their muscle early jumping out to an early lead but true to Wolfpack form all season, Paris did not give up and kept battling. Josh P would score the final goal of the 2017/18 season in the second period that saw Lambeth carry a 2-1 advantage on the scoreboard. Paris would continue to battle in the third, holding the Lancers off the scoreboard until the final two minutes.
Although being swept in the finals, the Novice Wolfpack should hold their heads high. The team created a perception of being one of the hardest working teams in the SC league and made the most of their opportunities. The OMHA playdowns started with 27 teams competing in the B division (East & West) and advancing to be one of the finalist is a great accomplishment.
Goaltending:
Carson K was terrific in goal for the Wolfpack and carried a sub 3.00 GAA into the final series where he made a number of saves to keep Paris in the series.
Defense:
Paris headed into the season with four first time defensemen. As the season progressed, the group improved, got stronger and more confident, which led to them playing some of their best hockey in the semi-finals against Simcoe. Cam C was a tower of strength on the blueline giving the Wolfpack some much needed size on the back end. Drew W provided the Wolfpack D with speed on the back end and a physical presence. Jared B was a hard working d-man, that used his speed on the back end while displaying some slick puck-handling on a couple of rushes in the playdowns. Evan G continued to get stronger and stronger as the year progressed and was always competing to the final buzzer. As a group, they did a great job of minimizing breakaways and forcing teams to shoot from the outside.
Forwards:
The Wolfpack returned two players from the previous year and they helped carry the offense for the first half of the season. Josh P and Ryker H used their speed and strong shots to pace the offense early in the season while the first year players got their feet wet. In the play-offs, they did a great job of matching up against some of the opposing teams top players. Josh P notched two game winning goals in the semi-final series against Simcoe. Ryker H spent time both at Center and on defense, shutting down the oppositions top players. Carson V stepped up with some big games in the playdowns scoring 10 goals and adding 7 assists to lead the team in points during their run. Andrew G provided some grit and fire in the first two rounds posting 14 points and adding two game winning goals. Scott H continued on with his reputation of being one of the hardest workers on the ice and was a constant force on the back-check, supporting the defense. Tyler R, possessing a great shot, contributed two game winning goals with his trademark "load and release" goals and finished with six goals in the play-offs which was good for third on the team.
AP's:
I would like to say thank you to all the AP's that helped us out at practice during the season and special shout out to the four that helped us out during tournaments and games when we were short handed. Logan H, Griffin N, Oliver L and Cam "Stewey" Stewart. Thank you for making yourselves available and contributing to the team.
Saturday night marked the end of the 2017/18 season but coaching staff and parents couldn't be prouder of how hard you worked through out the season. We are looking forward to seeing your banner hanging on the wall of the BSC along with the other great teams from the PMHA.