Nipawin vs. Weyburn, 4-2 Hawks, Nov. 3
The Nipawin Hawks put forth an excellent effort and were rewarded as they knocked off the Weyburn Red Wings 4-2 in Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League action in Weyburn on Nov. 3.
The Hawks got off to an excellent start in the contest as Austin Mikesch and Chad McCartney found the back of the net to give the Hawks a 2-0 lead after one period.
Gage Misskey then scored his first goal as a Hawk in the second as the Hawks lead 3-0 through two periods.
After Logan Casavant scored to make it 4-0 for the Hawks, mistakes nearly cost them as they gave up a pair of goals to come away victorious.
“We did sit back a little bit but then later on in the third we started pushing the pace I think it was just a lull but basically it’s just individual mistakes not lack of effort,” noted Hawks head coach Doug Johnson of their third period.
Despite the third period struggles, Johnson was still pleased with the effort of his club overall.
“We liked our game. We got off to a good start and capitalized on some chances and accomplished what we wanted to. We made some mistakes in the third, got a little complacent and didn’t help our goalie out as much as we needed to but all-in-all very happy with the effort.”
Declan Hobbs picked up the win in the Hawks cage turning aside 22 of the 24 shots he faced, as the Hawks outshot the Red Wings 31-24.
With the Hawks embarking on a three games in three nights road trip, picking up a win on night one was a really nice way to start the trip, admitted Johnson.
“To get the two points at the start is huge... it just gives everybody a little bit of an opportunity to breath and relax.”
Nipawin vs. Notre Dame, 2-1 Hounds, Nov. 4
The Nipawin Hawks brought far less than their best and it cost them as they fell 2-1 to the Notre Dame Hounds in Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League action from Midale on Nov. 4.
“It was just an ugly hockey game. I thought that we had some guys that played very well, some guys that didn’t,” lamented Johnson.
“It just wasn’t a game we’re going to look back on and think gees we should have won this game or anything like that. We didn’t have our best, we made some mistakes and we still gave ourselves a chance to win it but at the end of the day we really hurt ourselves I thought overall.”
The game got off to a sluggish start for the Hawks as they gave up the game’s first goal less than four minutes in.
The game stayed 1-0 in favour of the Hounds until midway through the second period when Bryson Cecconi scored his third of the year to tie the game.
With time winding down in the second period the Hounds regained their one goal lead as Olivier Lantagne scored his third of the year with 40 seconds left in the period to give the Hounds a 2-1 lead.
The third period finished scoreless as the Hawks were unable to rebound from the late second period marker.
Johnson was not pleased to see the late goal go in, noting that it cost them the game.
“You have your guys that you rely on in those situations out and you have one guy that just has a brain fart and stares at the puck instead of being aware and it costs us.”
One of the biggest let downs in the game for the Hawks was their power play, which finished the night 0-for-8.
Johnson noted some of the credit for their struggles goes to the Hounds who did a good job blocking shots, but says his team did not use enough deception.
“We were very methodical, didn’t have some creativity. And then obviously I didn’t do a good job because you got 0 for that much you’ve got to make some changes and I didn’t make the changes necessary to help us succeed.”
Jake Anthony was charged with the loss in the Hawks cage allowing two goals on 35 shots as the Hawks were outshot by the Hounds 35-29.
Nipawin vs. Estevan, 3-2 ST Bruins, Nov. 5
The Nipawin Hawks lost a heartbreaker 3-2 in a shootout to the Estevan Bruins in Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League action in Estevan on Nov. 5.
Despite coming out on the losing end, Johnson was pleased with how his team was able to play.
“I thought we did a great job considering they’re sitting there with fresh legs and we’re playing our third game in three nights with a little bit of travel,” he said.
“All-in-all we’re happy with the effort. Did we make some mistakes? Yes. Were they mistakes because of lack of effort? No. The mistakes we made probably were fatigue mistakes.”
The game got off to a solid start for the Hawks as Carter Doerksen scored his third goal of the season at 13:38 of the first period to give the Hawks a 1-0 lead.
Unfortunately for the Hawks they were unable to keep the pressure up in the second as a trio of penalties put the club on their back foot, and saw the Bruins score twice to take a 2-1 lead into the third period.
With time winding down in the third, Brandan Arnold scored his 11th of the season to tie the score and send the game into overtime.
After overtime solved nothing the two teams went to a shootout, where the Hawks finished 1-for-5 and the Bruins finished 2-for-5 giving the Bruins the 3-2 win.
Heading into the game the Hawks needed to be mindful of a pair of prolific Hawks scorers in Zach Goberis and Michael McChesney, who are first and fifth in league scoring respectively.
The pair combined for just one goal in the game, which is a testament to the effort of the players, says Johnson.
“The whole team’s smart where they know who the big players are, they know Goberis, and McChesney. And every time they’re on the ice we did a nice job making sure we got pucks deep, making sure they had to play defense, taking away time and space.”
Declan Hobbs was the hardluck loser in goal for the Hawks turning aside 38 of the 40 shots he faced in regulation and overtime, and three of five in the shootout as the Hawks were outshot 40-37 by the Bruins.
The Hawks’ next action comes Nov. 10 when they take on the Melfort Mustangs.
Heading into that contest, the Hawks are winless in three games against the Mustangs this season, but Johnson notes his team is much different from the one who played the Mustangs earlier in the year.
