The Vankleek Hill Cougars are up two games to one in their National Capital Junior Hockey League (NCJHL) semi final series, after an exciting 4-3 win over the visiting Westport Rideaus on Saturday, March 8.
The win in front of a packed house of boisterous supporters at the Vankleek Hill Arena was a hard-earned one, with the Rideaus putting a scare into the hosts with a dominant second period, before the Cougars took over in the final frame.
The series has been a back and forth battle only three games in, with Vankleek Hill taking a Game 1 4-3 road victory, and the Rideaus coming back with a 4-3 overtime win in Westport on Friday (March 7).
Game 3 – Saturday, March 8 – Vankleek Hill Cougars 4, Westport Rideaus 3
Cougars’ captain Andy Lightle-Blais scored two key goals, as Vankleek Hill took a 2-1 series lead with a 4-3 win at home.
Zachary Bigras opened the scoring for Vankleek Hill midway through the first, taking a pass from Jacob Crete and wiring a shot over the shoulder of Westport netminder Ben Spicer.
After a fairly even first period, Westport took over play in the second, outshooting the Cougars 15-6 and tying the game 1-1 just 7:23 into the frame. But Lightle-Blais brought Vankleek Hill back, scoring with just 2:50 left in the period to restore the Cougars lead and send them into the third period up 2-1.
Lightle-Blais extended Vankleek Hill’s lead to 3-1, with a goal 2:21 into the third, but Westport responded just two minutes later to cut the lead to 3-2.
Cody Horner brought the capacity crowd to its feet, scoring just over a minute later from Reid Cunning and Sebastien Ouimet, to give Vankleek Hill a 4-2 lead with 14 minutes remaining. A goal by Westport’s Ben Peladeau kept the hometown fans on the edge of their seats for the final five minutes of the game, but the Vankleek Hill defense and winning netminder Mael Gendron were able to turn away all chances.
Shots on goal were 31-30 for Vankleek Hill, with the Cougars outshooting Westport 15-6 in the final period.
Game 2 – Friday, March 7 – Vankleek Hill Cougars 3, Westport Rideaus 4 (OT)
Westport’s Jack Leonard scored the winner at 6:17 of overtime, as the Rideaus tied up their NCJHL semi final series, with a 4-3 win over the Cougars.
Sebastien Ouimet had two goals for Vankleek Hill in the loss, while Zachary Sullivan added a single. Mael Gendron took the loss, despite playing extremely well in the Vankleek Hill net.
Game 1 – Sunday, March 2 – Vankleek Hill Cougars 4, Westport Rideaus 3
Zachary Sullivan scored the winning goal early in the third period, as the Cougars opened the series with a 4-3 road win over Westport.
Cody Horner, Reid Cunning and Zachary Sullivan were the other goal scorers for the Cougars. Tristan Paquette earned the win in net for Vankleek Hill.
Series notes
- Saturday evening’s crowd for Game 3 was the largest and loudest of the season and undoubtedly contributed to the team’s victory. Go Cougars!
- Westport and Vankleek Hill are very evenly matched teams. The Rideaus are a really good team, fast and skilled. The Cougars will have to be on top of their game all series.
- The Cougars played an extremely solid Game 3 on Saturday evening. Mael Gendron was outstanding between the pipes, and all the players skated well. Sullivan, Horner and Easterbrook threw a couple of good hits, and the Cougars stayed to their game plan. Alexandre Chenier really stood out and was awarded Player of the Game.
- Vankleek Hill’s coaching staff has done an amazing job during these playoffs. Head Coach Ryan Allen and his assistants have done a great job of calming the players down in key situations and keeping them focused on the task at hand.
Upcoming games
Game 4 – Vankleek Hill will host Westport a rare Friday night contest, as Game 4 in the NCJHL semi final series kicks off with an 8 p.m. start this Friday, March 14.
Game 5 – Sunday, March 16, at the WTC Centre in Westport. Game time is 3 p.m.
Game 6 (if necessary) – Saturday, March 22, at the Vankleek Hill Arena. Game time is 7:30 p.m.
Game 7 (if necessary) – Sunday, March 23 at the WTC Centre in Westport. Game time is 7 p.m.
Photo Gallery – Cougars vs. Westport – Saturday, March 8
All photos by Sylvain Lauwers
