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St. Andrew’s Saints hockey splits high-scoring weekend

November 11, 2015   ·   0 Comments

By Jake Courtepatte

It may not be the prettiest of starts, but the St. Andrew’s College Saints first hockey team is continuing their winning ways early in the 2015-16 preseason.

Entering their second year of calling the state-of-the-art LaBrier Family Arena home, the Saints welcomed the Blyth Academy Bruins earlier this month, a prep squad out of Burlington.

The Saints were in control from the start, putting up an incredible 66 shots in a 10 – 1 drubbing of the Bruins.

It was a different story, however, when the Saints hosted Maine’s Bridgton Academy Wolverines in a back-to-back over the weekend.

Deadlocked at zeros halfway through the first, the Wolverines opened the scoring on a rebound given up by Saints goaltender Cole Chapman. St. Andrew’s evened the score before the end of the period, with Corey Andonovski surprising the opposing defensemen at the blue line and going glove side on a shorthanded breakaway.

The second period was a goalie’s worst nightmare. It began when the teams exchanged goals just five seconds apart early on, and led to four more Wolverine goals and two more Saints goals for a 6 – 4 score after only two periods.

Chapman was pulled in favour of Kristian Hufsky following the fourth Bridgton tally, a soft one through the five-hole.

The change in net didn’t prove to be much of a factor, with Bridgton going up 8 – 4 early in the third. Regan Kimens finally countered six straight Bridgton goals with a nice backhand after waiting out the Wolverine goaltender.

The doors finally closed on a scrimmage-like contest with a final score of 9 – 7 for Bridgton.

Hufsky was given the start in net on Sunday, where he seemed to pick up where he left off the afternoon prior. Bridgton jumped out to a 4 – 1 lead after two periods, but the St. Andrew’s offence came storming back on the performance of an Alex McDonald hat trick. Hufsky stood tall in the third, as the Saints took it 5 – 4.

With only eight returning seniors from last season’s third-straight CISAA championship winning squad, the class of ’16 will be tasked with introducing twelve new members to their successful system of play.

Incoming captain Reid Yochim, set to join the Princeton University Tigers next year, is a 5’7” defenseman whose leadership skills were noted in his first season with the team last year.

Jacob Miller, who added two assists in the victory Sunday, has put up six points in his first three games so far this season. A draft pick of the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit, the 6’1”, 172-lb. forward will be leaned on for a strong offensive role this year, after showing flashes of brilliance last season.

Defensively, the Saints will be looking to some of the newcomers to lower their goals-against before they begin CISAA play. The 6’4” Noah Lugli, a junior coming off a stint with the AAA Mississauga Rebels, will be tasked with physicality at the blue line. Lucas Thorne, also in his first year with the Saints program, was a 2015 draft pick of the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds.

For stats as well as a full schedule, visit www.sachockey.ca.

         

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