High school hockey welcomed back in Aurora

High school hockey officially began in Aurora last week as St. Maximillian Kolbe CHS and Aurora High School were both in action. 

Kicking things off at the Aurora Family Leisure Complex last Wednesday, the St. Maximillian Kolbe Mustangs welcomed the Our Lady Queen of the World Jaguars in a Tier 1 thriller. 

Just under two minutes into the game, Mustangs player Zaid Soliman received a four-minute major penalty for head contact. 

On the power play, goaltender Tyler Hodges – who earned eligibility to play with his high school team after making only an appearance for the Haliburton Huskies in the OJHL – came to the rescue to make a few key saves on the penalty kill. 

Moving into the second period, the game finally saw its first goal. Mustangs player Joseph Trovato jammed the puck past Jags goaltender Noah Figueiredo to give the home team the lead. 

Following a breakaway chance missed by Jaguars forward Matthew Sarabando coming back to the other end of the ice, a scary moment occurred. 

Sarabando carried the puck out of his zone and was laid out by Mustangs player Sam Spong.

Sarabando's helmet came off and his head hit the ice. Fortunately, he walked away only with a bloody nose and had some help getting back to the dressing room. 

In the third period, the Mustangs managed to get a second goal on the board thanks to some crafty hands from Daniel Yorke. The Mustangs defenseman danced around numerous Jags players before slipping the puck past Figueiredo's near post. 

The Jags would end up getting on the board near the end but their goal wouldn't be enough as the Mustangs held on for a 2-1 win in front of a great crowd of students who came out to the game. 

“We hadn't had a practice. First game together as a team. [We] played pretty well, I would say. We got some stuff to touch up on. As a team that just came together last week, we worked pretty hard. Great way to start the season,” said Mustangs captain Ryan Blakely. 

Heading into this opening game, it was uncertain whether or not the Mustangs would even have a coach behind the bench. Nobody wanted the job, but Director of Rugby Frank Ienna stepped in to fill the void. 

“One of my Grade 12s came to me this year being their final year in high school. They haven't had sports in two years and he asked me if I can coach the hockey team because nobody else was stepping up. I said, sure why not,” Ienna said. 

“For them, it's something to connect them back to the school. Given that sense of belonging, they're a great group of guys. They work hard. They play for each other. How am I supposed to not give them that?” 

Last Thursday, the Aurora HS Golden Eagles hosted the Huron Heights Huskies at Stronach Aurora Recreation Complex in YRAA Tier 2 action. 

After going up 2-1 in the first period thanks to two goals from William Dodd, the Golden Eagles went on a rampage in the second. 

The boys potted home seven goals in the period that ultimately sealed the game away. Dodd sealed his hat-trick, Nolan Chiarelli scored twice and Maalik Sheraly, Ethan Lane, Callum Millar and Sam Belman all added one of their own to the scoresheet. 

Brendan Brezeau added a second for the Huskies in the third but almost all of their third-period pressure was instantly eradicated by goaltender Anthony Archibald. 

“The anticipation of the opening puck drop was unreal.  Our players waited so long for this. We played our game and everyone contributed to come away with the win,” said Golden Eagles co-coach Scott Green. 

“We have a great group of players and I'm looking forward to a fantastic season.”

Keep an eye on the schedule, located under “Ice Hockey” at YRAA.com to make it out to your school's next game. 

By Robert Belardi