Mar 01, 2017 | Jen Fletcher | 351 views
Playing with Pep in Their Step
On Saturday night the Hawks faced off against the Waterloo Wolves Black team in front of a very full hometown crowd at Dickson Arena. The Hawks played hard and Reggie Gignac played a phenomenal game, earning the shutout.
The first period saw some great play from the Hawks, not just offensively but defensively as well. Liam Lapierre was able to get a good point shot off that made it through traffic to the goalie as the Hawks were once again using their point men effectively. Defensively, the Hawks also played well. Quintin Douglas had a great backcheck which prevented Waterloo from getting a shot off. The Hawks were also strong in the penalty kill, with thanks to Parker Campbell who was able to clear the puck to the other end each time he got it. Reggie Gignac stayed solid in net, with the first period seeing some amazing saves including one where he reached behind with his stick and slid the puck out before it cross the line. The Wolves kept the Hawks off the board, until just 3 seconds left in the period. Nevin Noble got the puck at centre and fed it up to Justin Vandervelde. That was when Vandervelde made a high shot which bounced of the goalie's mask. The goalie didn't know where the puck had gone and Quintin Douglas was there to put in the rebound.
In the second period, the Hawks again came on strong. The Hawks once again created scoring chances. Campbell was one who started the rush, skating through the Wolves' defence before feeding a great pass to Ben McGowan. Campbell also got a couple of shots on net from the blue line throughout the entire game. Andy Quarrie also had a great pass in the second period right out front of the Wolves' net. The Hawks were able to capitalize finally when Noble once again started the rush. Noble got the puck at centre,and passed it to Ben McGowan who took the puck in and passed it to Vandervelde out front. Justin took the puck and just drove with it to the net. The Hawks offense was not the only thing banging again in the second period. The Hawks defence was also strong. After being beat, Matthew Klassen turned on the gas, came up behind the Waterloo player and lifted his stick to take the puck, preventing a breakaway attempt with a shot on net.
In the third period, Waterloo was hungry for a goal. Quarrie was able to help out defensively by tying up a Waterloo player who was all alone in front of the Hawks' net. Gignac was also on fire in the third, turning away all 9 shots he faced, including by making one amazing glove save. The Hawks kept pushing and skating hard. Ryan Silva skated fast to beat Waterloo to the puck and then even managed to get a shot on net. With just 1:31 left in the game, the Hawks found themselves with a man in the penalty box. The Wolves had already pulled their goalie, so now it was 6 on 4. The Hawks played well defensively and Reggie remained solid. Liam Lapierre finally grabbed the puck and shot from deep inside the Hawks' zone to score the empty netter with 15 seconds left in the game!!
Great game played by the Hawks.
Firefighter helmets went to Parker Campbell and Reggie Gignac.