Clinton Radars bounce back from winless weekend to two-win weekend
BY SHAWN LOUGHLIN
After a two-loss weekend, the Clinton Radars bounced back this weekend with two wins over the Hanover Barons and Mount Forest Patriots.
It began on Friday at home in Clinton with a 6-3 win over the Hanover Barons thanks in no small part to a three-goal first period for the home team.
Teegan Middleton scored just under seven minutes into the first, assisted by Erick Gulutzen and Rodney Ansley, followed by an Ansley goal on the power play just over 13 minutes into the first, assisted by Middleton and Nathan Bloemberg. Denver Mason rounded out the period with another power play goal with just under five minutes left in the first, assisted by Keaton Middleton.
The Barons battled back in the second, with Mason Eurig scoring just before the halfway point of the period, assisted by Aaron Dukeshire and Jack Kruiderink, but the Radars would score two more in the second to put the game out of reach for the Barons. Erick Gulutzen scored with 9:01 left in the second, assisted by Keaton Middleton, followed by another Gulutzen goal, this one on the power play, with 1:13 left in the period, assisted by Jack O’Donnell and Myles Phillips.
Kingston Powell then scored for the Radars to open the third period just over six-and-a-half minutes into the third period, assisted by Nathan Bloemberg.
The Barons would score two more goals before the final whistle, but it would not be enough. Aaron Dukeshire scored with 9:02 left in the third, assisted by Logan Sitlani, followed by a goal scored by former Ironmen Jesse Coombs, with 3:09 left, assisted by Nate Brentnell.
The Clinton Radars only needed 16 shots to score the goals they needed to win the game, with Hanover goaltender Nolan Brown stopping 10 of 16 shots in a losing effort for his team. Jack Dalrymple earned the win for the Radars, stopping 28 of 31 shots.
The next day, the Radars continued their winning ways in Mount Forest, despite the Patriots opening the scoring when Brett Warrilow scored just over a minute into the game, assisted by Matthew McLellan and Leighton Hurst.
Just a few minutes later, however, the Radars tied it up thanks to a Jack O’Donnell goal just over four minutes into the period, assisted by Evan Denunzio and Nathan Bloemberg. The visitors took the lead with 12:28 left in the first with a Keaton Middleton goal, assisted by Denver Mason and Rodney Ansley, followed by a second Jack O’Donnell goal with 11:16 left in the first, assisted by Teegan Middleton and Denver Mason.
Refusing to be left behind, the Patriots scored again with just over a minute-and-a-half left in the first to keep the game close. Matthew McLellan scored for the home team, assisted by Brett Warrilow and Hartley McKenzie.
The Radars then scored again thrice in the second period. First it was Denver Mason just under 15 minutes into the period, assisted by Rodney Ansley and Jack O’Donnell, followed by an Evan Denunzio goal with just over two minutes left in the period, assisted by Keaton Middleton and Nathan Bloemberg.
Continuing the lively final two minutes of the period, Carter Merritt scored with 1:47 left in the second, assisted by Nathaniel Gibbons and Matthew McLellan, and Nathan Bloemberg scored for the Radars with just 52 seconds left in the period, assisted by Kingston Powell and Trent Carter.
In the third, Erick Gulutzen scored six-and-a-half minutes into the period, assisted by Keaton Middleton and Brody Lyndon, followed by an Evan Denunzio goal, his second of the game, 55 seconds later, assisted by Middleton and Lyndon.
Austin Farlow scored with 7:24 left in the third, assisted by Jacob McLeod, but it wouldn’t be enough.
Jack Dalrymple won the game for the Radars, stopping 31 of 35 shots, while Drew Cribbin was handed the loss for the Patriots. After allowing five goals, Cribbin was replaced by Jacob Fluney with just over two minutes left in the second. The Patriots’ goaltenders faced 37 shots, stopping 29 of them along the way.
The Radars are now in fourth place in the North Pollock division of the Provincial Junior Hockey League with a record of seven wins, four losses and two overtime losses and 17 points.
The Fergus Whalers are nearly perfect in first place with 12 wins and one overtime loss for 25 points. The Hanover Barons are in second place with a record of 9-2-0-1-2 and 19 points, tied on points with the third-place Mitchell Hawks with a record of 9-5-0-0-3.
The Radars are in fourth, followed by the Walkerton Capitals with 13 points and a record of 6-6-1-0-1, the Wingham Ironmen with 12 points and a record of 5-8-1-0-1, the Mount Forest Patriots in seventh place with a record of 3-5-2-0-1 and nine points and the last-place Kincardine Bulldogs with four points and a record of 2-11-0-0-0.
Tonight - Friday, Oct. 23 - the Radars will host the Wingham Ironmen, followed by a Saturday night game with the Kincardine Bulldogs on the road.