Meech Outstanding in Nets

The Valley Maple Leafs dealt with a hard-skating Antigonish team, Wednesday Jan 23 at Hants Exhibition Arena with the Bulldogs controlling play during sections of the game but credit has to be given to the Leafs for their relentless fore-checking and back-checking, which was just enough to provide them with a 3-0 shut-out.  

Going into their game with the Pictou County Scotians Fri Jan 25 at Hants Exhibition Arena, they stand 7 points behind the Liverpool Privateers for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Fred Fox Division.  A win Friday over the Scotians and some help from other league teams, would put the Leafs in position to move to within three points of the Privateers when they play a make-up game Jan 30 in Windsor at 8:00 p.m.

In Wednesday’s game, the Leafs received a sensational game from goalie Blake Meech who turned away all 36 Bulldog shots, some in a miraculous fashion, especially in the third period when the Dogs outshot the Leafs 16-5.  The Leafs even played short-handed for the final 1:03 of the game after Luke Russell was sent off for tripping.

Cody Burghardt opened the game’s scoring for the Leafs as he took a brilliant pass from Issac Bridge behind the Antigonish net and shot it home to provide the Leafs a 1-0 lead after twenty minutes. Following Burghardt’s goal, he took a penalty for holding and the Bulldogs applied plenty of pressure keeping the Leafs boxed in their own end. Before the first period concluded, Tristan Bowlby missed an excellent scoring chance for Valley and then Ian Drysdale and Peter Drohan went in practically 2 on 0 and both missed glorious scoring opportunities. The Valley outshot Antigonish 15-13 in the opening period.  

In the second period in which the Valley held the Bulldogs to seven shots while taking 12 themselves, the Leafs missed when Cody Burghardt made a great pass to Tristan Bowlby who could not connect.  The same for the Bulldogs when Fearghus MacDonald missed on a clear break for Antigonish.  Bowlby and Stuart Kennie were both stopped stone cold by the Antigonish goaltender mid-way through the second.  Shortly after those stops, Conal Lucey picked up a loss puck and snapped it home to give the Leafs a 2-0 lead. Minutes later, Peter Drohan was positioned to the right of the Antigonish net and flipped a high back-handed shot over the left shoulder of Bulldogs goalie to make the score 3-0 after forty minutes.  

In the third period, the Bulldogs did everything humanely possible to score while on the power-play but Meech stopped them time and time again, at one point making spectacular back-to-back-to-back saves on the Bulldogs.