The Canton boys varsity hockey team has come out of its opening weekend unbeaten, notching a win on Friday night and a tie Saturday afternoon.
On Friday night, Canton 6, Burnt Hills-Balston Spa 2
The Golden Bears took the ice Friday night against Burnt Hills-Balston Spa and came away with a 6-2 victory.
Senior forward Josh Ayrassian started the scoring with a shorthanded goal in the first period. After causing a turnover in the offensive zone, sophomore Owen Logan snatched his own rebound after shooting from in close, circled to the corner and centered a pass to Ayrassian. The BHBS netminder stopped the initial shot, but the rebound ricocheted into the net off Ayrassian as he continued his net drive.
In the second period, freshman forward Thomas Creurer extended the Bears’ lead to two after junior forward David Seymour created a turnover at the top of the defensive zone, creating a two-on-one. Seymour flipped the puck to Creurer who finished a short side wrist shot for his first career varsity goal.
Burnt Hills-Balston Spa cut the lead in half just minutes later after the Bears turned the puck over behind their own net.
Canton’s second shorthanded goal of the game came about halfway through the second period and returned the Bears to a two-goal lead. A scrum for the puck at center ice resulted in a turnover for Logan, who split the defense and buried a breakaway goal between the goalkeeper’s legs.
Logan would notch his second goal of the game later in the second after Ayrassian caused a turnover in Canton’s defensive zone. Logan again split the defensemen and took advantage of a bad angle from the BHBS goalie, netting his shot to the far post. The second period ended with a 4-1 Canton lead.
The Bears made it a 5-1 game just a minute into the third period, when sophomore defenseman Grady Nee carried the puck into the offensive zone. Nee pivoted just inside the blue line and sent the defender sliding into the corner before feeding a no-look backhand pass to Seymour in the slot for a top corner tally.
Burnt Hills-Balston Spa brought the score to 5-2 on a powerplay goal later in the third. A shot from the point was deflected past sophomore goaltender Griffin Coakley to double the road team’s goal tally.
Canton’s final goal came with less than five minutes remaining. Sophomore forward Robert Palmer played the puck to Logan, who was waiting in the corner. Logan found junior defenseman Carter Premo sneaking in from the point and fed him a pass. Premo promptly delivered a shot to the top left corner of the net, ending the scoring for the game.
Logan finished the game with two goals and two assists to lead the Bears. Seymour tallied one goal and one assist, R. Palmer added two helpers, and Ayrassian, T. Creurer and Car. Premo each finished with one goal. Nee rounded out the scoring with a lone assist. Coakley finished his first career start with the Golden Bears making 16 saves on 18 shots.
For photos of this game courtesy of Shelly Pike, click here.
On Saturday afternoon, Canton 2, Canisius 2
The Golden Bears came up against much stiffer competition on Saturday afternoon as Canisius came to the Canton Pavilion. The Bears put forth a complete-game effort, erasing a two-goal deficit for a 2-2 tie.
Canisius got on the scoreboard first after the Bears left an attacking player alone in the slot. The score early on was 1-0 and remained that way through the end of the period.
Canisius would double its lead in the second period, when the Golden Bears struggled to break out on the powerplay. A turnover in their own zone resulted in a breakaway for Canisius, and the penalty killer made no mistake.
Junior goaltender Gavin Schryver kept the Bears in the game through the first two periods. Although the Bears were down by a pair, several high quality saves from the netminder kept the game much closer than it could have been and gave Canton a chance to climb back into the game. And indeed, they were able to take advantage of the opportunity.
The comeback began with less than six minutes remaining in the second, when junior forward Caleb Briggs took matters into his own hands. Briggs picked up the puck just inside the Bears’ blue line. After skating through the neutral zone, Briggsy dragged the puck around an outstretched defender and tucked the puck inside the near post to cut the Canisius lead in half.
Both teams pressed for the remainder of the second period and nearly all of the third before the Bears finally broke through again.
With just seconds remaining in the game, junior defender Jack Brandy picked up the puck from behind Canton’s net, which was empty in favor of an extra defender. Brandy found Nee on a short pass in Canton’s defensive zone, and Nee took off for the far end. Nee skated nearly the entire length of the ice, skirted around a final defender on the side boards in the offensive zone, and picked his head up to see Ayrassian crashing the net. Nee threaded a pass through two more Canisius defenders and Ayrassian finished the offensive opportunity, tying the game with just six seconds remaining in regulation.
After a scoreless overtime period, the game ended in a 2-2 tie. Ayrassian and Briggs both finished with a goal each, and Seymour and Nee each tallied a single assist.
Schryver’s performance in net made the difference for the Bears, as he finished with 34 saves on 36 shots, coming up with sprawling saves multiple times to preserve the competitive edge for Canton.
For photos of this game courtesy of Shelly Pike, click here.
The Bears are home for another pair of games in their home tournament this weekend. Canton will face off with St. Francis at 7:30 Friday night, and will take on Shenendehowa Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. Both games will be held at the Canton Pavilion.
